User:ALRGH/Cosentino (The Grand Illusionist)

Cosentino IS THE BEST

Paul Cosentino (born November 2 1982), better known by the stage name 'Cosentino' The Grand Illusionist, is an Australian magician, illusionist and performance artist.

Having perfected his skills over many years, 2012 saw the emergence of Cosentino The Grand Illusionist onto the world stage.

Winning a merlin award for most original international magician and being the only Australian to have done so, further consolidated his international profile. 'Cosentino the Grand Illusionist' the one hour tv special on channel seven went to air achieving a national audience of nearly 2 million viewers - one of the highest rating TV shows across Australia for 2012.'Distortions', Cosentino The Grand Illusionist’s live show, sold out with shows nation- wide, over 60,000 people experiencing his unique and award-winning live performance.

The world is watching as Cosentino The Grand Illusionist has gained interest from Las Vegas, London, Hong Kong and New York.

Internationally renowned magicians Penn and Teller have shown their support for Cosentino the Grand Illusionist’s work, and artists from across the globe have singled him out as one of the most original and talented performers in present day entertainment.

His commanding stage presence and enigmatic personality, combined with impeccable technique, have set Cosentino The Grand Illusionist apart from other performers. New York’s wall street journal has featured him as a stand out talent and even the directors of the world renowned Cirque Du Soleil have shown a keen interest in his unique and varied performance skills.

The Grand Illusionist's compelling and creative presentations have earned him the respect of his peers and audiences alike. A pure showman, his productions are amongst the most powerful, momentous and sought- after in the entertainment industry today.

Early Life:

Cosentino, The Grand Illusionist, was born and raised in Melbourne and is of Italian decent. When Cosentino was aged 13 he stumbled across a magic book in his local library. He began to study and read the book as a way to help speech and shyness issues at school. He has two older brothers John and Adam who assist in his live theatre productions and television specials.

TOUR

2013: Cosentino is embarking on a National LIVE Tour of The Magic The Mystery The Madness with LiveNation in October, November and December

•Sold-out ‘Distortions’ National Australian Tour in 2012 – over 70,000 tickets sold nationwide•2013 Australia & New Zealand National Tours with Live Nation

Awards: Merlin Award Cosentino The Grand Illusionist – Australia’s home grown Houdini – has been awarded the prestigious international Merlin Award for the Most Original Magician 2012. No other Australian magician or illusionist has ever been bestowed this honour.

This award only further establishes Cosentino's world-class acts! The Merlin Award is presented to those magicians who have achieved the highest level in their craft, both on the national and international stage. The Board of Directors of the International Magicians Society and its 37,000 worldwide members vote on talent, showmanship, originality, skills and above all, the rare ability to entertain under any conditions.

“The Merlin Award is to magic what the Oscar is to motion pictures,what the Emmy is to television and what the Tony is to theatre,” says Max Toth,IMS Merlin Award Committee Chairman. Previous winners of this award include the likes of David Copperfield, Sigfried & Roy, Penn & Teller and Criss Angel – putting Cosentino in impressive company.

Helpmann Award: Cosentino The Grand Illusionist was nominated for the prestigious Helpmann Awards in 2007 for Best Regional Touring Production.

The Helpmann Awards (TONY Award equivalent) is the pinnacle industry event for Australia’s performance industry, recognizing the very best in live performance. Three-time Australian Award winning Magician Under-18's stage magic competition Walk on, Walk off magic competition Non-Professional magic competition Guinness World Record In 2004 Cosentino The Grand Illusionist contributed to the World's longest running magic show. Consisting of 75 hours of straight magic. The event was held at Luna Park in Melbourne Australia.

Stunts and Television:

Appeared on Major French Television show ‘Beat The Best’ in 2013

Was invited to Britain's Got Talent 2013

Television Special:

COSENTINO - The Magic, The Mystery, The Madness: Cosentino's second TV Special The Magic The Mystery The Madness aired on Network SEVEN in August 2013 to 1.58 Million viewers. Network SEVEN is set to air a further 2 specials in the near future.

COSENTINO - The Grand Illusionist: On March 17th, 2012 Cosentino The Grand Illusionist performed a live magic extravaganza filmed for a channel 7 television special at the prestigious Regent Theatre in Melbourne. This TV special made television history as Cosentino became the first Australian magician to have his own TV show. This was a #1 rating TV show for the SEVEN Network, reaching 1.975 million viewers. Since then Cosentino The Grand Illusionist has signed with SEVEN to do a further 3 Prime Time Specials, the first of which aired in August 2013.

Cosentino ‘The Grand Illusionist’ aired in New Zealand in July 2013 and is set to air in Asia in 2014.

Dancing With The Stars:

Cosentino will be a contestant on the 2013 series of Dancing With The Stars Australia on Network Seven with dancing partner Jessica Raffa.

Anchored Escape at Melbourne Aquarium: On February 17, 2010 Cosentino The Grand Illusionist paid a fitting tribute to Houdini’s world-famous Queens Bridge jump. Handcuffed, chained and shackled to a 60 kg concrete block he was sunk 5 meters deep to the bottom of the Melbourne Aquarium. Isolated, alone and surrounded by creatures of the deep sea, with only lock picks to aid his escape Cosentino began to carefully free himself in front of a live television audience.The Anchored Escape was an enormous success reaching millions of people both nationally and internationally. Prime coverage from all major national and international news networks as well as print and electronic media from all over the world. LA Times, UK telegraph, Wall Street Journal, Saudi Gazette and USA Today articles to name a few.

Other Television Appearances: Sunrise, The Morning Show, Talking About Your Generation, Good Friday Appeal, Carols in the domain, WB Kids, Saturday Disney, Mornings with Kerri-Anne, Today Tonight, Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards, Channel 7 news, National Nine News, Channel 10 news, ABC News, SBS News, NTDTV, Perth Telethon and Before the Game

Quotes:"Brilliant, young internationalentertained stunned audiences...would have done Harry Houdini proud...Cosentinois taking magic to a new level" - The Mercury

"Cosentino's show is all that and more" - The Sunday Mail

"We have worked in this business for over 30 years and Cosentino is something special" - Hale & Pace

"His show is a spectacle of stunning mastery of mind-bending wizardry" - Canberra Times

"Cosentino is blazing his own path towards the notoriety of Criss Angel, David Blaine, David Copperfield and Siegfried & Roy" - West Australian

"A supercharged showman" The Herald Sun

"An absolute phenomenon – just incredible" Brian McFadden

"Australia has never, ever had a performer like Cosentino" - Dannii Minogue

"He is world class standard" - Kyle Sandilands

"Cosentino mirrors the legendary Harry Houdini" - LA Times

"A modern touch to old magic" - MX Magazine