The top 5 posts in February 2019

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

5. Toronto: Nicholas Wallace in The Art of Magic - There's one more The Art of Magic left. Catch it while you can!

4. Calgary: Carisa Hendrix at the Deerfoot Inn & Casino - Any show reviews to share?

3. Victoria: A Night of Alumni Entertainment - April 5 is coming up fast!

2. Toronto: Talent announced for the 2019 Browser's Bash - So much talent in one day!
Including: Suzanne, Chris Capehart, Paul Richards, The Outerbridges, Dick Joiner, Ryan Brown, Garrett Thomas, James Harrison, Jacque Swan, Robert & Scott Presswood, Andrew Woo, Jenny Parsons, and Chris Bruce.  What a lineup!

and the most viewed post this month  ...

1. Michael Close Webinar: The Truth about Lying (take 2) - How fabulous was it?

Michael Rucker interviews Jonah Babins

From Michael Rucker:

That’s not how magic is supposed to be. One of the biggest challenges in magic, one of the hardest things to do for beginners, is to perform magic and have people not hate you, right? Because you’re displaying how much more you know or how you can finagle or twist your knowledge to outsmart them. The challenge is to make that fantastical, and amazing, and enjoyable.

It is a big deal in magic to make sure that you’re not giving the audience a puzzle to be solved, but instead, you’re together going on the journey. I like to refer to it as like a dream guide. Like the magician says, “Take my hand and come with me.”

Read more.

Lethbridge: Good Times

Catch Ben Price in Good Times on March 8th.

From Evenbrite:

Ben Price Was born and raised in Lethbridge Alberta, Canada. His love of magic was an early discovery and it followed him throughout his childhood and adolescent life. Throughout his childhood, he was heavily involved in theatrics whether it was acting, designing, or creating, his presence was felt in the artistic community. This continued into his middle and high-school careers.

Read more and buy tickets.

Paris: Luc Langevin

Luc Langevin returns to Paris with his show "Maintenant Demain"  March 21 to March 31, 2019!

He is also touring through Europe through May 2019.  Visit Luc's European website for details.

#Parispétille: l'illusionniste @LucLangevin était l'invité de Bonsoir Paris pour nous parler de son nouveau spectacle "Maintenant Demain" pic.twitter.com/noVRIjeErz

— BFM Paris (@BFMParis) January 24, 2019

.@LucLangevin - Maintenant Demain
Du 21 au 31 mars 2019 au @leCasinodeParis de Paris
MISE EN VENTE : LUNDI 25 JUIN
> https://t.co/Cfq326BkTS pic.twitter.com/02szF9vWxo

— Caramba Spectacles (@Caramba_Prod) June 19, 2018

Rounding the Western rings in March 2019

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)	- Club meeting.
Edmonton, AB	Edmonton Magic Club	- N/A
Winnipeg, MB	The Magic Club of Winnipeg	- SYM: Close-up contest - SYM: Miniwands and Tophats
Fraser Valley, BC	IBM Ring 387 (Fraser Valley Magic Circle, Celeste Evans Ring)	- Gregory Wilson lecture.
Vancouver, BC	Ring 92 (Vancouver Magic Circle)	- N/A
Vancouver, BC	SAM 95  (Carl Hemeon Assembly)	- N/A
Victoria, BC	Ring 183 (Victoria Magic Circle)	- N/A

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

Rounding the Central rings in March 2019

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

Montreal, QC	Ring 62 (20th Century Ring)	- N/A.
Hamilton, ON	Ring 49 (The Doug Henning Magic Wand Club)	- Auction.
London, ON	Ring 265 (London Magician's Guild)	- Blind magic.
Kitchener, ON	Ring 235 (The Caesar Hat & Wand Magic Circle)	- Show and tell.
Ottawa, ON	Ring 151 (Ottawa Society of Magicians)	- Glenn- Mini Lecture card theme T.B.D. - Sneaky moves. - Initiation Shows.
Ottawa, ON	Ottawa / Gatineau magicians	- N/A
Toronto, ON	Ring 17 (Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club)	- Auction.

Please leave a comment or email me about corrections or omissions.

Rounding the Eastern rings in March 2019

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

Halifax, NS	Ring 316 (Conjourer's Court)	- Visit their Facebook page.
St. John, NB	Magic Circle of St. John	- "My first magic trick" (the first trick you learned or bought)

Please leave a comment or email me about corrections or omissions.

