By Jessica Wertling
Max Novick, a student at the Waldorf School in Garden City, appeared in May on the show featuring Elmont native Criss Angel, a renaissance performer in a mystical sense. Angel is credited with being a magician, illusionist, escape artist, stunt performer and musician. He not only creates and performs original illusions, but puts his own spin on the classic tricks of old hat magicians - he intensifies them and ultimately creates an end product that leaves eyewitnesses dumbstruck.
With his illusions, including the ability to levitate himself across the tops of buildings, he's the modern day embodiment of the old saying, "You'd have to see it to believe it."
The Novick family showed appreciation for being on the show by donating money to a children's cancer charity in honor of Angel, whose father died of the illness.
"It was awesome to meet Criss Angel," said Max's proud mother Adrienne. "It was like magic "
The trick in which Max assisted Angel on the cable TV show involved a lemon, an orange and an egg. After Angel made both the egg and lemon disappear, the pair opened the orange to find the lemon inside, and then they proceeded to open the lemon to find the egg was somehow inside of that. After they cracked the egg, to the amazement of Angel and the spectators, a bird flew out. It's tricks like those, combined with Angel's ability to connect with today's youth, that has solidified him as the hottest illusionist around today.
"When Max does magic, it amazes me," said Ms. Novick.
Max, who desires to someday be a magician himself, got the opportunity to appear on an episode of "Mindfreak" when his father, Steven Novick, a dentist in Franklin Square, became acquainted with Angel through a charity they both contribute to, the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation.
The foundation is an international, nonprofit organization that helps critically ill children and their families temporarily forget the hardships of illness by providing the children with fun, while encouraging an air of hope. Of Angel's benevolence and talent, Mr. Novick said, "Criss encourages young people with his charity work and with his magic."
In addition to appearing on an episode of Angel's show, which is filmed at the Aladdin Resort in Las Vegas, Max and his father got the opportunity to spend time with Angel off the air the day prior to filming, while Angel performed un-televised tricks for them and allowed Max to act as his assistant. A highlight for Max was when Angel performed his metamorphosis act, a trick in which the magician changes places with a person in a chained-up box in a matter of split-seconds, something that Angel is credited with being able to perform faster than any other magician in history.
"Criss Angel Mindfreak" airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on the A&E network.
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