Whether you’ve come to support a friend, simply see a magic show, or escape the blistering summer heat, you find yourself with a ticket in hand to the Wright Magic Troupe’s Summer Spectacular. Being hosted in a new building constructed specifically to bolster Los Angeles’ fading entertainment industry, the new magic troupe was more than happy to be its opening act.
The Debeste Civic Center opened its doors wide the same day the ribbon cutting ceremony was complete. With a simple process of getting your ticket processed by the doorman, you and the others interested in the magic are ushered into a large room. The seats span the length of the theater, each clearly labeled and numbered, only stopping in the middle for a walkway back towards the main lobby.
As you take your seat, you look to the left and right of you. The room is filling up quickly with people of all ages, and while the lights to the seating area are on, it’s too dim to clearly make out any faces you recognize. A cool breeze from the air conditioning rolls over your neck, and there’s a faint sigh of relief that escapes your chest before you catch it.
You wait for the show to begin, either scrolling on your phone or simply tapping at your knee to pass the time, you stop fidgeting when the lights begin to fade.
A voice filters in over the speakers, bright and cheerful as the spotlights all swiveled to the center point on the stage, where a blue tophat sat against the dark stained floor.
“Welcome one and all to the opening show of the Debeste Civic Center! It’s such an honor to be here today!” A flash of the lights, and where there was once a hat, now stands a girl. Her cape, made of the same blue tones as her hat, swishes around her as she bows, causing her dark brown hair to bob. She spins the hat on her finger as she speaks, her face shining in its wide smile. “Especially being here with all of you!”
The young magician dons her hat. She motions out to the wings of the stage with her gloved hands, where a cast of people in an array of colors and masks filters in. As they settle in around the woman under the spotlight, she steps forward, spinning slightly as she adds:
“My name is Trucy Wright.” She offers a wink, clasping her hands behind her back as she rocks back on her heels. “And these are my extra talented friends and assistants!” The gathering, around twenty people or so, raises their hands or offers a nod in response to the crowd.
Whether you clap or not isn’t important, though you may feel the urge to, given the excited murmuring and cheers of the audience around you.
A full house, full of eager eyes and brimming with energy.
“So,” Trucy steps back, waving her hands as the assistants and fledgling magicians move off the stage like parting waters. “With introductions out of the way, let’s drum up some magic!”
The tricks start small at first. Simple things and simple pleasures, like tapping rabbits out of hats or causing a bird to appear from a stack of cards. The longer the show goes on, the bigger the tricks and magic grow in scale and spectacle.
One that particularly catches your attention is something from a young man with bright blue eyes. His hand rises up as the gears above the stage curtains begin to churn, lowering a glass tank wreathed in iron and glass. Sitting atop it is a familiar face, Trucy, her legs swinging down into the water as her hand keeps the lid open.
“As you can see, this box is sealed from all sides and full of water. Is that right, Ms. Wright?” The man asks, leaning forward as Trucy offers a thumbs up and a bright smile. “Excellent. Now, dear audience,”
The magician in blue takes a deep breath before slipping down into the tank. Her hat is the first thing to float away, and her clothes billow around her as the lid slams shut. Trucy’s eyes flicker up towards the top of the tank before she reaches out, running a gloved hand along the inside before pressing it against the glass tank. “Escape should be impossible, no?”
He holds up a finger as he walks closer to the tank, suspended by ropes high above his head. “And yet, I can’t help but feel that Ms. Wright will simply… float away.” He says with a snap of his fingers. Trucy gasps, bubbles leaving her mouth as the tank comes to life, water frothing and churning before swallowing her whole.
As her clothes drift down to the bottom, the magician turns to bow to the audience, one hand behind him while the other sweeps forward in an exaggerated bow. When he rises, he pulls his hand from behind him, spinning Trucy around before catching her in a dip with his other hand. In the bright stage lights, the pink of her new outfit makes it seem like her and her companion are glowing.
The crowd’s concerned whispers turn into an applauding roar.
Trucy and the blue eyed magician offer several bows as they head off the stage, the water tank groaning as pulleys drag it back up and out of sight. The lights wane once more, and you and the audience sit in hushed excitement before the lights flash back on.
“Welcome, everyone!” The woman chirps, spinning the umbrella over her shoulder before clicking it closed. She uses it as a cane to lean on, her smile wide and gleaming as she continues to speak. “I’m Betty de Famme, and I’m your final act for the night! For our last trick, we’ll need a little bit of help from the audience.”
