Canada at Magi-Fest 2014

Canada will be well represented at Magi-Fest 2014!  Both Chris Pilsworth and Ben Train are listed as performers.  In addition, a crew from Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp will be there including: Magic Mike Segal, Jen Segal, Steven Kline (event production and late night lecturer), and Eric Leclerc.

I hope one of you will be sending me a trip report!

Ben Train in Grand Rapids and Chicago

Hey friends! I'll be lecturing in Grand Rapids Michigan Thursday and Chicago Friday! I hope to see you there!
— Ben Train (@ErdnaseinTO) November 13, 2013

Toronto: Mystery Workshop

From The Sid Lorraine Hat and Rabbit Club Facebook group:

From Ben Train:

Mystery Workshop- Tuesday October 22nd. You don't want to miss this!

Over the past 8 years I’ve brought to Toronto some of the finest talent in the world. Whether they were magic A-listers or people you hadn’t heard of, what they all had in common was that they were world-class talent.

So with that in mind… trust me.

I’m offering TEN TICKETS to a workshop with a mystery performer. That’s right, I won’t tell you who it is. What I will tell you though is that he performs regularly behind the bar in Boston, in the close-up room at the Magic Castle, and at New York's Off-Broadway Magic show, Monday Night Magic. He’s also published a number of effects and a DVD with some of the biggest magic companies in the world, and is a regular at the exclusive, invitation-only Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic convention.

What I’m trying to say is… this guy is GOOD.

Read more.

Ben Train on Full Circle Magic

From Full Circle Magic's, March 11th Q&A with Benzi Train:

What I have noticed, in the real world, from those who succeed is that they are IRREPLACEABLE. If you’re just a guy who does card tricks then ANYONE who does good card tricks can fill in for you. But if you’re LAURA, and that means something, then no one can fill in for you. It could be your character, or the clients perception about who you are and what you do. Either way, if the client thinks “I want LAURA” rather then “I want a magician”, you’re on you’re way to, well, something.

Read more.

Michael Close at Michigan Magic Day

Today is Michigan Magic Day!  Michael Close, now from Canada, will be lecturing!

From Michigan Magic Day:

****NEWS FLASH-THIS JUST IN**** Also attending will be: LEE ASHER, BEN TRAIN and CHRIS MAYHEW!!! They will be there to hang out, share what they know and learn what you may know. So if you need pointers on a move/trick you’re in luck! I know Lee would love to see your “Asher Twist”.

Read more.

Ben Train in "Creative Careers"

From the Ring 17 Facebook page:

Ben Train was the subject of a Ryerson Student Documentary which you can watch at:

http://www.ryersonian.ca/article/27957/

Toronto: Help send a kid to camp

From Sorcerers Safari Facebook page:

April 30th 

The next SLICE OF MAGIC show will help send a kid to camp!! Stand up style magic show with Chris Westfall, Benzi Train & Rosemary Reid! great food, fun raffles and prizes and a good old fashioned amazing time! message me for details!! go reserve/buy tickets from my website. www.chriswestfallmagic.com

Read more.

Toronto: Ben Train's Birthday Bash!!!!!!!!!!

From the Ben Train's Birthday Bash!!!!!!!!!! Facebook page:

To celebrate 28 years of life I am planing THREE amazing evenings of fun.

Friday March 29th I'm going to Dave and Busters to see Bobby Motta perform, and play some games. Details to follow.

Saturday March 30th the Browser's Den is throwing a birthday party for me. The event is free, and it includes performances by Bill Abbott, Chris Mayew, Chris Westfall, James Harrison, James Alan... and free cake! Again, details to come. And, for those who care as much about doing "good" as they do about having "good fun", there will be opportunities to help support and donate to the Toronto Humane Society!
 
Finally, Sunday March 31st, my actual birthday, I'm going to a fund raiser event to help send an underprivileged child to summer camp.
 
Read more and find out how you can spend time with spending time with the Sweater-Vest Jeff Pinsky outside of his shop.

Toronto: Sorcerers Safari Open House

From the Browser's Den of Magic:

SUNDAY, APRIL 14, 2013 AT 1PM

On this day at Browser's:
Mike & Jen Segal, Lee Asher, Ben Train, Chris Mayhew, Rosemary Reid, Chris Westfall and so many others involved in the Sorcerer's Safari Summer Magic Camp will be at the shop from 1pm to about 4pm to answer any of your questions about Canada's number one magic camp!
They will show you photos, video and lots more about past seasons.  Plus they will let you know about their exciting plans for this year's camp.

So if you are considering attending the camp or just want to find out more information please feel free to drop by the Open House! It will be a lot of fun!

RECEIVE $100 worth of bonus magic supplies for camp if you register on the day of the Open House. As an incentive, bring a friend who also registers for camp and you BOTH receive 10% off of camp fees, plus the $100 magic supply bonus.

Read more to find out about additional discounts and deals.

Mayhew and Train: Underground in Washington

From the Society of American Magicians:

Show Producer Mike Miller announced a new idea not offered before at a convention, as an added bonus to those attending the SAM Convention in Washington DC, July 3-6, 2013:

After the Dealer Room closes each night, some of the best close-up performers (some you know and all you should know) will session with the conventioneers till early morning!

Read more.

How exciting to see Chris Mayhew and Ben Train on the list!

