Welcome to readers of Duncan Trillo's excellent publication, MagicWeek! We hope you enjoy your stay!
--
Continued from
Part 1
where we learned about Load-In, the Technical Run, The Run, and Pre-show activities.
A Week in the Life of Champions (of Magic) -- part 2 of 3
The Show - Champions of Magic: Holiday Spectacular (Dec 2025)
I have
seen five iterations of Champions of Magic including their 2018 Toronto
debut. Fernando Velasco, Richard Young and Sam Strange (as Young &
Strange) were part of the 2018 cast. Only three carryovers from that
show remain.
Yesterday, we ventured to the Aki Studio
in Toronto.
This was our first visit to this theatre which is located in the
Daniels Spectrum
building. According to the Aki Studio website, they are fully
accessible for both patrons and performers.
The theatre is a cozy space, with a capacity of 120 seats (with raked
seating). The seating goes about 6 rows deep. Every seat has a
great view of the action and Keith has cameras setup to make the small
details clearly visible to all. There are seats reserved in the front
row, for audience members who have accessibility issues.
The theatre is air-conditioned (very welcome with the current heat wave).
The show is approximately an hour in length, with no intermissions.
Pre-show:
Keithis Fringe veteran. (He mentioned that this was his 60th (!!) Fringe festival.) He hosts a pre-show segment designed to make the
audience feel at ease. In it he discusses:
audience participation and
what to do if you don't feel comfortable volunteering (this is the
first time we can remember a performer proactively giving
the audience a method by which they can decline volunteering), and
what it means to be in his 'relaxed performance' show (sensory friendly,
house-lights on the majority of the time, in and out privileges, etc).
It's also worth noting that Keith made this showing a Pay What You
Can performance, in the hopes of making live shows more accessible to everyone.
On with the show:
In a theatre this size, you get a good view from every seat.
(Especially with the camera's Keith has setup.)
The show was nearly, if not completely sold out.
As Keith mentioned in his interview, 110% Wizard is a brand new show.
Without giving too much away, the show did involve gift bags, money, cards, cell phone (audience supplied), luggage tags, water fowl, drinks, and family photos (his).
There is plenty of audience participation. By our count there were well over dozen volunteers (including one not even at the show)!
The show is very family friendly and kept the children in the audience engaged.
Keith shared with us, what is was like working his first ever cruise contract earlier this year. He punctuated his tales with effects that directly related to his experiences.
If you've seen one of Keith's shows, you'll know that he's an expert
at making lemonade out of the lemons he is dealt. We're happy to that
he continues to do so in 110% Wizard!
"110% Wizard"
is a very refreshing lemonade!
Don't just take our word for it, read what the press at the Orlando Fringe had
to say about this show:
From the May 13th article "Orlando Fringe 2026 review: ‘110% Wizard’" by Seth Kubersky at
Orlando Weekly: If you have any doubts that Orlando Fringe changes lives, look no
further than illusionist Keith Brown. A fixture of the Festival for over a
decade, Brown landed an agent as a result of his 2024 show here, and is now an
in-demand guest artist aboard Norwegian and Virgin cruise ships. Read more.
From the May 15th article "2026 Orlando Fringe Review: 110% Wizard" by Jimbo Wood at
Orlando Shine: Brown, a familiar face to Orlando Fringe audiences and a three-time
Critic’s Choice winner for Best Magic Show, returns with what he jokingly
describes as the “same wizard, now 10% better.” The framing device for this
year’s show centers around a cruise ship residency thrown into chaos after an
airline loses the costumes and props intended for the run. Read more.
For more information about the Toronto Fringe, visit
FringeToronto.com
This was our first visit to this theatre which is located in the
Artscape Youngplace. According to the Youngplace website, they are "Fully accessible by
Ontario standards."
The internet suggested parking in the area was scarce (roughly Dundas
St. West and Ossington) so we braved the TTC. The Ossington 63 south
takes you to within a 4 minute walk of the theatre.
As James revealed in his
June 5th interview with us, the theatre is a cozy space, with a capacity of 46 seats (with raked
seating). Every seat has a great view of the action. There are seats
reserved in the front row, for audience members who have accessibility
issues.
