By Walter Burkat ‘16

Would you give your iPhone to a magician if he told you he would make it disappear?

If the magician is Norman Ng, you may be surprised where it goes. Past witnesses of “The Norman Magic Experience” who trusted him have seen their phones reappear in places as strange as a sealed can of Pringles.

LAF hosted Ng (pronounced “ing”) Thursday. He has been performing his brand of magic across the country for 21 years. The Norman Magic Experience relies on audience participation, but it also features some unusual props—from phones and 3D glasses to hockey sticks.

In an interview with Campus Activities Magazine, Ng said his repertoire has evolved from humble beginnings.

“When I first started, I was performing average tricks but eventually realized through performing (especially to college students) that they wanted more,” Ng said.

His real trick is to be energetic and creative. Instead of pulling some- one’s card out of the deck, he blows the deck into the air, catching the correct card on the side of a hockey stick blade. Instead of pulling a rabbit out of a hat, he pulls a bowling ball out of a pad of paper. He can pour milk into a rolled up cone of paper and make it reappear inside a light bulb of a nearby floor lamp.

In 2011, Ng was awarded the Campus Activities Magazine “Best Live Novelty Act.” He said the award only made him hungrier to improve. “I don’t look at this as a career stepping stone, I look at it as a driving force and a reason to create better magic.”