30 April 2020

Top 5 posts in April 2020

There were 20+ posts at Canada's Magic last month.  Here are the 5 most viewed posts in the past 30 days:

5. International Stars of Magic show livestream April 15 - The first in a series.  Keep an eye on the Greg Frewin Theatre YouTube channel for more great shows!
4. [Guest post] "What can I do?" - A great list of things to keep you occupied!
3. The Browser's Den of Magic online magic competition - Deadline for entry is fast approaching.
2. Julie Eng interviewed by Richard Crouse - Richard's first interview from "Isolation Studios."

and the most viewed post this month  ...






1. Darcy Oake in The Sunday Post - Darcy's eagerly awaiting his UK tour dates!

29 April 2020

A peek behind the curtain with Piff the Magic Dragon

A peek behind the curtain with Piff the Magic Dragon 
I was delighted to receive an invitation to interview Piff the Magic Dragon!

You can watch Piff, Jade, and Mr. Piffles on PiffTV, where Piff has magicians and comedians on as guests, does some magic, and has little video features.  Episodes are uploaded M-F at 10am and 5pm PST.



Who inspires you magically?

Penn & Teller. The greatest of all the great.

What magical effect would you have shown me had I been there to interview you in person?  
None. Save it for the stage is my golden rule.


What is your first memory of magic?
I think I was around 8 or 10 and I helped someone do the linking rings. I was pretty convinced I had magical powers. So when I bought a set years later I was disappointed to find they were broken. One had a hole in, one was already linked. Very upsetting.


Who inspires you that is not a magician?

Jerry Seinfeld.

Had you not shown up at a fancy dress party in your sister’s dragon costume, what type of magic show do you think you’d be performing now?

Something really not worth watching.


Have you experienced anything specific about performing for Canadian audiences in particular?  
You have the optimism of the Americans and the sarcasm of the British. A great combination.


Piff’s connection to Canadian magic?
  

Rick Bronson, who runs the Comic Strip in Edmonton, was the first to book us out there. We sold out 12 shows in a week. A record! I love Rick Bronson!
Life on the road isn’t all glory and glamour.  There are tight schedules, never-ending bus rides, questionable accommodations, missed connections, and broken or disappearing props.  Tell us about your most memorable touring misadventure.
The dog once defecated all over Jade live on stage, to our mutual horror. By mutual I am referring to Jade and I. The dog felt only relief. I was so appalled I gave a play by play commentary over the whole event as Jade left the stage dripping. Offstage she shed and burnt a few hundred dollars of feathers and returned looking thoroughly nauseated and depressed. After the show the meet and greet line was longer than ever before with people petting, holding and even kissing the dog. Turns out the audience thought it was just a hilarious bit. None of them took it seriously at all. That was until round two started... 




If you could be endowed with the talent to take on any Broadway role past or present, who would you pick and why?
 

The narrator from Shockheaded Peter. My favourite show.
So as to not scare off any aspiring performers, please share with us your favourite thing about touring.
Doing the show. That's the only part of this whole enterprise that makes it worthwhile, and I love it to pieces. If you don't like the show part, then quit immediately and start making some real money.



Do you have any tour or pre-show rituals you’d be willing to share with our readers?
I try and do nothing ritualised so that I don't have to do it every night. Once I had a lucky t-shirt. I lost it and the next gig went very badly. I swore off talismans after that.



Do you have any tips for keeping up one's mental health during quarantine?

Quarantine is tough on everyone. Be kind to each other. And make sure you eat well.



Is there anything else you’d like to share about you or Mr. Piffles with our readers?
A dog is a great business partner. Just find someone else to clean up after him.





Thank you Mr. Magic Dragon for making the time to answer our questions!

You can watch Piff, Jade, and Mr. Piffles on PiffTV, where Piff has magicians and comedians on as guests, does some magic, and has little video features.  Episodes are uploaded M-F at 10am and 5pm PST.








28 April 2020

Welcoming a new Friend: Eric Bedard

Welcoming our newest Friend, Eric Bedard!
  
Based out of North Bay (after making Victoria his home for many years), Eric's career has seen him working on cruises and he is often referred to as a "Magician to the Stars."

You may have enjoyed Eric's lecture "Secrets to Getting Booked To Entertain Celebrities" at the 2017 Magic Masters Summit.

