Sarasota Doctor’s Alter Ego Performs Magic After Hours

SARASOTA, FL — Howard Stevens — the stage name of Suncoast-area physician Dr. Howard Cohen — has been fascinated by magic since he was a boy growing up in New Jersey.

Decades later, the doctor-by-day, magician-by-night, is producing his first magic show, “Classic Conjuring: A Performance of Contemporary Sleight of Hand & Mystifying Effects,” Saturday, 8 p.m., at CMX CineBistro Siesta Key in Sarasota.

As a teen, he frequented a magic store in a New Jersey mall and taught himself the artform from books. Then, he’d perform what he learned for children in his neighborhood.

Later, after graduating from Temple University, Stevens stayed in Philadelphia for several years before returning to New Jersey for medical school. During this time in Pennsylvania, he was a regular at the Philadelphia Magic Company, where he honed his skills.

“I went down there, met the owners, and went every Saturday and sometimes Wednesdays,” he told Patch. “I’d hang out with all the magicians, learning and buying books.”

The Internet didn’t exist at the time, Stevens added. “So, I learned everything from books. Then video tapes came out, but it was mostly books, lectures and magic conventions. I was hanging out all day (at the store) learning, watching and practicing.”

Not long after this, he started performing, as well, usually at private parties, restaurants and large corporate events. And he never stopped learning over the past 40 years.

Even while he was a physician at a family practice in New Jersey, he continued to live his double life – doctor by day, physician by night.

Stevens was careful to keep the two worlds separate.

“I never performed for my patients or anything,” he said. “Magic was my stress relief. After a long day, I’d go into my office and crack open a book.”

He’s equally passionate about magic and medicine, and always has been.

“And I got to do both,” he said.

He moved to Sarasota about six years ago and continues working as a physician in geriatric medicine at a Bradenton facility. Stevens has also continued performing magic in Florida.

Saturday’s show at CineBistro allows him to fulfill a lifelong dream of producing his own show.

“It’s just another facet of what I’ve always wanted to do,” he said.

There are only 20 seats available for the intimate, hands-on show. Tickets, which are $25 each, can be purchased online here.

The performance will feature classic magic acts, Stevens said. “A lot of things I do are classic classics, things that have been done for decades by thousands of magicians all around the world, but I do them with my own twist.”

After this show, he hopes to perform regularly in the Sarasota area.

“My goal has always been to bring magic to Sarasota on a regular basis. There are some magicians here, but they’re not actively performing regularly,” he said. “Maybe one or two are doing private parties, but there’s really no magic on a regular basis in Sarasota.”

With the area’s growth and its reputation for the arts, he’s surprised magic hasn’t already established a foothold in the area.

“There’s more people coming down here over the last few years,” he said. “Magic could give them something fun to do on a Saturday evening, something different to see.”