Breakdancing magician inspired by brave slave

A BREAKDANCING magician who was inspired by a teacher and a man who escaped from slavery is to perform in Henley.

Richard Essien, who reached the final of Britain’s Got Talent in 2020, talks about both men in his show.

“I started magic very young,” says the 41-year-old, who grew up in Peckham.

“I got a little magic set, a Paul Daniels one, and I was fortunate enough that my drama teacher, David Weeks, was a magician.

“He encouraged a few of us to continue and pursue magic as a serious hobby, you know? We read all the classic books.

“I never really thought I’d ever be a professional magician. As I say in the show, I didn’t even come across a black magician or a professional magician of colour, so I didn’t even think it was an avenue that I could pursue.

“Then when I heard the story of Henry ‘Box’ Brown, it really inspired me. He escaped to freedom by mailing himself in a wooden crate to a place where slavery was abolished.

“Because he was a fugitive, as it was illegal to escape slavery, he emigrated to the UK and became a magician here.

“He did an anti-slavery magic show across the whole of the UK for 25 years in the 1800s.

“I was like, ‘wow’, that’s a massive thing, you know? I didn’t even know there was a black magician with such an incredible story. It really helped me pursue a professional journey into magic and stage shows.”

Brown was born into slavery in Louisa County, Virginia, around 1815 and worked in a Richmond tobacco factory.

In 1848, his wife and children were sold to go to North Carolina.

In 1849, Brown was helped by a free black man and a white enslaver to ship himself in a box to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The package was accepted there by a leader of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society and a year later Brown came to live in the UK. Richard says: “He was an amazing singer. When he came out of the crate in Philadelphia, the first thing he did was sing a hymn.

“He was to incorporate these elements into his magic show.

“I like to incorporate my background as a dancer into my show, so a lot of the magic I perform includes dance routines and
acrobatics.

“One of my feature tricks is my backflip card catch routine, where I ask someone to take a card and then it’s lost in the middle of the deck.

“I then spring the cards into the air and I do a backflip and catch that card, so it’s a visually exciting take on magic. I also do a trick where I solve a Rubik’s cube while blindfolded and also breakdance. There are classic illusions in the show — we’ve got levitation and sawing in half, but with a modern take on it.

“I try to incorporate soul into my magic with the music. It’s a contemporary, high energy, family show and I end with an illusion that’s inspired by Henry Brown.”

Richard, who has a five-year-old son, Tayo, with his partner and main assistant, Mel, was expected by his family to follow a more conventional career path.

“I grew up in an academic household,” he says. “My dad was an accountant and a senior lecturer at North London University, Metropolitan University and South Bank University.

“He was chief examiner of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, so he didn’t really like the idea of his son becoming an artist, a magician or a dancer. He wanted me to become an actuary.

“I did study maths at Queen Mary University, so I got my degree just to make him happy and then I went on the streets and became a breakdancing magician.

“My dad passed away in 2017 but he had sort of come round. I was in a show called Impossible, which was the first magic show in the West End — a big illusion show — but, sadly, my dad passed away just before I made my debut so he never got to see it.

“My Rubik’s cube routine is actually inspired by him. I talk about doing something that would impress him so why not the most famous maths puzzle in history?

“When you grow up in an immigrant household, they want you to be a doctor, an accountant or a lawyer. When you tell them you want to be a magician or a dancer, it’s not something they’re really happy about but my dad was happy for my success.

“I didn’t actually know a single black magician when I was younger, so I talk about how role models are very important, especially for minority kids.

“When you see someone that looks and sounds like you in a certain environment, it lets you know that these doors can open — I can become a president or a magician or whatever.”

Richard will be making a television special at the end the year.

He says: “I’ve just performed a massive stunt on the River Thames, just by Tower Bridge, and that’s part of it. I’m going to be filming by the Bloomsbury Hotel and that will involve a big stunt.”

• Magical Bones: Soulful Magic is at the Kenton Theatre on Saturday, September 16 at 7.30pm. Tickets cost £22 and the show is suitable for ages 10 and over. For more details and to buy tickets, call the box office on (01491) 525050 or visit kentontheatre.co.uk