In 2015, Eric was presented with an IBM Presidential Citation:



You can learn more about Eric at his websites EricBedard.ca and CoolMagicDude.com or through his Facebook or Instagram accounts. 


Thank you Eric, for becoming an official Friend of Canada's Magic!




27 April 2020

24 April 2020

New project by David Merry on CBS Sports

From David Merry:
Really happy to announce that our TV Show Off The Hozzle starring comedian Dave Hemstad and golf broadcaster Mark Zecchino will start airing May 4th. It will be shown in primetime on CBS Sports Network at 8:30pm ET.

Take a look below for more information!

From Yahoo News:
"It's a golf show, but more importantly a buddy show. As you watch each episode you start to feel like you're hanging out with friends, and that you're in on the jokes. It's inclusive, and makes you want to root for them." (Ali Greene, Director of Photography and Executive Producer)

"Knowing these guys for over twenty years, and being one of their regular golfing pals, it was really fun stepping in as the director and watching their natural abilities fill the screen." (Dave Merry, Director and Executive Producer)

Read more.









23 April 2020

Murray and Lefty Teach a Trick

Murray (and Shaia Twain!) will also be taking part in a telethon on Monday to support the American Actors Fund.  (Details at bottom of post.)



From Murray Sawchuck:





























22 April 2020

World Buskers United

Updated April 25th to add:
  •  Eric Woolfe is also participating (Buster Canfield and his Circus), as is Canadian comedy juggler Mike Wood

Updated April 23rd to add:
  • Lukas Stark is directing the initiative and will be performing mind reading at 5pm EST.

Calgary's James Jordan will be joining in on Saturday at 8pm (MST) and 9pm (MST).


From NOW Toronto:
Apr 25, 2020 8:00 AM to Apr 26, 2020 8:00 AM

An online global busker festival for the times. 24 hours of live performances from all over the world streamed into the homes of thousands. Watch 60 world-class performers show the world some love with an array of amazing talents, in situations you won’t believe — performing from wherever they happen to be while practising safe social distancing. Starts on April 25 at 8 am ET. Donations appreciated.













21 April 2020

Carisa Hendrix on the cover of Genii

Congratulations to Carisa Hendrix, who is on the cover of the May 2020 edition of Genii magazine!

Read "Uncovering Carisa Hendrix and Lucy Darling" by Dustin Stinett.





20 April 2020

Luc Leduc Facebook Live event

Luc Leduc
Facebook Live
Thursday, April 30 at 1:00 p.m.

A note to subscribers: the content of this post is embedded from another website and is not available to preview. To view the content of the post, please visit http://CanadasMagic.blogspot.com. Some of the embedded code may be visible in this notification.






17 April 2020

Julie Eng interviewed by Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse has started a new web series from Isolation Studios.  His first guest?  Julie Eng!


From Julie's Facebook page:
My pal Richard Crouse invited me to "Isolation Studios" for a socially-distanced conversation about what it's like to be a magician stuck at home trying to make the minutes disappear. We talked about some magic projects I am involved in, including the Art Gallery of Ontario's poster exhibition, Illusions: The Art of Magic, and another program that is extremely near and dear to me, the Allan Slaight Relief Fund for magicians. Richard is reaching out and finding creative ways to brings us together in these challenging times when we are told to say apart. I am so honoured to be a guest on this wonderful series—where I get my own magical surprise at the end of our conversation! Thank you, Richard






16 April 2020

Murray SawChuck returns to Pawn Stars

This Friday, Murray SawChuck is back on an all new Pawn Stars.


A note to subscribers: the content of this post is embedded from another website and is not available to preview. To view the content of the post, please visit http://CanadasMagic.blogspot.com. Some of the embedded code may be visible in this notification.





15 April 2020

Greg Frewin in the St. Catherines Standard

A reminder that Greg's hosting his second International Stars of Magic show livestream April 15 @7PM EST to benefit the Niagara SPCA Humane Society on his YouTube channel at:

https://youtu.be/6moYdHS8TYc 


From the April 13th article "Magician Greg Frewin on his anger over ‘Tiger King’" by John Law in The Standard:
Instead of shock and outrage over Joe Exotic's behaviour or whether Baskins killed her husband (and fed him to tigers), Frewin wishes viewers keyed in on a statistic the show shared in its final episode: There are 8,000 tigers in captivity in the United States, and only 4,000 left in the wild.
 
