IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! On Tuesday, November 19 at the Grindstone Theatre legendary magician Dale Harney will be presenting his exclusive lecture for the Edmonton Magic Club.
His incredible career spans over 40 years and his breadth of knowledge about the art and business of magic is unprecedented.
He was a cabaret magician in the dance clubs of Edmonton, a television star, a touring magician with the Shrine Circus, a trade show and corporate performer, a fixture at Agricultural fairs across Canada and the creator of the iconic Magic Palace television show, Dale has done it all.
He will be discussing his career and how to navigate the professional world of magic, as well as sharing a few magical secrets. This is a very unique opportunity to learn from one of the best in the business.
The lecture will take place at the Grindstone Theatre. Tickets are $20 at the door
Watch Edmonton’s BEST magicians perform their favourite tricks.
Spend
an evening with the Edmonton Magic Club’s esteemed members, armed with their
latest illusions. These performers present their one-of-a-kind personalities
to provide a family-friendly night of entertainment.
Open to all
curiosity-seekers, four times a year at the Grindstone Theatre.
Grindstone
Theatre, 10019 81 Ave NW June 21st, 2024
This edition of
Magic Mania features the talents of:
Gary Charm – Mystical manipulations to fill your mind with awe
Nathanael Berg – A comedy and magic wunderkind, hold on to your sides!
Rob Dante – Sideshow and Mentalist, sure to grip you to the edge of your
seat
Hosted by Jordan Sabo, local actor and acting Treasurer to your magic
club.
* Regular readers of the blog may know that there's typically an elapsed time of weeks to months between us completing an interview and having it published. Case in point. Due in part to our densely packed December content calendar, we've held Richard's interview (which belongs to our 2023 series of Champions cast interviews that started last October) until now, ahead the Western Canada leg of their tour.
In addition to Champions of Magic you may also know Richard Young through:
We're delighted to interview Richard ahead of his Western Canadian
Champions of Magic Worldwide Wonder Tour dates!
Do you remember the specific moment when you knew you could or wanted
to perform magic full time?
September
17th 1995 when I saw David Copperfield’s show in Birmingham in the U.K.
My Dad often tells the story that on the drive home that night I asked
him if it would be at all possible for me to do something like that as a
job when I grew up.
Have you studied anything magic-adjacent (eg. theatre, voice, musical instrument, acting, dance, art, movement, or photography)?
I haven’t and I really wish I had. If I was to give any younger magician some advice it would be to go and learn all this stuff. It seems like a lot of fun and would have helped me so much over the years.
Richard Young listening to Sam Strange
After seeing a recent Champions performance in Toronto, one
of our readers thought they spotted a small but meaningful detail in the
show, that you may have included as an homage to David Copperfield. Is
this an intentional 'Easter egg'?
I was thrilled someone spotted it. Absolutely. It’s supposed to
showcase that I’m living my childhood dream in his shows following my
tribute to him 15 minutes earlier.
The Champions show order changes from time to time, based on the constraints of the venue and the health of the performers. We imagine that sometimes muscle memory reverts to the show order you do most often. How do you and the rest of the cast and crew remind yourselves of set deviations?
In 2021 we were developing a lot of new material and the show was changing almost every night. It was stressful and frankly impossible to stay on top of. We have stage prompts printed on the stage floor and other similar techniques. I remember there was one night where I got the show order wrong, it happened to be on a night when there was no sound relay backstage and as I walked towards the stage I saw a scene playing out on the stage I was supposed to be in, without me in it!
What's your go-to time filler if the crew needs you to stall for more time than "hands"++ provides?
We really do just have ‘hands’ to save some time. Anything needing more than that will be a show stop. We have only had a few of those over the years. Although it’s nice if you can fill a mistake or buy some time without the audiences noticing, a show stop is nothing to be embarrassed about, I’ve seen West End shows in London with show stops and as an audience member you appreciate they are stopping because they want you to see the best possible show rather than some sort of bodge job attempt to wrangle through. If you do hundreds of shows, there’s no way to avoid it. Eventually you’ll need to stop and restart.
