Don’t be fooled when you see Port Coquitlam’s mayor at the first annual Magic Festival on Sunday.
Greg Moore will not only cut the ribbon for the inaugural event at Leigh Square Community Arts Village, he’ll also saw a woman in half.
“It’ll be my wife,” Maple Ridge resident and festival organizer Shawn Farquhar said. “It’s all in good fun.”
Moore will take to the stage at 2 p.m. on June 23 and will be followed by a free family magic show by the Vancouver Magic Circle, Canada’s largest magic group headed up by PoCo’s Alex Seaman.
Read more.
22 June 2013
Port Coquitlam’s mayor to saw a Farquhar in half
From the Tri-City News:
Chad Juros honored for cancer fundraising efforts
Chad Juros is a counsellor at Sorcerers Safari magic camp. Congratulations Chad and keep up the great work!
From Shore News Today:
[via Wayne Kawamoto]
From Shore News Today:
Egg Harbor Township resident Chad Juros was diagnosed with leukemia in 1991 at age 3. Four years later, he relapsed and spent 17 months in the cancer ward, during which time his father, Dr. Donald Juros, kept his spirits up by teaching him magic tricks.
Sadly, soon after he was released from the hospital, his beloved father was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor and passed away in 2000. In January 2003, Chad was once again confronted with grave illness, and when he recovered, he decided it was time to make his father’s dying wish his own living wish.
He founded the nonprofit Spread the Magic Foundation to fulfill his father’s hope that he would “continue to spread the magic around the world.” Today, Juros is an accomplished magician and inspirational speaker whose performances raise money for pediatric cancer care.
Read more.
[via Wayne Kawamoto]
21 June 2013
More Luminato 2013 reviews
From The Globe and Mail:
From Mooney on Theatre:
From Opus One Review:
Monday evening: George Brown House, an Ontario heritage building situated just south of the University of Toronto, is named, of course, after the distinguished Father of Confederation and founder of The Globe, the newspaper that became the newspaper you are reading. Normally off-limits to the great unwashed, Brown’s stately home was the venue chosen by Luminato’s go-to magic man, David Ben, to showcase the extraordinary legerdemain of American magician Steve Cohen.
The setting proved an apt backdrop for Cohen’s act, which owes a considerable debt to Johann Hofzinser, the 19th-century Austrian known as the father of card magic. At New York’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Cohen’s unofficial home, he typically entertains audiences of no more than 50. For the Toronto cohort, only slightly larger, the diminutive Cohen – nattily attired in morning coat, waistcoat and striped trousers – deftly stick-handled his way through a series of jaw-dropping tricks, each seemingly more difficult than the last.
Read more.
From Mooney on Theatre:
I straightened my bowtie and tucked in my pocket square this evening to see Steve Cohen perform his show Chamber Magic at George Brown House for Luminato, where the dress code is as fancy as the attendees (let’s just say that for this evening anyhow, his sobriquet The Millionaires’ Magician was well deserved). The show, a classic parlour magic display designed for close audiences, sent me running home to the interwebs to try to figure out how some of his tricks had been performed. I’ll say only this: even online, magicians are pretty tight-lipped.
The pleasure of a magic show is in allowing yourself to be amazed – and it’s nice to be able to stay amazed. Cohen’s skills are really a pleasure to watch as he performs of variety of tricks that are indeed bewildering and delightful. You understand that, on some level, something must be happening somewhere you can’t see it, but that feels beside the point for a moment (except to the gentleman sitting a bit in front of me, who murmured his guesses to his companion frequently). When the card is turned or the glass fills with the correct colour of liquid, we in the audience both expect it and cannot fathom it.
Read more.
From Opus One Review:
We enjoyed being fooled. We pay good money to people who can trick us. We long for the impossible, and what Miguel Puga does is impossible, but there it is.
