Meet Elizabeth Messick | Magician/Singer/Commercial Actor/Voice Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Elizabeth Messick and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Elizabeth, what role has risk played in your life or career?
A year and a half ago I took the risk to quit my day job and pursue performing as a full-time career. When I had a full-time corporate job I made sure to make the time to do magic in the evening and on the weekends, but that would just create burnout. I said no to a lot of creative opportunities because of my day job and one day I decided to take the risk and quit cold turkey.

I spent a few years as a web-developer to pay off all of my debt and save 6 months of living expenses.

I’m glad I did it, because it gave me the time I needed to work on marketing, networking, writing, auditioning, etc…

A year and a half later, not only do I still have the 6 months of money saved up, but I now own a townhouse in LA with a working magic theater. If I never took the risk, I would have never seen the rewards.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a magician who sings, dances, does comedy, sleight of hand, and mentalism. My show has a timeless feel to it and encompasses more than just parlor tricks. I try and connect with the audience at a very intimate level through the use of storytelling, music, and just a general sense of comfort.

I have worked so hard to get to where I am today. I have had 38 jobs. There was one point in my life where I had 10 jobs all at once because I was trying to support my art.

It was not easy.

I overcame these challenges by becoming a web-developer and going to therapy.

I was so poor at one point that I was about to lose my apartment and had a broken car. I ate people’s leftovers or I would eat a slice of pizza at 7-11 and that was my meal for the entire day.

I was out of options, so I decided to take a 12-week coding bootcamp and was the first person in my cohort to get a job as a web-developer a couple of weeks later. My short-term plan was to make a lot of money in 2 years so that way I can pay off all of my student debt, buy a new car, and save enough money to live without a job for a few months so that way I can work full-time on my magic show.

Having a corporate job like that gave me the opportunity to sign up for therapy because it provided really good health insurance. With my work in therapy I learned how understand and accept my worth. I have had a lot of people in my life try and put me down and it’s taken years of therapy to learn how to set boundaries for myself. As soon as I stopped letting the negative people into my life and started filling my life with a positive support system, I started to thrive. My career blossomed and my sense of self was restored to back when I was a 12 year old girl who had stars in her eyes and was determined to become a singing magician.

As soon as I saved up the money and paid off my debt, I quit my job and worked really, really hard to make performing my career. I had my eye on the prize.

Also, as a woman in magic, it was hard to earn people’s respect. It feels as though women have to try three times as hard to be seen and heard. Thankfully, the magic community is finally starting to feel like a comfortable place for women to thrive and it’s been beautiful to see how many more women feel confident enough to start learning magic.

A year and a half after quitting my day job, I am thriving. My magician boyfriend and I own a townhouse with a magic parlor theater that we use to help other magicians work on their acts, I have enough emotional capacity to help other people with their journey towards self-love, and I am a regular performer at the Magic Castle who is finally garnering respect from the people I respect.

It’s been a hard journey, but I am so happy that I learned so much and I am in a place to support others. I am very thankful for everyone in my life who has supported me and believed in me. If it weren’t for those people screaming louder than my negative thoughts, I would not be where I am right now.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
It’s no secret that I would take them on magical night out to the Magic Castle.

Los Angeles is one of my favorite places in the world, so I have a lot charming places I’d love to take my guests!

I’d take them on a hike up to the Wisdom Tree, a night out at the Black Rabbit Rose (a really charming magic club that I perform at often), dancing at Clifton’s, a tour around Silver Lake’s hidden stairs, an old flick at the New Bev, a musical comedy show at the Largo, a bite to eat at El Coyote, and maybe even the Brady Bunch house if they play their cards right.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The Women Magicians Association, a supportive group of female magicians at the Magic Castle.

I also dedicate the shoutout to my boyfriend, Eric “Thirstin” Siegel who is a magician as well.

Website: www.sirenofmagic.com

Instagram: @sirenofmagic @thecosmicromantics

Image Credits
Kalie Pontes, Billy Baque, Jeromy Chan, Taylor Wong