Some magicians pull rabbits out of hats. Others, Mentalists, excel beyond the traditional sleight of hand and elevate into a category of entertainment that challenges the boundaries of reality...

An Illusionist painting art of levitations, psychic, and magic on the canvas of your mind!.

Scott Xavier - is one of the latter. "I always hated the balloon clown magicians growing up," says Scott Xavier, "I like the unusual stuff that you hear about on television. The stuff that makes you uneasy and on edge. The stuff that just works even though no one knows whether it is real or not." Scott Xavier of Plainfield, Illinois has showcased his stunts to corporate audiences all across the world. A self-described "paranormalist," Scott Xavier combines elements of psychology, illusion, and theater to create a spectacle in which the audience is his chief prop!

"I like creating an interactive environment where the freaky and strange demonstrations are happening in the audience and not to me,: says Scott, who has been performing in nightclubs, colleges, and corporate events - he is also the corporate magician for Jamba juice - for about 5 years. "I want you to think of David Blaine meets Uri Geller!!!" His techniques range from mental guessing games and hypnosis to crowd pleasing stunts, such as psychokinetic spoon bending and audience member levitations.

"There's a lot of twists and curves that are for everyone when I perform," he says. Scott Xavier's show leaves traditional magic tricks behind and focuses on more elaborate schemes of appllied psychology, verbal & non-verbal communication, hypnosis, intuition, & illusion.

"It's real mind reading! I can tell by the way someone's eyes wobble or by the direction their eyes are looking whether they are lying or not," he says. "By using clues such as this - and being observant - I can create some unique psychological demonstrations of mind reading and thought transference." He says he has spent countless hours studying psychological techniques that allow him to guide people's thoughts and be attuned to subliminal clues that might reveal what they're thinking.

"We are all 98% alike, so when we're pressed to perform under pressure, we take the same preprogrammed actions," Scott states. For Scott Xavier, the intersection from magic and the mind has been a lifelong pursuit. he earned a degree in Criminal justice and worked for a time in the Illinois State Police crime lab. But health problems - he is a diabetic - prompted him to chase his dream of becoming a professional "mentalist".

Growing up in Chicago's south side, Scott has been attracted to magic since the day he picked up his first magic trick at age 7 in a New Orleans magic shop. But when he was a teenager, Scott says, his his relationship with magic changed.

At this point, he says, his uncanny ability to read people - he calls it the "Sherlock Holmes effect" - became much more pronounced. He noticed scuffed shoes, clothing and the occasional black eye. And noticed body language too."I was the weird kid, the kid who was off in the corner who didn't fit in," Scott says "I went through a lot of experiences in my life, and I could detect them in other people. I could see stuff that was happening" - a fight, a breakup or a failed test - and confront them about it."

Scott drifted from the traditional magic tricks, which he claims never to have liked very much anyway and turned to psychology text books. Now Scott has crafted an interactive mind reading and illusions show case of real magic. The stuff that borders on the edge of reality...

Scott presents this unique entertainment regularly for corporate college public and private audiences across the world., charity fund raiser, television, and radio events nation wide! You may have seen Scott on MTV or at a bar mitzvah, the world and your mind is his stage..

Adapted from an article in the Daily Southtown by writer Libby Sanders...