Top 5 posts in January 2024

There were 36 posts at Canada's Magic this month.  Here are the six most viewed posts in the past 30 days (two of them are interviews promoting the same show, so we went for top six this month):   

5. Random thoughts about Gerry Frenette's lecture and his memoir "My Life as a Magic Maker" - Fantastic lecture and entertaining book!

4. Penn and Teller Fool Us is casting for for Season 11 - Is this the year you finally audition?.

3. The Montreal Trio sur La France A Un Incroyable Talent - If you didn't see them at MagiFest, you can still catch them at Blackpool!

2. Alexandra on Penn and Teller's "Fool Us" S10 E02 - Catch Alexandra in the new show, Evolution at the Greg Frewin Theatre.

 

and the most viewed post this month  ...

1.  CBC Radio: Jason Osler interviews Mel Jones and Julie Eng - There you have it.  Some women prefer to be known as a "female magician."  It's about choice.

 

 

 

 

Rounding the Western rings in February 2024

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)	- N/A.
Edmonton, AB	Edmonton Magic Club	- N/A.
Winnipeg, MB	The Magic Club of Winnipeg	- SYM.
Fraser Valley, BC	IBM Ring 387 (Fraser Valley Magic Circle, Celeste Evans Ring)	- N/A.
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 February 2024

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

 

Also of note:

• Browser's Magic club and Nicholas Wallace lecture both on Saturday
  - at The Browser's Den of Magic
  

Montreal, QC	Ring 62 (20th Century Ring)	- N/A.
Hamilton, ON	Ring 49 (The Doug Henning Magic Wand Club)	- N/A.
Hamilton / Burlington, ON	Hamilton Burlington Magic Society	- N/A.
London, ON	Ring 265 (London Magician's Guild)	- N/A.
Kitchener, ON	Ring 235 (KW Magic Society)	- N/A.
Ottawa, ON	Ring 151 (Ottawa Society of Magicians)	- N/A.
Ottawa, ON	Ottawa / Gatineau magicians	- N/A
Toronto, ON	Ring 17 (Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club)	- Social meet-up with coin work session before at Browser's Den. -  Toronto Premiere of "The Quiet Masters - The History and Relevance of the Black Magical Artist" with host, Kenrick ICE McDonald (film director)

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

 

 

 

 

Rounding the Eastern rings in February 2024

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	- N/A.

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

 

 

 

 

 

Gull Lake: Danny Kazam at Winterfest [Feb 3]

From the January 28th Facebook post at SaskMagic:

Danny Kazam will be performing in Gull Lake for their annual Winterfest. Open to the public. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USA: Chris Funk [Feb 1 - 22]

From the January 28th Instagram post by Chris Funk:

Well this is going to be amazing!

CRC KRAPEK FAMILY FINE ARTS CENTER  OSAGE, IA
FEBRUARY 1, 2024 7PM

EGYPTIAN THEATRE DEKALB, IL
FEBRUARY 2, 2024 7:30PM

LA PORTE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER. LA PORTE, IN
FEBRUARY 3, 2024 2PM

PONTIAC AUDITORIUM. PONTIAC IL
FEBRUARY 4, 2024 3PM

MONROVIA AUDITORIUM  MONROVIA, IN
FEBRUARY 5, 2024 7PM

CHANUTE MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM CHANUTE KS
FEBRUARY 7, 2024 7PM

BELOIT MUNICIPAL THEATER BELOIT, KS
FEBRUARY 8, 2024 7PM

HISTORIC SHULER THEATER RATON, NM
FEBRUARY 11, 2024 2PM

MOFFAT COUNTY AUDITORIUM CRAIG, CO
FEBRUARY 13, 2024 7PM

AMERICAN LEGION THEATER GETTYSBURG, SD
FEBRUARY 14, 2024 7:30PM

TRINITY AUDITORIUM DICKINSON, ND
FEBRUARY 15, 2024 7PM

EMPIRE ARTS CENTER GRAND FORKS, ND
FEBRUARY 17, 2024 7PM

ROSEAU THEATER ROSEAU, MN
FEBRUARY 18, 2024 7:30PM

LISBON OPERA HOUSE LISBON, ND
FEBRUARY 19, 2024 7:30PM

MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM WADENA, MN
FEBRUARY 20, 2024 7:30PM

MELROSE AUDITORIUM SAUK CENTRE, MN
FEBRUARY 22, 2024 7:30PM

 

 

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Niagara Falls: Piff the Magic Dragon [May 9 - 11]

Tickets at Fallsview Casino Resort.

