Harry Maurer Featured in Voyage Houston Magazine!
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Today we’d like to introduce you to Harry Maurer.
Few people have an idea of what they would like to do when they grow up. Harry Maurer was lucky to know from an early age that he wanted to be a professional magician. Not a “birthday party” children’s performer, but a world-class professional magician entertaining in casinos, aboard cruise ships and at major corporate events around the world.
But how do you take such a fun job and make a career out of it?
As a child, Harry was determined to be a magician and performed his first of many nightclubs shows at the age of 13. By the time he reached High School, with the permission of his teachers and school Principal he had managed to re-arrange his class schedule so that he could leave school early each day to perform the matinee and evening shows at a nightclub at the New Jersey shore!
By the time he was 16 he was entertaining six hours a night at the table sides of major restaurants presenting magic only inches away from the patrons! Here is where he learned best how to interact with audiences and get them participating, amazed and laughing! For the next 5 years, Harry would always find time in his schedule to hone his “close-up magic” in restaurants and has presented his “table-top trickery” in such exclusive venues as “Top of the World” (World Trade Center), “Tavern on the Green” and the famous “21 Club”.
Taking his career seriously, Harry studied theater production at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University while entertaining in nightclubs in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania and has incorporated his theater training and years of experience into all of his show making them not just fun (his shows are exciting, interactive and comical), but making them into true theatrical experiences with a recorded musical background that makes his seemingly small show that fits nearly everywhere into a mini production show that gets people on their feet cheering!
Las Vegas Entertainment Today described his show best when they said: “His easy manner with the audience combined with a magical skill second to none, is what the audience remembers after the curtain goes down.”
With his consistently clean and entertaining shows, he was asked to join comedy legends Joey Bishop (from Sinatra’s original “Rat Pack”), Jackie Vernon and other national stars on a five-month tour of the United States followed by a four-month engagement in Atlantic City where the hit show sold out its nearly 2,000 seats each day!
Malcolm Gladwell in his landmark book “Outliers” states with certainty that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve mastery in any field. Between Harry’s years of presenting close-up magic in front of diners in exclusive restaurants, his years of performing on cruise ships, casinos and in professional venues around the world (presenting as many as 13 shows per week) — Harry has clocked more than 10,000 hours! He is more than just “masterful”… he is an extremely skilled, fun and proficient entertainer which you can tell the moment he steps onto the stage!
Harry never stops working and each year entertains in casinos, theaters and aboard cruise ships around the world. He has lead a diverse career by opening for such stars as The Supremes, Rita Rudner, Ray Romano, Jason Alexander, Rich Jeni, Rosie O’Donnell, Frankie Avalon and so many others while entertaining U.S. Presidents, Celebrities and even International Royalty with his fun and interactive magical style.
While in Houston, Harry entertains at exclusive corporate and private events and designs fundraising performances for non-profit organizations
Harry is an extremely skilled, fun and proficient entertainer which you can tell the moment he steps in front of an audience, making every event exciting, fun and magical!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
While in college, I studied at the Mason Gross School of the Arts in the daytime and performed at the Playboy Club in New York city at night (presenting two shows a night, three shows on Friday and Three on Saturday!). That left me with only a few free hours to do homework in the dressing room and catch a few hours a night for sleep! It was exhausting, but worth it!
While in college, I studied at the Mason Gross School of the Arts in the daytime and performed at the Playboy Club in New York city at night (presenting two shows a night, three shows on Friday and Three on Saturday!). That left me with only a few free hours to do homework in the dressing room and catch a few hours a night for sleep! It was exhausting, but worth it!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about The Comedy & Magic of Harry Maurer – what should we know?
I entertain regularly in high profile venues like cruise ships, casinos and theater, but while in Houston, my business focuses on clean, entertainment for company dinners and high-profile events. I also have a separate company called “Supercharged Fundraising” that designs fundraising evenings of entertainment in a way that costs my clients nothing. (www.SuperchargedFundraising.com)
I entertain regularly in high profile venues like cruise ships, casinos and theater, but while in Houston, my business focuses on clean, entertainment for company dinners and high-profile events. I also have a separate company called “Supercharged Fundraising” that designs fundraising evenings of entertainment in a way that costs my clients nothing. (www.SuperchargedFundraising.com)
What sets my shows apart from other magicians is my personality and the way that I genuinely interact with audience members. Rather than this “lofty” powerful magician pretending to do magic, I impossibilities in a fun way — and I am having as much fun as my audiences in a very genuine way, and people recognize that.
There are very special routines in my show that I am proud of — one being a routine where I borrow wedding rings from the audience and I link them together! On large stages, we even zoom in with a camera and the people I borrowed the rings from are right there on stage with me — it is a very magical moment.
But what I am most proud of are the reactions to my show!
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
My mentor was a magician named “The Amazing Randi” — he has been on the Tonight show repeatedly and is also “Penn & Teller’s” mentor. When I was growing up he taught me to learn more than just magic tricks. To relate to an audience, you need to know things that they know — science, business, golf — there is so much out there! This has made me much more well-rounded as person and allows me to converse with people.
My mentor was a magician named “The Amazing Randi” — he has been on the Tonight show repeatedly and is also “Penn & Teller’s” mentor. When I was growing up he taught me to learn more than just magic tricks. To relate to an audience, you need to know things that they know — science, business, golf — there is so much out there! This has made me much more well-rounded as person and allows me to converse with people.
Also, I spent years honing my comedy skills in Comedy Clubs around the country. Magic and Comedy work on the exact same principle — the element of surprise! Comedy Clubs have allowed be to develop my comic personality, timing and pacing. I also got to learn what people think is funny!
Pricing:
- Locally, my fees start at $1,200 with shows that can be customized to fit into nearly ANY environment!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hmmagic.com – www.events.hmmagic.com – www.superchargedfundraising.com
- Phone: 281-345-9322
- Email: harry@hmmagic.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/hmmagic
- Other: 24 Hour Recorded Information: (800) 871-9002 (Access Code 87709)
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