There's a magic school at Orchard Towers and I tried being a magician for an hour – here's how it went

CNA Lifestyle recently stopped by Institute Illusions to see if we could unlock our inner David Copperfield. Or at least do a card trick.

Located at Orchard Towers, Institute Illusions is a new space for live magic shows and lessons. (Photos: CNA/Joyee Koo)

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“There's no way four aces will actually turn up,” I told the pompadoured man in front of me, half dismissively and half out of curiosity.

We were at Institute Illusions , a new magic school and theatre at Orchard Towers offering live shows and magic lessons. I was there for the latter – albeit an extremely condensed version.

Moments earlier, the man – award-winning magician and Institute Illusions founder Tommillusions – had laid out two sets of faced-down cards, split from a deck I had randomly cut.

We then divided our respective sets into four piles in front of us, eight piles in total, each of us free to decide how many cards to place in each pile.

When he was done, Tommillusions flipped over the top card of each of his four piles.

It was a feat that had already left me impressed. But then came the finisher.

“Would you like to make a bet? Do you think your cards can beat mine?” asked Tommillusions.

Now, I’ve watched enough episodes of Criss Angel Mindfreak to know that, yes, my cards will somehow end up beating his.

But still, I didn't want to take that bet because, logically, there was no way I would pull four aces. Again, every move up to that point had been completely random.

And yet, the top cards on all four of my piles were aces.

"Now let’s teach you how to do that,” said Tommillusions, with the warmth of Dumbledore and the charm of the Horsemen from Now You See Me.

LEARNING MAGIC AT INSTITUTE ILLUSIONS

Institute Illusions currently offers one-hour lessons for kids, between the ages of six and twelve, where they can learn two magic skills per session, with over 15 skills across their rotating programme.

A cursory look at Institute Illusions' website shows glowing reviews for these lessons, with parents praising how fun they are and how the lessons have inspired the children to pick up and practise magic skills on their own.

So it really is a testament to Tommillusions' patience when he had to spend 60 minutes teaching me – someone with horrific motor-skill coordination – repeatedly struggle with shuffling techniques that were easy for children.

CNA Lifestyle's Hazeeq Sukri learning magic from Institute Illusions founder Tommillusions. (Photo: CNA/Joyee Koo)

Remember the magic act at the beginning of this article?

When I attempted it with Tommillusions' guidance, the magic act actually went nicely – albeit without the smoothness and flair of a professional magician.

When I took my act solo at home, I genuinely lost track of all my ace cards.

And remember how I said students could learn two magic skills per session?

Yeah, well, I have completely forgotten everything related to that second skill.

CNA Lifestyle's Hazeeq Sukri attempting magic at Institute Illusions. (Photo: CNA/Joyee Koo)

Clearly, it's going to take some work to turn me into the next David Copperfield. Heck, it will probably be a challenge to even level up to Gob from Arrested Development.

But that's the beauty of it.

Though I flopped spectacularly, those 60 minutes at Institute Illusions were some of the most fun times I had recently.

There’s an innate joy in trying to perform magic yourself that simply can’t be replicated by watching someone else do it on a screen.

I may have flopped but I walked away from that hour with something far more valuable than a perfectly executed card trick: a newfound appreciation for the craft and a deeper curiosity about how magic works – my magic tutorial-filled YouTube algorithm being a testament to that.

Tommillusions, whose real name is Tommy Chiang, began diving into the world of magic at the age of 19. Like many magicians, magic started out as a hobby before becoming his vocation. To practise, he would read books and purchase DVDs of magic tutorials.

“I'll be looking at them over and over again and then practising in real-time to myself,” he recounted.

Institute Illusions founder Tommillusions. (Photo: CNA/Joyee Koo)

Eventually, he practised with his family members – something he admitted was “a very bad move”, but not for the reasons you might think.

“Let's be honest, as supportive as they can be, they're not going to believe you [can actually do magic],” he chuckled.

As such, Tommillusions took his skills to the streets “just to build up courage and train”. Among his spots was the bridge at Clarke Quay, where he got a friend to record his practice sessions with strangers.