A Series of Unfortunate Effects

From the Facebook page for A Series of Unfortunate Effects:

In five days Ben Train will be doing a LIVE Q and A with Full Circle Magic! If you ever wanted to know about who does his hair, what books he likes to reading on the toilet, or wanted more info about the movie, this is your chance! See you there!

Read more.

Trailer: A Series of Unfortunate Effects

Watch the trailer for A Series of Unfortunate Effects on YouTube:

Train and Mayhew: A Series of Unfortunate Effects

From Ben Train's Twitter feed:

For the past year I've been working with @chrismayhew1 on a project we're finally ready to share. Check it out! facebook.com/SeriesOfEffects
— Ben Train (@ErdnaseinTO) February 4, 2013

From the Facebook page of A Series of Unfortunate Effects:

After witnessing an amazing magic trick performed by the world-famous Lee Asher, Chris enlists his friend Ben's help to discover the secret.

They soon discover though that learning the secrets to magic aren't as easy as they once thought. Chris and Ben need to help Lee find something he's looking for before he'll share the secret with them. In order to do that they have to go through magicians Jeff Hinchliffe, Glenn West, and Chris Westfall, while avoiding destruction at the hands of crazed card collector Bill Abbott on a wild adventure filled with laughs and great card tricks.

Coming Spring 2013

Toronto: Tony Chang event

From Ben Train via The Browser's Den:

After spending FOUR YEARS trying to find a way to bring him in, Tony Chang, one of the best sleight of hand artists of our generation (and a super cool guy) is coming to Toronto to do a special event- “An Evening with Tony Chang”. This event is almost completely sold out, but don’t worry: if you want a chance to meet Tony and experience his magic you can do so FOR FREE this Saturday December 29th, at 3pm, only at the Browser’s Den!

That’s right! This Saturday, Tony Chang will be visiting the Browser’s Den of Magic to hang out, perform some tricks, and answer questions about how you can make your magic look, well, like real magic.

Read more to find out about the additional “Evening with” event.

Canada at Magi-Fest 2013

Updated at 8:32am to add info about Magic Mike and Sorcerers Safari!

We've got some talented peformers at Magi-Fest 2013!

Representing the Great White North will be:

• Ben Train
• Chris Mayhew
• and last but not least, the newest addition to the line-up is non other than Len Cooper Memorial award winner, Mahdi Gilbert!

In addition, Magic Mike Segal from Sorcerers Safari will be at the convention for their 10th year doing the youth activities.

They'll be a part of the international cast which includes Justin Willman, Dani DaOrtiz, John Archer, John Guastaferro, Troy Hooser, Justin Flom, Peter Pitchford, Simon Aronson, Scott Robinson, Simon Lovell, Tony Chang, Eric Jones and Kainoa Harbottle.

What a terrific line-up!

Are you going?

Ben Train is the Blue Crown's special guest tonight

From The Blue Crown Facebook page:

Our Question of the Day comes from our special guest - Ben Train!

"Everyone likes impromptu tricks, but I think we can all agree that sometimes great pieces of magic require preparation (other than just practice).

So here's my question. What's the furthest, or most elaborate, set-up you've been willing to go through to create a real miracle?" - Ben Train

Don't forget to join us TONIGHT at 8PM eastern time for a LIVE hour-long Q&A session with Ben! See you there!

Read more.

Toronto: Browser's Den hosts self-working card seminar

From The Browser's Den:

Sunday, September 23

CHRIS MAYHEW, SHANE COBALT, BEN TRAIN, SHELDON JAFINE, STEPHEN KIRKEGAARD, JAMES FULFORD, JOHN TALBOT & MORE!!

Dear Magic Friend,

We hope that you will join us on that day to learn some truly Self- Working (Easy) but crazy good card tricks with an ordinary deck of cards.

There is no charge for this seminar.

Read more.
 

Wow! This look like something even I could manage!

An interview with Ben Train

From The Daily Deception a Q and Eh with Ben Train:

Chris Williams - Scotland, UK asks our first question for Q and Eh with Ben Train: What makes magic special to you?

Ben Train:When I was much younger I really struggled just trying to get through life. I had serious trouble making friends, was doing terribly in school, and since I didn’t have an outlet to deal with the frustration I was feeling, I acted out. It was a pretty crappy time for me.Then I found magic.  

Read more.

Chris Mayhew: Scare tactics

Updated October 10, 2017 to update link to video.

This isn't exactly what I had in mind when I talked about honouring Canadian women in magic.

Watch as Ben Train sets up Chris Mayhew on Much Music's Scare Tactics.

From the Scare Tactics YouTube channel:





[h/t: @LeeAsherMagic]

Montréal: Ben Train and Chris Mayhew

From Grant McSorely:

Ben Train and Chris Mayhew lecture, Playing with your pack:

• When: May 17, 2012, 7pm - 9pm
• Where: Montreal Chinese Community and Cultural Centre
              1088 Clark Street
              H2Z 1K2 
• Price:  $20 before May 13
             $30 after
• Payment: Paypal: Visit www.montrealmagicjam.com (coming soon!) or transfer your payment to gmcsorley@gmail.com
                 Cheque: Please make cheques payable to Grant McSorley and mail to
                              6362 Christophe Colomb
                              Montreal, Qc
                              H2S 2G7

The info will be up on our site shortly, and there is a FB event at http://on.fb.me/JwV3m8