 

Read our 2023 interview where we learn about Piff's:
 
- journey into magic
- studies in magic-adjacent disciplines
- self-care on tour, and
- show growth in 10 years

 

From the January 8th Instagram post by Piff the Magic Dragon:

New year, new show, new dates. 

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Julie Eng interviewed by Dr. Melissa Karmen Lee

From the January 25th Instagram post by Julie Eng:

It was an honour to join the @ccmuseumbc at the opening of the new exhibition “The Magic of Tony Eng” at the Victoria location in collaboration with @victoriachinatownmuseum, back in December. At that time, I was invited to also participate in a podcast to talk more about my dad, Tony Eng.
Here’s the episode!

Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Q6eLIyk2vR4z123WlsY4X?si=abd37475a68d4071

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsw-nuh8g6k

 

 

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CBC Radio: Jason Osler interviews Mel Jones and Julie Eng

Listen to Jason Osler interview Mel Jones and Julie Eng "Why aren't there many female magicians?" on the the January 10th episode of "Columnists from CBC Radio."

[via The Magic Demon]

 

 

 

 

Toronto: "A Work of Fiction" by Nicholas Wallace [Feb 23 - 24]

Tickets at Factory Theatre.

From the December 14th Instagram post by Nicholas Wallace:

TORONTO - I’m coming to the @factorytheatre for 4 shows Feb 23 - 24. It’s been a few years since I’ve done a public show in Toronto, and I would really love to fill these seats - so if you can please spread the word!!

 

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A post shared by Nick Wallace (@nickwallacelive)

 

 

 

Random thoughts about Gerry Frenette's lecture and his memoir "My Life as a Magic Maker"

Last Thursday, IBM Ring 17 (the Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club) was treated to a lecture about the Psychology of Magic by club member Gerry Frenette!

As you may be aware Gerry:

• has been building magic props and illusions through his company Magic Makers Illusions since 1985,
• previously released a series of DVDs, Building Your Own Illusions, The Complete Video Course, parts one and two,
• recently released his memoir "My Life as a Magic Maker" at Amazon (more on that at the end of the post).* 

 

  From the back cover:  

Magic Makers Gerry and Leonora Frenette travelled internationally as headline entertainers, performing their original illusions for major cruise lines, magicians' conventions, corporate events, and at the famous Magic Castle in Hollywood. Gerry also designed and built stage apparatus for magicians worldwide. His creations have appeared on numerous TV shows including the Gemini Awards, America's Got Talent, Britain's Got Talent, and touring shows like The Champions of Magic, and more.

We made the trek to the club on a cold January night, learned a lot, and had a really good time!  

 

In his lecture, Gerry:

• demonstrated how assumptions are a powerful tool to use and can sometimes be stronger than "proving" (proving can ruin the psychology of assumption)
  
• showed many of the assumptions that can be involved when using a Vortex tube
• did some magic with his assistant Gwendolyn the Psychic Chicken and showed us something that once fooled Jeff McBride
• got knotty with a piece of rope
• ran though some thoughts about using a card box
• did a beautiful Coins Across for young volunteer Andrew
• talked about illusion design and worked through examples of how to make an illusion look smaller than it is (showing examples with boxes, illusion bases, and mirror frames)
• discussed the importance of looking at things from the perspective of the audience
• showcased his poker skills against David S, Rob F, and two other volunteers (and teased a story from his book which describes how he almost lost big with this "always winning" poker routine),
• shared some interesting sub trunk stories
• highlighted more psychological sleights while performing his Chop Cup routine and Slydini Paper Balls for volunteer Nicole (and as a bonus tipped another story from the book, where he stayed in the moment with a drunk audience volunteer and performed an effect powerful enough to be considered a reputation maker!), and
• talked about his recently released memoir "My Life as a Magic Maker" at Amazon!
  
  This book starts from his childhood in Amherst, Nova Scotia and is chock full of entertaining stories from Gerry's magic journey, including: early days of illusion building, working with Dean Gunnarson, CRA audits, being suspected of money laundering, thoughts on copycats & exposure, career highlights, a plethora of photos from the past, and more!
  
  (No magic secrets are revealed in this book.  It is intended for magicians and non-magicians alike!)
  

