Printable VersionCriss Angel is set to perform and film an escape in Lake Havasu City Saturday.
Spectators can gather near the London Bridge from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. while Angel is chained, shackled, wrapped tightly with heavy rope and lowered into the waters below the bridge, the release states. There is no fee to watch the stunt.
“Once submerged, he must escape the constraints or drown,” the release states. “Criss felt The London Bridge would be a fitting site to take this classic escape to the ultimate level.”
Michael Soto, a MINDFREAK producer, said one of Angel’s “biggest inspirations was Houdini.”
“Houdini was a huge sensation in London and he was known for doing a lot of bridge stunts,” Soto said. “As a homage to Harry Houdini, Criss would like to perform one of his most death-defying escapes.”
Soto couldn’t say the exact date the weekly show would air, but he did say the season was scheduled to premier in mid-July.
“This is supposed to be one of the most death-defying acts that he’s ever done,” said Doug Traub, Lake Havasu City Convention and Visitor’s Bureau president and CEO.
Traub said the show would feature 10 minutes of Lake Havasu City footage, adding that the one-hour special has the potential of delivering “millions of dollars” worth of advertising.
Angel is set to tour the lake with Lake Havasu City Vice-Mayor Don Callahan Friday.
“All in all it should be a lot of fun,” Callahan said. “It should be a great afternoon.”
Lake Havasu City Interim City Manager Charlie Cassens said, “We are treating this as we would any other special event. But certainly, it is a special, special event. It’s special because it brings publicity. It will be nice to see it on the small screen.”
Cassens said no city funding was being contributed to the filming. The network is paying almost $2,200 to cover expenses for additional officers, a paramedic and a lane closure on the bridge during filming, according to the city clerk’s office. Traffic will still flow to and from the island Saturday.
The Lake Havasu Police Department will provide two boats with four officers responsible for boat traffic control in the Bridgewater Channel as part of their “normal schedule,” according to Sgt. Joe Harrold, police department spokesman.
One department rescue diver will also be working during the filming on overtime paid by the production company, Harrold stated in an e-mail to the Today’s News-Herald.
MINDFREAK is an “eerily entertaining series that juxtaposes reality with surreality,” according to the press release. “Criss Angel’s performances intertwine mentalism, hypnosis, illusion and escape, which blur the line between reality and illusion.”
The show debuted in 2005 and centers on unusual stunts and street magic acts by magician Angel, the release states.
Angel has won Magician of the Year five times, according to his website.
According to information provided to the Today’s News-Herald, the show is aired in 80 countries and more than 100 million people have watched the show.
Today’s News-Herald was told April 29 that Angel would be performing an escape stunt involving the magician being encased in cement and lowered from the bridge. Today’s News-Herald was then informed April 30 that negotiations to finalize the stunt had been ongoing at that time and the stunt had not been finalized.
You may contact the reporter at jleatherman@havasunews.com
Article Rating