06 October 2013

Broken wand: Robert Barna

From Henry Walser:
Barna, Robert A (Barney):

Robert Alexander Barna passed away peacefully on Thursday September 5th, 2013 in Kitchener, Ontario at the age of 54.

Barney was a gifted magician entertaining many with Merlin at birthday parties, special events, local restaurants sharing his charm and wit through his mystifying card tricks and illusions.
He is survived by his children, Jaryd and Jacklyn and their mother Karen, his parents Eugene and Marie of Leamington, his siblings: Peter (Jeannine), Jean (Kip Brown), Paul, David (Joanne), Terry (Sharon), Kevin, Debbie (Bob Richardson).

Read more.

There is also a nice rememberance in the most recent issue of the CAM publication, Northern Peeks on page 19 "The Final Curtain."

05 October 2013

Toronto: Shift Your Perspective with Dan Trommater

From Facebook:
Saturday, October 5th 
Kick-off your Nuit Blanche right, with a magic show!

Catch magician Dan Trommater in this rare public performance before he heads to LA to perform at The World Famous Hollywood Magic Castle.

** FOR TICKETS: **
https://shiftyourperspective.eventbrite.ca/
This will be an intimate evening of magic and mystery. With only 45 available tickets, you'll be close enough to see every moment. Close enough to swear that you should be able to see how the tricks work - but don't be disappointed if you leave baffled.

Read more and buy tickets.

04 October 2013

Halifax to host Houdini Seance

From John Cox at Wild About Harry:
Great news today! Bill Radner informs me that the 2013 Official Houdini Seance will be held in the catacombs of the historic Citadel HIll in Halifax, Nova Scotia on Halloween of this year.

Houdini and Bess performed in Halifax during their first tour of the Canadian Maritimes in 1896. That formative tour is the subject of Bruce MacNab's excellent book, The Metamorphosis: The Apprenticeship of Harry Houdini. Bruce will be co-hosting this year's seance, which is going to have a terrific lineup of guests and performers and will have a limited amount of tickets available to the public.

Read more.

03 October 2013

Thank you to our October sponsors!

Thank you to our sponsors for their generous support.  We're pleased to have the support of:

The next time you see them, let them know you saw their sponsorship here!

 
 
 
For more information about purchasing Sponsored Posts or about our Platinum, Gold, or Silver level sponsorships, please visit our Sponsorship page.

 

02 October 2013

Toronto: Tyler Wilson at Browser's Den Free Magic Club

From the Broswer's Den Facebook group:
CARDICIAN 'TYLER WILSON' WILL BE COMING TO 'BROWSER'S DEN' this Saturday October 5th. He will be the Special Guest for Browser's Den Free Magic Club and will be at the shop from about 2:00pm to about 4:30pm. Tyler will be doing tricks and talking magic with magic club members.

Read more.

01 October 2013

Greely: CANCELLED Jay Scott Berry lecture and workshop

Updated October 8th, with information from Doug at Magic Information Canada:

From Magic Information Canada:
  • Greely, ON: Thursday, October 17 at 8 PM. Jay Scott Berry. Magic lecture.    
  • Greely, ON: Friday, October 18 at 8 PM. Jay Scott Berry. Magic workshop

  • Read more.

    30 September 2013

    Broken wand: Ray Parker

    From the Times Colonist:
    PARKER, Raymond May 25, 1929 - July 15, 2013 Ray passed away peacefully at the Royal Jubilee Hospice, surrounded by his family. Born in Wolverhampton, England, Ray, a noted entertainer, performed his first show at the age of eleven as a puppeteer. He soon expanded his skills to include acting, clowning, mime, dance, singing, and stand-up comedy. At the age of eighteen, while in the British armed forces, he performed in East Africa, while serving as a Royal Engineer. During this time, he developed an impersonation act, which led to theatre, BBC television, and radio engagements. In 1965, Ray and his young family immigrated to Canada, where his career continued to flourish. Ray's acts included his children as a family of clowns, performing vaudevillian slapstick comedy. At the age of 50, Ray fell in love with magic, and thrilled his audiences with yet another dazzling talent.


    Read more.



    29 September 2013

    Rounding the Western rings in October

    Confirm details about dates and locations by visiting each club's website.  

