Cat HillJuice Reporter

Over 500 people crowded the Performing Arts Center on Feb. 14 to see mentalist Chris Carter and magician Daniel Martin. The duo brought a bag of mind-boggling tricks with them and left the crowd in awe while they laughed and shouted.

Daniel Martin was the first act. He’s been tinkering around with magic since he was a kid.

“When I was 6, I really wanted a bike for Christmas. Did I get it? No. I got some magic kit. I was pissed, but I figured I wouldn’t waste what my parents got me, so I started playing with it. From then on, I was hooked,” said Martin.

His snarky improv kept the audience laughing through the entire event and his tricks stunned and amazed the crowd. One of the most incredible acts of the night was when Martin broke the current straight-jacket escape world record, previously held by Criss Angel at 61 seconds.

Martin got the audience involved when he had a student from the audience come on stage and strap him into the jacket. Another student timed it, and for the next 52 seconds there were cheers and an electric excitement throughout the entire auditorium. Once freed, more cheers and applause erupted throughout the building.

It was a tough act to follow, but mentalist Chris Carter certainly came close.

Carter became interested in mind trickery at a young age.

“It actually all started when I was watching my uncle play with cards when I was younger and I was fascinated by his abilities and wanted to learn them myself,” said Carter.

Upon entering the stage, Carter started with a few jokes and “warm-up” feats where he assigned four people in the audience cards and was able to guess the 4 cards (suite and card number) exactly.

One of Carter’s acts put his own safety on the line. He decided to play Russian roulette with a staple gun. Carter selected some volunteers from the audience and told them to open fire at his hand!

UPC event coordinator, Thomas Brinker thinks Valentines day may have had an impact in the large turnout.

“It more than exceeded my expectations,” Brinker said. “We did a lot of marketing for the event.”