A UNIVERSITY lecturer is turning his hand to magic at one of the UK’s biggest festivals.

Augusto Corrieri, a drama lecturer at the University of Sussex, will be heading to the Edinburgh Fringe next month to follow his second passion of illusions.

The moulder of minds is hoping to dazzle them in his show as he takes to the stage as his alter-ego Vincent Gambini.

Augusto says that he is hoping to combine his two loves in one show. He said: “I’m fusing a kind of contemporary theatre and art approach, that I’ve been forming over the last 15 years, together with magic, which was really my teen obsession.

“It’s been quite fun to bring those different audiences and expectations together.

“You’ve got people expecting peopled to be wowed but then also a crowd that is comfortable with theatre and stories, so it’s nice to see the two worlds combine.”

Like many youngsters of the 1970s and 1980s, Augusto was drawn to magic by seeing David Copperfield, who inspired his card and coin tricks.

Augusto thanked staff at the university for being so supportive of his magic work.

He said: “I’ve been very lucky because the university supports it in the same way they support academics doing their research.

“Part of the job as a lecturer is that you’ve got a bit of time to carry out your own research.

“As an academic that might be publishing a book or pieces for an academic journal, but increasingly in the UK there’s been an acknowledgement that an artistic practice can count as research.

“It’s a case for me of finding the gaps, where my colleagues are busy writing articles and going to conferences, where instead I’m busy rehearsing as well as doing promotions and admin towards the Edinburgh show.”

Augusto has been taking some time to preview his show with a run of performances.

He said: “Funnily enough some of my students in the drama third year know about the show and have been to see it.

“I was doing some shows in London, some work in progress shows, a couple of months ago, and to my delight I walked on stage and there were about 15 Sussex students in the audience.”

Augusto will be joining thousands of performers heading to Scotland at the beginning of August.

It is not the first time he has taken on the Fringe.

He debuted there in 2015 and has a lot of love for the event.

He said: “Because it has such a big reputation it’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase your work.

“It is so big it can be hard to stand out.

“If you imagine a city like Edinburgh being swamped by shows and tourists, you have to wonder what kind of shows will become more visible.”

Augusto will be performing The Chore Of Enchantment as Vincent Gambini from August 4 at Underbelly in Edinburgh.