The theatre is air-conditioned (very welcome with the current heat wave).
The show is approximately an hour in length, with no intermissions.
On with the show:
In a theatre this size, you get a good view from every seat. The
closer you sit, however, the greater the astonishment!
As teased in his interview, Mysteries and Lies is completely different from any of James'
other shows we've had the pleasure to attend.
Much to our dismay, there was no wine bottle nor were there citrus-y 'arts
and crafts.'
Without giving too much away, the show did involve glassware, coins, cards,
cups, balls, jewellery, envelopes, and a condiment.
There was plenty of audience participation. Four lucky audience
members were able to sit at the table with James, scoring better-than-front
row seating. (It should be noted that consent was obtained, and no one
was forced to sit at the table.) In addition to those four, another
seven or eight people from the audience contributed to the uniqueness of the
show.
The show touched on history, astronomy, astrology, biology, physics, and pop
culture. There was even a
Browser's Den of Magic
Easter egg, if you were paying attention. (This was possibly unique to
opening night.)
While we have seen more than our share of Cups and Balls routines, we have
never seen anything quite like the one in this show!
Last week we saw a sneak peek of James performing one of the card effects,
and we had no idea how he did it. At the show we were sitting roughly
4.5 metres (~15 feet) away and are no closer to determining the
method.
James performed excellent sleight of hand with a wide variety of
objects. This was so much more than a 'card magic' show. (But
the card magic in it, is excellent!)
"Mysteries and Lies" is our favourite James Alan production to date!
Disclosure: We were guests at this show. The opinions expressed above
are entirely our own. We did not receive compensation for the writing or the
publishing of this article.
Don't just take our word for it, read what Teena in Toronto had to say about
it in her
June 30th Instagram post.
For more information about the Toronto Fringe, visit
FringeToronto.com
Keith Brown kindly agreed to answer some of our questions ahead of his upcoming show 110% Wizard at The Toronto Fringe.
What is your first memory of magic?
My first memory of magic is probably David Blaine's first special. I was 6 years old when it came out. It inspired my brother and me to learn tricks. I can vividly remember my brother making a card appear on the other side of a window in our front room. Not only did I want to know, I needed to know.
How long have you been performing professionally?
When I was 13, I was offered money to perform in a bar, and I never looked back.
Why is now the right time for you to be at the Fringe?
I am working on a new show that's more storytelling based. I focus on my recent experience as a cruise ship magician. I am breaking in new material as well as some very old material. It's interesting to me to revisit a piece that I haven't touched in a decade and breathe new life into it.
I normally compare the fringe circuit to building a house. First you need to lay the foundation, which is what I did in Orlando. We learnt a lot in the first run and now have the opportunity to make bigger changes. We will build the house up and refine the insides all summer.
How, if at all, does this show differ from your previous shows?
This show is more story based. In the past, I would be doing a magic show and then it would be story time. The story almost always leads into a trick and then I go back to doing magic. This show is more thematic, has a through line and more stories woven into the show from start to finish. It feels better crafted than some of my previous shows.
When did you start writing and preparing for this show?
In January I worked my first ever cruise contract. I wanted to use my time on the ship to develop a new show, but I didn't really have the opportunity given the circumstances. Fringe snuck up on me. They say to write about what you know, so I wrote about my experiences working the ships.
It's always scary putting new material in front of an audience, whether it's a trick or a story. You never know how they're going to respond to it, or if it's any good until you put it in front of people. After performing it in Orlando, the stories really resonated with the audience. It's also very rewarding to discover the moments when presenting it for the first time. I have a pretty good road map of how to get from A to B, but I never truly know what moments and opportunities the audience will serve me during a performance. It's my job to listen and respond accordingly. It's their input that always makes the show better than what I could have made by myself.
Will you tease an effect or two for us?
The first card trick in the show is something I am revisiting after 8+ years. When I first started performing it, many magicians came up to me after the show and told me it fooled them. I never considered it a "magician fooler" per se, but I realized it's because they think it's a trick they've seen before until it isn't.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of Canada’s
Magic?