Bill Abbott at the Magic Castle

Catch Bill for week of shows beginning this Monday Evening at the World Famous Magic Castle!


From Bill Abbott's Twitter feed:
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.

Excited for week of shows beginning this Monday Evening at the World Famous Magic Castle! Will I see you there? @magiccastleofficial #magiccastlehollywood #billabbottlive #ginjaninja pic.twitter.com/dOgD7DeLGc

— Bill Abbott (@billabbottlive) February 21, 2019

Michael Close webinar: Palming Cards with Confidence

From Webinar Jam:

Sunday, March 10, 2019

This sixty-minute webinar, with Michael Close, will provide strategies that will help you overcome your fear of palming.

​​​​​​​Palming is one of the cornerstones of card magic. But many magicians, even experienced practitioners, shy away from tricks that require palming.  As part of this training, you’ll learn FOUR commercial routines you can immediately add to your repertoire. And much, much, more!

This information will be useful to magicians of all skill levels, so we are offering it at a very low price. Our webinars require no special software; you participate through your browser, and you can ask questions during the presentation. Registrants will be able to replay this webinar as often as they want.

Read more and register.

Eric Leclerc in season 2 of Tricked

Unfortunately, the videos on BYU TV appear to be geoblocked.  Anyone out there know how we can watch this in Canada?


From the Tricked Facebook page:

Join us as Season 2 returns to #BYUtv on February 25th at 6:30 pm MT. Will you be watching? #TrickedTV

Lee Asher's living room lecture

Living Room Lecture by Lee Asher February 20th.


From the Conjuror Community post "Collecting Playing Cards: 4 Simple Tips That Save HOURS" by Benji Wilkins:

Lee Asher has created more original, astonish and practical magic than just about anyone we know. When he joins us next week, he’s going to reveal REAL card magic secrets and miraculous tricks. But that’s just the beginning…

We’ve known Lee for 25 years, and when it comes to collecting playing cards the SMART way, he’s always been better at it than ANYONE we know.

And when we go to Lee’s home next week for this intimate online event, he’s pulling out all the stops! You’ll discover the best versions of Lee’s most famous tricks—and receive the kind of personal instruction you can’t get at ANY live magic event.

But that’s just the beginning. To make Lee’s debut CC appearance even MORE special, Lee has offered to give an easy-to-follow, mindblowing masterclass on how to make collecting playing cards easy and fun—without spending a fortune!

Read more and register.

Ontario: Ryan Joyce

From Ryan Joyce's February 16th blog post "Magician on tour: Upcoming Ontario magic shows":

I'll be travelling with my long-time friend and on-stage partner Jenna and my magician friends Peter Mennie and Graeme Reed. Meet all these crazy characters plus Will our sound engineer.

OWEN SOUND:

O.S.C.V.I. Auditorium – East Ridge Community School

Friday, February 22, 2019

BELLEVILLE:

Maranatha Auditorium

Saturday, February 23, 2019

PETERBOROUGH:

Showplace Performance Centre

Sunday, February 24, 2019

COBOURG:

COBOURG COMMUNITY CENTRE

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2019

Read more.

David Ben: U of T Featured Alumni

From the January 22nd article at the University of Toronto Alumni website:

“The news of my retirement is greatly exaggerated,” says David Ben (UC 1983), a Toronto-born conjuror, historian of magic, writer and consultant.

Ben, a renowned expert in sleight-of-hand magic, is in the midst of creating a new show that will revisit some of his old tricks and add a selection of new ones. Each time he creates a show, he is a writer, director and set designer all in one, weaving together a story that incorporates each of his chosen tricks.

“I believe that to be an artist, you need great technique, a great understanding of the past and a vision for the future,” he says.


Read more and watch video.

Oakville: Westfall's World

From Eventbrite:

The Toronto Magic Company and Chris Westfall have partnered with Dave and Buster's to bring you an ULTIMATE FUN package for Family Day, that's good for a FULL day of fun!

What's included:

- A ticket to Westfall's World: A high energy magic show jam packed with audience participation. It keeps its spectators laughing, gasping and screaming while on the edge of their seats the entire way through. (Drink and food service is available inside the theatre and throughout the show.)

- An UNLIMITED Powerplay Game Card, good for all the non-redemption games in the building until 2am!

- A bonus 60 credits to be used on the redemption games (to redeem for prizes)

Read more and buy tickets.