    CityClubEvent(s)
    Calgary, ABRing 66 (Calgary Magic Circle, Les Brocklesby Ring)- n/a
    Edmonton, ABEdmonton Magic Club- n/a
    Winnipeg, MBThe Magic Club of Winnipeg- n/a
    Vancouver, BCRing 92 (Vancouver Magic Circle)- n/a
    Vancouver, BCSAM 95  (Carl Hemeon Assembly)- n/a
    Victoria, BCRing 183 (Victoria Magic Circle)   - n/a
     

    Please leave a comment or e-mail me about corrections or omissions.

    Rounding the Ontario rings in October

    Confirm details about dates and locations by visiting each club's website.

    Hamilton, ONRing 49 (The Doug Henning Magic Wand Club) - cards and coins
    London, ONRing 265 (London Magician's Guild)- schemes, swindles and scams
    Kitchener, ONRing 235 (The Caesar Hat & Wand Magic Circle)- Shane Cobalt lecture
    Ottawa, ONRing 151 (Ottawa Society of Magicians) - n/a
    Ottawa, ONOttawa / Gatineau magicians- n/a
    Toronto, ONRing 17 (Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club) Tyler Wilson lecture
     

    Please leave a comment or e-mail me about corrections or omissions.

    Rounding the Eastern rings in October

    Confirm details about dates and locations by visiting each club's website.


    Halifax, NSRing 316 (Conjourer's Court) -  Halloween Magic
    St. John, NBMagic Circle of St. John- n/a


    Please leave a comment or e-mail me about corrections or omissions.

    28 September 2013

    Ray Chance: cameo in Shawn Desman's Stuck video

    Go over to Much Music and watch Toronto magician Ray Chance's cameo in Shawn Desman's new video, "Stuck".  Ray appears at about the 1:30 mark.

    To see more of Ray's magic, visit his YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/chancemagic which includes his appearances on Much Music, Breakfast Television and stage show clips.

    27 September 2013

    Fundraiser: Stop the Sucking

    From Ring 17:
    The Mosquitoes Suck Project, organized by SoChange, has released an instructional download including tricks from:
    • Bill Abbott
    • James Alan
    • Joshua Jay
    • Anthony Lindan
    • Bobby Motta
    • David Peck
    • Brian Roberts
    • Jay Sankey
    For $10, you get a 106-minute, 3gb download of original magic. The download is available from dontbiteme.ca. $10 is the cost of an insecticide treated bed net, including delivery, which protects a family for up to ten years. These nets are distributed in Africa by Spread The Net. So download your copy today!

    Read more and buy a download to Stop the Sucking.

    26 September 2013

    A second season of Breaking Magic

    From The Futon Critic:
    (Silver Spring, MD)-Discovery Networks International (DNI) today announced the return of original series BREAKING MAGIC. Behind every trick is science, and this 14x30 series from Objective Productions brings back its international cast of magicians,  Ben Hanlin, Billy Kidd, Wayne Houchin, along with newcomer, Nate Staniforth, for even more mesmerizing stunts and street magic. BREAKING MAGIC will premiere on Discovery Channel in 224 countries across Europe, Middle-East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America beginning February 2014. 
    Read more.

    25 September 2013

    Review: Bobby Motta lecture

    From the Browser's Den blog:
    Such is his energy and enthusiasm and natural ability to entertain that the two hours flashed by in an instant. Trying to recapture Bobby's performance in print is no easy task - it is so relaxed and he is so genuinely funny that it would be easy to mistake it all for an impromptu session. But that it looks so effortless and natural is because of the years of hard work and dedication to his art that Bobby has undertaken. He admits to close to 3000 professional performances in his 13 year pro career. It shows. Interestingly, he actually started out as a hobbyist at the Den (at its old location on Eglinton).

    Read more.