When we are touring I really miss British chocolate but honestly it’s probably good I can’t access it, keeping weight off while touring I find basically impossible. I don’t watch things, I tend to just find my head is completely immersed in what we are doing.
One imagines that it’s sometimes hard to leave the comforts of your home
for a lengthy tour. Do you bring a special something from home with
you?
I do indeed have a little mascot who travels with me. He’s a stuffed toy raccoon called Rufus, my girlfriend bought him for me when we visited a national park in Tucson, Arizona together. Unfortunately Rufus accidentally forgot to get inside my suitcase when I left a hotel in Los Angeles and despite many phone calls to the hotel after I left, he was not found. I however managed to find him for sale on a website and quickly had him sent to me by FedEx hoping my girlfriend would not notice he wasn’t exactly the same Rufus. She didn’t but eventually my conscious made me tell her the truth that Rufus is in fact now Rufus 2.0.
Rufus 2.0
Every performer has experienced some level of post-show blues. Post-tour blues, we expect, are on a whole different level. Do you have any tips for touring entertainers with respect to re-entering one’s non-touring life, after an extended time away from home?
It’s so so hard. Coming off the road and re-adjusting to a much slower pace of life for me personally takes quite a long time. When we finished after a 9 month solid tour in May 2023 I truly was burnt out and needed a break, but honestly that’s the first time I have ever felt like that. Usually I am sad when we finish and do worry a little about how I’m going to re-adjust. I have however learnt how to take care of myself. I immediately get my head into other work. I don’t take time off, I tend to actually have a lot of new energy I can place into podcasts or some other kind of creativity. The fact is for many of us this is the biggest part of our lives and so although sleep, no airports and less stress is welcome, life does feel a little empty when away from the road. I truly believe 1 year of touring is the equivalent life experiences to about 20 years of life for a normal person in terms to fun, emotional ups and downs and pure experiences.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of
Canada’s Magic?
We're really looking forward to sharing our show with your readers in Western Canada.
Thank you Richard, for making the time to answer our questions!
Additional rumoured locations include cities in BC and NS! Check the
Champions of Magicwebsite
for updates.
You may also know Fernando Velasco as the winner of the 2018 Junior Achievement Award at The Magic Castle.
We're delighted to interview Fernando ahead of his Canadian
Champions of Magic Worldwide Wonder Tour dates!
We were fortunate to see Champions of Magic in three times in the
past five years. Your part in the show changed significantly from year
to year. In fact the 2022 experience was very different
from the first time we saw you in Toronto in 2018.
When
you have an audience tested, well-received show, what drives you to modify
and advance your act?
I’m not sure what the motivation factor is; I love entertaining, I love making changes to try and find the best possible version of the acts to share with audiences, It’s also a way to keep it fresh, even if its just little changes to the script that’s enough to keep us engaged and in search for the perfect/most genuine presentation.
Have you studied any magic-adjacent disciplines?
Recently I’ve been studying writing and storytelling, I think it’s definitely helped me give my magic some meaning. Hopefully sharing stories that might mean something to people and might make them FEEL something… A feeling is what I’m currently after.
I also spend a lot of time analyzing other artists from a variety of different disciplines just trying to learn anything I can from them; Michael Jackson, Tom Cruise, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Robbie Williams, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Pixar.
Cutting it close!
Do you remember the specific moment when you knew you could or wanted
to perform magic full time?
YES, the moment I joined The Magic Castle Junior Society and debuted at 14 years old during Future Stars of Magic Week in 2012 -- that was the moment I knew I had found my entertaining vehicle. There was no looking back.
What is your most memorable performance misadventure?
Hahahah might be too soon... (Darkest day of my career.)
Once upon a time in Houston, Texas, (Richard) Young, (Sam) Strange, and myself had a catastrophic prop malfunction in a part of the show we do together.
I wish I could tell you that we played it off and walked off stage like heroes, but we did not.
First, we were exposed to 1/3 of the audience (being generous with ourselves), then Young fled the scene leaving me and Strange alone on stage to finish the act... to which the act finale also failed.
In other words, NOTHING worked… it was like a scene out of Magic Gone Wrong.
