Sherman, Texas ‐ Lawrence Hass is professor of humanities at Austin College. He also has an international reputation as a sleight of hand magician and holds the position of associate dean of Jeff McBride’s Magic & Mystery School in Las Vegas.
Dr. Hass came to Austin College in July of 2009 when his wife Dr. Marjorie Hass became the College’s 15th president. Prior to this, he was professor of philosophy and theatre arts at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he was an award‐winning teacher of philosophy and theatre, specializing in phenomenology, aesthetics, magic performance, and the history and philosophy of magic.
During his 18‐year tenure at Muhlenberg College, Dr. Hass founded and directed the “Theory and Art of Magic” program—a college‐level co‐curricular program that was dedicated to the study and appreciation of the magical arts. From 1999 to 2009, the “Theory and Art of Magic” program featured performances, talks, and lectures by such world‐leading stars of magic as David Blaine, Eugene Burger, Roberto Giobbi, Max Howard, René Lavand, Max Maven, Jeff McBride, Robert E. Neale, Jim Steinmeyer, Juan Tamariz, and Teller (among many others).
By the end of its 11‐year run, the “Theory and Art of Magic” program was drawing attendees—magicians, students, and scholars of magic—from all over the country and internationally. As an outgrowth of the program, Dr. Hass founded Theory and Art of Magic Press in 2007 to publish books, DVDs, and other materials that would connect with people wanting to perform and think about magic in a deeper way.
Dr. Hass’s relationship with magic is quite unusual. Not spending much time with it as a boy, he became fascinated with the art form in 1994 after earning his Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign. As a young assistant professor at Muhlenberg, he saw a magic special on television one night and realized magic was an art form that had been overlooked not only by philosophers and art theorists but to a considerable extent by higher education itself. He began an intensive research program, but quickly realized that full understanding of the art form demanded that he learn how to perform magic at a very high level.
Since those early days, Dr. Hass has performed his artistic, thought‐provoking style of magic around the world in theaters, nightclubs, at colleges and universities, and at major conferences and corporate events. He has appeared at such diverse venues as the Wynn Casino in Las Vegas, Princeton University, Magic Chicago, the International Magic Convention in London, and Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. He is a regular performer in Las Vegas and at the world‐famous Magic Castle in Hollywood, California.
In addition to his performance work, Dr. Hass is a celebrated teacher of magic and an award‐ winning author of essays and books that inspire magicians to be more effective, successful practitioners of the art. His writings have been translated into four languages and his 2007 book, Transformations: Creating Magic Out of Tricks, is an international bestseller among magicians.
Lawrence Hass has carried the message far and wide that magic is an important, legitimate art form. His work and vision for the magical arts has been featured in leading media outlets, including The New York Times, USA Today, the Chronicle for Higher Education, the Associated Press, Canada West, and on South Korean Television and the Discovery Channel. In 2014, he was invited and served as the opening speaker for TEDxSMU.
This new TED Talk, “What is the Art of Magic?” is available for viewing online. For more information, visit LawrenceHass.com.