Dennis Watkins
Dennis Watkins is an award-winning, third-generation magician[1] and classically trained actor, based in Chicago, Illinois.[2] He has performed across the United States for corporate and private events and ceremonies, colleges and universities, trade shows, conventions and meetings. Watkins is known for his sleight of hand prowess, walking on broken glass and swallowing razor blades. Another favorite is his Balloon Trick, where he crawls inside a 7-foot wide balloon in order to complete a card trick.
Biography
Dennis Watkins grew up in a family of magicians, just outside of Dallas, TX. His grandmother, grandfather, aunts and uncles were all sleight of hand artists. Ed Watkins, Dennis' grandfather, ran a small, storefront magic shop in Dallas for 30 years. When Dennis was 7 years old, he asked his grandfather to teach him some magic tricks, beginning Dennis' decades-long career as a performer.
In 2001, Watkins graduated from SMU Meadows School of the Arts in Dallas, TX, where he received the prestigious Hunt Leadership Scholars award. There, he met and worked with many of the actors and directors who would go on to found The House Theatre of Chicago. He also spent a year training at BADA, British American Drama Academy, as part of his academic studies.
Dennis is the second in a family of four brothers in which his immediate younger brother is generally regarded as the most handsome and intelligent.
The House Theatre of Chicago
Dennis Watkins is a Founding Company Member with The House Theatre of Chicago, where he originated the role of Harry Houdini in Death and Harry Houdini written and directed by Artistic Director Nathan Allen. Portraying Houdini in all 7 sold-out runs of the show, Watkins recreates some of Houdini's most well-known feats, including escaping the infamous Water Torture Cell.[3] Death and Harry Houdini returns to The Chopin Theatre Summer 2016.
The Magic Parlour
In 2012, Watkins created and began performing The Magic Parlour, an intimate 80-minute evening of close-up magic and mind reading at the historic Palmer House Hilton in downtown Chicago.[4] He performs most weekends to a small gathering of just 44 guests.
References
- ↑ Chicago Tribune (28 March 2016). "Theatre at the Center to host magician Dennis Watkins - Post-Tribune". Post-Tribune. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ↑ "Dennis Watkins Returns in 'Death and Harry Houdini'". Chicago magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ↑ Jones, Chris. "THEATER REVIEW: "Death and Harry Houdini" by House Theatre of Chicago at the Chopin Theatre". ChicagoTribune. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
- ↑ "3411 - Dennis Watkins: Not just a 'Parlour' trick - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive - Windy City Times". Windy City Times. Retrieved 26 April 2016.