Tibor Rudas's Dazzling Deception and the famed illusionist Richiardi Jr.

One of my dearest experiences in life was growing up in the Bahamas and working
for Tibor Rudas in the show Dazzling Deception in the Resorts International Hotel
and Casino owned by Merve Griffin at the time and formerly Donald Trump on Paradise
Island.

Back in those days Paradise Island really was paradise......miles of private
secluded beaches, woods and beautiful roads through the Casaurina trees. Unfortunately
Sun International got their hands on the island and destroyed it!! It is no
longer paradise but a concrete jungle.

Dazzling Deception was a world class show put on by Hungarian producer Tibor
Rudas. The running time was one hour and thirty minutes...

The show contained everything from incredible illusions and illusionists to
first rate variety acts.....comedians.....acrobats..ice skaters..pyrotechics..black
light numbers...a Rudas invention living screens...topless dancers ....everything
a large Vegas style production should have. The sets were elaborate and the
choreography and costumes were stunning.The shows cost well into the millions
annually to run...back in those days when everything was not so expensive that
was huge money.. The stage was massive 150 ft long with a ceiling of nearly
80 ft. The house was capable of seating around 1000 people and hosted dinner
shows that catered to hotel guests, locals and cruise ship passengers.

Tibor Rudas had been putting shows into the casino on Paradise Island since
the first large scale hotel was built on Paradise Island. The shows in the Le
cabaret Theatre were always the most highly regarded shows in the country..Mr
Rudas and his associates had actually designed and helped build the theater
that is still there today.

Many of the cast members had a 20 or so year run working in the Le Cabaret
theatre ....we were all a big family living in paradise.

Numerous shows ran there over time...2 of them that I remember were Buccaneers
of the caribbean and Dazzling Deception...Both spectacular shows like Mr Rudas
always presented.

My parents Laszlo szarka and Marianne Szarka were Hungarian immigrants that
escaped the then communist country of Hungary during the Hungarian anti Russia
revoltion in 1956. They immigrated to England and then Australia. In sydney
Australia they found the Rudas acrobat school were they met and started to learn
acrobatics handbalancing and adagio. You can see pictures of them at Szarkaduo.com

They were married within a few years and went on to perform all over the world
with Tibor Rudas and other companies. Laszlo Szarka my father was the artistic
director aswell as one of the key acts and performers of many of Tibors productions
including Dazzling Deception and Nights Of the Buccaneers.

Our family was a part of the productions on Paradise Island until 1991 when
Tibor pulled out and Sun International bought the property.

I have searched on the internet for many years to find websites or any information
that may be present on Dazling Deception or any of the other Bahmas Rudas productions
to no avail.

Today a friend of mine Levent
a fantastic performer that works frequently on Royal caribbeans
fleet of ships where I also perform sent me an e-mail with an article for MUM
magazine that someone had written for Dazzling Decption on the famed illusionist
Richiardi JR. . Who was the original illusionist featured in Dazzling Deception.

The article was written by a man called Dale Scott who I presume is an illusionist.

He did a great job with the article, it has pictures and a good write up of
the show. Many many thanks to Dale Scott for writing this article.

I just wanted to correct a few mistakes before I post the URL to the scanned
PDF article.

He had written that Robert szarka (me... was the illusionist that presented
the illusions in the Afro Cuban number. It was not me but a Bahamian man that
we all called Caligula :) I was only 11 at the time and not yet performing.....I
later joind the famed Rudas Acrodancers in the show at the age of 16.

Richiardi passed away around a year into the show from a very unfortunate accident.

My father Laszlo Szarka took over his role as illusionist for a few years until
a Hungarian man called Attila kapros that was part of a Hungarian teeter board
act called the Lukacs troup filled the part.

The Russian adagio act that is mentioned was actually my father and mother
from Hungary.

Once again many thanks to Dale Scott for the great article and Levent
for sending it to me!

RichiardiMUM.pdf