“I saw the bloody fantastic Lennon play… And In The End… and feel like I now know his story… and a great job by the actor, Valentine Pelka, showing his own Liverpool roots…like watching the man himself… don’t miss it!” - Billy Connolly, Actor/Comedian
"The script, by Alexander Marshall, who is also the director, is witty, interesting and detailed." - John McCallum, The Australian
In talking with Sandy about his creative process and the connection between Lennon and the Gershwin brothers, what he reveals is this: his creativity is jump started by excellence, wherever it is, regardless of discipline or genre. Though on the surface, Lennon and the brothers Gershwin may seem a universe apart, their musical genius left an indelible mark on American popular culture.
On the other hand, Sandy is not afraid to delve deep into the differences in the lives of these artists. And In the End focuses on the conflicts and the contradictions in Lennon's life and his personality, and George & Ira celebrates the Gershwin's seamless collaboration and the love the two brothers had for each other.
If these current productions aren't enough to impress you, Sandy is mounting those while re-instituting Magic, Inc., as the nation's #1 source for all things magical. Here's Sandy on the significance of the store and his father Jay:
My dad was a genius. I believe he had more magical knowledge than anyone in the English-speaking world. He was the Dean of the Society of American Magicians and the Vice-President of the Magic Circle in Great Britain (our spiritual home).Modest. Driven. Talented. Creative.He was a collector (owned a million books), a printer, a pilot, a prankster, a ventriloquist, performed in Broadway shows, at the London Palladium, and in the Ziegfeld Follies. He toured the world doing his act and also appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show fourteen times.
My own involvement in the elegant art of magic is really just inheriting a magic shop (which my dad and stepmother, Frances Ireland Marshall, ran for many years) and where all the guys who work there are far better magicians than I am.
Our store is one of the best and oldest, in business since 1926. We sell how-to DVDs and books, magician biographies, props (think top hats, silk scarves and magic wands), and thousands of tricks. Some are suitable for hobbyists, others meant for pros like Las Vegas showmen Penn & Teller, Mac King, and David Copperfield, all of whom have shopped here. Maintaining the shop is truly, for me, a labor of love.
Alexander Marshall, sui generis.
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