Buried Alive

The 'Buried Alive' trick is a high-risk stage illusion where a magician is handcuffed, chained, and locked inside a clear coffin, which is then buried under dirt or, in some cases, wet concrete. The magician's goal is to escape before suffocating. This trick is historically associated with Harry Houdini and has been attempted by others, including Dynamo, with varying degrees of safety. The tragic story of Joe Burrus, who died performing this trick in 1990 by adding wet concrete to the mix, serves as a stark warning about the dangers of performing legitimately dangerous magic acts.