Magician Nottingham – Magician, Wedding Tarot & Mind Reader

Saturday 24th March 2012 was the date for one of the best stage shows I have seen for a long time, featuring some of the world best illusionists, pickpockets, hypnotists and comedy performers! Up first was the extremely funny comedy contorsionist and escapologist – Criss Cross who compered throughout the evening and really got the crowd going. This man has a hugely polished act which was genuinely funny using original material and working with some comedy clasics of magic. His contorsions were both disgusting and incredible at the same time – interspersed with smatterings of genuine humor and comedy!

Up next was the incredible self-titled ‘Professional Opportunist’ aka. Jame Brown mixing hypnotism with a fresh and original pickpocketing routine. The two blended excellently together with the hypnotism being fantastic to watch and hugely enjoyable with comedy yet again. ‘James’ Brown’s’ return to the stage was unfortunately, a return to more classic magic / mentalism which in comparison was duller but still enjoyable.

The final act of this medley was of course Amethyst. Having consulted for the Sherlock series, BBC1 magicians and various other prestigigious clients, their stage act was something of a treat, with me being asked to join them on stage – the proverbial ‘cherry on top’. What did I do on stage you may be wondering……well, I did the simple task of balancing a large watermelon on my belly for Daniel Hunt – the male half of Amethyst to proceed in cutting the melon in two using a very very sharp samurai sword, swung at full speed from behind his back. I felt a dull thud and the applause which greeted the melon breaking in two. Their act then undulated to a more darker direction with a contraption which would still naturally in a Saw movie.

The event, which was organised by the Nottingham University Magic Society was a huge success with about 500 people in the audience. The two and half hours of magic flew by, and the friends I went with also had a fantastic time. Put this in your diary for next year, but until that date, if ever you needed larger scale illusions for you wedding, event or celebration then Amethyst are your guys!!! http://www.amethyst-illusions.com

In a change of pace from my earlier blog posts, I thought I would share the history of magic with my readers and the bits and bobs which have formed our very existence as magicians.

Magicians come in many guises – conjurors, close-up magicians, mentalists, mind-readers, hypnotists, tricksters, escape artists and many other names. Essentially we are illusionists and at the very core – entertainers.

Magic is a derivative of the ancient Greek word for magic – ‘Magika’ which also has foundations in the Persian word for priest; Magosh. Throughout history there have been many demonstrations of magic – from the bible we have turning water into wine, crossing the red sea and feeding thousands with only a few loaves of bread and fish.

This form has been mimicked in a unique and often gory way – by British magicians Barry and Stuart from Scotland – and even performed on their own TV show replicating biblical miracles.

Back to the echelons of history and we find ourselves in 1584 with the first book written on the subject of magic – ‘The Discoverie of Witchcrafte’ by Reginald Scot. This book – now very rare fetches thousands of pounds at auctions. Perhaps the most expensive book of the modern era of magic is the book ‘The magic of Robert Harbin’ whose first edition similarly fetches thousands of pounds at auction. However, if you wanted to know the secrets of the classic stage illusions such as the ‘Zigzag lady’ this would be the best and first point of call.

The grandfather of modern magic also goes by the name of Robert – Robert Houdin, who lived from 1805 till 1871 and demonstrated his skills as a conjuror in Paris theatres during the 1840s. His surname was eventually coined by Harry Houdini – a master of stage illusions and creating suspense. It was his escapology acts which gained him the most notoriety. Be it from escaping from milk cans, from strait jackets or underwater – Houdini was a master of deception and would secrete the small pins around his body to help ensure his escape. Houdini died in unfortunate circumstances. He regularly challenged people to throw their greatest punch at his stomach and he would resist the punch have first buckled over, would stand tall and proud taking a bow and his rightful applause.

One day, upon taking a pre-performance nap – Houdini was taking a nap and he was punched in his stomach. Suffering internal bleeding – he made one last performance on stage before collapsing in front of a gasping, open-mouthed audience.

Over the years, and partly due to the advent of TV, theatre goer numbers dwindled and a new era of TV magicians was ushered in, led by performers such as Harry Blackstone, David Copperfield, Penn and Teller, Siegfried and Roy and in more recent years – David Blaine, Dynamo, Paul Zenon and British mind illusionist – Derren Brown. Many of these artists still ply their trade on the stage and for them, is the most enjoyable part of being a performer. Magic is still going strong and with Harry Potter, gracing our cinema and TV screens, magic and the wonder surrounding it, continues to blossom. The future is bright, exciting and magical.

With the 'frozen planet' looming this Christmas......

The festive season is virtually upon us, and as Christmas trees are decorated and the odd mince pie is eaten to re-introduce our taste buds to the flavour of Christmas, magic dances with the fog and snow flakes in the air!

As people’s minds begin to wander to this years’  staff party, entertainment is something which is also considered.

Mini discos for parties always go down well with the kids!!

One of the most popular ‘add on’s’ to my kids’ magic parties is the mini disco I offer.

This can range from 45 minutes to 2 hours of disco music, fun and games which include muscial games, pass the parcel, parachute games, dancing and quizzes.

This weekend takes me to London; home of some great street magicians and working professionals today!

If you require a London magician (pigeons not included) please check out me London Magic page…..

http://www.magicduncan.co.uk/london-magician.html

My last illusion was a street magic effect (left) involving 4 kids’ and plenty of rain. They were returned to their trainers after their mothers’ had had an afternoon of peace and relaxation.

If you are interested in stress-free magic parties, then check out my kids’ page…..

http://www.magicduncan.co.uk/childrens-entertainer.html