Summer is a magical time for kids to learn magic

Do your children want to learn magic this summer?  Then you've come to the right place!  We've highlighted the magic programs for children offered through Canada this summer.

Sorcerers Safari

When talking about summer, magic and children, the first name that always comes to my mind is Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp.  Sorcerers Safari is a sleep-away camp in the Haliburton Highlands about 2 1/2 hours north of Toronto. This year's camp runs from Tuesday August 30th to Sunday Sept 4th, 2011. The camp is coordinated by Mike Segal and boasts an amazingly talented and experienced staff!

To register or for more information, visit SorcersSafari.ca.

Take a peek at the highlights from last year's camp!



Oh, Magic Camp from Rotten Pictures on Vimeo.

Not interested in a sleep-away experience?

Mega Magic Camp, Calgary 

If you're looking for something in Western Canada, check out Mega Magic Camp with Sean Watson and Brent Smith in Calgary from August 22nd to August 26th, 2011.

To register or for more information, visit MegaMagicCamp.com.

Ottawa 

In the Ottawa area, Eric Leclerc runs English and French language magic classes during the summer. His 2011 dates haven't been posted yet. Keep checking his website for more information.

Halton Magic Camp  [added October 1, 2011]

Scott Dietrich is offering the chance of a lifetime to 20 lucky Halton children (ages 8 – 12).   Halton Magic Camp is not your ordinary summer camp, over one week your child will be immersed in the magical arts while their confidence and creativity explode; something Scott is proud to have witnessed over and over again at his camps. 

Greater Toronto Area 

Some of the Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp crew will also be teaching magic in Toronto area day camps.  Some of these day camps are offering an introductory magic classes for the entire camp summer and some of the camps also offer a 'Magic Course/Specialty' that run on particular dates. 

At present, the participating day camps are:

• Bayview Glen: offers a general magic activity 3 days a week for the full summer
• Zodiac: offers a specialty magic program (a 2 week program, twice over their 8 week summer course)
• Crestwood (warning, website autostarts a video with sound): offers a general program 4 days a week for the entire summer

For more information about the magic taught at the day camps, contact Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp.  For more information about the camps in general, or to register, contact the day camps directly.

We hope your summer is magical!

(If you run a magic course for children and want to be included, leave a comment or send me an e-mail with your details!)

Arshad Khan: Order of Merlin - Shield Award

Congratulations to Arshad Khan who has been awareded the Order of Merlin - Shield Award. This honour is awarded for thirty-five years of continuous membership in the International Brotherhood of Magicians.  According to The Caesar Hat and Wand Magic Circle website, he has been invited to personally recieve it in Nashville, USA.

Congratulations Arshad!

Links for 31-May-2011

• From Jay Sankey:
  - Differences between bending and performing magic 
• From Magicana:
  - A quick overview of the MCW, "whew!"
  - Rememberi ng Challenge Week Magic Camp at The York School in "Magic + Film = Challenge Week"
    
• From Perfect Magic:
  - Evelyn shares wonderful observations of her grandchildren's relationship to magic in "When is the best age for starting magic?"
   
• From Andrew Musgrave at Ye Olde Magick Blogge:
  - Andrew's focus for May was "specific magicians who’ve inspired me" and added Richard Sanders to his list (which also includes Dai Vernon and Jay Sankey).
          
• Lecleric Show episodes on YouTube (I haven't been able to keep up with viewing, but here are links to the last two week's videos):
  134. The Lecleric Show Official Trailer 135. Interactive Card Trick! TRY IT!! IT WORKS!! - Day 135 of 365 136. Blister Card Trick- DAY 136 of 365
  137. SICK Colour Change- DAY 137 of 365
  138. Self-finding Aces - Day 138 of 365
  139. Spankalicious Card Trick Tutorial - Day 139 of 365
  140. Lego Jail Cell Trick - Day 140 of 365
  141. The Accident - Day 141 of 365
  142. Making Playing Cards - Day 142 of 365
  143. Ripping Other People's Money - DAY 143 of 365 144. The Switch - DAY 144 of 365
  145. My Magic Room - Day 145 of 365
  146. EPIC Royal Flush Card Trick - Day 146
  147. Quickie with Rubbers - Day 147 of 365
  148. The Pom Pom Trick - Day 148 of 365
  149. World's Messiest Coin Trick - Day 149 of 365
  150. Anakin's Video DAY 150 of 365

Ryan Pilling: Play Big

From Ryan Pilling's new blog, Playing Big:

This blog is about the important half of the old saying “pack small, play big”. I begin with a statement of where I stand, and what I think it takes to play big as a performing magician.

