Will Tsai is a

Taiwanese Taiwanese may refer to: * Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien * Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa) * Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan * Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan * Taiwanese people, ...

-Canadian visualist magician. He is a former contestant on America's Got Talent Season 12.

Background

Tsai was born in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, and immigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

with his family at the age of 15. His parents fell on difficult times, and Tsai had to work multiple jobs to assist his family financially. After stumbling on a magician's

street performance Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...

, he was inspired to become a

magician Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

himself. He has been practicing magic for 13 years.

Career

Tsai has been producing magic videos and products under the company name SansMinds since 2010, and has created multiple tricks, props, and devices for magicians and performers. Although he began his career developing tricks like Holely and Trace, Tsai eventually moved on to engineering stage props and devices such as VAPR, Absolute Zero, and VAPR Watch. Tsai also operates under the nickname The Visualist, as he believes he cannot be fully categorized alongside other magicians or illusionists due to his personal magic style. In May 2017, Tsai successfully auditioned for America's Got Talent Season 12 with an act he had developed himself. He was promoted to the next round by all four judges. Since the initial airing of the premiere, his performance has received over 40 million views. Although normally sporting a flashier fashion style, his toned down appearance on AGT was purposefully done to suit the audience, playing his real self as opposed to a stage persona, which is common in the magic industry. Due to logistical errors in customs, his original intended act could not be performed. Tsai developed the aired AGT act within a week, and was able to perform on stage with no issues. Tsai was featured on the cover of Vanish International Magic Magazine Edition 35, which was released in June 2017. Tsai performed with

Jay Chou Jay Chou ( zh, t=周杰倫, s=周杰伦, poj=Chiu Kia̍t-lûn, p=Zhōu Jiélún, first=t, w=Chou Chieh-lun; born January 18, 1979) is a Taiwanese singer, songwriter, record producer, rapper, actor, and television personality. Dubbed the " King ...

during 2018's

CCTV Spring Festival The ''CCTV New Year's Gala'', also known as the ''Spring Festival Gala'', and commonly abbreviated in Chinese as ''Chunwan'', is a Chinese New Year special produced by China Media Group (CMG). It is broadcast annually on the eve of Chinese Ne ...

Personal life

Tsai lives in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, British Columbia, Canada with his dog Mochi and his cat Fluffington. He has a strong relationship with both his grandmothers, and is cited saying they are his main source of inspiration. During a job in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, Tsai contracted a

lung infection Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a term often used as a synonym for pneumonia but can also be applied to other types of infection including lung abscess and acute bronchitis. Symptoms include shortness of breath, weakness, fever, cough ...

with a slim chance of survival. He remarkably made a full recovery.

Criticism

Tsai has been criticised for using visual effects in order to advertise and sell consumer magic products. His America's Got Talent audition was also revealed to be digitally edited by Captain Disillusion.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsai, Will Canadian magicians Living people Year of birth missing (living people)