19 June 2014

Classifieds: Sale on Magic Props and Clown Supplies

The following is a classified ad from Chris Van Krieken:

--

ONE-DAY SALE OF MAGIC PROPS & CLOWN SUPPLIES

I have been a clown and children's entertainer in Toronto for about 18 years. I need to clean my closets!!

I am selling tons of magic props, clown supplies, costumes, and books. I will also be selling one of my bunnies to a good owner.

Here are the details:
THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 2014
12 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Chris Van Krieken
Suite 807, 80 Inverlochy Blvd
Thornhill, ON
L3T 4P3

DOOR CODE: Please call ahead or e-mail for door code.
PHONE: (416) 702-2106



Sheldon Casavant on Global News

Watch Sheldon Casavant on Global News:


18 June 2014

James Alan on Beyond the Mundane

The Uncertainty Project by James Alan opens tonight.

From  Reality Based Magic:
On Friday, May 31, I was on Beyond the Mundane hosted by Elsie Lynn Leyland and Randi St.Claire. It’s a very long interview and we cover a wide range of topics from magic, belief and disbelief. But mostly we’re talking about The Uncertainty Project. You can “watch” the interview here, even though this is supposed to be radio.


17 June 2014

Hamilton-Brantford Exchange: Change of Location!

From Ring 49:
Good Evening Members & Friends of Hamilton IBM Ring #49:

Sorry for the short notice, but I have just been advised that the original location for Tuesday night’s exchange meeting place in Brantford has been changed due to a double booking of the facility.

Read more.

Montreal: Steve Valentine lecture

From Montreal Magic Jam:
Steve Valentine
When:Saturday June 21
Where: Espace La Risée
1258 Bélanger Est, Montréal

In 2013, actor and two-time Magic Castle Close-up Magician of the Year, Steve Valentine presented his first ever-lecture at the Magic Castle, and he tipped EVERYTHING. Not just his original effects, but also real-world handlings and classic tricks almost lost in oblivion. Now a year later, Steve has won The Magic Castle’s 2013 Lecturer of the Year award, and has even more to share.

Read more.


[via Magic Information Canada]

16 June 2014

Keith Brown wins London Fringe Impresario

Congratulations on winning the Impresario Keith!

From Theatre London:
The 2014 Fringe Awards were announced at tonight’s Fringe Fried awards ceremony. The “TiLees” baseball caps, featuring a new logo designed by Walter Sayers, were presented in eight categories; the first five, selected by Theatre in London.ca’s team of volunteer reviewers, went to:

Read more.

And from Keith Brown's Twitter feed:

14 June 2014

Toronto: Luiz Castro coin class

From the Browser's Den of Magic:
LUIZ CASTRO FREE MAGIC COIN CLASS AT 'BROWSER'S DEN' ON: Saturday, June 28th
Luiz recently won the A1 Radio Toronto Magic Competition coming in first place amongst the other worthy competitors. Luiz's act consisted of excellent stage manipulation.

Read more.


[via Magic Information Canada]

13 June 2014

Luminato round-up

From The Star:
At a magic show, audiences wonder if they can trust their eyes. But are the conjurers themselves believable? As part of the Luminato Festival, we ask some magicians if they can be trusted.

Read more.

From The Globe and Mail:
Sitting at a table covered with a red felt cloth in his Toronto studio, magic producer David Ben demonstrates how a magician shuffles cards.

To the spectator sitting across from him, it looks innocuous enough, but lean up beside him and he’ll show you that he can see the face of every card as he fans through the pack with his fingers. Oh, there’s a queen. He stops and cuts the deck, placing the queen on the bottom.

Read more.


David Ben on CP 24.


Magicana blog posts in reverse chronological order:









Sawchuck's 2nd anniversary

Happy anniversary Murray!

From Strip LV:
Congrats go out to Murray “Celebrity Magician” Sawchuck, in celebration of his 2nd Anniversary of his show at The Laugh Factory inside Tropicana Las Vegas. Also there to celebrate with Murray were his parents John and Arlene Sawchuk, as well as tons of Vegas celebrities to show their admiration and support

Read more.

Last month, iTricks posted a podcast with Murray.  Listen here.

12 June 2014

The EH-Team lectures: now with more dates!

From Chris Mayhew's Twitter feed:


11 June 2014

Bill Abbott on the cover of Vanish

You're planning on moving, Bill?  Say it ain't so!


From Bill Abbott's Twitter feed:


Read the wonderful article at Vanish.

10 June 2014

David Ben on CP24

From David Ben's Twitter feed:

David Ben on Bill King Show

From Magicana's Twitter feed:

09 June 2014

The Magic Festival 2014

Who answered the call for performers for this year's Magic Festival in Vancouver?

