How Mahdi the Magician Makes Obstacles Vanish

Mahdi Gilbert

Mahdi Gilbert, professionally known as Mahdi the Magician, has been referred to as “amazing,” “inspirational,” and “the best magician in the world.” (That last compliment came from none other than David Blaine, himself one of the most celebrated magicians alive.)

The Toronto-based entertainer has performed around the world, and those who’ve seen him in action — including a Hollywood celebrity or two — have asked aloud if he possesses supernatural powers.

But there was a time when performing any kind of magic trick seemed like an impossible feat: How could someone born without hands or feet master sleight of hand?

Somehow, he did. After countless failed attempts and endless hours of practice, Gilbert taught himself his first card trick as a teen, and he’s been inventing tricks for himself ever since.

Before the Magic: A Life Without Dreams

Despite the tenacity that fueled Gilbert’s drive to perfect his first card trick, magic was not an early goal of his.

In fact, he did not envision a bright future for himself when he was growing up. He was a child without dreams.

“When you believe that you need hands and feet to be able to live and function and have a life, it’s very hard to imagine having a dream,” he said.

That mindset shifted gradually. Over time, Gilbert began to see magic as a possible path to something better, not necessarily a career, but a way forward.

“It was an idea for me that there were people who could do anything,” he said. “I thought, wow, this is sort of a solution to the impossibilities of my life. If I become a magician, I can do anything. And so that’s how I first became interested in it, the idea and the feeling that idea gave me more than excitement about the tricks and the shows.”

Most kids learn to perform magic by playing with a beginner’s magic kit or trying a basic card trick. Gilbert’s early act was far more cerebral: Around age 13 or 14, he developed a mind-reading act.

“I was coming up with different magic effects using my mind, using memory, and using language,” he said. “I was creating experiences for people, magical experiences, but it was never anything physical. It was never something that they could feel or touch.”

The more Gilbert learned, the more fascinated he became with the magicians and illusionists who’d come before him. Their work inspired him to dive into books on card tricks and magic involving physical objects.

“When I was 16, I decided this is what I wanted to do,” Gilbert said. “But it was really scary. I didn’t think I could do it.”

He had a dream. Now came the hard part: overcoming very real challenges to accomplish it.

Cards in the Dark

Gilbert began attempting card tricks with a mix of cautious optimism and fierce resolve.

“I decided on my 17th birthday that I would start on that day. It was sort of like a gift, or like a promise that I made to myself: 'I’m gonna try to do this.’'

Gilbert taught himself to do card tricks alone in his room at night as a teen.

"I waited until my entire family was asleep, and I sat in the dark on my bed with a deck of cards, and I just tried to figure things out."

Each night was an exercise in persistence. Cards dropped. Tricks failed. He wasn’t getting anywhere.

One morning, overwhelmed by frustration and doubt, Gilbert considered giving up. No one knew what he was doing. No one would know if he stopped. If he let it go, maybe the disappointment would finally lift.

So he gave up, and his painful feelings relented — for about a day. Then there was a worse feeling.

"I couldn’t describe it back then, but I think I understand it now," Gilbert said. "I knew that if I gave up on this one thing that I love, then I was going to give up on everything that I love in my life when things got difficult.

"Deep down, I knew that I was making this this choice, and I couldn’t live like that. So I said, 'I’m going to go back and keep trying,' and that’s what I did.”

Gradually, Gilbert started developing techniques that worked for him. But at the time, he didn’t recognize his progress as the breakthrough it was. Self-doubt still lingered. The temptation to quit didn’t vanish overnight.

A Make-or-Break Moment for Mahdi the Magician

At one point, Gilbert decided to put himself to the test. He would perform a small, informal magic show at his high school. If it didn’t go well, he’d walk away from magic for good, knowing he had tried his best.

He opened the show with mind-reading tricks he had already mastered: illusions based on psychology and wordplay that subtly guided people toward specific thoughts or choices.

He saved what he considered the hardest part, a card trick, for the end. It involved asking a volunteer to join him onstage and select a card that Gilbert would then identify.

Early on, it became apparent to Gilbert that the trick, which included guiding the volunteer through a series of steps, was not going according to plan.

