{"id":27102,"date":"2020-12-22T09:42:54","date_gmt":"2020-12-22T17:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/?p=27102"},"modified":"2021-01-25T14:26:40","modified_gmt":"2021-01-25T22:26:40","slug":"helder-guimaraes-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/helder-guimaraes-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Helder Guimar\u00e3es’ The Future Masterfully Blends Storytelling and Magic"},"content":{"rendered":"

I first met Helder Guimar\u00e3es in 2016. He had invited me to a convenience store on an unassuming street in Los Angeles. But with Guimar\u00e3es, what he shows you is not always what it seems. I grabbed a bag of candy, which the cashier told me I did not need to pay for and stepped into a photobooth for a picture. A moment later, I stepped out again, but the convenience store was gone\u2014and I now stood in a magical wonderland of twinkling lights, overgrown trees, ransacked drawers, and delicate musical notes wafting through the air. This was Borrowed Time<\/em>, an intimate immersive magic experience performed for only fifteen lucky patrons a night. Fast-forward to 2020, Guimar\u00e3es is once again offering his intimate blend of magic and storytelling in The Future\u2014I bought a ticket immediately, excited to join him in his world of magic once more.<\/p>\n

Helder Guimar\u00e3es’ The Future<\/em> is an hour and a half immersive Zoom experience that is part storytelling, part magic show, and part audience experience. Similar to The Present<\/em><\/a>, participants are mailed a mysterious black cylinder marked only with the text: Helder Guimar\u00e3es’ The Future<\/em>. Audiences are asked not to open it until the experience begins, as this cylinder provides the gateway into the audience interactivity and participation in The Future. Further, it\u2019s the role of the audience to actively vote in this experience to determine the path Helder Guimar\u00e3es’ The Future<\/em> takes. With this level of agency (at a larger scale), it provides a sense of choice, as well as a question of what if\u2014as the paths you don\u2019t take may linger in your mind.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Geffen<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Much like all of Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 performances, they are much more than a magic show; they are a story\u2014a look into Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 life. While prior stories have focused on his relationship with his grandfather, the mystery of Santa Claus, and more, Helder Guimar\u00e3es’ The Future<\/em> focuses on the intertwined relationship he has with Kevin, a British slight-of-hand cardshark that Guimar\u00e3es idolizes and ultimately befriends. The story is exciting, thought-provoking, and surprisingly deep for a magic show. Much like any magic trick, the answers aren\u2019t given, but rather, left to the audience to decide. Another chance for our self-reflection to influence not just the narrative, but our own future moving forward.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s in this self-reflection and wonder that the show succeeds. Guimar\u00e3es doesn\u2019t just provide an entertaining show; he also provides a lesson in defining our own values and how they change with time. We are not static images of ourselves, but rather dynamic beings that change, grow, and break rules we may have set for ourselves. It\u2019s a beautiful message, and not a heavy handed one, but a nuanced one that may be missed by those just fascinated by his sleight of hand.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Geffen<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The magic tricks are incredible, building upon his previous shows, providing further proof that he\u2019s one of the absolute best playing card magicians in the world. Guimar\u00e3es utilizes some of the tricks he learned from Kevin in the experience, tying the narrative back to the magic throughout. They happen with such precision and grace that they appear nearly invisible to us. If it wasn\u2019t a live show, you would swear there was some fancy editing built in.<\/p>\n

While The Present<\/em> took place entirely within Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 home, The Future<\/em> plays far more into expectation and surprise. Guimar\u00e3es utilizes multiple sets, each representing different locations from his story. It\u2019s in this manner that audience is further connected into his story, watching the various scenes unfold directly before your eyes. And expectation does not always align with reality; thus, sets shift and change almost as easily as the tricks Guimar\u00e3es performs transform in front of your eyes. With the sets offering almost as much spectacle as the tricks, the Geffen and director Frank Marshall have gone above and beyond to bring the audience from their couches into Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 <\/strong>world. It\u2019s truly a visual treat.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Geffen<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The only small criticism I have for this experience is the increased audience size. One aspect of Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 <\/strong>experiences is the intimacy\u2014and while intimacy and Zoom seem to be at odds already, the audience size is increased to approximately fifty participants in this experience. In Borrowed Time and The Present, almost every audience member who wanted interaction was given the opportunity; but in The Future, that interaction was not seen. Rather, it was replaced with audience voting and small moments of engagement for a few lucky audience members. I just hope that the real future offers a return to the small, intimate experiences of Guimar\u00e3es\u2019 past.<\/p>\n

The Future<\/em> is an engaging, thoughtful, and meaningful experience. It is a strong sequel to The Present<\/em><\/a> and provides a bit of wonder and excitement during times of quarantine. If you\u2019re a fan of magic, storytelling, or just a good trick, I highly recommend this experience. It\u2019s a look into a brighter future.<\/p>\n

For more information on The Future or other Geffen Stayhouse productions, check out The Geffen’s website<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, Twitter<\/a> and Youtube<\/a> pages.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I first met Helder Guimar\u00e3es in 2016. He had invited me to a convenience store on an unassuming street in Los Angeles. But with Guimar\u00e3es, what he shows you is not always what it seems. I grabbed a bag of candy, which the cashier told me I did not need to pay for and stepped…<\/p>\n

Continue reading<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27104,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[11845,80,24382],"tags":[23943,24361,23940,128,16571,23858,24338],"yst_prominent_words":[198,16078,188,4029,23939,23944,1317,320,8042,8781,3329,4525,4354,7233],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Geffen-Playhouse-Helder-Guimaraes-The-Future.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbrPML-738","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27102"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27102"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27102\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27102"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=27102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}