David Copperfield's flying illusion

David Copperfield has performed a levitation illusion in several magic shows since 1992 in which he appears to fly on stage for several minutes, while surrounded by audience members. The flight is notable for its graceful motion and unencumbered appearance. The illusion was included in Copperfield's CBS TV special The Magic of David Copperfield XIV: Flying—Live The Dream (1992), and has been repeated several times during Copperfield's live tours around the world. The method was created by John Gaughan. An essential contribution to make fluid movements was given by his assistant, dancer and choreographer Joanie Spina.

During the trick, Copperfield flies acrobatically on the stage, performs a backflip in midair, and then has spinning hoops passed around him, supposedly to prove that he is not suspended by wires. He then floats down into an acrylic glass box which has previously been examined by two audience members, and continues to float inside after the box is covered. An assistant walks over the top of the box, and Copperfield walks upside down moving his feet under the assistant's feet. He then selects a female volunteer from his audience and flies with her in a fashion similar to Superman carrying Lois Lane. The illusion sometimes ends with a falcon named Icarus grasping Copperfield by the wrist and flying off stage with him.

A blue backcloth is used in the background, and the television version uses fake clouds hanging from the ceiling, taking advantage of a larger stage than is used in theatrical appearances. The performance is accompanied by an orchestration called "East of Eden Suite" by film composer Lee Holdridge, originally written as the theme music for a 1981 miniseries based on the novel East of Eden.

Before performing, Copperfield often declares that it took him seven years to develop the performance, and shows a video describing for how long men had dreamed of flying, and how many people before him had tried unsuccessfully.

...
Wikipedia