Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexzander Schwartz.
Hi Alexzander, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
When I was a kid, I saw magic and circus shows in Vegas on a family road trip. My brother got a magic set, and he didn’t mind sharing it. After a year of college I went to the Army. When I got back, I got bachelors degrees in both business and political science. I had already been playing music for 10 years since high school choir, but I had some medical issues. Some I was born with, but we found out later. So while recovering, I kept reading, learning and building my business and network.
I did everything I could to learn from the best like Penn & Teller. I had carpel tunnel surgery in both hands and a guy named Jeff McBride did these cool things with cards. It seemed more fun than regular physical therapy. I didn’t know he was so big in the magic community in Vegas when I chose him. I just had a good feeling about him. Later on I had back surgery and the hired an NBA all Star Coach named Alex Perris who I chose because he was one of the coaches for the Chicago Bull’s NBA All-Star championship winners. He is also former Air Force so I knew he was the perfect man for the job to help push me future than I had ever gone before physically, mentally and more. I was surprised he wasn’t like a drill sergeant, but he was encouraging and motivating in ways that you just don’t get from people every day of the work week .
He pushed me so far I was able to do acrobats and aerial. I couldn’t believe it. It took 5 years of physical therapy and the determination to never give up. Even after 8 orthopedic surgeries, life is great because I took it one step at a time and kept my eye on the prize. Alex trained champions on and off the court and Jeff headlined Caesar’s Palace before opening the Las Vegas Magic School. All during that time, I got my VA benefits after 9 years of work. I decided to turn down law school and go more into other areas like jewelry, coins, business consulting, real estate, and more. I had some hard times and now I feel so accomplished getting to work with amazing people I’ve admired in music that I love giving back to people that are trying to be successful. Now I run a few other things outside of magic, and I play music again too, which is going wonderful.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all. Surgery was hard, and refusing to give up was not easy. Luckily I have always been resourceful and eager to learn new things. If I didn’t read a lot of books and have an endless desire of curiosity for knowledge, I don’t know if I would have wanted to keep going and I might have ended up settling for a job I hate. I’m glad today that I didn’t. Surrounding myself with people that already made it successfully I knew would help push me to a new level. Jeff and some others like Paul Draper who was the house magician for the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas taught me things that will help me forever. It’s very niche to magic and not something you learn in business school. Just like I learned even more in film school because I knew I needed to learn how to operate a camera and a production crew to promote not just my magic or music, but anything in business as well that’s a product.
One thing that really helped was the fact that my father was a senior software engineer for a very large tech company for the last 25 years, and worked at Apple when Steve Jobs was still in the beginning of his career. With everything, my dad taught me about how computers work and interact with each other since a young child, it became the thing that made a huge difference and saved me a lot of time. Because my dad had the hybrid model approved by the company in the late 1990s, I had access to good computers before some people even had them in the school library, and how to work remotely. Over the years, I asked him how he succeeded in doing it and I teach that in my business lectures now.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am known for close up magic, mentalism, and big vegas style stage illusions for large crowds.
I specialize in making sure audiences have fun, get to participate, and that the experience is for everyone.
I am known for being a business wizard because of my education, my military work ethic, and my creative love for business and entertainment.
I’m most proud that people call me for advice and to solve problems because any type of business is not easy. I like to think the things that don’t work out as learning experiences rather than mistakes because we are are all always growing.
I’ve had the opportunity to work with top of the line artists and build my own dream team. With music, one of my friends is Pierre Bouvier, the lead singer of the well known alternative rock band of Simple Plan. We met 20 years ago at the Troubador on his second tour when I was a teenager and he was selling his own merch, but also treating everyone so nicely, taking pictures with fans, and I he really loved music. During the pandemic I hit him up after a long hiatus and taught him magic for free because he had inspired me so much to do more with magic.
I also met Jason White, the guitarist, not singer, of Green Day once after a show with a side band called Pinhead Gunpowder. Billie Joe Armstrong pulled my friend on stage and I jumped on too. After the show, Jason came outside to smoke a cigarette and I asked him how he played a song. I saw him do a live cover of John Lennon‘s working class hero with Green Day on TV a few weeks prior. It was a night that changed my life forever in entertainment.
There’s a lot of others I’d love to mention, but what sets me apart is I have gotten to work with, ask questions, and I
I’m grateful because many of them have taught me so much. It still amazes me that I get to teach them something sometimes too.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
That I actually love music more than magic. I play guitar, drums, piano, dance, and sing. Now that I can, I add a music show at the end of my 60-90 minute magic show whenever I do gigs that I can do a stage show at or fill up a venue. Also that my business education extends beyond entertainment. I’ve consulted for real estate agents, housing funding for those in need, doctors, government agencies, startups, millionaires, and more. I love helping people start and scale. I’ve even helped a couple of lawyers because the business part wasn’t covered in their law school: but forming a company was taught in my business school by a very successful lawyer.
I also do a volunteer show every year for 2,000 people at The Saban Theater for children’s illnesses and 50 Emmy Award winners every November. We got another one this year too. It’s called A Combat Radio Christmas Carol, and all the proceeds go towards the children in need.
Pricing:
- 500-30 Minutes/Magic Lessons
- 1000-1 hour close up magic
- 1250-Stage Show
- 1500-Mentalism Show
- 2000+Show with assistant. Large Vegas Style Illusion
Contact Info:
- Website: https://la-magician.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/lextheillusionist
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/lextheillusionist
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lextheillusionist/
- Twitter: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lextheillusionist/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@lextheillusionist
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/magician-lex-the-illusionist-mentalist-west-hollywood
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/alexzander-schwartz-7573684
- Other: https://legacyjewelryandcoin.com
Image Credits
Jeff McBride
David Copperfield
