Top 5 posts of June 2016

Again with the high number of duplicate-ish entries in this list, so to level out the playing field, here are the 10 most viewed posts at Canada's Magic this month:

10.  Montreal and Toronto: Let’s Make uberMAGIC - Did you participate?  How was the experience? 

9.  Diary of a Sorcerers Safari newbie - part 10 - The latest instalment of imaginary camper Alex's experiences at Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp. 

8.  Toronto: Fundraising for Fort McMurray - Shout out to all the magicians out there raising money for this good cause. 

7.  Diary of a Sorcerers Safari newbie - part 9 - In which we see Daryl get up close and personal with pie. 

6.  20 things you need to know about Sorcerers Safari - Who can tell me about the origins of "Farquhar Lake" mentioned in item 6? 

5.  Diary of a Sorcerers Safari newbie - part 6 - Camp photo! 

4.  Diary of a Sorcerers Safari newbie - part 7 - “Cheerleader" by Omi and "Love Is An Open Door" from Frozen.  Need I say more? 

3.  20 magical memories from Sorcerers Safari - Have you ever seen Lee Asher in an egg plant costume? 

2.  Chris Funk on America's Got Talent - Go Chris, go!

and the most viewed post this month  ...

1.  20 amazing alumni from Sorcerers Safari - Did you know that Neil Croswell (gold medal ‘Magic of China, International Magic Championships” 2015), Bill Cook (three-time award winner at the World Magic Seminar in Las Vegas), and Kelvin Kwong (first place Magi-Fest junior close-up, second place IBM junior close-up) have all attended?

Vancouver: 3 of clubs 2016

From the 3 of Clubs Convention:

Register today and join us on November 11th-13th, 2016 for our favourite I.B.M. Ring Reunion, the 3 of Clubs!

We’re bringing together some of our favourite talent and greatest friends we’ve met throughout the years we’ve spent travelling the magic convention circuit.

If you saw yourself in the photo above, we want YOU!  If you don’t see yourself there, we REALLY want you!

Come see what your West Coast magic family has to offer, and see what makes us one of the best magic communities in North America!

Read more and register.

Diary of a Sorcerers Safari newbie - part 10

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A camper's notebook.

Day 5: Tuesday August 18th*

Cheesy omelette breakfast.  I saw the rabbits again!  And I saw a bright green frog too.  Still no sign of the deer. 

At card class Shawn Farquhar talked to us about stuff I’d never considered.  He said, “give people a sense of wonder.  Don’t make them feel stupid or small.”  And then he said this quote from American poet Maya Angelou:   

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

We played “Capture the Flag” which was so. much. FUN!

6pm
The camper show was fantastic.  Before the show, Lee Asher made his group perform walk around for the audience.  They did really well. 

Pre-show walk around.

Then the show started.  Some of the kids performed things they just learned (or even made!) this week!  Others made stuff up and some came prepared with things they’d been working on the whole year.  Shout out to them all!

Emcees: Chaz and RJ.
Performers: Cathy, James, Brad, Matt, Tariq, Jordan, Ava, Vincent, Landon, Matthew, Nathan, Will, Ben, Jack, Nick, and Jeff.
Backstage: Simon, Holden, Serena, and Jarrett.
Sound and tech: Steve Kline (for this and all the other shows!).
Production assistants: Mike and Lisa Close, Dan Wiebe, and Mike Toal.

Owning the stage.

Sponge balls.

Something big is about to happen!

The coolest thing about the show was that everyone’s performance looked good.  Beginner kids went first so they didn’t have to go after someone who had more experience.  I don’t see any competition between the kids.  The adults want us all to shine. 

Today’s electives were Pulp Friction (with Lee himself!), linking rings, Gravity Half Pass (with Aaron Fisher!), Assistant’s Revenge stage illusion, Miser’s Dream, any card at any number, and Patriotic Ropes. 

Bill Wells and Sheldon Casavant talking coins.

I did the linking rings and was kinda surprised (and disappointed) to learn how they work.  It seems that some of the most wonderful effects are based on simple ideas.  Loran was a great teacher, but I’m going to have to practise a lot more until I feel comfortable doing it in front of anyone!

Rats. Camp swim got rained out.  (I wish I tried the high jump yesterday).  Silver lining: we all piled into the Staff Lounge and had a big impromptu panel with Shawn, Eric, Phil, and Mark.  They do things off the top of their head better than I can do anything I’ve rehearsed a million times.  I wonder how much of it is pure talent and how much of it is hours and hours of practise.

Shawn speaking at the panel.

To be continued ...