    23 September 2013

    18 September 2013

    Random thoughts from Sorcerers Safari 2013

    • Mike and Jen Segal are totally awesome and inspiring people!
    • It is tremendous that organizations such as Ellusionist support Sorcerers Safari. (Kids, did you remember to send a quick "thank you" e-mail to them for the generous gift you received?  Do it now!  -- Mom)
    • Justin Flom is a super nice and super talented young man. (Read about his Toronto lecture at the Browser's Den blog)
    • I learned of a disconcerting, non-standard use for Mod Podge.
    • When asked to think of a famous painting, a LOT of people think of "Starry Night"
    • There's more humidity in Haliburton than in Vegas.
    • "Overnight successes" take a lot of work and planning.
    • Lee Asher is such a great teacher even _I_ learned how to produce minor card miracles. #BeginnerCardClass
    • Sometimes you get lucky and are the ONLY one in an elective. #PrivateClassesAreAwesome
    • Steven Kline is the guy you want in the booth during your show!
    • You never know when you might meet a fiction author
    • The health and safety of the children is clearly a priority.
    • Being levitated takes strong neck muscles.
    • Non-magicians aren't always the best choice for volunteers during a show.
    • Some Australians have incredible peripheral vision!
    • Spotted in 24 hours: Mike and Jen SegalDan WeibeKeith BrownEric LeclercAaron FisherDave MitchellShawn FarquharCarey LauderChad JurosLee AsherDick JoinerJustin FlomSteven Kline, Lisa and Michael CloseBen Train, Chris Mayhew, Bobby Motta ... I'm sure there were more!
    • Carey Lauder is an incredible photographer.  (See samples of his magic camp from two years back in Vanish magazine.)
    • Chris Mayhew shot some fabulous footage – I can't wait to see this year's camp video!
    • Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp gets better every year!
    • Mike Segal and Mike Toal should be very proud of what they started together over 17 years ago.
    • Sorcerers Safari is full of genuinely nice, caring, talented individuals!


    Not at all.  I can't wait until the next time I'm there!

    17 September 2013

    An update from Perfect Magic

    Keep your eye on the Perfect Magic Facebook page and Twitter account.   They have some exciting news to announce this week!


    16 September 2013

    Toronto: Steve Reynolds workshop and show

    From the Browser's Den Facebook group:
    Ben Train has organized a STEVE REYNOLDS WORKSHOP ($100) on Friday, September 20. Full details below. (For Workshop Tickets please call Ben Train directly.)

    PLUS... there will be a FREE One Hour Magic Show by Steve Reynolds at Browser’s Den on Saturday, September 21, 2013. You read that right…The show at Browser’s Den on the Saturday is FREE!

    HERE ARE THE DETAILS FROM BEN TRAIN TO YOU….

    Read more.

    15 September 2013

    A bit about Sid Lorraine and Ring 17

    From Reality Based Magic:
    In just over two weeks, a new season of the Sid Lorraine Hat & Rabbit Club will be starting. [Edit: after a weird scheduling snag which forced us to push our opening lecture back a week... sorry for that]

    Sid Lorraine, was a prominent figure among Toronto magicians. The Club was half-renamed after him (It was always the Hat & Rabbit Club) after he passed away. I was four years old when he passed away, and had never met him, but I had the odd chance to get to know him as I had to transcribe his handwritten memoirs (assembled from taped interviews with another past-president, Peter Isaacs) for a memorial blog. The blog, or “ChatterBox” as it’s properly called, is a fun read and paints a fascinating picture from the early part of the Twentieth Century of magicians in particular and Canada and England in general.

    Read more.

    14 September 2013

    Erin Thomas at Sorcerers Safari

    This summer I had the good fortune of meeting author Erin Thomas, while she was doing research for her book about a teenaged magician.  She blogged about her experience at Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp:
    For some time now, I’ve been working on a book about a teenaged magician. Magician as in sleight-of-hand, not as in Harry Potter. It’s slated for publication sometime in 2014, as part of Orca’s new performing arts-based series, Limelights.

    And as I’ve been researching the book, I keep coming to the same conclusion:  I really like magicians. As it happens, they’re a lot like writers. For one thing, there’s an awful lot of work behind the scenes before anything ever reaches an audience.

    I’ve had the chance to interview a lot of people, about a lot of different things, over the past few years. Being a writer sometimes feels like a get-out-of-jail-free card for nosiness. And people are generally happy to talk about what they do for a living, or what they care about. But magicians… they go beyond that.

    Read more.

    I'm eager to get a look at the book she's finishing up!