Derren Brown has a favour to ask fans heading to see him in Showman at His Majesty’s Theatre… take along something that has special meaning to you.
“Bring with you, if you have one, a small object that has sentimental value, maybe even something with a bit of a story behind it, but something you can hold in your hand,” said the hugely popular master of mind control and illusion.
But quite why the multi-award winning performer needs you to bring your precious is under wraps – as is his whole show.
The content of Showman is a closely-guarded secret – even though Derren’s “extraordinary demonstrations of my voodoo” is now up and running as it tours the UK.
Derren Brown’s audiences will be sworn to secrecy at His Majesty’s
Every night, he swears his audience to secrecy about what they are going to see and every night they keep that promise.
That is something which is surely extraordinary in this day of social media where people post everything from what they had for breakfast to their cat sleeping on a couch.
“You’re right because as technology increases you’d think it would get harder but people really do (keep it secret),” he said. “A couple of thousand people a night just don’t (give anything away), so I’m always really amazed and very touched by that.”
“I think the only people who don’t, hilariously, are magicians who I think have a bit of a thing about wanting to list the tricks. So the only time I find people not sticking with that is within the little magic world of forums and things.”
One of the few things we do know about Showman is that Derren continues his routine of throwing a Frisbee out into the audience so people who take part are picked at random. And he has a personal reason for doing that.
Showman is Derren Brown’s most personal show to date
“Personally, I hate to be dragged up on stage, so given how much I hate it, I throw Frisbees out to choose people, which means it’s the easiest thing not to get involved. If a Frisbee lands on your lap you can just pass it to the next person.”
While not giving away specifics, Derren does say Showman is his most personal theatrical show to date, with themes about what is important in life.
“It’s probably more emotive than previous shows I’ve done. I’m 50 now, so it’s a grown-up show in a way that ones weren’t when I was younger,” he said.
“There are a lot of reasons this one feels quite special and different to me and it’s very nice that it’s been so well received because of that.”
Showman was written before the pandemic – the tour was due to start the day the first lockdown was imposed – which makes its theme seem particularly prescient.
“The heart of the show is about the idea that the things in life which feel difficult and isolating, like when life goes badly, actually tend to be the very experiences that connect us with other people,” said Derren.
“And then we lived out a couple of years of exactly that, that the very things that isolate us are the things we are all sharing. It gave us a couple of years to dig into that and let some of the ideas behind the show grow a bit.”
Did Derren Brown use his ‘voodoo’ to predict the pandemic?
So did Derren use his “voodoo” to predict the pandemic? He laughs at the idea.
“No, but I did have a lot of people thinking for a long time it was me (pulling a stunt)… like lots of people on social media saying ‘come on, when are you going to own up’. It was funny for a moment until it became clear how dark it was.
“I don’t know whether to be flattered or horrified that people would put it on me.”
The fact that Derren has remarkable skills in illusion and mind control has brought him a fair few odd requests over his career on stage and screen from people wanting help to win the lottery – offering him a cut if they do – to law enforcement agencies.
“I’ve been asked by the FBI to help them out with training and I’ve been asked by the police. It’s a strange thing, but ultimately, the bottom line is I’m an entertainer and it would be wrong of me to get involved with people like the FBI,” he said.
“I’ve just got used to politely declining things that are outwith my remit, while at the same time completely understanding why people would ask.”
Derren Brown looks forward to returning to ‘lovely’ Aberdeen
Right now, though, Derren’s focus is completely on his tour – and the fact he is looking forward to returning to Aberdeen for the first time in about seven years.
“It’s a beautiful city… I’ll take any city where I can sit in a coffee shop all day and write and is lovely to walk around in. And Aberdeen is a lovely city for taking photographs, which I end to do a lot of,” he said.
“It’s also one of those cities that always give a really good crowd. I’m sure any performer would say the same, that you are guaranteed a lovely warm response.”
Derren Brown’s Showman is at His Majesty’s Theatre from Tuesday May 10 to Saturday May 14 – and don’t forget to take something of sentimental value with you!
For more information and tickets visit aberdeenperformingarts.com