A man in a mask rolls a number counter onto the stage, pushed by a cart. Betty bounces forward, heels clacking against the floor like piano keys as she places her hand atop it. “So I’m going to use this to pick one of you--” Her hand reaches out towards the audience, fingers splayed. “-- to assist me!” As she waves her fingers in front of the display, the counter begins to roll, settling on the number sixty-five.
The spotlights swivel, shining down on a girl with blonde hair that almost looks white in the bright light. She covers her eyes to hide them from the stage lights, though even from a distance you could sense her terror.
“Ooooh, lucky you! Don’t be shy! Mr. Dinn will take you over to the box over there!” Betty points a finger out towards the walkway, where a man in a matching mask has been standing next to a plain looking wardrobe. He raises a hand before striding quickly over to the blonde woman, placing a hand on her shoulder. He guides her as Betty continues to talk. “Now! This trick is rather simple! I’ll pop into this matching box over here…”
The assistant on stage nods, tapping the side of the wardrobe with his hand to reveal the inside. It’s decorated like a child’s dream, with balloons and soft fabrics lining the inside.
“While our audience assistant enters that one over there! Once everything’s set, we’ll swap places before you know it!” A wink. “You have to promise not to come out of the box no matter what, or I can’t promise you’ll come back in one piece!”
The blonde girl blinks while her hands wring together, her eyes widening as the matching box in the crowd opens to reveal an identical interior. Her lips part, only to close as Betty carries on.
“As for the rest of you… I think I can trust you all to count down for me! That way, you’re all involved!” She presses her hands to her lips before blowing a kiss back out to the crowd. “From sixty, now! I’ll be relying on you all to keep pace for me!”
With a dramatic wave of Betty’s hands, the audience begins to speak. After a little goading on from her, of course.
Sixty.
Fifty-nine.
The two participants step into their boxes. The doors close.
Fifty-five.
Fifty-four.
The remaining stage attendant stays up on stage, and Betty’s voice can be heard speaking. At first she hums, but then the stage attendant asks--
“Are you alright, Ms. de Famme? You’re making an awful racket in there!”
“I’m fine! I just got a little turned around! Teleportation magic is really tricky, you know!”
Forty-five.
Forty-four.
The air conditioning blows past you again, carrying the noise of something crashing with it. Your head snaps up as you look around, but the audience is still counting down, each number adding to the building tension.
Twenty-one!
Nineteen!
Eighteen!
“What’s wrong, Ms. de Famme? I can still hear you moving in there!”
“I said I’m fine! I just got a little stuck!” A huff from the box.
“But Ms de Famme...” The assistant moved to tap the side of their mask. “You only have twenty seconds left!”
“That’s plenty of time!”
Twelve!
Eleven!
“Aha--! I think I found--” The doors to the box on the stage fling open, and Betty begins to step out before her eyes widen. She lets out a frustrated yell, covering her face as she stumbles back into the enclosure. “You all didn’t see that! Not a word!”
A flutter of giggles from those in the audience.
Five!
Four!
Three!
The counting voices grow louder.
Two!
One!
And then silence, a hush rolls over the crowd like calm water over a campfire. Once lively, the passion now simmers in anticipation. The stage lights swivel towards the box centered in the middle of the audience walkway. The doors crack open slowly at first, smoke rolling from inside before the bat themed magician pops out from within. Her arms are spread wide as she beams, chest heaving for air as confetti and glitter fall from her costume.
“And now… for our other performer!” Betty raises her hands, motioning back towards the box on the stage.
It remains still. A tilt of Betty’s head before she snaps both of her fingers, causing hidden fireworks lined up along the rim of the stage to ignite. The sparks fly upwards, obscuring the box for a mere moment or two.
You begin to think, turning the words of the performer over in your head. There should be two people, but there is only--
A low, grinding groan breaks your thoughts.
You blink.
Then everything happens at once. The cables for the tank above give. The tank falls. The box on stage shatters into a thousand tiny pieces.
There is silence.
The water from the tank flows clear, dripping from its confines spreading over the varnished stage.
It flows clear, until it doesn’t. Tinged pink, it pools around the center of the chaos, only growing more and more stained as life gives way to death.
You don’t know who screamed first. Betty is still standing there, her arms outstretched towards the stage. Her face is blank, her eyes wide.
You have a feeling it is going to be a long, long evening.
A standard trip to the theater for a magic show has ended in two tragedies and a mystery hidden behind a curtain. With the exit doors closed tight and the clock ticking onwards, you look to those around you to drum up your next step.