From The Magic Festival:
2nd Annual MAGIC Festival June 21 – 27, 2014
  • June 21:  Purple Pirate magic show
  • June 22:  Chris Yuill - Comedy Magic
  • June 23:  Fraser Valley Magic Circle
  • June 24:  Bryn Williams - Close Up Cards and Cons 
  • June 24:  Close Up Matt's - Evening of Mystery           
  • June 25:  Magic's Best Kept Secrets
Read more.

And posters of the events from Facebook:












08 June 2014

Darcy Oake shocks audience!

From Metro
Magician Darcy Oake certainly doesn’t do things by halves. The daredevil Canadian is so determined to win Britain’s Got Talent that he put his own life at risk during the live show.

After being securely strapped in to a straight jacket, he was then suspended upside down above the stage in an open bear trap with just 53 seconds in which to escape. Oh, did we mention that rope holding the bear trap was on fire? 
Read more and watch video.

From CTV News:
WINNIPEG -- As Winnipeg magician Darcy Oake dangled upside-down and wriggled to escape a hinged trap with spikes that threatened to impale him, the audience members and judges of Saturday's finale of "Britain's Got Talent" were on the edge of their seats.

Oake, 26, debuted on the variety show contest with a dazzling display of slight-of-hand [sic] tricks with doves, which wowed even notoriously blunt judge Simon Cowell.

Read more

The EH-Team lectures: Tyler Wilson & Chris Mayhew Double Header!

Updated June 11 to add this from Chris Mayhew's Twitter feed:


Thursday June 19th - Tyler Wilson & Chris Mayhew Double Header! 
Lectures aren't dealer demos. Lectures are a place to get passionate about magic - teaching, sharing, exploring and pushing our craft forward. On Thursday, June 19th, welcome two of Canada's most creative magicians for a special double lecture to do just that. Tyler Wilson and Chris Mayhew are on the forefront of today's thinking. They hit hard, have fun, and most importantly, they care. This is why some of the most respected names in magic have publicly given praise, such as Stephen Minch, Max Maven, Eric Mead, and Jason England, just to name a few.

Read more and buy tickets.

From the Northwest Ring of Fire:
June 21st, 2014
Tyler Wilson Lecture with special guest Chris Mayhew  
Read more

07 June 2014

Review: Magic at the Comedy Nest

Magicians had a real treat last Sunday evening, if they managed to get into the Comedy Nest. Although there were magicians who came to see the show, most of the audience was comprised of lay people. 
David Acer was the M.C. and was his usual funny self.

Loran, from Quebec City, had a beautiful act, serious, artistic and a pleasure to watch.

Vincent Pimpare did a comedy hynotism act. It was an unexpected break from the usual hypno act and had the audience laughing, so it fit right into the Comedy club setting.

Richard Sanders did a great bill to lime with a lot of hilarious detours along the way. He has a way of making the audience feel as if he is really one of us. He connects well.

Romaine. What can I say about Romaine.  Dressed in tails and a top hat, and slightly tipsy, (part of the routine, of course) he wowed the audience with his continuous production of cards, multiplying billiard balls, and the real magic of Vaudeville days, which mosts of the audience had never seen and they showed their appreciation.

Jonathan Burns did some very funny stuff. My favorite was Cards Across with cheese slices (you know the ones, wrapped in cellophane) instead of cards. Funny stuff. 
And then there was the audience.

Read more.

06 June 2014

Review: Keith Brown's The Deception Hour

You can tell from the first moment that Keith loves his work and loves magic. In a typical review I would talk about the plot, the actors, the structure of the play, but I don’t want to do that here. Friends, magic is about mystery, and I don’t want to ruin the mystery. Suffice it to say that Keith Brown is charming, the magic is gob-smackingly clever, and the performance is filled with moments where you cringe in horror at what he’s doing and moments that make you say “Wow!”

Read more.

Victoria Ahearn on Darcy Oake

Victoria Ahearn of The Canadian Press has a piece run in The Toronto Star, the National Post and on CTV News.

From The Toronto Star:
Winnipeg magician Darcy Oake says he’s planning “a very dangerous piece” for Saturday’s finale of Britain’s Got Talent as he competes for the top prize.

“The way we’re doing it, it’s risky — big time,” the 26-year-old said this week in a telephone interview from London. “But I feel like each piece needs to be bigger than the last one, and this is kind of the only way to close out the show for me.”

Read more.

05 June 2014

Toronto: Browser's magic club special guest

From the Browser's Den Facebook page:
This Saturday June 7, 2014 at Browser's Den is our next FREE MAGIC CLUB MEETING.The club meets at the shop from 2:30pm until about 5:00pm. All welcome!!! 
And please set aside the date Saturday, June 28 as we have a special Free Magic Class that will be taking place at the shop by the 2014 A1 Radio Toronto Magic Champion LUIZ CASTRO!!! More details to follow about this free magic class to follow over the next several days.