Production designer, prop stylist, and now practicing magician Liz Toonkel investigates magic as a storytelling medium. Multidisciplinary artist Toonkel reignites the age-old conversations on agency and consent as it relates to animals in her performance, Magic for Animals. Her extensive experience in production design spans across the entertainment bubble from film and television to commercials and music. Along her creative journey and long-term pursuit to become a film director, Toonkel became entranced by the art of magic.
She is currently taking classes at the Academy of Magical Arts at The Magic Castle — something I can only imagine as a modern day Hogwarts. Here, Toonkel is taking the time to adjust her artistic instincts to the creative process of a new craft. Magic for her is more than demonstrating sleight of hand tricks after another, but instead incorporating a rich narrative to tell a meaningful story.
Part of Toonkel’s narrative in the magic community has been progressing its culture of inclusivity. Her presence and perspectives as a queer woman in a historically male-dominated space bring to light conversations about what more representation and diversity in magic might look like. She references Kayla Drescher, a female full time magician, as a role model she has been appreciative to learn under while at the Magic Castle.
Liz Toonkel will be performing Magic for Animals at the Live Arts Exchange (LAX) Festival presented by the Los Angeles Performance Practice on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2021. Tickets and more information are available here.
Elaine Nguyen is a recent graduate of USC with a focus in public relations and marketing. She is currently the 2021 Development Intern at Los Angeles Performance Practice.
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