 

It was an entertaining and informative night!  Thank you very much Gerry!

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--

* What people are saying about "My Life as a Magic Maker" ...

 

From the January 7th Facebook post by Matt DiSero:

 

 

From the January 7th Facebook post by Blair Marshall:

"Gerry Frenette  has put together a fun read with lots of photos of "the big stuff" ( no secrets though lol) and it's available through Amazon. 🙂"

 

Customer reviews from Amazon:

MScott - 5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating & fun to read!
Reviewed in Canada on December 30, 2023
Verified Purchase
Couldn’t put it down. As a lay person, I felt I stepped into the author’s entertaining world of magical illusions. Buy it & be amazed!

 

Raman Sharma - 5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Books I have read in a long time!
Reviewed in Canada on December 29, 2023
It did not take me long to realize that this book is not just for Magician's. The author does a great job in making the reader live through his experiences. I definitely feel more inspired after having read this book, and will definitely be recommending it to my friends.

 

Paul - 5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!
Reviewed in Canada on January 4, 2024
Interesting and fascinating to read all the way through!

 

 

  From the author:  

"I've spent the last 40 years making magic on stage and in my workshop. All kinds of interesting, amusing, amazing, and downright hilarious things have happened. This recollection of colorful anecdotes and photographs is not only for magicians but for anybody who enjoys a captivating and inspiring story. It looks inside a unique career that started in a small Canadian town and grew to international recognition."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disclosure:  I received a free copy of "My Life as a Magic Maker." The opinions expressed above are entirely my own. I did not receive compensation for the writing or the publishing of this article.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul Romhany awarded the 2024 AMA Literary and Media Fellowship

Congratulations on this honour Paul!  Well deserved.  Keep up the great work!

 

From the January 22nd Facebook post by Paul Romhany:

It's OFFICIAL - I am totally overwhelmed that I have been awarded the 2024 AMA (Academy of Magical Arts)  Literary and Media Fellowship. I'm still in shock to be honest. I will be in attendance at the awards ceremony to pick up this very prestigious honour in LA (Hollywood) --- I'm still waiting for them to call back and say they have made a mistake like the Oscars LOL. 2024 marks 13 years of VANISH - International Magic Magazine - what a way to celebrate.

 

 

 

 

Calgary: Ryan Pilling in The WhoKnows Variety Show [Jan 30]

From the January 15th Facebook post by The WhoKnows Variety Show:

The last Tuesday of the month will be a night to remember!
Magic, poetry, one man band, Nigerian Jazz, ukuleles…what more could you ask for?
Fun times for sure Calgary! Jan 30th. call the Ironwood Stage & Grill for reservations.

 

 

 

 

Graeme Reed in the Brant Beacon

From the January 3rd article "Living a magical childhood dream" by Kimberly de Jong in the Brant Beacon:

Since entering the world of magic at a young age, one thing is clear, Reed has opened a host of opportunities for himself, from doing a TEDx talk, to being Doug “the Great” Hunt’s Guinness World Record Verification and Video\Photograph Coordinator, he continues to work on projects that nurture his passions.

His advice for those looking into getting into magic, is simple.

“If anyone was interested in really learning magic and discovering more, there are local magic clubs you should look into joining,” he said. “The best person to reach out to would actually probably be Doug Hunt because he’s the president of the local Hamilton Magic Club. I first met him at the club when I was a kid, and it’s people like Doug that keep someone like me doing magic.”

Read more.

 

From the January 18th Instagram post by Graemazing:

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Brampton: Murray Sawchuck [Mar 2]

Tickets at Brampton.ca

 

From the January 10th Facebook post by Brampton On Stage:

Direct from Pawn Stars and CW’s Masters Of Illusion, MURRAY THE MAGICIAN is bringing Vegas to YOU with magic that will blow your mind, performed live and up close at The Rose on March 2!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Magicana accepting nominations for the 2023 Allan Slaight awards

From Magicana:

And, that means the Allan Slaight Awards are now open. These awards recognize outstanding contributions to the art of magic in five categories. The Slaight Family Foundation gives away an astonishing $50,000 per year to acknowledge shining stars, magic makers and wonder sharers, all in an effort to support and encourage this wonderful art of magic.