"Why is there only 4,000 tigers left in the wild, and we're worried about 'Did Carole Baskins kill her husband?'" he says. "Why aren't people talking about that? That's the part I'm interested in.

"Those characters are so extreme that the facts that are important got completely brushed over. All we talk about are how crazy they are, how abusive this and that. There's a whole bunch of stuff in this show that's been completely missed."

Read more.

14 April 2020

Welcoming a new Friend: Robin Dawes

Please join me in welcoming our newest Friend, Robin Dawes!

Based out of Kingston, Ontario, Robin writes annual reports about the FFFF convention for the Linking Ring and FFFFmagic.  He is also a a member of The Magician's Forum.

In 2011 he received an IBM Award of Excellence for the article "The Maltese FFFFalcon."

You can follow Robin on Flicker (for FFFF photos), Twitter (@DawesRobin) and Instagram (@robindawes9042).

Thank you Robin, for becoming an official Friend of Canada's Magic!

13 April 2020

International Stars of Magic show livestream April 15

Keep your eyes on the Greg Frewin Theatre's YouTube channel.  There's a very good chance this won't be the last spectacular livestream lineup!


(As an added bonus watch new episodes of PiffTV uploaded M-F at 10am and 5pm PST.)



From Greg Frewin's Facebook post:
Join us for #2 International Stars of Magic show livestream April 15 @7PM EST.

For the Niagara SPCA Humane Society.

https://youtu.be/6moYdHS8TYc

An amazing 2nd show with amazing stars for a good cause.


12 April 2020

[Guest post] "What can I do?"

The following is a guest post from an author who wishes to be known as The Magic Demon. 

Some great ideas if you're motivated to do something but stuck on what to do to pass the time!

--


WHAT CAN I DO?
Random suggestions for magic aficionados during current circumstances

by The Magic Demon for Canada's Magic

I can...
  • Dig out all my old magic magazines and reread every single one until I find a trick I love and want to learn;
     
  • Dig out all my old magic books and find a sleight or routine I always meant to learn but "never had the time to" until now;
     
  • Ditto with my old DVDs;
     
  • Dig out all my old magic tricks that I never looked at twice and try to figure out what made me buy them in the first place. (This may take some time!);
     
  • Sort out and clean up (and repair if necessary) my magic collection and reacquaint myself with all my old favourites;
     
  • Go online and study every magician I can remember to name and find on You-Tube;
     
  • Try restringing my broken "Electric Deck". (This will ultimately prove futile but can easily take up a few "stay at home" days before I give up in frustration);
     
  • Go online and look for websites devoted to history of magic and magicians and learn about them. First stop: Magicana;
     
  • At long last carefully press or iron flat all my crumpled up (and frequently vanished) silks;
     
  • Go online and hit the "random" button on Genii's Magicpedia page and keep reading until my eyes cross;
     
  • Support my favourite brick & mortar magic store by ordering something from them online (and if I don't have one support one of the sponsors of this site);
     
  • Take an online magic course or lesson;
     
  • Watch every movie and TV series online I can find about magic or magicians;
     
  • Participate in a magic forum;
     
  • Go through all my old beginner tricks, clean them up and snail mail them to my favourite youngster-at-a-distance (niece, nephew, grandchild, etc.) with the explanation that I'll teach them how they work by phone, internet or semaphore. I could also video myself performing them and send that along too (or a link to where I uploaded them);
     
  • Go through my old pile of business cards and reach out to fellow magic enthusiasts I've met or been in touch with in the past just to see how they are doing;
     
  • Buy two magic books online I have always wanted but "would never have the time to read" until now. One about tricks, the other a biography or about magic history;
     
  • Gently wash all my old sponge balls and bunnies. Permanently retire those with an unidentifiable shape or less than one ear;
     
  • Consider donating to a magic-related charity (such as CauseToWonder.org profiled in the March 2020 issue of Genii) [editor's note: consider donating to the Allan Slaight Relief Fund];
     
  • Expand this list of suggestions by using the comments feature (below);

    and finally
  • Proceed backwards and read every post on Canada's Magic since it started and enjoy its unique service to our community throughout the years!

 ~~~~


Thank you The Magic Demon for guest posting at Canada's Magic!