Little known to the general public, Marc Bittar, 28, alias Markobi, is nevertheless a leader in his field, card magic: at Fism 2022, the biggest international magic competition, he climbed to the top step of the podium. .
"It's a bit like the Olympic Games of magic: it's organized once every three years, in a different country... to have reached this level, in my field, is an accomplishment “, explains this Strasbourg native of Syrian-Lebanese origin.
Since the creation of Fism in 1948, this is only the second time that a Frenchman has won the title in the queen category, after Jean-Jacques Sanvert in 1979. To get there, Marc Bittar took side roads, learning magic on the job, in the street, and refusing to join a club to "avoid being formatted".
His first tricks were taught to him by a cousin when he was eight years old.
The trigger really comes 10 years later, when watching a demonstration of magic on the internet.
He tries to reproduce the number with cards he finds in his parents' office.
"Magical Nights"
"After a month of practicing, I go to the train station. I spend the whole afternoon outside, I hesitate for hours, and finally I jump in and do my trick to a stranger. Good , it was mediocre, but that's how it started," he recalls.
He starts again the next day, then the following days, until allowing himself, a few months later, to enter bars and nightclubs, for what he calls his "magical nights".
"I was doing magic everywhere and with everyone, tourists at the bus stop, lovers hiding behind a door. I started going to other cities, to Lyon, to Marseille, to the foreigner".
French magician Marc Bittar, known as Markobi, performs a card trick in Strasbourg on December 17, 2022 © SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP
His studies take a hit.
"I was not very invested", admits this son of doctors who validated his biology license "thanks to English", and after having repeated three semesters.
"I continued my laps in TP session, when the teacher had his back turned," he smiles again.
But the intensive practice of prestidigitation, nourished by interactions with an ever-changing public, gradually forges the artist he becomes, until he makes it his profession.
"One day, a guy gave me 5 euros. I couldn't believe it, I hadn't asked for anything, I didn't have a commercial vision of magic".
Then comes the time for hat shows, performances at student galas or company dinners.
Markobi becomes professional under auto-entrepreneur status, and in the France team.
"Very strong technically"
"The first time he arrived, we immediately saw that he was very original, he offered something that we didn't usually see in magic. And he made us laugh a lot too", says Jean -Jacques Sanvert, now coach of the national team.
"He is very strong technically, without seeming to be. And he has managed to impose a personal style, which is particularly difficult in magic", he adds, while acknowledging that his student does not yet do the job. unanimity.
"He breaks the codes so much that in the middle, some don't like it at all".
French magician Marc Bittar, known as Markobi, performs a card trick in Strasbourg on December 17, 2022 © SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP
Example at the world championships which took place in Quebec last summer: falsely casual and full of self-mockery, playing his English mixed with a strong French accent or directly challenging the jury, Markobi amazed the public with his tricks of cards where a queen of hearts always ends up reappearing as if by magic.
The person concerned claims this positioning against traditional uses or public expectations.
"My magic has always developed by going against stereotypes. I like to create discrepancies, to cover the tracks. And if I can do it with a touch of humor, I do it".
© 2022 AFP