Welcoming a new Friend: Peter Mennie

Please join me in welcoming our newest friend, Peter Mennie!

Based out of London, Ontario, Peter is a long-time reader of (and contributor to) the blog. Prior to The Great Pause, Peter would often be found performing at Ontario resorts or working behind the scenes with local theatre groups.  He was also regularly featured on Roger's Daytime London.

Visit Peter's website at PeterMennie.ca and follow Peter on Facebook, on Twitter @PeterMennie, or on Instagram @PeterMennie.

Thank you Peter, for befriending Canada's Magic! 

A Night in with Lucy Darling

A great chance to witness the charm and magic of Lucy Darling, the recipient of the 2019 AMA Stage Magician of the Year award! Shows for this run start September 25 until October 4th and are available at TheLucyDarling.com.

If her current show is half as much fun as her May 15th live stream, it will be excellent!

 

From The Lucy Darling:

“VERDICT: highly recommended for a very magical, entertaining and comical interlude to the current uncertain times. Be sure to (virtually) invite Lucy Darling into your home for refreshing hour of fun, magical entertainment.”

Lucy Darling is an award-winning magician known the world over for her wit, her charm, and her exceptionally good hair.

Along with her live-in butlers Marcy and Laurence, Lucy is here with a wonderful mix of playful interactions, hilarious comedy, and impossible magical feats, to offer you an incredible immersive experience. This show was carefully designed to satisfy your deep desire for a fun night out, while staying safely inside.

 

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We are really proud of how far we've come with this show. A mix of Papier-mâché, LED lights, corrugated plastic and literal garbage. Our little show that could. Get tix here https://www.thelucydarling.com/

A post shared by Carisa Hendrix & Lucy Darling (@carisahendrix) on Sep 11, 2020 at 1:34pm PDT

 

 

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If you liked our little infomercial spoof video for the show, here are some bloopers & deleted clips.

A post shared by Carisa Hendrix & Lucy Darling (@carisahendrix) on Sep 9, 2020 at 2:06pm PDT

 

 

 

 

 

 

Random thoughts about "Piff Live from Las Vegas"

Last Saturday, my family participated in "Piff Live from Las Vegas."  I say "participated in" because it is a truly interactive experience!

Piff with A, a very happy volunteer.
I think I heard A say, "This is so cool, he picked me!"
Photo credit: Piff

Here are some random thoughts that came to mind while watching "Piff Live from Las Vegas":

• It is an unexpected treat to see Piff perform live from Vegas, without having to shell out for airfare and accommodations.
• Great view of the show, no one kicking my seat from behind, adjustable audio, no traffic, and free parking!
• The show is suitable for the whole family.
• It is packed with comedy, mentalism, and magic!
  
• Jade works really, really hard!  
• So do Francis, Alex, and of course Mr. Piffles.
    
  
• The show takes audience interaction to a whole new level!  
There's an increased likelihood of spending time on the big screen if:
- your preschoolers / puppets / stuffies / dragons / pets like dancing to Funky Town!
- you choose to participate in the scavenger hunts
• There's the standard interaction of volunteers to assist with tricks.  
• Combined with the excitement of a scavenger hunt.  
• Plus trivia (for iPhone users).  
• Top it all off with the roving fan camera concept done at sporting events, where anyone with their camera on can be featured on the "big screen!"
   
• Never fear, no one is forced to participate.
• There are sometimes prizes for volunteers!
  
• Volunteer selection is done very creatively.
• Volunteers appear "up on stage" with the dragon himself.
• For the magicians:
  
• Piff weighed in on "art vs craft".
• Quick demo of a recent release by Richard Young. 
• Increased shot at prizes if you know your David Copperfield and / or Piff trivia.

  

Get your tickets to
"Piff Live from Las Vegas"

PayPerPiff.com
HowToBookYourDragon.com
SeePiffLive.com
PiffLiveInLasVegas.com
OnlyDragons.com
WatchPiff.com

Here's what others had to say about the show:

Enjoyed the @thepiff show tonight via Zoom. Good fun! Hope Mr Piffles is OK, he seemed kinda pooped out.