Since developing his own techniques for doing card tricks, Gilbert has astonished audiences around the world.

“The kid was not following my instructions at all,” Gilbert said. “I had no idea where he was mentally. Wherever I wanted to lead him, he was on his own journey.”

The audience was watching, so Gilbert felt he had to press forward. He announced the card’s color, its suit, and finally, its number. The volunteer remained stone-faced throughout each revelation. There was no reaction.

"And then he flips the table over and starts cursing me out, screaming, 'F-you! Get out of my head! There’s no way!'" Gilbert said.

"Somehow, I had gotten the card. This totally impossible moment. There was so much riding on that moment for me, and somehow it all worked out. It was unbelievable."

Mahdi the Magician was on his way.

Penn & Teller Fooled. The World Amazed.

Gilbert continued developing card tricks that worked for him, and over time, his persistence began to pay off. He started booking performances and building a reputation in the magic community.

A pivotal moment came in 2016, when he was selected to appear on the national TV show

“Penn & Teller: Fool Us.” The show challenges magicians from around the world to stump the legendary duo Penn & Teller for a chance to open for their Las Vegas act.

Gilbert did, in fact, fool them; they couldn't figure out how he did his magic trick.

Some audience members have been so astonished by his act that they’ve sent him requests to heal them or perform supernatural magic, a topic he addresses in the FAQ section of his website.

“The experience of magic is so powerful,” Gilbert said. “I think most people realize that it’s entertainment. But sometimes there are people who think that maybe you can do some things beyond regular human ability.

"It’s something that you have to manage appropriately. People might think, 'Somebody’s sick, can you cure them?' No, I can’t. You have to manage people’s expectations, but you don’t want to completely kill the fantasy of magic, either."

The Magic Behind the Curtain

Gilbert still has a long career ahead of him, but already, he says, there have been moments that felt just as magical to him as they did to his audiences.

"Sometimes you can do a show and it’s all right, and sometimes you have bad shows. But sometimes you have these shows that are once-in-a-lifetime shows. I don’t know why, but everything goes right. Everything comes together perfectly, and you feel like, Wow, that’s the best show I’ve done in my life."

Gilbert has impressed numerous professional magicians at Magifest, one of the oldest and largest magic conventions in the U.S.

Also meaningful to Gilbert are the relationships he’s been able to build in the magic industry.

"A lot of the highlights have been working with great friends who I admire and respect. I have a very good friend who lives in Seville, Spain. He doesn’t speak any English, and my Spanish is not too great. Every once in a while, I stay at his house for one or two weeks. We just spend entire days doing magic for each other and working on things. We’re immersed in magic all day and night, and it’s amazing."

The Business in Show Business

That time spent perfecting magic skills, whether it’s with a friend or on his own, is a never-ending part of life as a magician.

To stay successful, Gilbert says, magicians must dedicate themselves not only to improving their skills but also to building interest in their act.

Gilbert also offers a magic show designed for children.

"I think at the end of the day there’s a very fine balance: You need to create great work, and you need to market it. It’s a marriage. I know horrible magicians who are very good at business and make a lot of money. I also know great magicians who are horrible at business, and they don’t make enough money."

That’s why Gilbert takes a practical approach to every performance.

“There’s a reason why they call it show business. You have to sell yourself to do events. Whenever I’m doing magic, I let people know that they can hire me. You have to paint a vision of where you could potentially fit into their lives, because sometimes they don’t just see it by themselves."

It’s not an easy path, Gilbert admits, and he wouldn’t recommend a career in magic to anyone who doesn’t love it. But for those who do love it, the door is open.

"Anybody can learn about magic. There are great communities and a ton of resources available for free: online and at libraries. There are usually magic shops and magic clubs in every major city and wonderful magicians all over the place. So if you are interested, pursue it."

Ultimately, Gilbert says, that message applies to pursuing any dream. The key to achieving it is diving in.

“Just do it. Don’t try to get somebody’s approval or permission to do it. Nobody’s going to support you until after you become successful, and then everyone will have magically supported you the entire time. So don’t waste your life waiting for somebody to give you a green light.

"Just do stuff. Do stuff poorly, and then do it better. Eventually it will be great."

Learn more about Mahdi the Magician here.

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