Carisa Hendrix in the Calgary Herald

From the February 7th article "Who's that girl? Calgary magician Carisa Hendrix and the rise of Lucy Darling" by Eric Volmers in the Calgary Herald:

Lucy is as good an authority as anyone on the magic of new personas. She is actually the alter ego of Calgary magician, fire-eater, actress, model and “circus artist” Carisa Hendrix. Two years ago, Hendrix was a moderately successful act in Calgary, concentrating largely on corporate gigs and children’s festivals and generally “scraping by and living a little bit in magic obscurity,” she says. There had been notable highlights. She had developed a show for Las Vegas, was the subject of the documentary Girl on Fire and even broke the Guinness World Record for “longest duration fire-torch teething” in 2012. But her entry into the exclusive inner circle of international magicians eluded her.

Then Lucy came along.

Lucy Darling, decked out in an elegant evening gown and possessing a quick wit worthy of Dorothy Parker, debuted in Australia at the Melbourne Magic Festival in July of 2017.

Read more.

New York: Farquhar and Hendrix in Salute to Magic

From SAM Parent Assembly #1:

Asi Wind, Shawn Farquhar, Lucy Darling and Bobby Torkova Amaze Audiences March 30 in the Salute to Magic Show in Manhattan

Since its start in 1909 the Salute to Magic show has provided New York audiences the opportunity to enjoy the amazing talent of some of magic’s biggest names. This year’s show features a program of internationally renowned performers who are among today’s most innovative and accomplished conjurors. We will also honor magician David Kaye for his significant influence on the field of children’s magic and for his leadership of the Parent Assembly of the Society of American Magicians.

Read more and register.

From Shawn Farquhar's Facebook page:

Derek Selinger performs in Magic Tricks with Ian

From Derek Selinger's YouTube channel, Magic Inspired:

Many years ago I had a young man named Ian attend some of my live magic shows. He bought posters and I even had a picture taken with him. That picture has hung on my wall ever since as a reminder of why I do what I do.

Ian's mom reached out to me to buy a new poster as his old one was falling apart. We of course got him that and more. In the discussion with Ian's mom we learned that Ian has some significant health challenges. Being a young man with Down Syndrome he is not eligible for heart transplants and so he has a rather arduous routine.

We decided to visit Ian's home and perform a show with magic tricks, including a box illusion, in his kitchen for his friends where the magician... was Ian. This is that story, and this is that show.

I hope meeting Ian encourages you as you face the challenges and opportunities in your life. Ian is one of the greatest magicians I have ever met. While he may not have the technical skill I have developed... he changes peoples worlds by his smile, enthusiasm and kindness. Welcome to "The Magic of Ian".

Video at the bottom of the post.


From Derek Selinger's Instagram:

View this post on Instagram

While on the road we stopped at a small town where my number one fan lives. Ian and I performed the very first “Magic of Ian and Derek” show in his dinning room for his friends, family, teachers and care workers. He was amazing and the whole thing was entirely magical. In tough times this reminds me why I do what I do! #magicinspired #magic #magician #touringmagician #magicallaround #inspired #motivated #grateful

A post shared by Derek Selinger (@derek_selinger) on Dec 7, 2018 at 11:02am PST

From Derek Selinger's YouTube channel, Magic Inspired:

Toronto: Suzanne announced for Browser's Bash 2019!

BROWSER'S BASH 2019
Saturday, April 13, 2019

From the Browser's Den of Magic newsletter:

The highly respected and very entertaining  close-up magic Phenom simply known as SUZANNE is coming to share her wonderful magic with us at BROWSER'S MAGIC BASH, SATURDAY APRIL 13.

Not only did SUZANNE fool Penn and Teller she was the first female magician to earn the Close Up Magician of the Year award from the Academy of  Magical Arts. Plus she has been a featured cover story in both Genii and MUM magazines!

Read more.

Billy Hsueh appointed IBM Territorial Vice President for BC

Congratulations Billy!  Thank you for all of your hard work.


 
From Billy Hsueh's Facebook page:

Excited to announce that I have been appointed the position of IBM - International Brotherhood of Magicians Territorial Vice President for British Columbia!

Thank you Murray Hatfield for your years of service! I hope to continue the good work you have done for the Vancouver Magic Circle, IBM Ring #92, the Victoria Magic Circle and the Fraser Valley Magic Circle.  

Matt Johnson on World's Best and in Vanish

Congratulations to Matt Johnson on advancing on CBS' The World's Best and for recently being featured on the cover of Vanish Magazine!


