For Camosun student and magician Jason Verners, magic is more than just jokes and tricks; it’s about creating a community at each of his shows. Verners, who is in his second year of the University Transfer program, says that he’s aiming to bring the audience into his new show, Millennial.
“There’s a lot of technology involved in my new show. Everyone who has their phones participates in it. It’s almost an acoustic show; there’s no girls being cut in half or vanishing or anything like that,” says Verners. “It’s very intimate, in a way; I try and make it feel close. All the magic happens not by me doing it and them watching, but by all of them participating in it. It’s not [about] how great I am, but [about creating] something together; I feel like that’s when magic can really shine. I feel like magic can create a strong bond, and that’s the kind of level I’m shooting for now that I have enough experience working in the trenches, so to speak.”
Verners says that Camosun has been a stepping stone for him to get to where he really wants to be. Through talking to his family about his future and sticking to his goals, he’s reached a point where he’s happy with how his schooling is going, and he has the support to back up his ambitions.
“For me, Camosun isn’t necessarily [about] finding a career, it’s just expanding my knowledge; that’s my whole mindset,” he says. “I know I have the drive in my head, and I know what I want, and that’s not going to change. We were all talking one night during a family dinner, and we were talking about how my mindset is so high, and my parents were saying, ‘Well, what if you miss that?’ and I said, ‘Well, I’m not, though.’ The end goal for me isn’t that piece of paper; it’s to continuously expand my knowledge and meet people.”
Verners says that he’s always loved magic and that his childhood was a steady build-up to him realizing that that is what he wanted to do. He adds that stepping back and seeing the big picture of his progress has also given him the drive to keep going.
“When I was younger, I got a magic kit for Christmas, and I saw it as something to set me apart from the other kids at elementary school,” he says. “I would walk around the playground and try to do tricks for them. I never as a kid thought that it would be anything, but when I was 13, I took part in the [International Youth Magic] Championships in Las Vegas, and I came third. That’s when I realized that there could be something there. It just turned into this journey from birthday party to corporate show to tour and now to, finally, my new show. It’s really cool for me to step back and see the steps I’ve taken to get to where I am now.”
Millenial
7 pm Friday, December 1
$30, Glenlyon Norfolk School
jasonverners.com