— Cam Bennet (@CamBennet) September 20, 2020

@pennjillette & @MrTeller Thanks for introducing us to @thepiff. He was a guest in our living room yesterday and couldn't have been more delightful. Thanks, Piff; love to you, @MrPiffles, and Jade!

— Scott Rylander (@rylander94) September 20, 2020

 

 

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We have had several (7) requests for a show for the UK. So we added one. Also, we’re actually almost sold out tonight and tomorrow, as opposed to when we say that even though we have like 1500 tickets left. So if you want to come this weekend get your tickets now. Like literally now. Link in bio. 🐲 • P.s. what do you think of our fancy redesigned poster 🐲 @jadecomedy • #piffthemagicdragon #piff #magic #magician #magicdragon #dragon #comedyshow #magicshow

A post shared by Piff The Magic Dragon (@piffthemagicdragon) on Sep 18, 2020 at 12:42pm PDT

 

Disclosure:  My family and I were guests at this show. The opinions expressed above are entirely my own. I did not receive compensation for the writing or the publishing of this article.

 

 

 

 

Toronto: Mind | Matter

From the September 10th Instagram post from Beyond Mental Borders:

We return for our first stage performance in 7 months and can’t wait to share Mind|Matter with you!
.
Click “Get Tickets” on our page to get yours. 

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✨We’re baaaaack in 2 weeks with a brand new show! Tickets on sale tomorrow at 10am✨ . We return for our first stage performance in 7 months and can’t wait to share Mind|Matter with you! . Click “Get Tickets” on our page to get yours. Use code BEYOND for presale access 🎟 . CC: @spacespacerevolution

A post shared by Beyond Mental Borders (@beyondmentalborders) on Sep 10, 2020 at 7:00am PDT

Miranda Allen vs straitjacket

From the September 8th Facebook post from Miranda Allen Entertainment:

Hanging by her ankles 20 feet in the air, Miranda must escape from a straitjacket , free her feet, and find her way to the floor in three minutes.  The escape is hastened by the Specter of Consequences, Carisa Hendrix, and hoisted by Chris The Rigging Guy.

If you'd like to watch the consequences of this escape, go to: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDnyZycofes

Thank you to Fringe Theatre Adventures in Edmonton for hosting us.

Thank you to our September 2020 Friends!

Thank you to John Harrison, Richard Lyn, Joan Caesar, Ian Crawford, Matt DiSero, Gwyn Auger, Doug Hunt, David Johnson, John Smithman, Richard Hough, Robin Dawes, Eric Bedard, and Loran for being Friends of Canada's Magic!

It's good to have friends like you.

You too can Be Our Friend for only $20 per year! 

Donations of any size are always welcome.

 

Toronto: Mysterion Store Visit & Cryptid Book Test

From the September 10th Facebook post by Jeff Pinsky:

(Limit of 5 people in Store at a time)

The Cryptids - $80 (SPECIAL PRICE!)

Mysterion has been telling us about this idea for some time, and it's finally happened! And he's got a special offer for you! Have you ever wanted to read minds? This book will give you that power. 

Combining several different book test methodologies into a compact prop, The Cryptids is a miracle just waiting to happen! Here's some of what you can do with it:
 

• Have any long word remembered, and slowly reveal the word letter by letter! This is the Mother-of-All Book Tests concept.
   
• Have a word peeked at and instantly know it (variation of the flashback principle)
   
• Ability to force a word and have it appear on a freely selected page
   
• Reveal that you knew which Cryptid from a list of 100 in the book you knew would be 'randomly' selected
   
• With a map of locations for famous Cryptids, they can take a journey to these exotic places yet you always know where they've ended up!

You get all of these great magic methods and more! The book can actually be examined and read. Also, by using a larger font you don't have to worry about your spectator not being able to see the word they've chosen. And the subject of the book is one that appeals to all ages and performing venues. Mysterion will be demonstrating the book during his visit and answering any questions you might have. He's also offered us a GREAT DEAL! The book normally retails for $99 US, but he's offering it to you for only $80 Canadian! That's a significant saving!

We look forward to seeing you!