“David Copperfield took over a magic trick from my father” -Alain Choquette

-Alain Choquette ” />

BET À DAY

The renowned magician and illusionist Alain Choquette spent his youth in Sainte-Adèle. His best magic trick in his youth occurred in high school while writing his ministry exam. 

He and his four friends did not care to study, as they were involved in sports activities. In order to pass the exam, everyone had to study a subject. The magic trick would begin when the hands of the clock precisely touched 10:30 a.m. From then on, every minute, the one in charge of the examination touched a part of his body to indicate the correct number to answer the question .

The role of your parents.  

Jacques and Claire were wonderful parents to my brothers Daniel, Marc and me. My father was the head of the family while my mother was our confidante. 

Your dad taught you your first magic trick.

At eight years old, my dad taught me the only magic trick he knew, which made me want to to discover the world of magic. I used to go to the library for books related to this field.

You describe your first job as a dream job.

At 14, I was a packer at the Dominion grocery store, which allowed me to make tips in addition to my salary, not to mention that I was unionized. 

You also did magic tricks at the mystical Cinéma Pine in Sainte-Adèle.

The owner of the cinema, Mr. Fermanian, had hired me as a ticket agent. However, between movies, I was doing magic tricks on the movie stage.

Tennis got you a summer job. 

Right in front of our house were the first clay courts in the Laurentians that the city had built. My brother taught tennis and I worked in grounds maintenance. 

You won a medal at the Jeux du Québec-Joliette.  

In order to improve my game, I repeated the exercises that Mr. Roland Godin gave to the players of the Quebec team which allowed me to rank in different tournaments in Quebec. I even won a bronze medal at the Jeux du Québec-Joliette.

You thought you had influenced the players of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Around the age of 12, I was playing baseball for the Sainte-Adèle Dodgers and one of my teammates was Stephen Bronfman – who was good by the way – the son of Expos owner Charles Bronfman. < /p>

Continue your story.

Mr. Bronfman invited the team to an Expos game at Jarry Park. Every time a Pirates batter came up to bat, we'd start yelling “swing batter” and we thought we were pissing off the batter. I left with an autographed Expos ball that I still have in my possession.  

You have suffered a serious baseball injury.

< p>I was a good pitcher at the bantam level, when I was asked to step up to the midget level. The difference in the distance between the mound and home plate forced me to strain a lot, in the process I broke my arm. 

You were starting school after a week of holidays.

We weren't very fortunate. It was less expensive to drive to Wildwood and Atlantic City on the Tuesday after Labor Day.

French music and American orchestras were the musical choices at home. 

My father, a former soldier, used to take us to Royal Military College Saint-Jean to attend Big Band shows. 

You practiced many sports. 

At Polyvalente Augustin-Norbert-Morin, in Mont-Roland, our volleyball team won the Laurentian championship. Moreover, Mr. Morin is the founder of the town of Sainte-Adèle, which bears the name of his wife. 

Stand up to watch a Canadiens game at the Forum.

I was 13 years old and from 10 am I was in front of the barrier with my ticket which had cost me five dollars. When the attendants opened the gate at 7:00 p.m., it was a race for the best place behind the red seats.

What was your first car?

My dad's Ford Escort car. However, my father did not give me an instruction book on how and when to check the oil. The consequence is that the engine blew.  

You participated in the training camp of the Draveurs de Trois-Rivières of the LHJMQ. 

The year before, my midget team from Sainte-Agathe made it to the final of a tournament in Trois-Rivières. Michel Bergeron invited me to training camp, but my physique wasn't big enough. 

How would you describe your talent as an athlete?

I was good at all sports, but elite at nothing.

You were giving a show in the window of Gagnon Sports. 

I raised money by giving shows in the window of Gagnon Sports. However, I realized that it paid more to do shows than to go to university.

The news that your father had cancer hurt you more than his death.

It was a shock that unfortunately many families have to go through. Her passing was a relief to him. Throughout my youth, I missed his presence.

Who helped launch your career as a magician?

Former lobbyist Gary Ouellette opened doors for me to work with David Copperfield.

David Copperfield took over a magic trick from your father.

He took over the magic trick on tour and also during his show on television. The same music and the same story that surrounded the magic trick. When I saw my name appear in the credits of the show, it was as if I had written a song for Celine Dion. 

You worked with Jean-Pierre Coallier at < /strong>Ad Lib.

Jean-Pierre was happiness. A generous man who has helped me so much in my career. 

You lived a youthful life of freedom. 

This that is to say, my parents gave me the freedom to practice sports at any time of the day. I am blessed to have been able to count on such good parents.