MY WORKING LIFE
As an illusionist, Ahmed Al Bayed loves to blur the boundary between real and surreal. Danger is an occupational hazard.
Saudi Arabia’s award-winning master illusionist and Arabs Got Talent star Ahmed Al Bayed on tricking his parents, driving death-defying roads blindfolded and breaking his bones – all for magic.
What got you interested in a career in magic?
I didn’t choose this career; this career chose me. I guess I was born to perform magic and illusion. They are part of me and define who I am.
What was the first trick you tried?
I was about five when my grandfather showed me a trick. He wrapped a napkin around his hand, then drew the napkin off to reveal a couple of coins in his palm. I found it awesome. I learnt the trick, practised hard and a couple of months later performed it before my parents. Coming from a five-year-old they never expected it and the excitement and amazement on their faces spurred me to learn more tricks. Even today, I thirst to see that same reaction on my spectators’ faces when I perform tricks.
Did you take any courses in magic?
Not really. While I was at school in London, I used to visit stores selling magic items and purchase loads of stuff. I’d then create scenarios around the tricks and practise and perfect those tricks, first before the mirror, then before my friends and family. I was 13 when I did my first professional show and received 5 pounds. I used to get one pound as pocket money, so 5 pounds was unbelievable – it was a lot of money. You have been performing ever since.
I’ve been going on stage regularly. At 17, I expanded my repertoire and started doing restaurant magic shows. I was even a comedy magician while I was at university in the US.
What’s your dream trick?
There is no one dream trick. Today, anything that I want to perform is within easy reach. If you have proper settings, you can pull off any stunt.
You once wanted to make one of the pyramids in Egypt disappear.
Yes. I made all the plans and approached the authorities for permits. But one of the officials asked me: ‘How can you guarantee you will bring the pyramid back?’ That’s how he rejected my request. The disappearing pyramid trick is an illusion; it would always be there, only you wouldn’t be able to see it for a while.
What’s the most amazing trick that you have performed?
I’ve done a lot of big stunts for my programme on the MBC channel. One involved driving a car on a stretch of road in Lebanon’s Wadi Jamajim (Skull Valley). Blindfolded. The road is very dangerous because one side has a sheer drop of around 550 metres and there are no safety barriers. There’s a story that the name Skull Valley came from the skulls of accident victims that lie littered on the valley floor.
What happens when a trick you are performing does not go according to plan?
If something goes wrong on stage, the spectator would not know because no one except the performer knows how the trick is going to end. The difference between a professional and an amateur is that the latter might pause for a moment if something goes wrong. I believe in Murphy’s Law – what can go wrong, will – so when I conceive an illusion, I also consider every angle that can go wrong and think of ways to cover up. And if anyone does notice the mistake, I make a joke about it and make it look like it was intentional.
Tell us when one of your tricks went wrong. Once I was performing a stunt where I was in a strait jacket, hands tied and dangling upside down 12 metres above the ground – about three storeys high – by a rope tied to my feet. The trick involved me freeing myself after the rope is set alight. I had to slip out of the strait jacket,
untie my feet, grab another rope and slide down safely in about two minutes – the time it took for the rope to burn through.
I trained a long time for this trick. But on the day, the person in charge of my safety mistakenly tied the safety wire knot upside down. So while I was able to slip off the jacket and untie my hands, I couldn’t free my legs in time. The rope burned through and I fell, breaking my pelvis in four places, fracturing my shoulder, puncturing a lung and chipping a few teeth. It was bad, very bad. But I was back on my feet in two months and repeated the performance – this time doing it perfectly.
Another time my cell phone nearly killed me.
Wow, what happened?
Some illusions are based on electronics, where the safety, too, depends on electronics. I was performing a trick that involved spikes dropping down on me while I attempt to escape from a box. The thing is that the spikes will never drop until I send a signal. But what happened was just before I could make my escape, my cellphone rang, triggering the signal and the spikes dropped while I was halfway out of the danger zone. One spike hit my knee and I had to be hospitalised.
The rope burned through and I fell, breaking my pelvis in four places, fracturing my shoulder, puncturing a lung and chipping a few teeth
What are your dreams?
I want to set up an institute where talented children will be provided help to hone their skills to become the best in the world in their chosen field. And not only in magic but in arts, sports… We would help them achieve their dreams and put them in the world spotlight. I think Dubai is the right place for such a centre.
Ahmad Al Bayed performs at City Centre Deira today and tomorrow at 5pm, 7.30pm and 9pm.