Reviews: Luminato 2013

From Musical Toronto:

Luminato failed to show its hand with the first of its magic-themed shows, which opened at Mazzoleni Hall on Friday night. The title is Concerto for Piano and Pasteboards. It’s a fine show.  But it has almost nothing to do with pianos and everything to do with card tricks.

It’s a short, sweet magic show where the assistant doesn’t mutely stand at the magician’s side in a sequined suit but plays a grand piano instead.

Read more.

From Torontoist:

When Miguel Puga first spoke after performing a couple of introductory card tricks, it was in part to apologize for his broken English. The Spaniard, known also as MagoMigue (yes, that’s pretty much Spanish for Magic Mike), may not have the greatest command of the language, but he then proceeded to prove his assertion, as trite as it may sound, that magic possesses a universal power that can transcend ordinary communication. Blessed with a naturally funny presence and an undeniable gift for showmanship, Puga’s expert card manipulations were every bit as impressive as the apparent telepathic abilities he put to good effect on more than one occasion.

Read more.

From The Star:

By Miguel Puga & Miguel Aparicio. Presented by Luminato. To June 16. Mazzoleni Hall, 273 Bloor St. W. 416-368-4849 (luminatofestival.com) 

The piano gets equal billing in Miguel Puga and Miguel Aparicio’s show Concerto for Piano & Pasteboards, being presented in the opening days of Luminato. But this is really all about 90 minutes of Puga’s magic tricks, not the art of the keyboard.

Read more.

[via Sharing Wonder]

The secret's out!

From the Sorcerers Safari Facebook page:

Many parents & friends who do not attend camp are left wondering just how/why/what makes camp so awesome that their kids actually get a job so they can come back the next year. Here is a GREAT article written by Nicole Lee that outlines just what we do in the woods of Ontario for a week every summer and why it works!

Get it FREE at www.vanishmagazine.com
You'll want to click on 'Edition 8' and head to page 98 for the goods.

The article in Vanish Magazine has some awesome photos taken by Carey Lauder that summer, which really add to the text that you may have previously seen.

Murray Sawchuck on Hallmark and TLC in June

From iTricks:

Murray Sawchuck will be popping up on your television a few times in the next few weeks. As you see above, he will be cooking and doing magic for Marie Osmond on her Hallmark Channel talk show June 17th.

Read more.

The Dave Attwood Show

Check out the Dave Attwood Show, where Dave interviews folks like Murray Hatfield, Jason Verners, Rafael Benetar, Michael Machek, Shawn Farquhar, Dirk Losander, JC Sum, Richard Turner and Matthew Johnson.

Mike Segal on The Magic Broadcast tonight!

That's 9:30 Eastern Standard Time!

Ep.2 of @aaronfishercard's radio show Card Man tonight @ 6:30pmPST w/ special guest @MagicMikeSegal ! #CampStories http://t.co/YvPnX7ehEb
— Sorcerers Safari (@SorcerersSafari) June 13, 2013

[Guest post] Keith Brown - Exchange

The following is a guest post from James Alan.

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Keith Brown - Exchange
June 7 - 16, 2013, various times
The London Fringe Festival
@The ARTS Project, 203 Dundas St (map)

There are two things that will get me to drive 200km to London and one of them is Keith Brown. (I won't tell you what the other one is, because whatever you're imagining right now is probably much cooler.)

Full Disclosure: Keith is a friend, we recently participated in a magic competition together where he beat me by two percentage points. He's also performed for Abracadabaret in the past and will be joining us again at the end of the month.

I have also done magic shows at the Fringe and I know they can be very stressful. Your entire show has to be set up, on stage, ready to go, usually in about fifteen minutes, and you have to clear the stage completely after every show and start from scratch every time.

I went to see the show with Nick Wallace, who's created three distinct shows for the Fringe over the years. As the doors closed, we looked around us and couldn't see a single empty seat. I leaned over and whispered, "Have you ever seen anyone sell out a late Monday night Fringe show?" "No, have you?" "No." Awkward silence.

I've seen Keith's show twice before, once at the Fringe and once as a self mounted production. Half of the show was new, which is not saying much because the 45 minute show only contains five pieces. It's all mentalism except for Houdini's Needle Swallowing trick.

Still, at that relaxed pace, there's no sense that anything drags. There's an innocent youthful charm that pervades everything. And even though he's swallowing needles, everything is in good taste, even the fart joke.

The title of the show, "Exchange", is apt because the audience participation makes the show and most of the applause goes to those who are chosen and volunteer. There are also several gentle nudges for participants to push their comfort zone, including one audience member drinking pure white vinegar.

While the show itself is fun and moves along at a good pace, it's not much to look at. Keith is wearing a charcoal suit on a stage with black chairs, a table with a black cloth on a black floor in a room with black curtains and black walls. The only colour in the show come from his tie, the blue latex gloves and the the carrot (it's not what you think.) But I realize the bare bones blank box feel is part of Fringe. If you want bright and colour full, The ARTS Project is also a cool little gallery which you can wander around before and after the show.

If London's not too far out of your way, go see this. Although, if Monday night is any indication, it looks like tickets for the last three shows will be hard to come by.

Three shows left:
June 14 - 5:00 PM
June 15 - 9:30 PM
June 16 - 3:00 PM

Tickets $15 ($10 if you have a London Fringe Backer Button)

Note that the Fringe operates under very strict rules and latecomers will not be admitted.

-James Alan

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Thank you James for guest posting at Canada's Magic!

Broken wand: Andrew Philip

Recently we were notified by Dennis Schick, the editor of the Broken Wand in the International Brotherhood of Magician's magazine, The Linking Ring, of the passing of Andrew Philip. Dennis is graciously allowing me to pass this on to you. 

 

Dennis also pointed out that the more ALL of us share news and information about magic with the REST of us, the better off the entire magic community will be. 

 

I take this opportunity to ask you to not just ASSUME that we already know about some magic news that YOU hear about. Please tell us about it. We would always rather hear some news SEVERAL times rather than not at all!

 

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Andrew Philip

 

Andrew (Andy) William Philip, 50, of Unionville, Ontario, Canada, died February 16, 2013. He was a former member of the I.B.M. (1986-2000). A high school math teacher introduced him to magic, and they became life-long friends. Although diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease as a teenager, he was never without cards and coins everywhere he went. He was a finance manager at I.B.M. Canada for seventeen years until his health prevented him from working any longer. With magic he was obsessed with presentation and crafting scripts, and he loved performing for children, especially at the family cottage in Port Elgin. Survivors include his wife of twenty-four years, Kim, and their children David and Danielle.