By Alleigh Keyes ’16

After meeting at a Super Bowl party in 2014, sophomores Jesse Gun and Sam Hull realized that they both have a passion for magic. They showed each other their impressive repertoire of magic that ranges from card tricks to balloon art. Eventually, they developed acts and performed at local nursing homes before regularly having gigs. Today, Hull and Gun, known as the Masters of Mystery, team up to practice magic by doing shows and birthday parties.

Even though they specialize in show magic, the Masters of Mystery are acquainted with other types of magic including street magic and close-up magic. Since they have an agent who owns a magic shop at Savage Mill, the Masters of Mystery perform gigs in the mall’s shop almost every weekend. More information about performances can be found at their website, masters-of-mystery.com.

Gun said he loves magic because it allows someone to think about a trick even after the show. “For instance, an acrobat may have a really cool act, and you may think about the act afterward. With a magic trick the audience member has the trick playing over and over again.” Hull agrees that reaction is one of the biggest reasons why he performs magic.

The duo performs shows that usually last about an hour in the magic shop. Viewers receive balloon animals and get to view a plethora of tricks that include juggling and plate spinning. “We have many different tricks, ranging from simple card tricks to tricks involving fire and swords,” said Gun. One of their crowd favorites is known as the Swords of Death. In the trick, Hull puts his head in a box. Then, Gun rams 15 swords in the box. After that, Gun allows an audience member to randomly pick a card, which ends up in Hull’s mouth.

“We love what we do right now and have a good time doing it,” Hull explained. Their work as magicians has helped them gain real-world experience in the fields of communications and marketing, which will prove useful as Hull and Gun are both interested in business.

Although not many are able to make a career out of this, these talented magicians aim to do so. They plan on auditioning for the hit-TV show, “America’s Got Talent.”