Just shy of five years ago, two professional magicians, Itai Pinki and Dror Liwer started the uproariously popular Sorcerer’s Night at Café Yaffo in Jaffa’s Flea Market. Today, the impressive and wickedly entertaining variety show is packed to capacity every Sunday night and is hands-down one of Tel Aviv’s top tiPS for a hilarious night.
Rated Trip Advisor's #1 show in Tel Aviv, every Sunday night, patrons trickle into Café Yaffo for the highly-anticipated night of magic, mentalism and surprises.
What is essentially a ‘dinner theater’ of sorts combines a select handful of a rotating roster of 16 different magicians and mentalists. They visit each table for an intimate set of tricks and treats while patrons are having dinner. Once dinner and drinks turns to dessert the crew sets the stage for an all-star performance of interactive shenanigans.
Founding duo, 33 year-old Itai Pinki from Ramat Hasharon and 50 year-old Dror (The Drude) who immigrated to Israel from New York City in 2010, have both been practicing magic since early childhood. Dror started when he was 6, and became a professional at age 42 and Itai started at 12, and went pro at 19.
How and when did Sorcerer's Night get started?
Dror: When I arrived in Israel, I was surprised that even though there are millions of tourists that visit each year, there was no entertainment in English. And, despite Tel Aviv being a major city, there was no magic venue like in any other big city around the world. I wanted to start a magical dinner show similar to the ones in Las Vegas to fill that gap. A chance meeting with Itai made that dream into a reality. I saw Itai do his stand up magic show, and thought he would be a perfect partner, and the rest, is history. We started doing shows in May 2014, and have been going strong since.
What was your inspiration to start doing magic?
Dror: Our neighborhood butcher, Joshua, was a part time magician. When I was 6 years old, every time we'd go to the supermarket, I would run to the meat section, and he would show me magic. He taught me my first card trick....In retrospect, it's really his fault. Beyond that, my biggest inspiration was the late Eugene Burger, who, like myself, became a professional magician late in life.
Itai: A family member from Argentina bought me a magic book when I was 12. Most kids get a book and a kit, play with it for a little while, and forget about it. Not me. I couldn't stop. I got more books, went to lectures, and was bitten hard by the bug.
Dror and Itai
What is one of the funniest moments you can recall hosting one of the Sorcerer's Nights?
Dror: We had a family from South Africa and a family from Canada come to the show one night. Turns out the dads from both families were brothers vacationing with their families in Israel, and both got tickets to the show not knowing they will see each other that night. What made this incredible was that it was the first time they saw each other in 5 years. We had them on stage doing a brotherly psychic connection routine. It was both very funny and very emotional at the same time.
Your show is a mix of magic, mentalism and comedy. If you had a choice to see David Copperfield, Criss Angel or Tape Face tonight, who would you choose and why?
Dror: I actually prefer the smaller shows. I like a more intimate setting where I can interact with the performers. This is why we insist on doing the close up magic before the stage show at our Sorcerer's Night. It gives people an opportunity to experience magical moments up close and personal. Whether it's the Marrakech dinner show in San Francisco, or Houdini Sala de Magia in Madrid, that is where magic really happens for me.
Itai: Even though my style is much more comedic than his, I would choose Copperfield, because I have still not seen his show and I made it a point to see it in 2019. I worry that he might retire soon, and I won't get to see him. He is the greatest and most successful magician of our generation – and I can't miss it.
You have patrons visit from all over the world. What differences do you notice between Israeli crowds versus international crowds? How do you keep everyone entertained despite cultural differences?
Dror: Magic and laughter are very international. The show itself crosses all cultural boundaries, and based on our TripAdvisor reviews, everyone has fun, but Israelis are probably the toughest on us. They are the most skeptical of any audience, so the fact that we get locals coming back 4-5 times for shows, that means we got through, even to them....