Do You Believe in Magic?

If you’ve been to see a lot of magic shows, you might have seen a trick go badly wrong.

But you probably haven’t seen one go quite as badly as Asher Treleaven’s ‘The Magic Inside’. On purpose, of course. “'Peter & Bambi Heaven - The Magic Inside' is the co-creation of me and my wife Gypsy Wood.

"I play Peter and she's Bambi, obviously. It's a non-stop comedy cruise ship full of magic, dance and more magic – the triple threat! It's a perfect parody of the cabaret, comedy and cruise ship artists we've both worked with around the world, lovingly rolled in sequins and then set on fire. It's brilliant, dumb fun.



“We get a lot of real magicians coming to see the show, and getting pretty pissed off with it. It's obviously a parody, we're not genuine magicians.”

Though well-known as a stand-up comic, Asher is also well experienced in the showbiz field. “I moved from Byron Bay to study circus in Melbourne, and that was how I started off in show business.”



Asher encouraged his partner to take a more comedic role. “Gypsy has traditionally in the past worked as a performance artist. She is breaking away from that. I've always told her that she's really funny, and she is hilarious in this show. And weirdly, I am the straight guy to her funny guy, I am the set-up for her jokes. She is actually a lot funnier than me in the show.

“Her dad was an actor, her mum was a go-go dancer in Kings Cross in the '60s. She grew up totally in show business. What Gypsy brings to this show is amazing. Costuming, choreography, spadangles, she absolutely smashes it out of the park. I bring a bit of funny, she brings a lot of funny and ridiculousness. Together we're a perfect storm of good and terrible.”


But working alongside one’s spouse brings challenges as well. “It's the best and worst thing you can do, ever.”

Asher believes ‘The Magic Inside’ is a perfect fit for the unique sensibilities of the Adelaide Fringe Festival. “We LOVE The Garden (of Unearthly Delights) and we love the Fringe, this is our eighth year in Adelaide, but our first with this new show and the characters in it. We’ve talked about creating a show together often, especially after the success of 'Comic Strip', which we produced. We think this show will really resonate with Fringe audiences who love to see a really well-polished piece of anarchy. It's pure dumb fun, perfectly crafted and served up piping hot every night. Adelaide will love it.”



What reaction does Asher hope the audience gets out of ‘Magic’? “Laughter. We hope they piss themselves laughing, have an awesome time, then send their friends along. It is just fun, easy, dumb silliness. It's going to be really fun an enjoyable. And you're probably going to see someone's bum.”

'Peter & Bambi Heaven - The Magic Inside' performs The Garden of Unearthly Delights 12-17 February as part of Adelaide Fringe Festival which runs 12 February – 14 March.