A NEW BOOK BY STEVE COHEN CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF CHAMBER MAGIC

WITH A FOREWORD BY ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING DIRECTOR GUILLERMO DEL TORO

PUBLISHED BY ASSOULINE — RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 15, 2020

(August 18, 2020 – New York, NY) World renowned magician Steve Cohen is proud to announce that his new book, Confronting Magic, will be released on October 15, 2020, published by Assouline and available at Assouline.com. Featuring original photography and rare memorabilia alongside a Foreword by Academy Award winner Guillermo Del Toro and text by Cohen himself, Confronting Magic celebrates twenty years of Chamber Magic and the variety of guests that the lively, intimate show has attracted and stunned.

Confronting Magic features stills and props from Cohen’s most praise-worthy tricks, including his signature “Think-a-Drink” and the jaw-dropping Bullet Catch. At other times, the camera is turned to the audience, inviting readers to step into the magician’s shoes and see what he sees—the laughter and the outbursts; the silence and the hand-wringing; the collapsing-onto-your-neighbor’s- shoulder and the wide-eyed disbelief. These jubilant reactions illustrate just why audiences return to Cohen’s parlor again and again—music can make you dance; comedy can make you laugh; but only magic can make you wonder.

At Chamber Magic, guests are invited into an elegant salon at the Lotte New York Palace, dressed to impress in cocktail attire, for an evening of conjuring, mind-reading, sleight of hand, and an astonishing trick called Think-A-Drink. Cohen, the Millionaires’ Magician, baffles his guests with magic up close as he recreates parlor entertainment that characterized Manhattan in the early 20th century. The adults-only audience for each performance is limited to 60 people, guaranteeing each guest an intimate view of every mystifying maneuver.

Previous guests include Guillermo del Toro, David Copperfield, Seth Rogan, Hilary Duff, Sutton Foster, John Williams, William Goldman, Teller, Warren Buffett, Buzz Aldrin, Renée Zellweger, Frank Oz, Stephen Sondheim, Queen of Morocco, Gerard Butler, Jason Segal, Hank Azaria, Michael Chabon, Alex Lacamoire, John Leguizamo, Derren Brown, Derek DelGaudio, Peter Sagal, and more.

Chamber Magic began performances in 2000 at a Greenwich Village apartment before moving to The National Arts Club. In 2001 Cohen took up residence at the Waldorf Astoria for sixteen years. In 2017, Cohen transferred the show to the Lotte New York Palace, where he performed five shows every weekend until March 2020, when he suspended all performances because of Covid-19. When safe, Chamber Magic will return.

ABOUT STEVE COHEN

Steve Cohen has delighted and mystified audiences all over the world. His audiences, now totaling more than 500,000 guests, include a who’s-who of celebrities, royalty, and other notables.

Cohen has been featured on The Late Show with David Letterman and in publications such as Variety, Forbes, and The New York Times. As a testimony to his success, October 6, 2017 was officially proclaimed “Chamber Magic Day” by the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio.

Cohen earned a psychology degree from Cornell University and studied at Waseda University in Tokyo. He holds the esteemed rank of Member of the Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star, awarded by The Magic Circle in London. His book, Win the Crowd, in which he explores the power of suggestion and how it can help people in their everyday lives, has been published in seven languages.

ABOUT ASSOULINE

Founded by Prosper and Martine Assouline in Paris, Assouline is the first luxury brand on culture. The brand’s story began with the desire to create a new, contemporary style of book, using the couple’s experienced eye for visually rich stories and compelling narratives.

Guided by their passion for knowledge, culture and travel, the Assoulines have since expanded their vision to fifteen hundred titles in six main collections and have curated some of the world’s most aspirational private libraries. Throughout the last quarter of a century, the brand has established a family of international boutiques in prominent places across the globe, with each location contributing to their vast collection of titles, as well as their personal curations of rare books and objects—creating the perfect cabinets de curiosités.

With a distinguished team of creative talents and exceptional producers—which include the founders’ sons, Alexandre and Sebastien —the brand continues to reinvent the notion of true luxury. Assouline’s roster of collaborators include some of the world’s most respected artists, photographers, writers, designers and more, who together, help tell a story.