Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Donohue and Eric Siegel.
So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
We first crossed paths nearly nine years ago in the comedy scene in our hometown, Chicago. At this point in our lives, we had both invested thousands of dollars in improv and sketch comedy classes in an expensive, misguided attempt to break through at theaters such as the Second City, iO, and Annoyance.
A mutual friend informed each of us that we both used to do magic as children/teenagers. We shrugged off this connection, having both renounced magic many years previously as the embarrassing, repelling hobby that it is.
Cut to 2016, both living in LA and facing rejection at every turn. Not attractive enough for the film industry (or the adult film industry), we swallowed our pride and decided to revive our magic careers. We wrote and performed a one-off sketch that ended with a magic trick, and people liked it. So we did another one and another one and another one and finally we had a hit show at the Hollywood Fringe Festival called Coke & Mirrors.
Now, in 2019, we are a record-breaking* headliners at the world-famous Magic Castle in Hollywood. (“Most Audience Complaints.”)
Has it been a smooth road?
It has been a pretty smooth road. In just three short years, we have climbed the ladder of success in the magic world much faster than in any of our other failed comedy pursuits. The lesson? If your comedy career’s not taking off, just pivot to magic.
That said…we greatly value the importance of staying #OnBrand, so nearly all our tricks feature some sort of adult theme or R-rated slant that often proves too much for audiences. This is always the biggest struggle.
For example, there was the time we got ejected from the Upright Citizens Brigade theater for performing our signature routine, “The Amazing Disappearing Fifth of Rum.” This is where we make an entire bottle of Bacardi 151 vanish… by chugging it. It’s an impressive physical feat accomplished by years of abusing our livers, and the UCB top brass just did not seem to appreciate it.
Or there was the time we got booked to perform our “Cups & Tide Pods” routine on a major television network. Just two weeks before taping, the network’s lawyers and Standards & Practices Department strongly encouraged the producers not to allow us on air. To this day, we still have not made our national TV debut!
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
A lot of comedy magicians aren’t very funny or particularly magical. We buck this trend by combining Chicago-style sketch comedy with the impossible stage magic that Hollywood audiences expect.
Daniel plays a pathetic, down-on-his-luck children’s entertainer, while Eric is a washed-up “street magician” (or is he just homeless?). Two perfect foils, we stumble backwards into one impossible feat after another in vaudevillian synchronicity.
Since 2017, our magical variety show Dirty Tricks has played to sold-out audiences at the legendary Three Clubs Cocktail Lounge in Hollywood. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at badboysmagic.com. The next two performances are September 15 and October 20.
The show is described is “Magic, Comedy, Drinking. NSFW.” Basically, we perform our outrageous tricks and then introduce guest performers who are much more talented than us. These guests include magicians, comedians, and variety artists from Netflix, America’s Got Talent, The Tonight Show, and more.
You’ll recognize the retro cool of Three Clubs from its on-screen appearances in Swingers and Mad Men.
What were you like growing up?
Daniel chose his life in magic. Inspired by cheesy TV magicians such as David Copperfield, Lance Burton, and Doug Henning, Daniel spent his tweenage years as an entertainer at birthdays, block parties, and other community events, poorly imitating his heroes for any client who was foolish enough to hire him. Daniel also attended Catholic school for 13 years, so he was particularly adept at being lame and family-friendly.
Eric, on the other hand, had magic forced upon him by his father, an obsessed part-time magician. He spent his childhood working at circus camps, getting dragged to magic conventions, and being forced by his dad to pose for photos with magic mavens such as David Blaine.
Pricing:
- Dirty Tricks on September 15th: $10 tickets (available at badboysmagic.com)
- Dirty Tricks on October 19th: $10 tickets (available at badboysmagic.com)
Contact Info:
- Website: badboysmagic.com
- Email: info@badboysmagic.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/badboysmagic
- Facebook: facebook.com/newbadboysofmagic
- Other: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dirty-tricks-w-the-new-bad-boys-of-magic-tickets-49193611416
Image Credit:
The first one (where Dan’s chugging the bottle of rum) should be credited to Richard M. Johnson. The next two (at the Magic Castle where where Dan’s wearing a bow tie) should be credited to Taylor Wong. All the rest can be credited to Josh Morris.
Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
