Andrew Basso performs water tank escape in Now You See Me Live after near-fatal 2012 mishap
The tank is sealed. Water rises.
Upside down, wrists locked, lungs tightening, Italian escapologist Andrew Basso listens to his heartbeat as he prepares for Houdini’s infamous Water Torture Cell.
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
In 2012, at the Sydney Opera House in Australia, that heartbeat nearly ended his career — and quite possibly his life.
“It was the first time I was performing that act in front of a live audience,” he tells MS News. “They had to take me out of the tank to save me because something went wrong.”
There were no dramatic edits. No cinematic rescue. Just technicians pulling him out.
Fourteen years later, Basso performs the same water torture escape at Sands Theatre from Wednesdays to Sundays as part of Now You See Me Live.
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
And this time, three fellow magicians stand in the wings, watching every second.
‘If it goes wrong, I don’t have a second chance’
Before stepping into the tank, Basso feels the surge.
“My heart wants to beat really fast,” he admits.
Because I know I’m approaching something that, if it goes wrong, I don’t have a second chance.
He trains breath control at home. He practises picking handcuffs and locks.
What he cannot rehearse is fear. “So I need to work with my head, telling my heart: I am prepared. I’m good. I’m going to do it. It’s going to be fine.”
Even when he appears calm on stage, the internal battle never disappears. “There is a lot going on. Managing fear.”
That failed show in 2012 could have buried the act for good. Instead, it strengthened his resolve.
“It’s resilience,” he says simply. “Fear can be an obstacle. Sometimes you fail. It means I need to try again. I am conquering the fear.”
Three magicians holding their breath backstage
Basso may be alone in the tank. But he is not alone in the risk.
“We stand in the wings and watch each other every night,” Matthew Pomeroy tells us. “Whenever Basso goes in the water, all three of us are there, hoping he’s okay.”
That includes Gabriella Lester and Pablo Cánovas, the other two Horsemen.
They do not retreat to their dressing rooms between acts.
They watch. They cheer. They wait.
“We all have one common goal,” Pomeroy says. “That’s for everybody to be standing at the end of each and every show.”
The camaraderie, he stresses, is genuine. “We’ve all done a zillion shows. We’re all friends. We all get on.”
No camera cuts. No safety net.
The live production draws inspiration from Lionsgate’s film franchise of the same name. But there is one crucial difference.
“The films rely heavily on cinematic editing,” we note, to which Pomeroy replies: “We don’t have the luxury of camera cuts. Everything we do is live, in the moment.”
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
There is no CGI. No retakes.
“It’s all live, real magic,” he says. “Hopefully, things that will wow you.”
That immediacy changes everything.
If a trick falters, 2,500 people see it.
If it succeeds, 2,500 people erupt.
The 22-year-old carrying more than just her act
At 22, Lester is the youngest and only female Horseman.
The Canadian says performing as part of a team shifts the pressure.
“Oftentimes we perform solo,” she explains. “It’s incredible to get to share the stage with these amazing performers.”
But it also means added responsibility. “Usually when I’m performing, I just have myself to worry about. Now I’m representing the brand. I’m representing these guys.”
She describes the show as an emotional journey. “You’re laughing. You’re connected with us. You’re feeling like a little kid again.”
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
Her favourite moments come when she scans the crowd.
“In this venue, we have so many little kids,” she says. “Especially little girls looking at us like we’re superheroes.”
That sight, she admitted, “makes me cry backstage every show”.
Source: @thegabriellalester on Instagram
Six minutes of pure unpredictability
For Pomeroy, who hails from the United Kingdom, the most unpredictable moment does not involve water or chains.
It involves a child and a microphone.
Each night, he invites a random kid on stage for a card routine.
“I have six minutes, no script, on a mic,” he says. “We just talk, communicate, and find wonder in that kid in that moment.”
He does not know what the child will say. The child does not know what he will say.
“I love it,” he gushes. “It tingles in the air. It feels special.”
He hopes those children carry the memory for decades. “Maybe in 20 years’ time, they’ll be on a stage like this, talking about how they saw this show.”
Turning magic into a rock concert
Meanwhile, Spain’s “Golden Magician” Cánovas thrives on spectacle.
His chair routine, according to his castmates, feels like a stadium show.
“It’s like a rock concert every single night,” Pomeroy says. “The walls vibrate.”
But behind the flash lies meticulous coordination.
“Even if you see only one of us on stage, there’s a whole team working to make it happen,” Cánovas reveals. “It can be stressful sometimes. We’re like 20 people working on one act for a minute to make it work.”
Precision and timing matter. But trust matters most.
Four Horsemen say Singapore shocked them
On opening night, the Horsemen expected polite applause.
Instead, they were met with deafening cheers that reverberated through the theatre.
“We were really shocked,” Basso says. “People were cheering so loud.”
He claims he can recognise audiences by sound alone.
If I close my eyes and hear the audience cheering, I will remember how different Singapore is.
For a show built on energy, that reaction fuels everything.
‘The tricks are just a sprinkling’
Despite the danger, drama, and dazzle, Pomeroy insists the show is about more than illusion.
“If you take all the magic out of the show, you’ve still got a show,” he says. “The opening is so cinematic you feel like you’ve watched a movie. The end will touch you.”
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
Then he pauses. “The tricks are just a sprinkling of enchantment on top of the cake.”
Still, when Basso climbs into that tank, no one backstage treats it lightly.
They watch the clock. They listen for movement.
Image courtesy of Ken Leanfore
And when he bursts free, water cascading under the lights, the theatre explodes.
Four magicians. One shared breath.
And a reminder that sometimes the greatest trick is daring to try again after you almost didn’t make it out alive.
Catch Now You See Me Live until 8 March 2026 at Sands Theatre, Marina Bay Sands, from Wednesdays to Sundays. Tickets are available via Marina Bay Sands, SISTIC, and Klook.
Also read: Now You See Me Live review: I saw a phone get pulled out of a melon & I’m still processing it
Now You See Me Live review: I saw a phone get pulled out of a melon & I’m still processing it
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Featured image by MS News and courtesy of Ken Leanfore.
