Trigg Watson Is Making High-Tech Magic For a Cause

We can all use a little magic right now. Luckily, Southern Methodist University alumni Trigg Watson is putting on two shows Saturday, June 11, in the Bishop Arts Theater Centre (215 S. Tyler St.). And Watson has a good cause up his sleeve: The shows will support nonprofit organization Big D Reads.

Watson's show offers much more than traditional card magic and hat tricks. He's a modern-day magician who uses iPads, cameras and even audience members' cell phones. Sustaining this new style of magic can be difficult, as the use of technology makes audiences more skeptical, but Watson told the Observer in a February interview that this type of magic just takes old tricks and techniques and makes them more relevant to this time period.

Watson’s high-tech style has caught the eye of crowds all over the world and lead to appearances on shows such as Pop TV's Don’t Blink, Penn & Teller: Fool Us and Masters of Illusion on the CW, and America’s Got Talent on NBC. According to his website, Watson uses his magic to inspire positive change. Working with Big D Reads is part of his mission to inspire.

Big D Reads is a community-wide reading project based on a popular community book club created in 2013. This year's read will be The Accommodation by former longtime Dallas Observer columnist Jim Schutze, which focuses on race and the history of mid-century Dallas. Copies of the book will be donated to various communal facilities and groups, such as schools, libraries, book clubs, hospitals, leadership organizations and other locations throughout Dallas. The purpose of this year's project is to give Dallas residents an opportunity to learn about the city's history and racial background, and give them the ability to share their thoughts with others, while connecting through this book.

Originally published in 1986, The Accommodation was out of print for many years. Rare copies of the book were offered for sale online for $1,000 and someone tweeted out the entire book in 2020, line by line. Publisher Deep Vellum books reprinted the book last year, and it has since become required reading in Dallas schools such as Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts.

The shows will begin at 3:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets range from $25-$55, with the option to buy 12 reserved balcony seats for $495 for ultimate magic fans. As a bonus, guests ages 21+ will get to enjoy complimentary beer and wine. Buy tickets at bigreads.org.