Welcome to the blogosphere Ryan!  I'm looking forward to reading more of your posts.



[h/t: @magicassistant]

Broken wand: Les Brockelsby

From the Globe and Mail on Thursday May 5th:

DECEMBER 8, 1923 ­to  APRIL 30, 2011 Leslie 'Les' George Brockelsby of Calgary passed away peacefully in his sleep on Saturday, April 30, 2011 at the age of 87 years.

...

He also had a passion for magic from a very young age, performing his first magic show at age seven as 'The Wonder Boy of Plymouth'. Once retired, his interest in magic returned when he helped organize a local magic club, Calgary Magic Circle - Ring 66 which is now known as the 'Les Brockelsby Ring'. Les spent much of his time mentoring aspiring young magicians.

Read the complete obituary or visit the online guestbook.

Rounding the Western rings in June

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

City	Club	Event(s)
Calgary, AB	Ring 66 (Calgary Magic Circle, Les Brocklesby Ring)	- Doc Eason lecture - Jr. Magic Club - Garden Variety Show (Arc Fire, Kinkonauts, Top Secret Bluegrass Band)
Edmonton, AB	Edmonton Magic Club	- MasterMind private workshop - James Biss lecture TBD
Saskatoon, SK		- Bill Abbott lecture
Winnipeg, MB	The Magic Club of Winnipeg	- N/A
Vancouver, BC	Ring 92 (Vancouver Magic Circle)	- Children's Magician of the Year public show at the Shadbolt Theatre in Burnaby - Doc Eason lecture - Special General Meeting
Victoria, BC	Ring 183 (Victoria Magic Circle)	- Doc Eason lecture - Business Mtg   - Teach a Trick:  Alex Day - Refreshments:  Eric Bedard - Mini Lecture:  Shayne King - Showtime Activity(SA):     Rob Brown

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

Rounding the Ontario rings in June

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

Hamilton, ON	Ring 49 (The Doug Henning Magic Wand Club)	- Awards Night: Winner reprise performance
London, ON	London Magician's Guild	- Jay Sankey lecture
Kitchener, ON	Ring 235 (The Caesar Hat & Wand Magic Circle)	- annual BBQ / picnic
Ottawa, ON	Ring 151 (Ottawa Society of Magicians)	- Year End Party - Magician of the Year Award Presentation - New Member(s) Induction - Games and Magic Trivia (09-10 Champ Doug R.) - Bring your magic too!
Toronto, ON	Ring 17 (Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club)	- Aldo & Rachel Colombini Farewell Tour lecture - Year end banquet
Woodstock, ON	CAM 1 (Friendly City Mystics)	- N/A

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

Toronto: L.A.S.T Fundraiser – A Gala of Comedy and Magic

From the Abracadabaret website:

Friday, June 24 and Saturday June 25, 2011 at 8pm
Alumnae Theatre, 70 Berkeley St., Toronto
Price: $20.00 Adults / $15.00 Child

Starring:James Alan, Jeff Hinchliffe, Nicholas Reynoldson and Chris Westfall

Headliners:Mike D’Urzo (Friday)
Dan Trommater (Saturday)

Hosted by: Shawnathan
Presented by Lost At Sea Theatre

To purchase tickets or learn more about this event, visit the Abracadabaret website.

The Bistro is OPEN!

In April, James Munton launched The Magic Bistro.  According to James, most of the members are working professional and semi-professional magicians.  There is very little moderation.  For the most part, people are free to post whatever (and however) they like. Mark Lewis is the moderator of the Pitch section and Paul Pacific is the moderator of the Mentalism section.

There is even a permanent "Ask Mark" section should you have a burning question for Mark.  Have a read of his "Drawing a crowd" thread from the Pitch section.  There's lots of good stuff in there.

This online community has some Facebook-like features which will become more important as the site grows. James plans to expand the Articles & Routines section and he invites contributions.

What are you waiting for?  Have a look around.  Everyone is welcome at The Magic Bistro!



[h/t: John Pellatt, Paul Pacific]

Mark Lewis: The Magic Café Forum special guest of honor

From May 29th thru June 4th, Mark Lewis will be the special guest of honor at the Magic Café!