From Brent Smith's Facebook page:




From Clive Court's Facebook page:




From Matt Johnson's Facebook page:



From Paul Romhany's Facebook page:

Philippines: PCAM / PIMC

From Alex Seaman's Facebook page:

Join me in the Philippiness this spring for P.C.A.M. 2019!

20% off for all members of I.B.M./S.A.M./P.C.A.M./A.M.A!!!

Read more.

Calgary: WowFest is back!

Did you know that 10% of WowFest Ticket Sales Support School Lunches for Calgary Kids?


From WowFest:

The seventh annual WowFest Magic Arts Festival presents amazing magic shows in Calgary on Family Day Weekend.

Join us for the Family Fun Magic Show, or the WowFest Magic Spectacular! Take your pick of two amazing shows coming to the BMO Theatre at the Rocky Ridge YMCA.

THE WOWFEST MAGIC SPECTACULAR

Starring the amazing illusions of Michael Berends, featuring Aytahn Ross of the Acme Circus, plus more astounding magical guests!

THE FAMILY FUN MAGIC SHOW

This laugh-out-loud show has been the recurring hit with WowFest audiences! Starring the comedy magic duo Trevor & Lorena, featuring the Great Balanzo and more special guest performers!

Read more and buy tickets.

Victoria: A Night of Alumni Entertainment

From the Spectrum Alumni Facebook page:

Mark your Calendars, April 5, for a night of amazing entertainment by two of Spectrum's world-renowned grads, Michael Harrison and Shawn Farquhar with all proceeds going to the Spectrum Alumni Association Scholarship Fund!

Read more and buy tickets.

Toronto: Nicholas Wallace in The Art of Magic

From the Toronto Magic Company Facebook page:

The Art of Magic is BACK! Valentines Day Edition!

On February 13th (Valentines Eve), the Toronto Magic Company has put together a perfect date night!

This is our 8th show (and our first 7 shows SOLD OUT completely!)

This show features the incredible Nicholas Wallace (Who recently FOOLED Penn and Teller), Award winning Magician and Illusionist Rob Testa, Jonah Babins local rising star, and host Benzi Train one of Toronto's busiest performers.

Toronto: The Newest Trick in the Book

From the Toronto Magic Company Facebook page:

The Newest Trick in the Book is BACK this Tuesday Feb 5th with a NEVER BEFORE SEEN LINEUP!

Here's 10 reasons you should go:

1. It features Jacque Swan, Mark Tricks, Sean Rooney, Benzi Train, and host Jonah Babins.

2. The Temperature outside will be above 0

3. It's a FREE show

Read more and claim your ticket.

Thank you to our February 2019 friends!

Thank you to John Harrison, Richard Lyn, Joan Caesar, The Outerbridges, Ian Crawford, Owen Anderson, Ryan Pilling, and Matt DiSero for being Friends of Canada's Magic!

It's good to have friends like you.

You too can Be Our Friend for only $20 per year! 

Donations of any size are always welcome.

Thank you to our February 2019 sponsors!

Thank you to our sponsors for their generous support.

This site would not be possible without their backing.

We're grateful to have the support of:

• Clive Court - Get PR help from a Life Membership Award winner of the Canadian Public Relations Society,
• Evelyn & Phil Matlin, owners of Perfect Magic,
• Jeff Pinsky, owner of The Browser's Den of Magic,
• Michael Close, author of the new Paradigm Shift ebooks, the Workers series and others, and
• Daniel Sugar, author of Salem Burning.*

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.

Or you can Be Our Friend for only $20 per year! 

Donations of any size are always welcome.

--
* This book is intended for mature audiences.

Peter Mennie unpacks his TV archive

From Peter Mennie's blog post "That’s a Lot of Magic!":

Way back when (about two years ago), I did a lot of television. Every month for 11 months, I had an appearance on a local TV chat show. I did two-three routines every time (that's 20-30 tricks) for nearly twenty years!

Over the next few months, here are some of the greatest hits - in no chronological order - and with apologies for the video quality of some of the segments.

Read more and watch video. [1 - Straight Ahead]

Peter's also posted:

• Television Magic Archives – Part 2 [2 - No Cards Required]
• Television Magic Archives – Part 3 [3 - Never Play with Matches]
• Television Magic Archives – Part 4 [4 - The Cards Know Everything] 
• Television Magic Archives – Part 5 [5 - A Dual Reality Card Trick]

Broken wand: Lorne Joseph Overholt

Lorne was a member of the London's Magicians Guild.