So, come on, magic friends…. Tell us about an exciting up-and-coming magician you know or have seen. Or, tell us about a fantastic magician who should be recognized for outstanding contributions either as a performer, or from a lifetime of contributions to magic. Maybe you saw an unbelievable performance last year? Or, did you read or learn or gain special insight from a book, podcast or streaming service? Tell us. We want to know.

To make your nomination, simply visit this Allan Slaight Awards page and fill in the blanks. 

Read more and make your nomination.

From the January 19th Instagram post by Sharing Wonder:

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A post shared by MAGICANA | Sharing Wonder (@sharingwonder)

 

 

 

 

 

 

ON, BC, AB, SK, NS & NB: Wes Barker on tour [Jan - Mar]

Tickets at LinkTree.

• JAN 19 - COLLINGWOOD, ON
• JAN 26 - VANCOUVER, BC
• JAN 28 - CALGARY, AB (afternoon show)
• FEB 10 - SASKATOON, SK
• FEB 11 - REGINA, SK
• FEB 16 - McALESTER, OK
• FEB 17 - McALESTER, OK
• MAR 14 - HALIFAX, NS
  
• MAR 15 - FREDERICTON, NB
• APR 28 - MAIMI on CELEBRITY SUMMIT CRUISE SHIP 

 

 

 

 

Toronto: Sin City Illusions: Featuring Aaron and Caroline Matthews [Jan 28]

Tickets at Eventbrite.

 

From the January 17th Facebook post by Khang Pham:

Sin City Illusions: Featuring Aaron and Caroline Matthews. Sunday January 28 at 7pm!
Join us at the iconic Rec Room in the heart of downtown Toronto for an incredible magic show, with Toronto's best performing magician couple!

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/772453147157

 

 

 

 

 

Calgary: Ryan Pilling's Wit & Wizardry - Comedy Magic Cabaret [Jan 31]

From the January 16th Facebook post by Ryan Pilling:

I'm casting a spell to cure cabin fever in Calgary. Join me at Wit & Wizardry - Comedy Magic Cabaret appearing Jan 31st. Advance tickets on sale now for an affordable night out.

 

 

 

Thank you to our personal sponsors for January 2024!

A quick reminder of our earlier Mail as Medicine request for Katie Hunt.  If you have the time, Katie and Doug would both benefit from hearing from their friends!

 --

Thank you to John Harrison, Richard Lyn, Joan Caesar, Ian Crawford, Matt DiSero, Doug Hunt, John Smithman, Robin Dawes, Loran, Peter Mennie, Gwyn Auger, George Blott, Noah Nogueira, Ryan Edwards, Aaron Matthews, Colin Geddes, Cam Dix, Ian Batterbury, and Eric Bedard 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.

or

 

 

 

Random thoughts about "An Evening of Magic Shop Memories"

Last Saturday, Jeff Pinsky hosted "An Evening of Magic Shop Memories" at The Browser's Den of Magic.

It was a lovely way to spend an evening!

We heard stories from: 

• Mike Segal
• Greg Hobor
• Richard Lyn
• Nicole Lee
  
• Dick Joiner
• Mike King
  
• David Sutherland
• Gordon Precious -- who, as an added bonus performed 2 effects for us!
• Colin Geddes
• David Peck
• Jeff Hinchliffe,
• Sammy Jakubowicz, and
• our host Jeff Pinsky
  

Stories told included Magic Masters, Daytona Magic, Macy's, The Arcade, The Den (on Bloor across from Varsity Arena, above Yuk Yuk's, Bathurst and Eglinton, and now!), Morrissey's (Montreal and Toronto) and even Marie & Jack Hughes living room in London, England!  They also included names like Sophie Smith, Len & Bernice Cooper, Herb & Dan Morrissey, Henry Gordon, Jay Sankey, Gary Kurtz, David Ben, Mark Lewis, David Mitchell, Danny Tsukalis, Steve Martin, Jim Carey, Keanu Reeves, and more!

 

Did you know that:

• Bernice Cooper often baby sat a Toronto magician's son at the store?
• Dick Joiner first saw Mark Lewis in England?
• David Copperfield once ended his grand illusion show in Toronto with "What's Next?" 
• Keanu Reeves used to hang out at The Browser's Den of Magic?
• There used to be a Canadian 25 cent bill!
  

 

Thank you older Jeff, for conceiving and hosting this wonderful evening of sharing!

From the January 14th Facebook post by Greg Hobor at The Browser's Den of Magic Facebook group:

 

 

 

 

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