What sets Champions of Magic apart from other touring ensemble magic
shows?
First the insane production level, it blows any other touring magic show in North America out of the water.
Second, our interactions with each other, the way the show intertwines with all of us and our collaborative routines.
We are a cast rather than four ensemble acts, that’s really unique.
After a quick dip in the water tank.
Do you have any guilty pleasures while on tour?
My biggest guilty pleasure is food, I love food, and I'm lucky to share this pleasure with my great friend Richie (Young). Sharing meals together tends to be a highlight of the day haha. As well as riding Birdies (electric scooters) around cities.
One imagines that it’s sometimes hard to leave the comforts of your home
for a lengthy tour. Do you bring a special something from home with
you?
I really love touring, it's our life.
But touring can be hard, it can get lonely. You are in a bubble for months in which nothing enters or leaves, it's like we are isolated from the real world…
I wear bracelets that friends and family give me, I wear them all the time, it's my way of keeping a part of loved ones near all the time.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of
Canada’s Magic?
Best version of Champions of Magic is on its way. We hope you come to the shows and enjoy them as much as we do.
Thank you Fernando, for making the time to answer our questions!
We're delighted to interview Sam ahead of his Canadian
Champions of Magic Worldwide Wonder Tour dates!
Have you studied any magic-adjacent disciplines?
It really highlights the scam that being a magician can be sometimes. So many
magicians, including myself, hide behind the tricks/illusions when there is
little talent outside of that. When I was in my 20s I did learn to partner
dance (modern jive) and you could argue that gave me some coordination.
However, I think honesty that would be very generous to say that it helped
inform my balletic movements during the final Las Vegas parody sequence.
In retrospect are there skills or knowledge that you wish you had prior
to pursuing magic full time?
Certainly there are a host of skills that would have been so helpful. Being
good at video editing and photoshop would be so useful. It would mean you
could produce online content quickly and easily without the cost of using a
professional.
Red light, green light!
Do you remember the specific moment when you knew you could or wanted
to perform magic full time?
I do remember actually with some clarity.
When I started to
‘gig’ (a few kids parties and events for friends), I was about 18 years
old. Simultaneously I joined the ’Thames Valley Magicians Guild’ and would
go to the weekly meetings there. After a few weeks I was kindly asked to
cover a residency at a restaurant in Oxford, England. I did that on Friday
and Saturday evenings. At that point there was a simple and clear
connection between my magic passion and an income, of sorts. I knew at
that point I wanted to be a professional magician.
What is your most memorable performance misadventure?
There are so many to mention, which is both a sign of experience and flight
time, but also unprofessionalism. (Richard) Young and I did the Edinburgh
(Fringe) festival for 4 consecutive years and at that point new material is
being worked in and lessons are being learned!
Lesson 1. Never
leave the Master Prediction Tube inside the actual box. Especially when
hanging that box (and ultimately the show’s finale) in full view of the
audience. Lesson 2. Always remember the key to a locked box with a
spectator's watch inside. Lesson 3. Never commit wholeheartedly to
the gender of an audience member. Lesson 4. Never perform magic on a
stage at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, on New Year’s Eve in 2019, in
the wind and rain. Ever. Lesson 5. Never perform an under-rehearsed Table of Death.
All
of the above had no outs.
One of the most haunting experiences might not sound at all a problem, but
knocked my confidence for years afterwards. I remember going out on stage
for the show opening and having a complete mind blank. I genuinely didn’t
know what I should say or how to start saying my script. Fortunately being
in a double act means that essentially you have a script advisor standing
next to you. But the fact that can happen means it might happen again and
standing on a stage with nothing to say or nowhere to go, is a lonely and
embarrassing experience.
What sets Champions of Magic apart from other touring ensemble magic
shows?
Although Champions of Magic does contain 5 magicians each performing in
their own style, from their own discipline of magic, the show does feel very
cohesive. It shouldn’t feel like a Magic Convention line up but without the
MC. We perform together onstage throughout the show and because of that it
hopefully feels like you’re watching a team of magicians, rather than
segmented acts. That unifying aspect makes the show memorable, rather than the
individuals within it. Coupled with the humour and no ability to take
ourselves seriously, means it should be distinctive enough from the show's
competitors.