--
The 2016 season of Sorcerers Safari will run from Sunday August 7th through Friday August 12th, 2016. For more information, or to register, please visit SorcerersSafari.ca

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* The “Diary of a Sorcerers Safari Newbie” is primarily based on the 2015 camp season.  It is an aggregate of many perspectives, and at times includes events from previous years.

Vancouver: "UNBELIEVABLE: A Magical Experience"

The show will run at the PNE August 20 – September 5, 2016 (Closed Monday August 22 and 29).

From the Pacific National Exhibition website:

A world-class magical showcase not to be missed! Watch in amazement and witness grand illusions. Come and be thrilled as we present champions of magic! UNBELIEVABLE magic, comedy and breathtaking illusions - get a front row seat to a magical experience you will simply describe as UNBELIEVABLE!

From the stages of Las Vegas, Hollywood, and Shanghai, Unbelievable brings together some of the world's champion Magicians:

• International Award Winning, Canada's Master Illusionists, Murray Hatfield and Teresa present unbelievable magic, interactive comedy and jaw dropping, state-of-the-art illusions.
• Get ready to jump into the world of Magic and comedy with American comedian magician Matt Marcy who will leave you laughing and gasping in astonishment.
• From the United States, Scott Pepper will amaze you with his unbelievable talent, as he pays tribute to Houdini by attempting a version of an escape that would have made Harry Houdini himself nervous.
• Then to the Weird & Slightly Dangerous, Marty Putz who will bring the arena to it's feet in his world of whacky magic.
• Then be amazed by The First Lady of Magic, Juliana Chen, leading master of manipulation. Chen known around the world, and perhaps the best-known female magician today, will blow your mind.

Collectively, these world champion magicians have performed around the world and have come together to take you on a magical journey that is Unbelievable!

Read more and buy tickets.

Broken wand: Gordon McIntosh

From the Abby News:

McINTOSH, Gordon
It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Gordon McIntosh on June 17, 2016. Gord was a man of many talents, you could know Gord for his entire 67 years and you would still only scratch the surface of this great man. He was a proud man, who was pleased to call you his family or friend. Gord was predeceased by his wife Sheila and his son David. Gord leaves behind his two sons Chris (Tanya) & Anthony, his two step daughters Cheri (Dan) & Jennifer (Jeff), and his grandchildren Chandelle, Maizie-Skye, Elana, Carmin, Samuel, Bryan, Ryan, Eric & Austin. His love of magic brought his life so much joy and amazing friendships! Thank you to the VMC & FVMC for your friendship to Gord. It means a lot. Thank you to the Doctors and Nurses at the Abbotsford Hospital for all your hard work. Celebration of Life to be July 24. More details to follow.

Catching up with Discourse in Magic

Jonah Babins and Tyler Williams have been steadily producing podcasts since their launch in April.  Have a look at what they've released so far...


From Discourse in Magic:

Welcome to the Discourse in Magic podcast! This is where we tackle magic’s hardest issues, theories, philosophies, discussion, and more to help you explore.  We jump into all sorts of resources and most importantly actionable tips to help better the art and become a killer performer!

• Episode 11 – How to be a Great Teacher, Mentor and Student of Magic with Aaron Fisher and Adam Grace
  June 16th, 2016
• Episode 10 – Playing Card Innovation and Economy in the Era of Crowdfunding with Lee Asher June 9th, 2016
• Episode 9 – Community Month: Introduction Magic Shops, Camps and Friends June 2nd, 2016
• Episode 8 – Performing Tips for the Working Magician, From Restaurants to Big Illusions with Chris Westfall May 26th, 2016
• Episode 7 – Ethics and morals for the modern magician with Ben Train May 19th, 2016
• Episode 6 – Creating a fictional premise with conflicts and twist endings that rock May 12th, 2016
• Episode 5 – Designing magic for the screen and the stage with Patrick Kun May 5th, 2016
• Episode 4 – Improv and being open to change with Chris Mayhew April 29th, 2016
• Episode 3 – Personality, character and connecting with your audience with Eric Leclerc April 27th, 2016
• Episode 2 – Going viral, the Reddit secret, and Rubik’s cubes with Steven Brundage April 23rd, 2016
• Episode 1 – Introduction Episode April 20th, 2016

Read more and listen to podcasts.

Toronto: Browser's Back Room

How exciting! I look forward to visiting soon.

From the Browser's Den of Magic Facebook page:

Dear Magic Friends, 

Jeff Pinsky here. I hope that all is well. 

I am very pleased and excited to announce something new at Browser's Den. 

We have transformed the back room of Browser's Den (some 500 square feet) into a Collector's and Used Magic Centre! 

This new centre is open to you during our regular store hours. There you will find a treasure trove of both used and collectable magic at very low and reasonable prices. 

Read more.