For the last year and half, I have been working with Brendan Hong to design my very own deck of playing cards. The first run was printed with Shuffled Ink and I got my hands on them in May. For now, the cards are available exclusively at my shows. I am super proud of the cards and it's a really great feeling to be able to perform with them every night.
Thank you Keith, for making the time to answer our questions!
For more information about the Toronto Fringe, visit FringeToronto.com
“Explorer 2 continues the structured training from Explorer 1, focusing on rarely-mastered sleights and advanced routining. You'll refine your technique, learn Michael's deceptive new handling of a popular stand-up effect, and develop the skills that separate hobbyists from performers.”
Michael Close has decades of experience performing and has authored fifteen books of original material for magicians, including the highly regarded “Workers” series. He is a sought-after magic consultant, notably consulting for “Penn & Teller: Fool Us.”
Last Fall, I had an overwhelmingly positive experience auditing Michael’s six week online course, Explorer 1: Transform Your Magic. In level one, Michael introduces a dozen foundational sleights (with cards and coins), more than a half-dozen tricks that incorporate the sleights, theory, critique, and insights on practise, finding your style, construction, routining, and presentation.
It goes without saying that I was eager to discover what Michael had in store for the next series of classes in Explorer 2.
The classes build directly on the material presented in Explorer 1. Michael methodically expands our knowledge base on foundational sleights with both cards and coins. In these classes there is a focus on some card and coin techniques that are often poorly executed by magicians in general. Guided by Michael’s extensive real-world experience observing what can go wrong in their execution, he teaches the skills in easy to digest layers (including the assignment of preparatory exercises), as well as alerting the students how to both mitigate and circumnavigate potential issues.
The format for Explorer 2 is similar to level 1 of the course. The online classes are about an hour in length, delivered weekly, and run for 6 weeks. The class size is capped at twelve students, which allows students to participate in discussions, ask questions, and receive personal attention. The classes are recorded, which means if you are absent for a class, you can watch the recording on your own time before the next class. (It’s a tremendous gift if you’re having difficulty mastering a move because you can slow down the video!)
Michael provides many opportunities to ask questions both during and between classes. While there is no requirement for students to perform during classes, he encourages them to submit videos of their progress for him to provide feedback. He is also available by email to answer questions between classes.
One huge advantage to learning this material from Michael is his ability to draw on his considerable knowledge and experience to suggest alternative handlings if one’s skill set or dexterity aren’t quite up to the material as initially presented. He can tell you the “why, when, and how” of the technique creation and point you to suitable workarounds if required.
In contrast to Explorer 1, where it was recommended to practise fifteen minutes a day to achieve mastery by the next class, many of the techniques presented in Explorer 2 require greater daily effort and may take longer than a week to truly master. It is recommended that you set aside at least thirty to forty-five minutes a day for practise.
With respect to teaching effects and routines, Michael provides insights into an effect’s construction. Theory is interspersed with the card and coin technique. He shares his thoughts about the routining and what can be done to elevate the experience of the spectator. Michael offers constructive criticisms and encourages his students to do the same. Thought is given to the optimal way to present the effect and reading material is assigned to provide context regarding an effect’s creation and subsequent evolution.
Similar to Explorer 1, Michael has both assigned and supplemental reading, sharing wisdom from magicians such as Stewart James, Roberto Giobbi, Arturo De Ascanio, Jon Racherbaumer, Frank Garcia, Johnny Thompson, Martin Gardner, and John Carney. (We also received the notes to Michael’s fantastic 2017 lecture "Magic Theory, or Magic Fact? Let's Find Out.") The reading material serves to frame the lessons by reinforcing critical thinking skills, walking through the history and refinement of effects, and expanding on the opinions and observations of notable figures in magic.
As with Explorer 1, most of the class materials for Explorer 2 continue to be available to the students beyond the six week course enrolment.
I had a fantastic time and learned an incredible amount participating in Explorers 1 and 2! If you’re looking for a way to refine your technique and elevate the impact of your performances, the Explorer series is for you!
