Some “venues” seem beyond reach. You wouldn’t even dare dream of taking the stage at the Duckburg Theater. After all, that would mean landing a role in an issue of Micky Maus magazine. Simon Pierro has done just that.
He appears in the German issue 20/2026 of Micky Maus. His assistant is none other than Donald Duck, in a story with a clever nod to Goethe’s 1797 ballad The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. The magic trade magazine Magie reports:
Simon Pierro has performed in some unusual venues. His appearances have taken him inside London’s Tower Bridge, to the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, and to the Sacred Monkey Forest in Bali. One particularly extraordinary engagement was a private performance in a sheikh’s living room, where he entertained 25 guests before handing over to star tenor Andrea Bocelli.
Yet even he probably never expected to add this venue to the list: the Duckburg Theater.
The cover alone features one of his illusions using two iPads: Simon reaches into one tablet, his hand emerges from the other, and he swipes the astonished Donald’s cap right off his head.
Inside the magazine is a six-page story that Simon Pierro himself helped develop. It unfolds in two parts. First, Simon appears as a “duckified” version of himself—complete with feathers. He is printed out in his 3D Printer Illusion, then conjures a tennis ball from his tablet to thunderous applause. His famous beer-from-the-iPad illusion also makes an appearance, although here the drink is Blubberlutsch, Duckburg’s very own soda.
After the show, Simon asks Donald Duck to put away the props and leaves him to it. Donald, naturally, believes he is destined for greater things and is already dreaming of using the magic iPad to conjure up banknotes. He picks up the iPad himself, setting in motion what can best be described as “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice 2.0”: once Donald summons the spirits of online magic, getting rid of them proves rather more difficult.
But how does a magician actually land a show in Duckburg? Which agent books performances at the Duckburg Theater? In this case, the secret had less to do with magic than with good networking and persistence.
Back in 2022, Simon Pierro was hired to perform at Disney’s CEO Circle in Munich, an event held in the run-up to Disney’s 100th anniversary. Afterwards, he joined the attendees at Oktoberfest.
There, Pierro spoke about his passion for collecting and his childhood trips to flea markets. He would carry a hand-drawn checklist the size of a sketchpad, folded several times and neatly divided into columns. It helped him keep track of which of the 52 issues from each year of Micky Maus, going back to 1952, he was still missing.
Had anyone told him back then that he would one day appear on the cover alongside Donald Duck, he would hardly have believed it.
Even when Jörg Risken, Publishing Director Magazines at Egmont Ehapa Verlag, raised a glass with him and suggested exploring a collaboration, Simon still did not seriously expect this childhood dream to come true.
Almost another three years passed before the project was picked up again.
On a video call with Johannes Kanty, who has worked at Ehapa for 25 years and is currently the editor responsible for Micky Maus magazine, the chemistry was immediate, and ideas soon began to flow. They quickly agreed that the tricks should draw on the rich repertoire of Simon Pierro’s career as an iPad magician. Two artists brought the project to life: Fernando Güell illustrated the cover, while Ferran Rodriguez drew the story.
For Rodriguez, who has illustrated stories for Micky Maus magazine for years, the particular challenge was translating Simon’s digital illusions into individual comic panels. A levitation effect or soda flowing from an iPad can be depicted fairly directly. A banana emerging from the screen, however, required some artistic sleight of hand. Rodriguez used motion lines to show that the banana had just traveled from the iPad into Simon’s hand, even though it had never actually been visible on the screen.
Simon describes developing the story as a process with parallels to creating a magic routine: first, gather as much material as possible; then, simplify ruthlessly. An early version featured the Beagle Boys stealing the iPad to gain access to Uncle Scrooge’s money bin. The story was later refined to focus on the interplay between Donald Duck and Simon Pierro.
There is also a small nod to Disney’s classic Fantasia: at the end, a broom is conjured from the iPad—a charming reference to Mickey’s famous turn as the Sorcerer’s Apprentice in 1940.
For Simon, a particular highlight was being involved at every stage of the creative process.
His five-year-old twins also served as a test audience. They especially enjoyed the scene in which Donald tries to plug the tap with his finger while the soda keeps flowing. Another firm favorite was the health app, which first wraps Donald in bandages like a mummy, then rapidly unwraps him again.
By that point, it was clear they were on the right track.
With his appearance in Duckburg and a story that will be published internationally, Simon Pierro once again brings together magic and pop culture.
He has previously starred in a LEGO campaign filmed in the United States and held the title of “Official Angry Birds Magician” while creating viral videos for the successful video game franchise.
All this while he considers performing for corporate audiences to be the core of his business. How does it all fit together? He explains:
“Even today, people who watched my videos on YouTube ten or fifteen years ago write to tell me how much those videos were a part of their childhood. Of course, that’s flattering. At the same time, it fits with my core business. I was once booked to perform for Oracle in Las Vegas. I went on after the CEO, in front of an audience of 6,000, followed by Justin Timberlake. How did that happen? The CEO’s son had seen a video from the Angry Birds campaign and shown it to his father. Besides, today’s children are tomorrow’s clients and partners.”
Simon Pierro will receive 100 copies of the magazine for his own use. He has ordered another 2,000. That decision probably came from the little Micky Maus collector he once was, rather than the corporate magician he is today.
Article: Michelle Spillner / MZvD
Photo: Ehapa/HolgerUlrich
Copyright: Disney / Egmont Ehapa Media
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