From Your Life Moments:

OVERHOLT, Lorne Joseph - Peacefully at Victoria Hospital, on Tuesday, December 18, 2018, in his 97th year. Beloved husband of Evelyn for 76 years. Loving father of Jo Anne Lightbody (Stuart), Denise Nugent (Jim), and David Overholt (Helen). Cherished grandfather of Katherine Knight (Rob), Michael Lightbody, David Keene (Christina), Karra Overholt, Jason Pine (Melanie), and nine great-grandchildren. Lorne’s faith in Jesus Christ was the central theme of his life, which inspires his children and grandchildren. “Well done, good and faithful servant.”


Read more.

With thanks to Peter Mennie for letting us know.

Calgary: Potted Potter

From Arts Commons:

Tue February 5 - Mon February 18, 2019

All seven Harry Potter books in seventy hilarious minutes!

Potted Potter the New York and West End smash hit has garnered rave reviews from New York to Nashville, Chicago to Mexico City and Critics’ Picks from the New York Times, New York Magazine, Time Out London, Boston Globe, Chicago Daily Herald and the New York Post!

Potted Potter takes on the ultimate challenge of condensing all seven Harry Potter books (and a real life game of Quidditch) into seventy hilarious minutes. This fantastically funny show features all your favorite characters, a special appearance from a fire-breathing dragon, endless costumes, brilliant songs, ridiculous props and a generous helping of Hogwarts magic!

Even if you don’t know the difference between a Horcrux and a Hufflepuff, Potted Potter will make you roar with laughter. This brilliant family entertainment is perfect for ages six to Dumbledore (who is very old indeed).

Read more and buy tickets.

1 week to go until we open at @yycARTS Catch a show between Feb 5 - 18 https://t.co/9bRg3MpEPv#Calgary #Alberta #Magic pic.twitter.com/x7qxtIhtEq

— Potted Potter (@PottedPotter) January 29, 2019

Carisa Hendrix in Ozy

A reminder that you can see Carisa Hendrix perform in Calgary on February 9th.


From the January 30th article "IT'S NO TRICK: WOMEN ARE CRASHING THE MALE-DOMINATED WORLD OF MAGIC" by Tania Bhattacharya in Ozy:

You can tell a lot about a person by what they drink, declares Lucy Darling, the elegant, razor-sharp alter ego of 31-year-old Canadian magician Carisa Hendrix. She’s entertaining a giddy audience at the Magic Castle, the Academy of Magical Arts’ (AMA) private clubhouse in Los Angeles, with her Maker Martini routine. Tony and Jennifer — two spectators — select the strawberry martini and the gimlet as the cocktails they want. Darling goes behind her magical bar to shake up an empty shaker, then pours three different drinks in one go. She hands the strawberry martini to Tony and the gimlet to Jennifer, and they return to their seats, amazed.

A Guinness World Record holder for the longest duration of fire torch teething – a stunt where you hold a fire torch upright with your teeth – and winner of best comedy magic show at the 2017 Melbourne Magic Festival, Hendrix is among a growing number of female illusionists changing the world of magic. For decades, women have largely been relegated to the role of perky assistants who are sawed in half. Now, more and more women are joining the profession as magicians themselves. Top magic schools are recording a dramatic surge in female students. And audiences are embracing them like never before.

Read more.

Calgary: Carisa Hendrix at the Deerfoot Inn & Casino

From Ticketfly:

SAT, FEBRUARY 9

Carisa Hendrix is a magician, circus stunt girl and bubble performer featured in the Guinness Book of World Records (2014 Book, Page 86) and Ripley’s Believe it or Not. This 5-time award winning performer has been thrilling audiences all over Canada and internationally for the past 15 years with her signature blend of classy, cute comedy entertainment. Multi-talented, she has a huge vocabulary of Circus Skills, Sideshow Stunts and Magic effects under her belt as well as Balloon Sculpting, Stilt Walking, Fire Dance, Visual Art and Acting. As the Artistic Director of Ballyhoo Entertainment she is excited to be working with a variety of talented young artist to provide a wide range of fun & creative entertainment options for special events.

You might know her from her appearances in 2 popular Youtube projects Protector’s Chronicles (300000+ combined views) and The Art of Slow Motion Fire Eating (75000+ views). Or perhaps you recognize her for the expertise she displays in her best selling instructional DVD on Fire Eating as well as the 1000+ fire eating students who have learned from her first hand in classes all over Canada & the USA.

Read more and buy tickets.