For more information about the Explorer series of classes, visit MichaelClose.com.
---
Disclosure: I audited the classes as a guest.
The opinions expressed above are entirely my own. I did not receive
compensation for the writing or the publishing of this article.
My first paid performance was in 2007. I think I started identifying as a professional around 2012.
Why is now the right time for you to be at the Fringe?
At any given time, I have three or four shows I could do. I interact with the audience a lot. So what I do really has to be grounded in the space I’m in. Magic & Martini (2016-2020) always took place in a cocktail lounge. My virtual show, Bring Magic Home, never tried to hide the fact these weird Zoom get-togethers were utterly mad.
The Toronto Fringe is enormous. This year it has one hundred twenty-three shows. And those slots are assigned by lottery. Some years I get busy and don’t get around to applying. But really it was a random number generator that decided this was the time. And so I didn’t know what the show would be until I found out where it was going to be. But once we knew, the whole show basically came together in one afternoon of shuffling index cards around a coffee table.
What is the title of the show?
Mysteries and Lies. I’m chronically obsessed with the paradox of truth in magic — that there is no way to do what we do honestly. My last Fringe foray was called Lies, Damn Lies & Magic Tricks. There’s a naive version of magic which is about fooling people — I know something you don’t know, Nyah! But there’s a more interesting more grown up version which is about getting people to think about what shouldn’t and shouldn’t be possible. But fooling someone is tightly bound up in that project so it’s a very fine line to walk.
I want people to have an amazing — maybe even a profound — experience. But I don’t want to fall into the trap that so many in the industry do of thinking that you need people to think it’s “for real” in order to be respectable. There shouldn't be a contradiction between being totally amazing and being “just a magic trick”.
How, if at all, does this show differ from your previous shows?
Because the theatre is a very intimate space, 46 seats, with raked seating, we decided this was going to be a close-up show — like what you might see at the close-up room of the Magic Castle. The format is one I hadn’t really worked in before 2020. I never really sat down, even to do close-up magic. I got used to it doing virtual shows, where I opted to sit behind a desk. And during re-opening after the pandemic, there was an awkward period in Canada where you weren’t allowed to have more than ten people in a gathering. So my private shows moved from the end of the room to around the coffee table or the dining room table. (Again, so that the magic can be grounded in the environment. The show happens in your living room. I don’t try to make you pretend your living room is a bar or a theatre or a comedy club.)
But it also means this show is really brand new. If you saw Magic & Martini, before the pandemic, this will be completely different.
The show is thematically richer — maybe just because I’m older. Recently truth has been top of mind. We’re bombarded by fake headlines, fake experts, AI slop and the threat a Large Language Model is coming for your job. So as someone who is trying to walk this tightrope of honest lying, my job is to channel all that angst into a real experience, but without making things explicit so you feel like you’re watching a TED talk about what to do if you think your toaster might be conscious.
When did you start writing and preparing for this show?
I found out where the show was going to be in mid January and that’s when I seriously started preparing. The origin of the show we wound up doing is actually a bit stranger.
I did get used to the idea of performing at the table during re-opening. But the first one of those shows was actually in January of 2020. I received a last minute inquiry on a Sunday morning for a show that night. It was for four people. They wanted something to lighten the mood after they got back from a funeral. (Friends of mine know that the stranger the request, the more likely I am to say yes.) So in my mind, that show was Mysteries and Lies v1.0. And there is actually one trick from that which survives into this version.
The other weird thing that seeped into this show is that the theatre is inside of a converted school classroom. It’s one of the old red brick kind built in 1914. So the hallway has that odd proportion designed to funnel hundreds of kids to and from recess. The doors are classroom doors. So we’re playing with the idea that we’re surveying all of the regular school subjects — science, history, math — through the lens of magic.
Will you tease an effect or two for us?
I would rather people be surprised. But if someone is willing to do some work, they can earn a spoiler. When The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, we got so swept up, we forget that immediately after that, there was a magician on, who did two tricks. The show contains one of those. There is also a piece by Tommy Wonder that he was so protective of that he withheld it from publication in The Books of Wonder. (But he later softened and ultimately shared it in 2003.) I’ll be doing a version of that.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of Canada’s
Magic?