That's a lot of money
Do you have any guilty pleasures while on tour?
At every venue we go to there is a well stocked fridge and Coke
(both Zero and full fat) is always on offer and display. When it’s always
there, I will most likely choose it over the bottled water. It’s not a vice I
suppose, but I know it’s probably not good for you in large quantities and I
do love it.
One imagines that it’s sometimes hard to leave the comforts of your home
for a lengthy tour. Do you bring a special something from home with
you?
Leaving home for longer tours is an emotional challenge for sure. However,
that challenge comes with the territory and it’s not like I’m down a mine shaft
for weeks on end or on the front line in Afghanistan. I’m not sure if there is
a front line in Afghanistan anymore, but you get the sentiment.
I
do carry a couple of photos of my family, which feels very old fashioned and
probably crazy considering I have my iPhone’s camera roll with me at all
times. I’m sure that if I printed out all of the iPhone images of my kids and
put them into a flicker book, you’d essentially get a live stream since birth.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of
Canada’s Magic?
We STILL have a large quantity of shot glasses available on the merchandise
stand. You would think dropping the price to $15 would have helped shift
them, but it did very little for sales overall. It’s the worst business idea
we have ever had. Please can your readers buy them when attending a show?
After a lot of trial and error (and critically the right room humidity) the
Young & Strange logo CAN be scratched off with a box cutter.
The
shot glasses are versatile and I’ve provided some ideas for their use
below:
- Candle holders. - A Crockery Smash stall at a local
fundraising event. - A Glass Walking routine you are working on. -
A lecture for a business studies group on 'Loss Leaders'.
Young and Strange "One More!" shot glasses 📸 : Kidlet, Kitchener, 2022
Thank you Sam, for making the time to answer our questions!
We're delighted to interview Hollie ahead of her Canadian
Champions of Magic Worldwide Wonder Tour dates!
Through social media, we've watched your act change and grow over time. When
you have an audience tested, well-received show, what drives you to modify
and advance your act?
I originally joined the show with the least experience as a magician with these 4 other performers who had developed and perfected their acts over many years. I guess, coming to be a magician later in life, I felt like I was ‘catching up’ at the beginning and so I was very motivated to try things, see what worked and what didn’t and make my acts bigger and better as fast as I could. I just wanted to be GOOD more than anything in the world. Every iteration of my acts have got closer and closer to being more ‘me’ and that’s what makes it fun to perform and also makes the audience connect and relate more.
I try to stay inspired by seeing shows and movies, watching other performers (not necessarily other magicians) and listening to Pandora stations that introduce me to new music (still within my preferred styles). I’m always trying different lines here and there when I get an idea for something funny.
Ultimately, I’ve always had this desire to create and sometimes what I create ends up being a completely new routine or it flips an existing one or it just adds elements.
Some changes have come about through dealing with venue challenges. For example, when there were theaters on the tour that didn’t allow fire, I found a way to create a similar effect but using water instead. Both versions are custom made and so they also tick the very important box of being completely unique and ‘me’.
Performing in smaller shows in Vegas and Nashville has helped me grow exponentially as a performer. From altering, tweaking material for an adult-only, small venue, late night, 'Vegas' (sometimes very drunk) audience to getting to play with crowd work (and sometimes control), interacting differently with the rest of the cast onstage in my routines and theirs in terms of finding characters plus just being able to perform so consistently in the same venue (5 mins away from my house) and develop new routines- being able to try new things out in front of a real audience. I've also been able to get hired as a 'featured act' and ‘headliner’ in other shows and it's allowed me to see how different audiences have very different reactions and how I can adapt my acts without a video camera feed.
I've been able to create my own 20 minute set and then 30 minute set, which I'd never had to do before as my acts were always broken up throughout the ensemble magic shows. I constantly needed to add routines to meet the required length of the show or alter some elements to meet the needs of the style of venue/ type of audience. I created 2 new acts and now they are some of my favorites to perform.
You come from a professional dance background. Have you studied anything else magic-adjacent?
