Duane Laflin developed the "Grand Magic Show" which he now performs in Custer.  Laflin says he has been a full time illusionist for 21 years now but it started as a hobby almost 40 years ago.  Illusionist Duane Laflin says, "I was in college and I was asked to do a little object lesson for children in church and I found a book that showed me a magic trick that had a Bible lesson to it, so I did it for the kids and everybody liked it, so they asked me to do another one the next week, and another one the next week and that really introduced me to what this was about and I discovered it was sort of my art, I seemed to have an act for it."  Which is now a full time career.  Laflin describes his show as Vegas quality entertainment yet entirely suitable for family audiences.  He says it's not all about the magic.  Laflin says, "When I hear those kids and I hear that happy sound come out of them, I think this is to a large degree of what I live for. It's really for the audience and some people don't understand magic and they think a magic show is showing how great the magician is and that's not it at all, to me it's sharing the gift of wonder and it's creating experience where people come and they say that was absolutely fabulous, I'm so glad I got to be a part of it, so the best thing for me in the show is when the audience is happy."  And although everyone wants to know the secret behind the magic Laflin has an answer for that.  Laflin, "I tell people that this is an art form and that it's not about how it's done it's about the fact that it can be done, in fact I liken it to music and I say if you have a piano and you look in the piano there's no music in a piano, the artist makes the music and I say with me it's not my methods so much, it's the art of taking these things and with them making something wonderful and so I say don't ask me how it's done because that's really not the issue, the issue is it can be done and it's wonderful when we get to be a part of it."  You can catch the Grand Magic Show every night at the Show Barn.  Laflin says reservations are not required but they do prefer them.  For more information on tickets, go to grandmagicshow.com or call 406-291-2004

Tessa Thomas