If they have the time, they should take the time to experience the Fringe. There are over a hundred different shows. So part of the fun is making a day of it, and seeing what new and different things you can experience.
Thank you James, for making the time to answer our questions!
For more information about the Toronto Fringe, visit FringeToronto.com
Welcome to readers of Duncan Trillo's excellent publication, MagicWeek! We hope you enjoy your stay!
--
Wherein we share some trivia about a cast member, take a good look at the behind the scenes effort involved in putting on the show, and take a bit of a tangent in order to drop Alan Hudson's name.
A Week in the Life of Champions (of Magic) -- part 1 of 3
On a cold and grey December day, I met up with the Champions of Magic crew at the Bluma Appel Theatre in downtown Toronto.
My mission: to shadow the company from load-in to load-out, for their 13 day Toronto stay.
I was unable to attend two of the days and four of the days were statutory holidays. Allow me to take some liberties with the timeline and present to you what I learned spending A Week in the Life of Champions (of Magic).
Last September we had the pleasure of listening to two well respected master
card magicians speak. Both of them touched on the topic of
practise.
Magician A suggested that reviewing video recording of one's performance was
optimal because among other things, magicians are unlikely to catch a poorly
performed sleight in the mirror.*
Magician B suggested that performing in front of a mirror was the way to go,
because you need to learn how to adjust in real time, if something goes
wrong in the execution of a move.
They both raised valid points. We got to wondering how you, dear
readers, practise?
What do you do when you practise? Do you: A. Use a
mirror B. Video record the session C. Both of the
above D. None of the above E. I don’t practise
Seven people replied. Two were 3-way mirror responses, two were video
responses, we had two responses from those who do neither, and one of you have
a very thoughtful practise involving both mirrors and video.
The practise preference was divided along social media platforms.
Facebook preferred video,
Instagram favours mirrors or neither.
(With N=7 it's difficult to draw meaningful inferences. We found
it interesting nonetheless.)
Chris Yuill wrote: " If you use a mirror but look down to look at the props you
miss seeing what happened at that moment. Just my opinion.
"PS if
you video yourself to post on social media, watch the video first before
posting. See too many crappy videos of crappy done magic on FB and the
gram."
"Mirror at home when first learning a new sleight or routine (3 mirrors
one head on, two at 45 degrees on each side), also practice facing the mirror,
then turn right angle to one side so you can see what people see over your
shoulder or looking behind you, then repeat on the other side - when you are
satisfied that you do not flash, then record at home several times
while tweaking, adjusting blocking, checking script and timing, etc. and then
definitely record the first time if it is a stand up routine. Close-up if you
do all of the above, you should be bullet proof when you perform. However, you
will continue to make adjustments and improvements once you have performed the
first 100 times - in Martial arts it is said that you must do a move 10,000
times before you can start to really learn it - in Magic it is not 10,00 but
definitely after you have field tested a routine, trick or sleight a minimum
of 100 times, you can start to really understand the subtleties involved.
Real world practice is best, just make sure you are bullet proof before
you perform out in the world or you make us all look bad. Carry
on......"
We have nothing to add to Eric's excellent answer. It seems that the
method of practise is often presented as a false dichotomy. One or the
other. In reality, a blend of both may be the recipe for optimal
results.
In the comments, let us know whether you use mirrors or video or both in your
practise!
--
* We have heard it said that when practising in front of a mirror, magicians
are more likely to blink while performing the sleight, and therefore will be
unable to see themselves flash or make a mistake. We wondered if there
was any literature to back this claim. This is what we found:
From a 2022 paper by Anthony Barnhart [emphasis added]: "Indeed,
magicians were more likely to blink when engaging in deceptive action than
when not, and blinking was more prevalent when performing more difficult
sleights.