I studied musical theater (dancing, singing and acting) at college and also performed in musicals across the UK, USA and Dubai. I took art A-level in school and have always like to paint just for fun. Although now I get to design my own merch on thehexclubstore.com.
I truly believe everything I learnt from being a dancer, singer, actor, director, producer, artist and even an office assistant has made me a better performer. It is show BUSINESS after all- being a good performer is only a small percentage of the job!
Tea Party with Hollie
Do you remember the specific moment when you knew you could or wanted
to perform magic full time?
Magic has been the thing that has kept recurring in my life. It’s like the universe has been gently nudging me towards being a magician since I was a kid, when all I wanted was to be a dancer on the West End. Maybe that’s why I was able to achieve that goal early on (in a magic show no less), so I was then forced to find a new and bigger dream/ goal!
I always loved being the assistant or at least somehow assisting in the ‘magic effect’ as a dancer since I was on tour with Hans Klok back in 2008. I loved seeing ways to enhance the magic on stage while I was associate directing The Illusionists tours and Illusionarium.
I was originally asked to be a magician when I was producing but, at the time, felt like I had no business standing next to these giants in the industry that I hugely admired and had perfected their craft over decades. However, it definitely ignited a desire in me to at least consider the challenge. When these magicians were the ones telling me I should be a magician, I finally started to take it seriously (although it wasn’t until years later that I actually started to work on it).
I had some permanent injuries from being a dancer but I still very much wanted to perform. Everything about magic just felt right- I already had a pool of the best magicians, producers and directors in the world as close friends and colleagues, I had worked on ‘both sides of the table’ and so I felt the most prepared and abundant with resources. When I finally put out clips of me performing magic, the response was overwhelming.
What is your most memorable performance misadventure?
I feel like there have been many... Young and Strange leave a small puddle of water at the front of the stage in the one of their acts before mine and I happened to walk straight into it one show and completely fell over like a cartoon character.. with the closeup camera right on me. I think I naturally just bounce up again, but as I get older, it's harder to do!
What sets Champions of Magic apart from other touring ensemble magic
shows?
Our producer comes from a stand-up comedy background and also used to run a pyro company so… the show is very funny and as one article said ‘has more pyrotechnics than a KISS concert!’ We also all perform some acts together ‘Now You See Me’-style, we interact with each other, we all have very individual characters and personalities that feed and bounce off each other in the show. We don’t take ourselves too seriously!
Hollie striking a pose
Do you have any guilty pleasures while on tour?
Normally I have an ongoing D and D app game to stay connected with my partner. I watch a lot of the true crime YT channel ‘That Chapter’ if we are on the tour bus. I’m known for my morning ritual of making a bagel with a cup of tea. In Canada, I just have to go to Timmy Horton’s of course!
One imagines that it’s sometimes hard to leave the comforts of your home
for a lengthy tour. Do you bring a special something from home with
you?
My backpack is always full of British tea because that is one daily ritual that is mandatory! I also bring a blanket for travel- you never know when you’ll want is as a pillow on a plane, plus the company gets very divided on the optimal temperature on the bus!
Every performer experiences some level of post-show blues. Post-tour blues, we expect, are on a whole different level. Do you have any tips for touring entertainers with respect to re-entering one’s non-touring life, after an extended time away from home?
Try to maintain a routine and daily habits on tour and off. Eat healthy. Get good sleep. Take your vitamins and ashwagandha and magnesium. Get a massage. Go for walks. Exercise or do something active that makes you happy. Invest in self-care (cut your hair/ get a facial etc) If you can afford it, invest in a therapist. Journal. Meditate. Read. Allocate time to spend with friends/ family. Schedule things to look forward to.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with the readers of Canada’s
Magic?
Regardless of how many shows, or billboards or how much money I'm making, I ultimately just want to be creative, and weird and me. I'm trying to do things like no-one else does. As Marilyn Manson once said, 'The key is to change what is popular. That's why rather than submit to the mainstream, you have to become it- then overcome it.'
Thank you Hollie, for making the time to answer our questions!
This is the fifth in a series of interviews leading up to the
