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Lyn Dillies Makes Real Magic Gender Divide Vanishes in Illusionist’s Hands
MAGIC IN PRACTICE TDmonthly caught up with Lyn in Long Beach, Calif., where she was practicing what she preached by doing a show at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center before heading off to the Magic Castle, a professional magicians' club in Los Angeles.  Even after putting on 90 minutes of audience participation magic and twisted stage illusions, she had energy enough to chat about the “whys” and “wherefores” of her DVD.So why? “I remembered as a young girl being disappointed when I opened up a magic kit only to find poorly made tricks and deplorable instructions," Lyn said. "I developed this DVD to give children a visual lesson in learning magic, and I also wanted it to be part of my legacy to inspire and teach children the art of magic.” Combining her knowledge, experience and $23,000 of her own money, Lyn produced the DVD, then needed to find a way to promote it. Enter Andrea Blain Public Relations of Chicago. Andrea Blain herself put this project on the Web and used various forums, from TV to magazines and newspapers, to promote live shows and guest spots. Lyn’s DVD is not only about “how” to do the trick, but how to “present” the trick in a professional manner and what to watch out for along the way. She also offers tips only an “in-the-trenches” working magician can give, and her DVD sets itself off from other products in the genre. THE GENDER DIVIDE  When asked whether more girls or boys were coming to her shows and buying the DVD, some of Lyn's core beliefs came to the fore. “Right now I’m seeing it split pretty evenly between boys and girls” (a quick look at the night’s audience verified this), “but I’m hoping I can be a positive role model to more girls. I want to show little girls they can make it in a male-dominated field," she said. She gave an example of how she’d recently been “gendered away" from being picked for a commercial spot because executives told her that girls don’t do magic; only boys do. As Lyn signed autographs for all the wide-eyed magicians-to-be of both sexes, it was obvious she was making her point … at least to the younger generation. Sometimes the magic of positive role modeling can be stronger than all the hocus pocus in the world. Here’s more on Lyn’s DVD:
Writer's Bio: Mark Zaslove is an entertainment industry veteran in developing content (writing, directing and producing television and feature films) for the major studios, including Disney, Universal and Warner Bros. A two-time Emmy Award winner for writing and recipient of the Humanitas Prize (for writing uplifting human values in television and movies), Mark is also Head of Content Development for Nice Entertainment. Read more articles by this author
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