However, this tactical blinking was only evident in the performance
setting." [1]
A quote from Anthony from a September 2022 article [emphasis added]: "'While
my magician participants were
more likely to blink their eyes when carrying out deceptive action than
when not, this tendency was increased in a performance setting without a
mirror compared to a rehearsal setting with a mirror,' Barnhart explained to PsyPost. 'This was surprising and didn’t match the
predictions from the world of magic.'" [2]
Other thoughts about practising in front of a mirror:
"Do not watch yourself in a mirror as you practise. You cannot perform the
action naturally if you divide your attention between what you do and how it
looks. Moreover, mirror watching has a tendency to cause the eyes to widen;
this is not attractive and can become a fixed habit." [3]
References:
Barnhart, A. S., Richardson, K., & Eric, S. (2022). Tactical blinking
in magicians: A tool for self-and other-deception.Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice,9(3), 257.DOI:10.1037/cns0000321
We recently reported our random thoughts about "Champions of Magic -- Holiday Spectacular" in Toronto. Frances Morgan, whose official role in the production is "Magic and
Props Assistant," kindly agreed to do an interview with us.
Based in Spokane, Frances:
performed as a Magician’s Assistant at Silverwood Theme Park in 2022 Read more (click to show | hide)At the theme park we did grand scale illusions as well as a few smaller
illusions and routines. My favorite was our opening act that the
magician and I created together (about a week before opening day!) I got
hired quite unexpectedly, and had to jump in quickly. I was hired at the
end of May and the full season started the first week in June. Before
that, I had never been involved in a magic show in any capacity. So it
was quite the adventure having to learn everything in such a short
amount of time. That lasted a season before I moved on to starting my
own show and forming my company, Inland Northwest Magic [INWmagic.com].
debuted her first show as a magician in 2023,
won First Place in the Spokane Magic Club's Close-Up competition, Read more (click to show | hide)
For my first local competition, I did some simple card routines, but
what I have always stood behind is even the most simple magic can be
amazing with the right presentation. I had music playing in the background, chose my setup carefully and rehearsed until the last moment
to make sure it was ready. It was my first competition and I had just
debuted my first solo show a few weeks prior, so that October was a fun
and busy month! Some of the card moves in the routine I performed were taught to me by the magicians I met through the magic club
and competed in the 2024 IBM Stage Competition.
Read more (click to show | hide)At the annual IBM International Championship, I competed in the
Stage Magic category. I had just joined the IBM as I had been
elected Vice President of my local magic club and needed to join
the IBM in order to do so. When I joined, I saw they had a convention
coming a few hours away from me in Washington and knew I had
to go. Magic conventions rarely, if ever, come to Washington
or Idaho so I took hold of the opportunity and it was one of the best
decisions I have ever made. When I joined, I saw they also
had a competition and figured I had nothing to lose so I sent
in a video on the last day available for submissions. I had only been
performing as a magician for a short while, so I looked at
the show I had, took the routines I got the best reactions
from and created a new sequence to make a roughly 8 minute routine. I
went to a local park with my friend, we filmed it, went to a
restaurant and uploaded it.
I never actually expected
to hear anything back, but about a month later, I saw an email in
my inbox from IBM. The headline was simple “I.B.M. Contest”;
the opening, polite “Thank you for sending your submission
for the 2024 Tacoma I.B.M. Convention Competition.” Reading this,
I fully expected it to be a polite ‘thanks but try again
later’ kind of email, but to my surprise I read and re-read
and for good measure read again the next line. “Congratulations, we are
pleased to inform you that you have earned a spot in the
finals of the Gold Medal Competition and will appear on the
International Stage Championship”. I began to jump and run around the
house in complete shock and happiness. That competition was
my turning point as a magician.
Competing at IBM, I
truly felt like I was a magician. This was not just friends and family,
this was a panel of judges who looked at my performance and
said ‘yes, she can compete at this convention’. It
truly is and was an honor to be there.
I did a linking ring
routine (which I started to perform at the request of my mom who has
always loved the linking rings and which has since become a
staple in my shows), a dream bag production, where I make
flower boxes appeared; and a torn and transformed paper to
kabuki effect.
What is your first memory of magic?
