Richard Hudson

Jason Ladanye’s interest in card magic started when he was 7 years old and his older brother showed him a card trick. “It blew me away,” he recalled in a recent phone call. Now 46, Ladanye — the author of two books, “Confident Deceptions” and “Game Changers” — is considered one of the world’s most well-known card magicians and card mechanics (also known as “card cheating,” he said). He has nearly 3 million followers on his social media platforms, and tours the world doing shows and giving demonstrations on card handling. He is bringing his newest tour, “Extraordinary Card Magic of Jason Ladanye,” to City Winery Boston on Jan. 18. He said that while it may sound cliché, audience members can “expect the unexpected” when they see him perform what he called an “extremely interactive” show. “Of course I’ll do a lot of the hits that people — many of whom follow me on social media — are familiar with. So one of the things I do, for example, is somebody names any card in the deck. Cards are shuffled, and I dribble them on the table — they’re dropped like a waterfall — and I reach in and just pluck that card out. And people can’t fathom how that’s possible,” he said. “And the truth is, it’s not a trick. It’s a skill — just like a pistol shooter hitting the bull’s eye.” He explained that audience members join him on stage and wager bets — but their take if they win is always far more than Ladanye’s if he wins (typically he will put up $10,000 and the audience member will wager $100). Ladanye said he doesn’t lose. “What you’re watching is skill and card mechanics at work that is so astonishing that it looks like magic,” he said. “We constantly create moments where the audience says, ‘OK, he’s good, but he’s not that good.’ It’s like a James Bond movie. You know he’s going to win, but there will be lots of twists and turns along the way.” We caught up with Ladanye, a former touring pianist who was born in Albany and now calls the Upper Hudson Valley home, to talk about all things travel.

If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go? Necker Island, Richard Branson’s island in the British Virgin Islands. I was invited to do an event there for a client, a realty group, a couple of years ago, and stayed for 11 days. It was surreal: feasts every night at these long tables, endangered animals walking around freely, crystal clear water … it was so secluded, and I felt like it was my own island. Just an incredible experience.

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Do you prefer booking trips through a travel agent or on your own? My manager, Marc, is like my personal travel agent. He does my bookings and I’m able to be pretty hands off, because he knows what I like. For instance, he knows that I don’t want to fly in the day of a show — it’s too stressful if there’s a delayed flight, for example. And since I’m so old school, I still ask, to this day, for a one-sheet printed-out itinerary. I like to have a piece of paper in hand.

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Thoughts on an “unplugged” vacation? I think that’s vital. If you go on vacation and you’re still taking morning Zoom calls, you’re on your phone … that’s not a vacation. You need to get away from it all — but keep your phone with you in case of an emergency. Having said that … I bring my cards with me on vacation, but I enjoy practicing. I don’t want to get rusty, and I find it very relaxing.

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What has been your worst vacation experience? I was in Tenerife, Spain, with a friend of mine and went into a high-end athletic store. I saw these silky Lycra boxers and when I felt them, I couldn’t believe how comfortable and luxurious they felt. I wore cotton boxers, but these were completely different. So I asked the store owner how much they were and, since there was a language barrier, I rubbed my fingers together so he could tell I was asking about the cost. He said ah, yes, and got on his calculator, tapped a couple of numbers, and showed it to me. It read 10 bucks. I couldn’t believe they were so inexpensive and thought they must be a knockoff of a luxurious European brand … so I bought 10 pairs. Well, at the end of the month I got my credit card statement and the charge for the boxers was more than $800. Clearly there was some miscommunication, but I don’t think he was scamming me or anything. I enjoyed wearing them for years — and wore them until the elastic came off. I had to get my money’s worth.

What is your favorite childhood travel memory? We didn’t have any money to travel. But I went to my grandparents’ house in Eastern Pennsylvania twice a year. They lived on a big farm — 64 acres — and I remember running through the cornfield, eating just-picked peaches, strawberries … it was something different and always fun.

Do you vacation to relax, to learn, or for the adventure of it all? Interesting, because I really enjoy my work and never feel like taking two weeks off to go somewhere. I will sometimes just add a few extra days if I go someplace nice for work. I really like the idea of a staycation — a week at home, going on runs, eating clean food, watching movies … especially after a busy couple of weeks. To be at home for five days with nothing to do is the greatest thing in the world.

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What book do you plan on bringing with you to read on your next vacation? I don’t have a specific answer. I have a library downstairs with about 1,000 books — all about card magic. Some were printed as far back as the ’30s. I would say that 80 percent of the books I have are out of print.

If you could travel with one famous person/celebrity, who would it be? I’m a big James Bond fan. We play very similar characters — we are both invincible — and Bond is a close analogy to what I am on stage, only instead of a gun, I have a deck of cards. So Daniel Craig or Pierce Brosnan. Also, Jerry Seinfeld and Ricky Gervais, since they are so deeply passionate about their work — the same way I am about cards.

What is the best gift to give a traveler? I think the most important thing is good quality luggage. The last thing you want is for a wheel to fall off your bag, or a strap to break. Also, noise-canceling headphones — one of the greatest inventions of our lifetime.

What is your go-to snack for a flight or a road trip? Peanut butter Clif Bars.

What is the coolest souvenir you’ve picked up on a vacation? We visited a winery in Haro, Spain, in the Rioja region, and they [the owners] gave us a special bottle of wine that they didn’t sell. It was just a limited run — only 20 — of a special blend that they made just for their family. It was packed in a wooden box, and we had to wait years to drink it. It was worth the wait, though. Just heaven.

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What is your favorite app/website for travel? I don’t use websites or travel apps. I believe it’s best to ask a local where to eat, where to go. … I want to go to a little dive somewhere where people who live there go. I don’t fall into the trap of online [advertising/recommendations] where the company that has the most money to spend on marketing makes the recommendations. The only technology I’ll use is for translation, like how to get to my hotel and that kind of thing … and to make sure I’m not spending almost $1,000 on boxers again!

What has travel taught you? That life is about the memories and experiences, so much more than it is about material things. It’s about much more than a $20,000 watch that no one cares about. Experiences are everything.

What is your best travel tip? Just do it. The best tips are going to come from experience. You can read this article or a travel blog, but things like you need to travel with two forms of ID, pack comfortable clothes, bring cash … you’re going to make sure you do those things by not doing them and failing a bunch of times. That’s how you’ll learn.

Juliet Pennington can be reached at [email protected].