To help us catch him in his onstage trickery while we are seated in an auditorium, Sr. Puga shows some of his illusions live on a big screen, so we can scrutinize his hands. For openers, he mixes a deck of cards, draws the Ace of Hearts out of the deck, mixes again and draws again, until he has ‘randomly’ drawn out all the hearts in sequence from deuce to King. While his assistant at the piano, Ms. Paz Sabater, plays Manuel de Fallas’ El Amor Brujo (Love, the Magician), Puga turns the cards face down and their backs spell out EL AMOR BRUJO. Impossible! How did he do it? I’ve no idea, but I want to see him do more ‘magic’. And he does.
Read more.
Toronto: Mentalist Mark Fletcher – Live
From Mark's website:
[via: Deborah Fallick]
Mark it down on your calendar folks! On Friday July 12th, 2013 An Evening with Mentalist Mark Fletcher will be taking the stage at the Al Green Theatre in Toronto for One Night Only! Tickets are on sale now. There are a limited number of seats available for this performance so be sure to get yours early.
Read more.
[via: Deborah Fallick]
20 June 2013
Keith Brown on CTV News
The clip of Keith was on the CTV London/Windsor: News at 6, June 16.
From Keith's Twitter feed:
From Keith's Twitter feed:
so apparently part of my @LondonFringe show made it onto @CTVLondon starts at 9:00 minute mark. crazy. http://t.co/YwKvUSyU3k
— Keith Brown (@KeithHBrown) June 17, 2013
Broken Wand: William Anderson
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 William Anderson. 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!
WILLIAM J. ANDERSON
The I.B.M. Headquarters recently learned that William J. (Bill) Anderson, 83, of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, died July 29, 2012 of cancer. His member number was 63254, and he had been a member since 2002. He became interested in magic as a teenager, and it became a life-long hobby. He was literally a jack of all trades, from a master plumber and welder, to a carpenter and furniture and antique restorer, He and his wife lived and traveled throughout Canada and the United States over their almost sixty-four years of marriage. Survivors include his wife, Phyllis; children Richard, Heather (Alex) Chiong, and Judith (Mike) Meyer; and grandchildren, Nora, Mark and Tina.
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WILLIAM J. ANDERSON
The I.B.M. Headquarters recently learned that William J. (Bill) Anderson, 83, of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, died July 29, 2012 of cancer. His member number was 63254, and he had been a member since 2002. He became interested in magic as a teenager, and it became a life-long hobby. He was literally a jack of all trades, from a master plumber and welder, to a carpenter and furniture and antique restorer, He and his wife lived and traveled throughout Canada and the United States over their almost sixty-four years of marriage. Survivors include his wife, Phyllis; children Richard, Heather (Alex) Chiong, and Judith (Mike) Meyer; and grandchildren, Nora, Mark and Tina.
19 June 2013
[Guest post] Steve Cohen Performs at Luminato
The following is a guest post from Ian Crawford.
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For years I have wondered what it would be like to attend one of Robert-Houdins' Soirée Fantastic. Steve Cohen brought the essence of Robert-Houdin to life last night at his Luminato performance in historic George Brown House in Toronto. First you must understand the setting. George Brown House is a national historic site, the home of a father of confederation and founder of the Globe newspaper. The Edwardian house has been perfectly restored to its former glory and is the ideal setting for a performance that celebrates parlour magic. And Steve Cohen is one of the few magicians with the presence, experience and passion to bring the parlour magic experience to near perfection.
Steve performed a mix of classic magic and mentalism that honoured past masters while acknowledging a twenty first century sensibility. A lifetime of study, 16 years of performances combined with an engaging intelligence and perfect diction makes Cohens' performances ideal for the Luminato audience. He expected an intelligent audience, and the tickets even suggested that suitable dress was "cocktail attire". In return Cohen performed 90 minutes of witty, engaging magic. He was also suitably attired in a modern morning suit with yellow waistcoat and aqua tie.
