The lure of danger and highly risky acts that leave Jan Rouven narrowly escaping death is what will sell tickets for the new “Illusions” show at the Clarion in Las Vegas. But the show is much more than that. From the very first moment you walk into the Fame Theater, you have entered a world unto itself – the world of Jan Rouven – an energetic mind game that brings you through the wonders of magic in a stage show that has the exuberance of a high-energy European discotheque nightclub through lighting, heart-pumping high-tech sound with today’s modern music, and artistically seductive dancing. Mesmerizing audiences all over the world with his illusions and collecting important international awards such as “Magician of the Year” and “Entertainer of the Year”, made Rouven a huge celebrity in Germany and Europe. But, Vegas is the dream opportunity for performers, and Rouven has arrived to stake his claim for stardom here in America.

The German illusionist brought with him from his native town of Cologne 3 things: his Producer/Manager Frank Alfter, his Choreographer Bradley J. Cleary, and his magician’s bag of tricks (knives, saw blades, swords – all of which made it a bit more difficult getting through customs when he arrived on U.S. soil). The three creative men have worked together designing up the perfect show fit for Vegas – meticulously architecting every facet of the show together, from the lighting and music, to staging, props and costumes. Besides the three German creatives, the rest of the troupe are from Vegas. Every performer was carefully chosen to be part of Rouven’s unique cast – with just the right persona, style, look and attitude. The five dancers glide and sometimes grind their way across the stage, creating dynamic changes in the mood throughout the show. Audience members are in tune to every mood with the modern choreography set to the top music hits of today like Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” and Katy Perry’s “ET”. Johanna Grajales, one of the dancers, also serves as Rouven’s very adept assistant. With acts such as “Bed of Death”, where numerous swords are suspended over a bed in which Rouven lies awaiting their release, “Hand Stab” that is akin to Russian roulette with sharp knives, and “Water Tank”, when Rouven almost drowns while handcuffed and chained and submerged in the tank, each has an immense appeal for the audience who is sitting on the edge of their seats watching him cheat death. Humor is also incorporated. As Rouven constructs a wall of cinderblocks to eventually walk through, he says: “I’m from Germany, where we know about walls.”

SLV spent an hour, captivated by Rouven, as he graciously answered our questions with his charming German accent, and explained how he finally arrived in Vegas to star in his own show, “Illusions”. The influential German author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once said: “Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.” I have no doubt Jan Rouven will use that magic, too!

SLV: You brought your big saw blades and swords from Germany?
ROUVEN: Yes, and they got held up at customs. They were in a container, and when they x-rayed the container and saw what it was, they thought: “Oh my God, what is that?”
SLV: How did you prove you were a magician and these were your props?
ROUVEN: I had to send them some promo tapes and some links online, and then it was fine. They thought it was butcher’s equipment! They thought it was like a crazy horror movie!
SLV: How did you get started in the magic business?
ROUVEN: To start in this business is very hard. You basically have to ask an illusionist how to start. You have to find a mentor, someone who supports you. I found my manager and producer, Frank Alfter. He was an illusionist himself, and he performed in Germany. I went to a lot of his shows and afterwards always asked him: “I want to become an illusionist. Can you help me?” He wanted to see a performance and he saw my potential. He produced shows for theme parks and so he was in need of young talent. It was a good start, a good combination, and a long-lasting business relationship came out of it.
SLV: Did you ever have some illusions go wrong?
ROUVEN: Any illusionist who tells you that they never had anything go wrong is lying. A funny story happened in Germany. There was a cabinet elevated high in the air. Between shows, the stagehands had to clean it, and this time they put the bucket of water on the prop wrong. In the presentation I turned it around, and this time, I didn’t see the bucket. The bucket and water fell on my head like in a comic movie and everyone was laughing. It was a mistake, but a funny ending! Some tricks are dangerous, like the saws that you see on stage. It’s an illusion, but before the show I always have to go around and double check, because you deal with dangerous stuff. You have to be very careful. So far, nothing really bad has happened, so knock on wood.
SLV: How long did it take you to find your onstage assistant, Johanna?
ROUVEN: Johanna? She found me. Two years ago, I did a special event show on Fremont Street here in Vegas for the “OktoberFrightFest”. She came after the show and talked to me. She said she loved magic, that she was a dancer, and that she would like to work with me. My manager told us to stand next to each other and he took a picture, and then he said: “You look good.” When I started here, I brought my main assistant from Germany over. She was a very good-looking, beautiful girl, too, but she had family over in Germany and a boyfriend. So it was a good coincidence that Johanna came and then we rehearsed and did a show called “The World Magic Seminar” at the Orleans for one night. It went well, and when we started with “Illusions”, we contacted her.
SLV: It appears as though you’ve been working together for a long time.
ROUVEN: We rehearsed hard and we have a good chemistry.
SLV: Your grandmother gave you a magic set when you were eight. Had you asked for it because of your interest in magic?
ROUVEN: No. She just gave it to me.
SLV: It was a set with cards and instructions on some sleight of hand?
ROUVEN: Yes, and two coins become one coin – some simple and some complicated stuff. It was a good magic set actually, so it was good for me.
SLV: At what age did you decide you wanted to do bigger illusions?
ROUVEN: I always saw big illusions on TV, then I asked myself: “Okay, I’ve got that magic set, but there’s no big illusion explained.” So I went to the library and looked at the magic books. In the last pages they explained some of the bigger stuff that you can build at home, but it still wasn’t what I was looking for. I finally found a book that explained something from the old days, where a magician used ether on a young girl, and she would levitate on a broomstick. There was an address of the people who manufactured the trick. It was an American book, so it had the addresses of illusion builders in the U.S., but then I found a source in Munich. That was my first illusion, and it was called “Broomstick Levitation”. It cost 2,000 German Marks and that was about $3,000. I had to collect money and use all my savings to purchase this one. My first victim was my music teacher at school. I didn’t do the ether, didn’t do that, I just put her under hypnosis and that was my first big stage illusion. It was for a school event and I was probably 17.

