{"id":288699,"date":"2026-09-18T05:44:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T05:44:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/288699\/"},"modified":"2026-09-18T05:44:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T05:44:10","slug":"justin-willman-brings-magic-and-wonder-to-pittsburghs-byham-theater","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/288699\/","title":{"rendered":"Justin Willman brings magic and wonder to Pittsburgh\u2019s Byham Theater"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Justin Willman performing onstage in Beverly Hills, Calif., in 2012. [AP file photo]\n<\/p>\n

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Justin Willman in a 2013 photo. He will be at the Byham Theater in Pittsburgh Sept. 24. [AP file photo]\n<\/p>\n

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Magician Justin Willman will be at Pittsburgh\u2019s Byham Theater Sept. 24.
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If you haven\u2019t heard of Justin Willman, you may be in the minority. <\/p>\n

The magician and comedian\u2019s work on Netflix\u2019s \u201cMagic for Humans\u201d and \u201cMagic Prank Show\u201d has generated more than 1 billion views and his fans span all ages. One Netflix review summed up Willman\u2019s target audience quite simply as \u201calive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Willman will be bringing his mixture of magic and humor to the Byham Theater Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. as part of his \u201cOne for the Ages\u201d tour.<\/p>\n

Willman has appeared at the White House and on \u201cThe Tonight Show,\u201d \u201cThe Today Show,\u201d \u201cThe Kelly Clarkson Show\u201d and more. He was recently named Stage Magician of the Year by the Magic Castle, a Hollywood institution and mecca for magicians. It\u2019s known as one of the most prestigious places in the world for professional and serious amateur magicians.<\/p>\n

Downtime leads to magic<\/p>\n

Willman\u2019s foray into the magic world began with a serious injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was 12 and broke both arms at the same time while riding my bike,\u201d he said. As part of physical therapy, he learned card tricks.<\/p>\n

Later, while he was attending college, he realized he could pair comedy with the art of prestidigitation. The act proved successful enough to help him earn his college degree in broadcast journalism.<\/p>\n

To Willman, comedy and magic are a natural pairing.<\/p>\n

\u201cMagic itself is laugh inducing,\u201d he said. \u201cSerious musicians can be a bit cringey, but funny musicians, on the other hand, are just plain fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Willman, like so many other performers, deals with his share of butterflies before taking the stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many little details to prepare for during a show, but I try my best to live in the moment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Evoking childlike wonder<\/p>\n

Willman views his performances as a bit of a social experiment and a study in human behavior.<\/p>\n

\u201cI bring something out of them that is different,\u201d he said. You might know someone your entire life and it\u2019s interesting and beautiful to witness people letting their guard down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, things can go wrong along the way, and Willman has learned to think on his feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe key is to never let on that something went wrong. That\u2019s the superpower of being a comedy magician. Anything can be turned into a punch line and nothing is at stake unless you label it as such,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A fan weighs in<\/p>\n

Dr. Morissa Schwartz, founder of GenZ Publishing, can be counted among Willman\u2019s fans.<\/p>\n

She describes his appeal as being able to marry the joke and the trick.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trick is that they do the same job: they make the audience feel pleasantly wrong,\u201d she said, adding that comedy lowers one\u2019s guard, allowing the magic to slip past it.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe keeps the tone playful, so viewers feel included in the impossibility instead of lectured by it. It\u2019s less \u2018behold my genius\u2019 and more \u2018come enjoy this tiny breach in reality,’\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Becoming a husband and father<\/p>\n

Willman\u2019s work continues to evolve to reflect where he is in life. More recently he\u2019s become a husband and a father.<\/p>\n

\u201cI write what I know, so it\u2019s become autobiographical,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

That approach keeps Willman\u2019s material fresh with each stage of life offering something new to explore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe newest and the truest is always a nut I\u2019m trying to crack,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

If Willman could be granted one wish, however, it\u2019s that his mother could see him now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI lost her in 2020 and would love her to see the crowds I\u2019m attracting,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For information on Justin Willman\u2019s appearance at the Byham Theater, go online to trustarts.org.<\/p>\n


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