So, does that mean he is a wizard with a wand? “I am a muggle,” he says. Not being a big Harry Potter fan I was none the wiser. How does a muggle with no magic blood fit into a school for wizards? Apparently, he learns magic the old fashioned way, with sleight of hand and misdirection.

The former chef says it’s not just misdirection. “That’s one ingredient in a cake of what makes up the trick. It’s important but it’s just one layer.

“I remember reading Harry Potter and thinking as a magician I perform a lot of similar tricks. I thought how great it would be to combine the two worlds on stage,” Power says.

One of his favourite wizard-like tricks is transfiguration. For us lay people, it is the changing of say, an apple into an orange. “The best thing to do this with is money. So I borrow money from an audience member and change its value – it could be a higher or lower value.” You will have to head along to Laurieton United Services Club on April 14, to find out which.

Being a magician doesn’t seem like a very stable career choice, but Power says his love of magic began when his dad, who worked in the travel industry, took him on a trip to the US. It turned into a life-changing experience.

Power met a magician at a charity show who performed all the original classic tricks using ordinary props - cards, money, ropes. “The props weren’t special but the people cared about the fun of it. You need to hold their interest and be relevant. That’s the biggest thing I learnt from him.” 

On his return, he changed schools and, on the one hour daily commute, began to teach himself magic. “I would busk and perform at parties, and for my grandmother.” 

After five years as a chef, he’d had enough and took up an offer from his magician mentor in the US to come stay with him.

“I didn’t know where it was going to lead. I was like the Karate Kid, painting his fence in the morning and learning magic in the afternoon.”

He later travelled through Europe and South East Asia, performing to pay his way.

On his return home, he found it hard to establish a career, performing at charity events and falling back on his cooking skills a couple of days a week.

Power started to get festival bookings, networking with other organisers and venue managers whenever he could. Today he performs on cruises, for corporate events, and at clubs and festival across the state.

“I don’t try to pretend I have supernatural powers. I baffle, amaze and surprise and most of all leave people with a smile on their face.” And you don’t have to be a Harry Potter boffin to enjoy the show.