PiP is the young creative genius behind the shows Hypnolarious and The Funny Side of Prestidigitation, which are an exhilarating blend of comedy, magic and hypnotism. The Pun’s Kym Poxon caught up with him at Glitch bar, an intimate venue perfect for a magic extravaganza and home to his show The Funny Side of Prestidigitation.

Where did you grow up, and when did you start performing?

I am a Sydney boy, growing up just south of the inner city. I pretty much have been doing something in the performing arts my whole life, whether it was acting or performing in bands and orchestras. I started to branch out and perform on my own in my late teens, experimenting with different things like stand-up and main roles in shows. Magic had always been a passion in my life so I guess it was just going to be a natural progression towards becoming a magician. I told everyone when I was four that was what I was going to be and I guess I don’t like going back on my word.

Describe your two shows to me.

Manic mayhem, incredible energy and a lot of fun. The shows are more than just funny shows – they involve the audience so much and I do a lot of improv in every show. I love really connecting with the audience and bouncing off them. Every show is a little bit different but always a lot of fun to be at and even better if you decide to become a part of the show. I look after everyone who helps me out in my show and everyone who comes on stage wants to do it again. I am described as out-there, what-am-I-gonna-do-next kind of person with a cheeky sense of humour and that’s what I bring to the shows. I never go too far to upset or offend anyone, especially not the people that come up on stage. I have a lot of respect for them having the guts to come up and face the unknown. I take good care of those people.

Have you met/entertained anyone famous?

At one of the magic seminars I went to, I did meet Michael Jackson back stage for about two seconds. My friend was performing so we were hanging out back stage and it turns out that Michael is a huge magic fan (as well as good friends of Siegfried and Roy who were backstage as well), and had come by to say “Hi” as he was in town. I have also performed at Playboy parties in Vegas so I have met some C and B list adult stars. I performed on two occasions at the APEC summit so that might count as well? That APEC gig was actually really fun and the guys were a hoot to perform for. I kept stealing stuff from this dignitary from Japan, who kept having to come back to me to collect some sort of article that belonged to him like his phone, wallet or even his APEC security pass. At the time I was driving an old beat up Ford station wagon and would drive in wearing only a T-shirt, shorts and thongs. I would then have to get out of the car when I got to the police check point with these cops looking at me like “This guy can’t seriously think he is going to be let through the barrier?” They would call it in and suddenly you would see their faces just drop as they were told to let me pass.

When did you start making money from comedy?

I was 17 and walking home from school, when I somehow convinced the owner of this pub that I was 18 and started working there. On a Friday and Saturday night I would work about seven or eight hours straight, not leaving the place till about five in the morning (at which point I would have a quick nap before my Saturday day job). This was the start of me.

What is your daily life like now?

As much as friends and other people believe I do nothing, this life keeps me pretty busy. I spend about six hours a day just on practice and revision – working on new routines or going over old ones. On top of that, I self manage myself so there is contacting agents, booking in venues for shows, booking in my corporate shows and charity functions and co-ordinating tours both nationally and internationally. This keeps my pretty busy and I am a bit of a night owl, staying up till about four in the morning. Usually I get hit with inspiration around midnight and will keep working till I pass out in the early hours of the morning.

What do you like to do after a show?

I am actually quite boring – I just like to go for a long walk under the night sky. I love looking up at the stars and contemplating the show I have just done. Unfortunately I don’t really have any crazy after-show rituals that would see me backstage performing a hand-stand singing the Muppets’ theme song while sucking the juice out of a lemon thru a straw. Now I think of it, I might try that one after tonight’s show.

Is it a challenge to do a routine on your own?

I do have an assistant at Hypnolarious to help me with props and a few other things, and another assistant in Sydney that does my stand-up magic shows with me. I don’t really see any challenge in performing on my own, I just design my shows around the situation. My show The Funny Side of Prestidigitation is and always will be a one man show. What you see in the show is the foundation of magic, which is just one person using only the skill of their hands to entertain and amaze. As for collaboration, I do work with my best friends (who are also magicians) on ideas for our shows but have nothing planned just yet. I have been asked to sell my ideas to but I want to hold on to them for the time being.

What is the secret to hypnotism?

Depends on who you are. When you are a hypnotist, the secret is confidence and building trust with your audience. For the person being hypnotised the trick is to allow yourself to relax and let go – hypnosis is so normal that you naturally go into it about eight to nine times a day. Everyone who wants to be hypnotised can be hypnotised – the hypnotist can’t make you do anything you wouldn’t want to do. Ultimately, if you do let yourself go, you will come out feeling really relaxed and fantastic.

What is the funniest moment you have had with a hypnotised audience member?

There are so many stories I could tell you that really should never go to print but I will never forget the show I did for a bunch of crew members late one night after the bar had closed on a cruise ship. After going through some routines I noticed that the cleaners had come up to clean the bar, so I hypnotized Alex, the ships’ DJ, informing him that he was now one of the cleaners and that he was in trouble for not doing his job properly.

So he wakes up and frantically starts mopping the floor. When the real cleaners try to stop him he waves the mop at them, screaming “IT’S MY JOB! IT’S MY JOB!” This continues until I ask him where the ‘Caution – Wet Floor’ signs are, at which point he starts running around even more frantic, looking for one. I turn to the other hypnotized person and start to give her a suggestion when someone notices Alex is gone. We all look around, but there is no sign of him anymore and we start to panic.

As we do a final sweep before venturing into passenger areas, we hear someone racing up the stairs screaming “IT’S MY JOB! IT’S MY JOB!” In storms Alex with two signs, which he immediately sets out on the floor, returning to his mopping frantically. As we found out the next day, he had run through most of the ship, found some other cleaners working, stolen the signs from them, all the while screaming “IT’S MY JOB! IT’S MY JOB!”, then run back to us. He was from then on known as DJ “It’s My Job” Alex.