World Champion of Magic to perform one night only

Jason Latimer

Tickets may disappear quickly when a champion illusionist, officially known as the "World Champion of Magic," appears in Thousand Oaks next month.

Jason Latimer travels the world dazzling magic lovers with his ability to do the seemingly impossible. The 27yearold will bring about four tons of equipment to his show at the Fred Kavli Theater in the Civic Arts Plaza for one night only- Sun., Aug. 10 at 7 p.m.

His show will include many of the same routines he did at the Princess Grace Theater in Monaco for the royal family and about 700 others during a birthday party for Princess Stephanie. He'll also perform the feats that won him the "Grand Prix Best Overall World Champion of Magic" title, bestowed by the International Federation of Magic Societies in the Netherlands.

"Illusions of the 21st Century" is a show created by the 1999 graduate of Agoura High School. And many members of Latimer's stage crew are high school friends who've stuck with him.

"We're a tight family," he said.

The routines come from Latimer's imagination and his persistence in creating what he's imagined.

"First we dream up the concept and then we spend months or years figuring out how to do it," he said.

He shapes water, bends light, makes large objects appear and disappear, performs 360degree levitations and more.

"During the levitation, she rotates in the air. You've got to see it to believe it," Latimer said.

It helps that he has three bachelor's degrees from UC Santa Barbara- in economics, mathematics and applied physics.

"I'm very educationoriented," he said.

Latimer has traveled to more than 40 countries, many in Asia and Europe, performing his illusions. He's been invited to universities worldwide to lecture on technology and psychology.

His career began when he was 9 and saw his first magic show- on a cruise ship. The magician couldn't get away from the persistent boy who wanted to know how he did what his tricks.

"I wore him down and he taught me my first trick," Latimer said.

When he got home, he read books and watched videos. By the time he was 12 he was performing at birthday parties and other events.

He was soon noticed by members of the Magic Castle in Hollywood, where magicians go to spend time with others who share their craft and to learn new tricks. Their junior academy offers young people the opportunity to learn from the best: David Copperfield, Penn & Teller and Lance Burton lecture there. Like Latimer, Burton is a World Champion titlist.

At age 21 Latimer began entering competitions. In Las Vegas, Siegfried and Roy sponsored a World Magic Seminar, where Latimer won the "Most Up and Coming New Talent" award. A series of other wins led to an invitation to represent the United States at the Netherlands event, where he earned the World Champion title.

Since then he's continued to blend technology, illusions and visual art, he said.

Creating and entertaining runs in Latimer's family.

His parents now live in Simi Valley. His father, Jeff Latimer, is a retired contractor. His mother, Virginia, a former actress known as Virginia Lee, now works for the city of Simi Valley.

"My mother's family were the children in 'The King and I' movie," Latimer said.

She also performed on TV shows such as "Get Smart" and "M.A.S.H.."

On Aug. 10 Latimer will take time out of his touring schedule to honor his local mentor magician, the late Chris De Palma, a Kiwanis member who got him involved with the Magic Castle when he was a child.