He went professional after being invited to attend the Singapore Street Festival Fantabulous Magic Challenge in 2014, in which he won best performer.

Now, being a magician is his full-time career, with Tommillusions' portfolio comprising numerous accolades at competitions, as well as a multitude of performances at events.

BEING AT INSTITUTE ILLUSIONS

This year, at the age of 39, he had set his sights on a new challenge: running a magic school.

Launched on April 10 this year, Institute Illusions is located on the third floor of Orchard Towers, near the flight of escalators.

Why Orchard Towers of all places? He says that the location is centralised, convenient and close to hotels.

The space at Institute Illusions is pretty cosy, with the reception area displaying various artefacts and posters of renowned magicians, including David Devant and Doug Henning.

Various artefacts at Institute Illusions. (Photo: CNA/Joyee Koo)

At the performance space, you’ll find a spacious stage, complete with an LED wall and professional lighting effects. Guests can relax on roomy, plush seats and, overall, the place is family-friendly, with live shows and lessons that are suitable for young children.

Beyond the one-hour lessons, Institute Illusions will also host several magic camps later this year, with some lasting three full days.

The performance space at Institute Illusions. (Photo: CNA/Joyee Koo)

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So what does the future hold for the school?

According to Tommillusions, he wanted Institute Illusions to be a space where he could teach people “the real foundations” of magic.

In the event that his students were to pursue magic as a career or hobby in the future, “at least their foundations are not wrong, and they get to execute and do the magic much more gracefully”.

“If they want to go competitive, we will be very glad to prepare them to go overseas for magic competitions,” he said, adding that the school was open to running their own local competitions.

Well, time to start training.

Institute Ilusions is located at #03-37, 400 Orchard Road, Orchard Towers, Singapore 238875. Their list of lessons and shows is available on this website .

A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day.

CNA Lifestyle 最近造访了幻术学院，看看我们能否唤醒内心深处的“大卫·科波菲尔”，或者至少表演一个纸牌魔术。

位于乌节大厦的幻术学院（Institute Illusions）是一个全新的现场魔术表演和教学场所。（图片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

这段音频是由人工智能工具生成的。

“不可能真的出现四张 A，”我半是轻蔑地，半是出于好奇，对面前梳着蓬巴杜发型的男人说道。

我们当时在乌节大厦的“幻术学院”（Institute Illusions），这是一家新开的魔术学校兼剧院，提供现场表演和魔术课程。我去体验的是后者——虽然只是个极其精简的版本。

就在几分钟前，这位名叫 Tommillusions 的男子——屡获殊荣的魔术师和 Institute Illusions 的创始人——摆出了两组牌面朝下的牌，这两组牌是从我随意切开的一副牌中分成的。

然后我们将各自的牌分成四堆，共八堆，放在我们面前，每个人都可以自由决定每堆放多少张牌。

完成后，汤米利森斯翻开了他四堆牌中最上面的一张牌。

这已经让我印象深刻了。但接下来才是真正的高潮。

“你想打个赌吗？你觉得你的牌能赢我的吗？”汤姆利森问道。

现在，我已经看过足够多的《克里斯·安吉尔：心灵魔术》节目，我知道，是的，我的牌最终总会以某种方式战胜他。

但我仍然不想接受那个赌注，因为从逻辑上讲，我不可能抽到四张A。再说一遍，在那之前的每一步都完全是随机的。

然而，我这四堆牌中最上面的几张都是A。

“现在让我们来教你怎么做，”汤姆·米勒森斯说道，语气既有邓布利多的热情，又有《惊天魔盗团》中四骑士的魅力。

在幻术学院学习魔术

幻术学院目前为 6 至 12 岁的儿童提供一小时的课程，每节课他们可以学习两项魔术技能，其轮换课程包含超过 15 种技能。

粗略浏览一下“幻术学院”的网站，就会发现这些课程获得了极高的评价，家长们称赞这些课程非常有趣，并且激发了孩子们自己学习和练习魔术技巧的兴趣。

所以，当汤米利森斯不得不花 60 分钟教我——一个运动技能协调能力很差的人——反复练习对孩子来说很容易的拖步技巧时，这真的证明了他的耐心。

CNA Lifestyle 的 Hazeeq Sukri 向 Institute Illusions 创始人 Tommillusions 学习魔法。 （照片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

