Westwood Cultural Council Sponsors Peter Vuono And The Great Escape

On Saturday, June 4 at 2:00 PM, Peter Vuono will present “The Great Escape” at the Fisher Schoolhouse, 830 High Street, Westwood. Peter Vuono’s lively, audience-interactive program is designed for both children (age 8 and up) and adults. It combines magic, comedy, and history. The program is sponsored in part by a grant from the Westwood Cultural Council.

The Great Escape focuses on escapology, its history, and its most famous escapists. Escapology is the art of escaping from various types of restraints - straightjackets, handcuffs, leg irons, ropes, chains, and prison cells are all among the more popular restraints.

Harry Houdini was undoubtedly the most famous escape artist of all time. Houdini understood that escapes were all about showmanship. Audiences would flock to see Houdini's performances, and despite the spectacular escapes he would perform, the real attraction was his personality and his presentation.

Houdini has an historical connection with our area. In early 1900, the WL Douglas Shoe Company of Brockton challenged Houdini to escape from one of their leather mail bags. Houdini accepted the challenge and performed the great escape at the Keith Theater in Boston in 20 minutes.

Peter Vuono is a magician and a teacher in the Brockton Public Schools. He performs children's magic shows frequently in the area. His programs bring rave reviews.

The Westwood Cultural Council is part of a grass-roots network of 329 local councils that serve every city and town in the state. The program is the largest, most decentralized one of its kind in the United States. The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Massachusetts Cultural Council, which then allocates funds to each local council. This year, the Westwood Cultural Council will distribute about $4000 in grants.

For more information about the Local Cultural Council Program, visit our web site at www.mass-culture.org/lcc_public.asp.