Keith dices with death in new show

Keith Barry called into The Kerryman offices to talk about his upcoming show ‘ Magic Madhouse’ in the INEC; Fergus Dennehy talks to him about the the inspiration for the show, the audience participation and escaping from a straitjacket in a submerged box.

SITTING in a boardroom in ‘The Kerryman’ offices, Waterford’s Keith Barry hands this writer a piece of paper and says to write any word on a piece of paper and to keep it cupped safely between two hands.

Having written the word, Keith tells me to sit perfectly still while he attempts to ‘read my mind’ and discover the word I had written.

What followed was a series of probing questions and a study in body language before Keith confidently sits back in his chair, with a smile on his face.,

“Your word, was sock,” he says laughing, which of course it was, leaving this writer with nothing else to do but applaud.

The trick is pure Keith Barry, who will perform in the INEC in Killarney on the night of Saturday December 30, and who says that he has bowed to the wishes of his audience by returning to his magic roots for the first time in 15 years.

“I can’t wait for it [the INEC show]. By far the favourite part of what I do is performing live. I do a lot of different things but being on stage, acting the maggot, is what I love to do most,” he said, talking on Friday afternoon.

“For the last few years now, anyone who has been to my shows, they would have pre-dominantly seen ‘brain-hacking’ shows, hypnosis, mentalism and so I feel like I haven’t done any ‘real’ magic on stage in a long, long time.”

“At the end of my shows, I usually try to stay on afterwards for a meet and greet with the audiences. Sometimes there could be upwards of 1,000 people there and I’ll spend an hour or two just meeting everybody. Recently, I’ve started asking my audiences at the meet and greet after my shows what they wanted to see more of in the new year and magic was a big thing for them. They wanted to see a return to it,” he continued.

Describing what audiences can expect from the night - which is open to kids as well - Keith says that after a few years of ‘“darker and edgier work”, this show will be have more of a light hearted feel to it.

“It [Magic Madhouse] is a visual comedy magic show; it’s going to be very different to anything I’ve done before. For fans of my mentalism and hypnosis too though, there will be sprinklings throughout the show, but the majority of it will be magic based,” he says leaning back in his chair.

The world famous magician says that while 95 per cent of the show is ready to go, there is one snag he has yet to overcome - how to escape from a manacled and steel straitjacket, all while having his head completely submerged in water inside a perspex glass box.

“It’s called ‘Fatality’ and it’s definitely my most dangerous and daring escape to date. It’s going to be the first water based stunt that I’ve ever done, even on TV. It’s made all the worse by the fact that I’ve had an immense fear of water since a near-drowning accident at the age of four.”

“I counted it all on the drive down today. I’ll have a minimum of 12 contraptions and locks to get out of before I’ll be getting air back into my lungs again. I’m not going to lie, I’m feeling a lot of nerves, there’s a real danger involved in this stunt,” he continued.

“The perspex glass, which is as clear as a drinking glass, is bulletproof. So, if something goes wrong, it’s not as if a member of my staff will be able to come out with a hammer, break the glass and I’ll be saved; there’ll be none of that s**t going on in my show,” he chuckles.

“I’m going to be locked in the