还记得本文开头提到的魔术表演吗？

在 Tommillusions 的指导下，我尝试了一下，魔术表演进行得相当顺利——尽管没有专业魔术师那样流畅和精彩。

当我独自在家表演时，我真的把我的所有王牌都忘光了。

还记得我说过学生每节课可以学习两种魔法技能吗？

是啊，我已经完全忘记了与第二项技能相关的一切。

CNA Lifestyle 的 Hazeeq Sukri 在 Institute Illusions 尝试魔术。 （照片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

显然，要让我成为下一个大卫·科波菲尔，还需要付出很多努力。说真的，就算能达到《发展受阻》里戈布的水平，可能也是个挑战。

但这正是它的魅力所在。

虽然我表现得非常糟糕，但在“幻觉学院”的那 60 分钟却是我近期最快乐的时光之一。

亲身尝试表演魔术所带来的那种内在的乐趣，是观看别人在屏幕上表演魔术所无法复制的。

虽然我可能失败了，但那一个小时让我收获了比完美表演的纸牌魔术更有价值的东西：我对这门技艺有了新的认识，并且对魔术的运作方式产生了更深的好奇心——我的 YouTube 频道上满是魔术教程，这便是最好的证明。

Tommillusions，真名Tommy Chiang，19岁时开始涉足魔术世界。和许多魔术师一样，魔术最初只是他的爱好，后来才成为他的职业。为了练习，他会阅读书籍，并购买魔术教学DVD。

“我会一遍又一遍地观看它们，然后实时地进行练习，”他说道。

幻象研究所创始人汤姆幻象。 （照片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

最终，他开始和家人一起练习——他承认这是一个“非常糟糕的举动”，但原因可能与你想的不同。

“说实话，就算他们再怎么支持你，他们也不会相信你真的会魔法，”他笑着说。

因此，Tommillusions开始在街头练习，“只是为了锻炼勇气和磨练技艺”。他练习的地点之一是克拉码头的一座桥，在那里他请朋友帮忙录制他与陌生人练习的视频。

2014 年，他受邀参加新加坡街头艺术节“奇妙魔术挑战赛”，并在比赛中获得最佳表演者称号，从此走上了职业魔术师的道路。

现在，魔术师是他的全职职业，Tommillusions 的作品集包括在比赛中获得的众多荣誉，以及在各种活动中的大量表演。

身处幻觉研究所

今年，39岁的他给自己设定了一个新的挑战：开办一所魔法学校。

Institute Illusions 于今年 4 月 10 日开业，位于 Orchard Towers 三楼，靠近自动扶梯。

为什么偏偏是乌节大厦？他说，这里位置中心，交通便利，而且靠近酒店。

Institute Illusions 的空间相当舒适，接待区陈列着各种文物和著名魔术师的海报，包括 David Devant 和 Doug Henning。

幻象学院的各种文物。 （照片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

演出场地拥有宽敞的舞台，配备LED墙和专业灯光效果。宾客可以舒适地坐在宽敞柔软的座椅上放松身心。此外，这里非常适合家庭出游，提供适合儿童的现场表演和课程。

除了每小时一小时的课程外，幻术学院今年晚些时候还将举办几个魔术营，其中一些将持续整整三天。

Institute Illusions 的表演空间。 （照片：CNA/Joyee Koo）

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那么，这所学校的未来会怎样呢？

据 Tommillusions 所说，他希望幻术学院成为一个可以教人们魔术“真正基础”的地方。

如果他的学生将来想把魔术作为职业或爱好，“至少他们的基础没有错，而且他们可以更优雅地表演魔术”。

“如果他们想参加比赛，我们非常乐意帮助他们做好出国参加魔术比赛的准备，”他说，并补充说学校也愿意举办自己的本地比赛。

好了，该开始训练了。

Institute Ilusions位于新加坡乌节路400号乌节大厦3楼37号，邮编238875。他们的课程和演出列表可以在这个网站上找到。

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