When I was about 3 I went to a theme park and there, I experienced my first
magic show. My favorite routine was when the magician made a table
float on stage and to my astonishment, proceeded to walk down the
stairs into the audience with the table! Ever since then, the
floating table has been one of my favorite illusions to perform.
When I went to my first magic convention, I had the honor to meet
the builder of the illusion, and have been performing it ever
since.
What genre of magic has your focus currently?
Everything! Different circumstances allow for different magic. My love of
magic stems from my love of connecting people and bringing stories
to life. I am working on a Valentine's theme show using both stage
and close-up magic. The theme is a love letter to magic and wonder, and
will be performed in a movie [theatre] that was first owned by a
magician. I have the honor of being the first magician to perform magic there
since him in the past 50 years! A show that gets to play with a history
like that is such a thrill and an honor.
I love the theatrics
of stage magic and helping the audience get lost in the wonder and story
of it. Theatre is my first love, having grown up performing since I
was about 3 years old. Close-up magic is a new adventure and for
me, the appeal lies in connecting with the audience in an up close
manner. Having magic happen in your hands as an audience member is one of the
most amazing things you can experience. I also love doing
walk-around magic for events. I usually start with just conversing
with people. Many people have at least some small connection with magic,
and often I can utilize that when I perform magic for them. I get to have fun
weaving their stories into the magic to create something personal
for them and unique for me.
Why did you want to become part of the Champions of Magic behind-the-scenes
family?
I saw Champions for the first time in 2022. It was my first time seeing a
magic show of that magnitude and I absolutely fell in love with it!
My favorite part was the ensemble aspect of it. Magic usually
features the solo magician but growing up in theatre, nearly every show I saw
had an ensemble of actors working together to build a story. The
ensemble aspect of Champions felt more natural and exciting to me.
One of my favorite parts of theatre is getting to play off the other
actors in a scene, and I got to see that same playful creativity with
Champions.
Magic has this amazing ability to bring the
audience into its space. Unlike other forms of theatre, magic
breaks the 4th wall and gets to incorporate the audience unlike anything else.
Magic has all the wonderful qualities that I love about theatre and
then some. It is more spontaneous and can connect with an audience
in a unique way; Champions shows that in a wonderful and grand display.
What are your roles on this tour?
I get to do a little bit of everything! My official title is Magic and Props
Assistant. I work primarily with the props team and between the
three of us we take care of over 200 props in the show, from sunglasses to a
sparkly, metal moon. We build, repair, improve, set, strike and pack all the
props every new show day. I also get the chance to be onstage as an Assistant
for a few of the acts. For one routine, I get to wear the dress I wore as an
Assistant in the theme park, so a fun personal call back, and I also wear a
necklace of a snowflake that my family gave me for Christmas a few years ago.
For me, it is a way to bridge my past experiences with this new
chapter.
What surprised you most about touring with this ensemble of magicians?
This is my first tour and I have an immense amount of respect for the stamina
of this group! Especially the crew and the producer. Every person
works incredibly hard and will jump in to help when needed. If one
of us is sick or injured, or simply let something slip in the rush of
the moment, we all try to pull together to help one another and
give the best experience possible to the audience, while supporting
each other as a team.
Tell us about a highlight from this tour.
One highlight was at one of the shows, we invited a kid onstage and he had
the best time! I got to interact with him and his mom off stage
and his whole face lit up at being a part of the show. Getting to
inspire people of all ages is just spectacular!
What compelling reasons are there to come see "Champions of Magic:
Holiday Spectacular"?
Theatre is magic when seen live, and a live magic show is theatre on another
level. This show has something for everyone of all ages. One of
my favorite aspects is the different genres that come into
play.
Some examples: we have a callback to old Hollywood detective mysteries, a
sit-com holiday party, and a tribute to grand scale Las Vegas magic
shows. We also get to bring a few people up on stage to
witness the magic up close!
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of Canada’s
Magic?
Happiness is magic. Keep sharing the magic. Join the email
list of Champions of Magic and come follow along on
the adventure!
Thank you Frances, for making the time to answer our questions and congratulations on your recent achievements!
Learn more about Frances at her website INWmagic.com and sign-up to her
email list.
