Leon-Etienne
The Weekly AdirondackIllusionist Leon Etienne can be seen performing his craft on the Adirondack Scenic Railroad’s Magic Train every Friday through the end of August.
“When the riders come on board, the journey begins. I grab a microphone and approach different groups wherever they are sitting and perform close-up illusions that include card tricks and coin tricks,” Etienne said.
He said he is not there to detract from the view or the ride, but to allow passengers to experience both the magic of the Adirondacks and the magic of himself.
He added that it’s not only the children who are amazed by his illusions, but the adults as well.
The accomplished illusionist said his interest in magic began at the age of 12 when his mother grounded him and sent him to his room.
“I was bored out of my mind until I began reading a magic book I received as a gift. From that day on I was hooked on magic,” he said.
A year later while playing baseball, he was struck by lightning but luckily survived. After that magical things began to happen to him.
“I decided I wanted to be a magician and I kept up with magic all through high school and college,” he said.
Etienne said he attended college to learn the business side of his chosen profession. As for the performance end, he took theater classes and traveled around the world to magic conventions to learn from some of the top pros in the industry.
Etienne, who grew up in Utica and graduated from Proctor High School, started training locally with Sean Robinson, a magician who performed at Delmonico’s Italian Restaurant in Utica.
“He helped me out a lot when I first started. Then I studied under Peter White, who is based out of New York City. He used to build things for Chris Angel, Lance Burton and David Copperfield.
“I ended up working for him and that’s how I ended up paying him for the lessons I was getting because there’s really no way an 18-year-old kid could afford the instructions. I think it was $500 a day. I learned how to build illusions, and eventually reached a point where I had to go my own way,” he said.
Etienne said he was lucky to be able to collaborate with other magicians and from time to time they help each other out.
He said he is always learning new techniques and striving to be a better performer.
“If I’m not upgrading the equipment, I’m upgrading with another theater class. And being a people person makes it easier,” he said. “You’ve got to be able to read people in order to pull this off successfully.”
Etienne has performed professionally for more than a decade at different venues across the U.S., and his love and passion for magic has also taken him all over the world.
His performances have won several prestigious awards, including CNY Magician of the Year and Stage Magic Champion from the Magician’s Alliance of Eastern States.
He is one of only 200 magicians who attend Fechter’s Finger Flicking Frolic, an annual by-invitation-only magic convention in Batavia, NY that offers a chance to study and perform with the world’s best magicians.
In the meantime, he is performing on the Adirondack Scenic Magic Train every Friday through August. It departs from the Thendara Train Station at 12:30 and 3 p.m.
