MEET ANDREW BASSO
Do you remember the very first time you felt the thrill of escape artistry, and what drew you
into that world?
Interesting, a deep question. Well yes, I do remember, actually. I was reading about
Harry Houdini, but there is no real footage of his escapes. So while reading the books, I was
visualising his escapes in my imagination – that was powerful.
But then I saw a Canadian escape artist, Dean Gunderson, on a VHS tape. He was put in a
straitjacket, and I thought hes not going to get out of that.’ Then they put about 100 feet of chains
padlocked around his chest and body, which made me think ‘there is no way that he’s going to escape
that!’. But he did, and that definitely sparked my interest in escapology and escape artistry.
Which is harder: breaking free from chains underwater, or trying to order a proper Italian
espresso outside of Italy?
Thats a fun one! Thats a really fun one. Both are hard – but in different ways. Being outside of
Italy for an Italian, it is challenging, even though amazing cities like Sydney do offer Italian restaurants
run by Italians. So it feels like home – I already found my spots in 24 hours.
Being nicknamed “The Witch” is pretty striking, how did that name come about, and do you
secretly like it?
This is actually a nickname I got from the producer of Now You See Me Live. We were at a dinner
and I love creating special moments for people, so I perform for them, as those moments are perfect
for trying something. These producers also made The Illusionists so they've seen a lot of magic, and
They're not as impressed as a regular person or someone who is watching the show for the first time.
To impress them, it's way harder, and I like to hit them with stuff that really screws up their brains.
They call me ‘the witch,’ because to them it seems like there is no trick here—the magic is real, so I
must be a witch. And then the second thing they say is ‘burn him!’
You’ve pushed your body and mind to extreme limits. What’s the moment on stage where
you’ve felt most human, rather than superhuman?
Being fulfilled as an artist on stage is amazing, but the true moments that then you carry with you
are the personal moments. For me, being on Broadway performing, doing a lot of shows, seeing
thousands and thousands of people watching the show—it's great as an artist; it’s very fulfilling. But a
moment where I felt very human was the day that my father flew from Italy and came there, to see me
on Broadway.
You know, I walk out on stage, I look down and I see him in the audience, and he looks
back at me and I can feel our connection. That was the realization of the journey I’ve been on—from
day one when I was eight years old and he bought me my magic box, through to that moment when
he sees me standing on one of the best stages in the world. That's special.
If you weren’t an escape artist, what daredevil career do you think you’d be in instead…
skydiver? race car driver? or something else?
I see now on some social media some stuntmen are doing some crazy things, and I'm very
jealous of what they do. I see that they get hurt, but a lot of the time it’s because they try to be more
extreme. And so I'm very jealous! I can’t get hurt outside of the show because I need to perform of the
stage. Definitely I would still be in the dangerous business.
But I love to be in contact with the audience; I need the live element. Maybe I would be performing in
music, I look with a lot of enthusiasm to people like Robbie Williams – being an entertainer for sure.
You’ve performed around the world, what feels different about performing at the Sydney Opera
House compared to other venues?
For me, as an Italian but I think other people too, Australia is just so far away, and so it feels like
Going to a special place to perform—that's already something. Then there’s the fact that Sydney
Opera House has got such a reputation as an international venue where the best stuff happens, it
makes it really exciting to perform on that stage.
Do you have any pre-show ritual or superstition, something you must do before stepping on
stage?
Many years ago, before doing dangerous stuff, I would recreate an altar in my dressing room with
candles and things and a picture of Houdini. I was almost asking permission from him to perform my
escape and to have like his blessing – I needed someone up there to look after me, right? And I'm
sure he did, because in many situations I was in specific danger, and there was someone up there
looking after me.
Right now, something I still do before I walk on stage, especially before the very first time, I get on the
floor and I kiss the stage. It's my moment where I ask permission to walk on that stage and be allowed
to do what I do. That's my ritual.
Your book Believe the Impossible explores breaking boundaries. what’s a boundary outside of
magic that you’ve challenged in your own life?
I've always been fascinated with the fear. I didn't know it when I was a kid, but I was looking for
that experience of fear—like going down the staircase into my grandfather’s wine cellar. It was
underground, it was dark and cold; there was a light bulb dangling at the very bottom but you could
only turn it on when you were down there, so you had to walk in the dark. And it was this old house,
like a horror movie, I remember my imagination racing., I was terrified, thinking ‘What's down there,
which monster is hiding in there?’.
I was challenging myself to take one step, going further every time. I remember my heart was beating so hard. And finally I made it to the very end, and I opened the squeaky door like and I was waiting for the monster to pop up… and nothing happened. I was kind of disappointed!
That is something that I have been looking for in other situations—trying to do something where my
body, and my brain is like, ‘Don't do it’, feeling this paralysis and trying to work on it. That can
sometimes make the fear disappear, but definitely you can control it. That's become my mission
throughout what I do.
This interview was arranged in partnership with Andrew Basso & Kelly Geater