Is hypnosis real or is it just a hoax?

Damian, the world-renowned hypnotist, is ready to prove that his profession is no joke. He performed for a local crowd at the Crowbar, 420 E. College Ave., last night.

"We are really excited about his performance," David Wells, manager of Crowbar, said in anticipation of the performance. "I am pretty skeptical about the whole thing, but I want to see it to believe it. I've heard this guy is the best, so this should be a pretty exciting show."

Damian took time before his performance to answer a few questions:

What made you chose this career?

It is an innate passion of mine. It's like a musician who walks by a piano and feels the need to sit down and play it. I knew that this was what I wanted to do. Hypnosis has been around for 3,000 years. It was used by Socrates, and more recently, Freud. It's mind over matter -- not magic. You have to let yourself fall into it.

When and how did you get started with hypnosis?

When I was 12, I was hypnotized by my dentist to help me stop grinding my teeth at night. I really didn't believe it would work, but overnight, I stopped grinding my teeth. At the age of 12, I began to research and find out more information about hypnosis. I started performing seven years ago.

Where is the best place you've been in all of your travels?

I would have to say Acapulco, [Mexico], because there was so much energy at that show. It was during spring break and there were about 3,500 people in the audience. Jamaica was also exciting. I performed at an outdoor beach party for about 4,000 people. It was great.

Have you ever hypnotized someone famous?

I hypnotized Puck from The Real World. I made him believe that he was a famous rapper, which was pretty funny. I have also hypnotized several CEOs of companies and politicians.

You are currently writing a book. How is that coming along?

The book is basically a story about hypnosis; it's not an autobiography. I tell stories about hypnosis and about some of the things I have encountered and about what you can do with it. For example, I was doing a show in North Dakota about two years ago when a girl fell and cut her lip. Her lip was bleeding and I went over to her and said "your lip will stop bleeding when I count to three." When I got to three, her lip was no longer bleeding. Many people do not realize this, but doctors use hypnosis to stop bleeding.

You are also producing a TV show. Can you describe what it will involve?

My TV show will be a half-hour weekly show with comedic entertainment. We will make people do funny things and it should be a high-energy show.

Is the atmosphere in the crowd different when you do a show at a college campus?

Universities are my favorite. The crowd is mostly students who are still in the learning mode and are used to listening to suggestions. College students get more into the show and they are usually the best subjects to hypnotize.

Many people do not believe in hypnotism. What would you say to these people?

I would tell them that I didn't believe in hypnosis at first. You have to get exposed to it once to see for yourself. If you see one of your friends up on stage doing something crazy, you might begin to believe in hypnosis.

What are you career plans/goals?

I currently do 150 shows a year and travel to five countries. I want to travel to more countries and reach out to a wider audience. I want to find more ways to use hypnosis. I want to keep learning and reading books on the subject as well.