SLV: Was that the turning point of desire to move on to bigger illusions?
ROUVEN: I tried to build things at home, but the things I built looked awful. (laughter) I built a fire cage. You have fire in a cage and you put a cloth over it. The cloth goes away and then there’s someone inside. I built it, but it was shaky. This wasn’t a good approach. (laughter) I got more ideas and then I went to someone else to build them.
SLV: Do movies ever inspire you - like the movie Prestige?
ROUVEN: No, this wasn’t inspiring for me. To find out that in the end, the idea was that he would kill someone. It was a crazy idea! Sometimes tricks and illusions are like this. It takes more preparation and practice than people would think. It was a great movie and some things are really true. I saw a movie called Lord of Illusions. He was chained on a platform and the saws were falling down and it went wrong and there was blood all over. That was the inspiration for the “Bed of Death”. I thought we could use a screen and add this little scene, but we are a family show for all ages, so we didn’t do that.
SLV: Have you ever used your dog Puccini in your show?
ROUVEN: He was used in the show in France in an illusion called “Hollywood Box”. A lady from the audience came on stage. I had movie posters of Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, and Gollum from Lord of the Rings, and she would pick someone, and the story is that I would turn her into a star. She picks Marilyn Monroe and we put her in the Hollywood Box, shaking ta, ta, taaa…I open the box and it went wrong. It’s Puccini inside the box wearing Marilyn’s white fur, like in the picture. It was a very funny illusion! This new show is more like the death-defying dangerous show, and it didn’t really fit into the new setup, but I might put it into the show here.
SLV: Did you ever get to see the Siegfried and Roy show?
ROUVEN: Yes. We are good friends, more with Siegfried. Siegfried was the magician and Roy was always with the animals. They really didn’t perform in Germany, because they came to Las Vegas and made it very big here.
SLV: Siegfried must feel very proud that another German is doing illusions here in Vegas.
ROUVEN: He saw the show and I met him at the Magic Convention, and then we had dinner. He had German friends here and he sent them to the show.
SLV: I don’t think it was in his mind to stop performing before the accident happened with Roy.
ROUVEN: As a performer, you need your last show, your last performance. After a career like they had, this accident took this away. There was no closure.
SLV: Have other magicians here in Vegas offered their support to you?
ROUVEN: They were all very kind. They all saw the show within the first two weeks. If the show was bad, they would probably say: “Nice job.” Then they would start talking bad for a reason. Now they like the show. They’ve known my name for years from Europe, and it’s a small community – the magic world. We are colleagues and we don’t work against each other. I like going to talk to the audience after the show and tell them how happy I am that we have a big audience here.
SLV: Would you have the same respect and friendship in Germany?
ROUVEN: In Germany, they are more jealous. It’s nothing bad, it’s just the mentality. If you purchase a big car, a Mercedes, here in the U.S. they say: “That’s a great car! I would love to have that car!” People here have no issue with you driving an expensive car. In Germany, when you go to a business meeting, you take the cheaper car. Here in the U.S., people are money-oriented in a positive way. People here work really hard. In Germany, people have four weeks vacation a year or more.
SLV: What would be your perfect way to spend a day off from work?
ROUVEN: I would get up in the morning and read the newspaper. Then I go workout and get in shape for my show. I go swimming. That’s good for all my muscles, doing all the quick exchanges I do. I dive and practice holding my breath. Sometimes I’ll read some magic books and get some new inspirations. It’s good to read even old books, because there are so many hidden secrets in magic. You can take an old idea and change it, and bring it back to the stage and then it’s something new.
SLV: Along with celebrity come women…
ROUVEN: Oh yes, I saw them in half!!! (laughter) I would like to have children one day. At the moment my life is too busy and nobody could stand me. That sounds bad, but at the moment I’m career-focused, which is good. I’m a perfectionist and every piece of the show has to be good. Usually magicians are okay, but jugglers are worse. Jugglers live quietly and don’t have relationships…it’s just the balls! (laughter) I love to have children in the show and I like to show them the tricks. What could be better for a child than to have an illusionist for a father? SLV

Jan Rouven’s ILLUSIONS • Clarion Hotel & Casino
305 Convention Center Dr. Las Vegas • Thursdays – Tuesdays 7:00 p.m.

Issue 64 featuring: Emily Addison, Carlotta Champagne & Markesa Yeager