Cohen's magic was direct, simple, elegant and completely fried many of the magicians and all of the rest of the audience of more than 60. Beginning with a multiple card selection, he immediately engaged his audience. He invited the back rows to stand and others to come and surround him while he performed some coin vanishes culminating in a solid, real brick appearing under his hat. Appropriately, it was a reclaimed brick. He performed a classic linking finger rings with style and grace and engaged the audience with some predictions about the inscriptions inside the rings.
One of Cohen's trademark tricks is based on Hoffman's Think a Drink. While performed part way through the show, this could have easily been the closer. Five different drinks were predicted, poured and enjoyed by audience members, the last being poured by a volunteer. Cohen went out of his way to acknowledge and thank the volunteer for dressing appropriately, nice touch. His message was clear that an evening out should be an experience for all, in keeping with the setting.
Cohen finished his set with a map prediction and then went into some mentalism using billets and an unusually large journal. The mix of magic and mentalism was clearly a salute to Robert-Houdin, and Cohan engaged his audience constantly.
For his finalé, Cohen asked the audience to come closer and gather round to watch as he performed what I can only describe as a a two deck Triumph.
If you missed Cohen, you can always catch him in New York at the Waldorf Astoria in Chamber Magic.
Toronto is blessed to have a magic benefactor in the Slaight family who sponsored the evening. And David Ben and Julie Eng of Magicana should be thanked for bringing some of the best magic to Luminato year after year. Together they have elevated magic to a respectable place. Robert-Houdin would have been proud.
Ian Crawford
--
Thank you Ian for guest posting at Canada's Magic!
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For years I have wondered what it would be like to attend one of Robert-Houdins' Soirée Fantastic. Steve Cohen brought the essence of Robert-Houdin to life last night at his Luminato performance in historic George Brown House in Toronto. First you must understand the setting. George Brown House is a national historic site, the home of a father of confederation and founder of the Globe newspaper. The Edwardian house has been perfectly restored to its former glory and is the ideal setting for a performance that celebrates parlour magic. And Steve Cohen is one of the few magicians with the presence, experience and passion to bring the parlour magic experience to near perfection.
Steve performed a mix of classic magic and mentalism that honoured past masters while acknowledging a twenty first century sensibility. A lifetime of study, 16 years of performances combined with an engaging intelligence and perfect diction makes Cohens' performances ideal for the Luminato audience. He expected an intelligent audience, and the tickets even suggested that suitable dress was "cocktail attire". In return Cohen performed 90 minutes of witty, engaging magic. He was also suitably attired in a modern morning suit with yellow waistcoat and aqua tie.
Cohen's magic was direct, simple, elegant and completely fried many of the magicians and all of the rest of the audience of more than 60. Beginning with a multiple card selection, he immediately engaged his audience. He invited the back rows to stand and others to come and surround him while he performed some coin vanishes culminating in a solid, real brick appearing under his hat. Appropriately, it was a reclaimed brick. He performed a classic linking finger rings with style and grace and engaged the audience with some predictions about the inscriptions inside the rings.
One of Cohen's trademark tricks is based on Hoffman's Think a Drink. While performed part way through the show, this could have easily been the closer. Five different drinks were predicted, poured and enjoyed by audience members, the last being poured by a volunteer. Cohen went out of his way to acknowledge and thank the volunteer for dressing appropriately, nice touch. His message was clear that an evening out should be an experience for all, in keeping with the setting.
Cohen finished his set with a map prediction and then went into some mentalism using billets and an unusually large journal. The mix of magic and mentalism was clearly a salute to Robert-Houdin, and Cohan engaged his audience constantly.
For his finalé, Cohen asked the audience to come closer and gather round to watch as he performed what I can only describe as a a two deck Triumph.
If you missed Cohen, you can always catch him in New York at the Waldorf Astoria in Chamber Magic.
Toronto is blessed to have a magic benefactor in the Slaight family who sponsored the evening. And David Ben and Julie Eng of Magicana should be thanked for bringing some of the best magic to Luminato year after year. Together they have elevated magic to a respectable place. Robert-Houdin would have been proud.
Ian Crawford
--
Thank you Ian for guest posting at Canada's Magic!
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