[h/t: James Alan]

Shawn Farquahar to be interviewed at British Ring Convention 2011

In the role of a talk show host, Tony Brook be interviewing Jason Andrews, Shawn Farquhar, Joe M. Turner and Michael Finney at the British Ring convention this year.

To register or for more information, please visit the Magic Convention site of Ring 25.


[h/t: MagicConventionGuide.com]

David Acer at TAOM 2011

David Acer will be at TAOM 2011, September 2-5 in San Antonio, Texas.

For more information about the convention, please visit TAOM.org.

Eugene Burger at CAM/PCAM Combined Convention

According to the most recent edition of Northern Sleights Eugene Burger will be appearing in this year's CAM and PCAM combined convention. 

For more information about the convention, please visit MagicianConvention.com

Toronto: Ring 17 hosts the Colombini Farewell Tour

Aldo & Rachel Colombini have added Toronto to their Farewell Tour Canadian dates.  They will be appearing on Wednesday June 1st at 7:00 PM at Bedford Park United Church.

Read this PDF to confirm details or for more information.

Murray hosts episode of 'Pawn Stars' roadshow

From TulsaWorld.com:

On one episode, someone brought in handcuffs, claiming they belonged to the legendary Houdini, Murray said. Turned out they were the real deal, with the leg shackles and handcuffs worth between $6,000 and $10,000.

Read more.

[h/t: Wayne Kawamoto]

CAM/PCAM Combined Convention: additional names revealed

New performers names are listed at MagicianConvention.com, including stage peformers Paul Romhany and Master Payne who will be appearing in this year's CAM and PCAM combined convention. 

For more information about the convention, please visit MagicianConvention.com

Jay Sankey: June ‘Bending the Real’ lecture tour

From JaySankey.com:

As for my new lecture, I’ve been able to juggle my schedule and ‘make room’ for a handful of lectures in the first couple of weeks of June.  The lecture is a creative combination of fun, powerful effects and thought-provoking theory, with an emphasis on startling magic + mentalism for ALL SKILL LEVELS.

Dates and cities (visit Jay's site for details on times and locations):

June 2: London, ON
June 4: Chicago, IL
June 6: Grand Rapids, MI
June 7: Detroit, MI
June 8: Ann Arbor, MI
June 10: Cleveland, OH

Calgary: Light and Motion June 4th and 5th, 2011

From LightandMotion.ca:

Light and Motion is a unique, once a year, experience. Your chance to learn new prop manipulation and circus skills from the best and be surrounded by an amazing, warm and inspiring community of like minded individuals. 

Teachers include Ryan Pilling.

Gwyn tells us that among other things, there will be a card and coin class!

For more information, or to register, visit LightandMotion.ca.

Toronto: Morrissey's 52nd Anniversary

From MorrisseyMagic.com:

Morrissey's 52nd Anniversary Party is on Saturday June 4 2011.
Doors Open @ 10 AM.

For more information about the anniversary party, including a store coupon, visit Morrissey Magic on Facebook.

Edmonton: Jeff McBride Super Session MORE TICKETS

Visit the Facebook page: Jeff McBride Super Session for more information.

More spots available for Jeff McBride's Super Session in Edmonton on June 1st! http://tiny.cc/b8e6s @McBrideMagicless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplySheldon Casavant
SheldonCasavant

Lee Asher at Convención Mágica 2011

Lee Asher is part of this year's line-up at this year's Convención Mágica, taking place in Buenos Aires – Argentina on September 9th, 10th, 11th 2011.

For more information about the convention, please visit Convención Mágica.


[h/t: MagicConventionGuide.com]

Links for 14-May-2011

• From the Browser's Den:
  - Chris Mayhew, one of the artists at Theory 11, special guest at June 11 club meeting
    
• From Perfect Magic:
  - Magicians Peforming For Magicians: memories from “A Little Nite Magic," the Sheraton Centre and a great quote by Frank Garcia
  - Things that go wrong in the night!:  memories of Phil Matlin and Romaine
   
• From Andrew Musgrave at Ye Olde Magick Blogge:
  - Andrew's focus for May is "specific magicians who’ve inspired me" and has already included entries on Dai Vernon and Jay Sankey.  Keep up the great work on your Project 365 Andrew!
    
• Lecleric Show episodes on YouTube (I haven't been able to keep up with viewing, but here are links to the last two week's videos):
  121. Static Rising Card Trick - DAY 121 of 365
  122. Levitating Voodoo Doll - DAY 122 of 365
  123. Mystery Box - DAY 123 of 365
  124. Illusion de la Spirale Hallucinante - Jour 124 de 365
  125. Balloon Playing - Day 125 of 365
  126. CD Manipulation - Day 126 of 365
  127. World's Most Popular Magic Trick - Day 127
  128. The Teleporting Ring Live! - Day 128 of 365
  129. Wicked Thunderbird Card Trick! - Day 129
  130. Changing Card Trick @ De La Salle - DAY 130 of 365
  131. Retro Eric Leclerc - Day 131 of 365
  132. Magician Penetrates Playboy Bunny...With His Mind. Day 132 of 365
  133. Cigarette Through Card Trick - Day 133

Magical blogs

Recently, someone asked "Any good magic blogs out there?"  Good question. 

Here's a list of blogs written by magical Canadians (former and current) about which I'm aware:

• Aaron Jones
• Andrew Musgrave: Ye Olde Magick Blogge
• Chris Philpott's Film and Magic Blog
• David Ben: Tricks and Tweets
• Evelyn Matlin: Perfect Magic Then and Now
• Gwyn Auger: The Magic Assistant
• Jay Sankey
• Jeff Hinchliffe
• Keith Brown
• Magicana: Sharing Wonder
• Mark Lewis: Ramblings of a magic genius
• MCA: Mystery & History
• Ryan Joyce
• Shawn Farquhar

Please leave a comment if you'd like to be included or know of others that I'm missing.  The list will appear as a feature in the middle column, below the "Sponsored by" section, under the title "Magical blogs."

FFFF 2011 with Scott Wells

Listen to Scott Wells talk about the 41st edition of Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic (FFFF 2011) with Obie O'Brien and others over at The Magic Newswire.

Rounding the Western rings in May

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

City	Club	Event(s)
Calgary, AB	Ring 66 (Calgary Magic Circle, Les Brocklesby Ring)	- Jr. Magic Club - Garden Variety Show
Edmonton, AB	Edmonton Magic Club	- TBD
Winnipeg, MB	The Magic Club of Winnipeg	- TBD
Vancouver, BC	Ring 92 (Vancouver Magic Circle)	- Executive meeting - Close-up night (competition for the H.B. MacLean Trophy (adult) - and for the Dick Gardner Trophy (Jr.) for excellence in close-up magic. ) - KIDabra Chapter 11 will be hosting the Farewell Lecture Tour of Aldo and Rachel Colombini
Victoria, BC	Ring 183 (Victoria Magic Circle)	- Business Meeting  - Teach a Trick:  Ray Parker - Mini Lecture:  Ron Bell - Showtime Activity:  Shayne King   - Mirth and Magic Show - Round Table: Packet Tricks/ False counts Ed Silva White

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

Rounding the Ontario rings in May

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

Hamilton, ON	Ring 49 (The Doug Henning Magic Wand Club)	- Jon Allen lecture
London, ON	London Magician's Guild	- Jon Allen lecture (carpool to Kitchener)
Kitchener, ON	Ring 235 (The Caesar Hat & Wand Magic Circle)	- Jon Allen lecture
Ottawa, ON	Ring 151 (Ottawa Society of Magicians)	- Magician of the Year Award Voting - Executive elections - Initiation shows - Open Night of Magic
Toronto, ON	Ring 17 (Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club)	- Bob Fitch lecture
Woodstock, ON	CAM 1 (Friendly City Mystics)	- Close-up competition

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

Links for 1-May-2011

• Witness by Lee Asher Magic reviewed by Wizard Product Review (starts about 1 minute in)
  [h/t: @theory11]
   
• "The Faith Healers" iBook by James Randi now available [h/t: @PennJeillette]
   
• Daniel Steep performing at Canada's Wonderland on May 15  [h/t: @DanielSteep]
   
• Lecleric Show episodes on YouTube (I haven't been able to keep up with viewing, but here are links to last week's videos):
  115. Poker Chip Manipulation - DAY 115 of 365
  116. The Floating iPhone - DAY 116 of 365
  117. Sword Swallowing - Day 117 of 365
  118. Royal Wedding - 2T - Day 118 of 365
  119. Mr E Rope Trick - DAY 119 of 365
  120. Jumping Around! - DAY 120 of 365