magic is about honesty
everything here is true
except for the bits I made up
This Tuesday night, I'm doing a table-side magic in Downtown Toronto at an incredible magic-themed
Tuesday, July 25 starting at 7:00 PM
at The Lockhart (1479 Dundas St. W.)
It's free to get in and you get to enjoy their menu. If you're in the area, come by and see some magic.
This Saturday, July 22, at SpiritHouse in Toronto, we're having a very special Magic & Martini. I'll be joined by two special guests The Evasons.
Jeff & Tessa Evason
Jeff and Tessa Evason are the world's premiere mind reading duo. Having seen them work their magic live, that's a title that doesn't even begin to do them justice. Their abilities will leave your minds blown and your gasts flabbered.
They work primarily in the United States now, but are originally from Canada. My entire life in magic I came up hearing about what they could do and it always sounded too good to be true. (Then I saw them live and they surpassed the hype.)
Magic & Martini doesn't normally feature guests a special opportunity presented itself, and I couldn't turn down the honour. This is truly a one-night-only opportunity that will never come again. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to it!
If you don't now who the Evasons are, you can take a look at their appearance last year on Penn & Teller: Fool Us. The non-silent one declared their performance "Just Breathtaking!"
The show is at SpiritHouse, located in downtown Toronto at the corner of Adelaide and Portland. Before the show, you have a chance to sit down and explore their amazing cocktail menu
And if you're managed to read this far, use the code secrets when booking your tickets for an discount!
There were some people who simply knew how not to take themselves too seriously! I remember watching the 1960s Batman too young to know that it was intended to be silly.
Last night, we had a fantastic sold out Magic & Martini at SpiritHouse in downtown Toronto. Thank you to everyone who attended. The energy in the room was truly electric.
Next weekend, we have a private event so there will be no show, but join us for our next performance in Toronto n July 22. Readers can use the discount code secrets to save on tickets purchased online.
If you missed it, here are some photos from the show from Tyler Sol Williams.
Last night, I had the chance to see David Blaine (in concert?) in Hamilton. I've always had a tremendous amount of respect for David, although being tightly entwined with the magic community, there has always been a thing that the cool kids do of criticizing those performers who are immensely more successful than they are, usually for totally arbitrary reasons.
But twenty years ago, his first TV special, Street Magic, redefined close-up magic for the twenty-first century. Through my work with Magicana, I built an online video archive called the Screening Room. The centrepiece of that archive is over thirty hours of footage from an Canadian TV magic series called The Magic Palace where many of the best known magicians of the 1970s appeared as guests. At the moment, I believe I'm still the only person who has watched all of the footage and it's performed in a particular style, appropriate to its time. Now, close-up magic looks nothing like that and I believe that's largely due to David's influence.
An entire generation took his specials as the model for how magic needed to be done (whether they understood what he was doing or not.) So of someone under the age of 35 now tries to show you a piece of close-up magic, chances are they are "doing" David Blaine for you.
Now, full disclosure, many of us bought tickets to the show expecting to be disappointed. He is, after all, a close-up performer, and this was a theatre of over a thousand seats. There was some serious skepticism as to whether or not he could pull it off. Either, the show would just be too small, or in order to do larger pieces, he would have to have to present Vegas-style grand illusions which would just ring false.
Instead of disappointment, we got a religious experience. (And for me that's saying something!) Since the tour continues, I should avoid spoiling things. Although if you have seen the TV specials, you will recognize large parts of the show. Perhaps parts of the show which you thought could only be performed in the extremely controlled conditions of a television shoot, where you can re-shoot and edit to your heart's content. Those people will find out very quickly that David is, in multiple ways, the real deal.
Half way through holding his breath under water.
This is the only part of the performance where photography was permitted. One of the things that made this evening astonishing was the tremendous sense of calm, stillness and focus that he brings to the stage. Anything and everything he does becomes enrapturing and you find yourself unable to do anything but sit there and watch what he's doing. Even when what he's doing is nothing. I've heard people say they would buy a ticket to go listen to James Spader read a phone book. You could buy a ticket to watch David Blaine just stand there.
That counter shows five minutes and one second. He did make it slightly past the ten-minute mark. There was a very strange tension in the room. It was, I believe, that the entire room knew they were about to give him a standing ovation, but were waiting for permission to do so. While he was deprived of oxygen, the audience was being deprived of its ability to react. And, as can clearly be seen, part of it was probably the unwillingness to put down the phones.
Perhaps the sea of lights, is the new standing O. (Unfortunate that it's practically invisible to the performer on stage.
The other magic trick of the night... thank you Hamilton
This weekend's Magic & Martini is sold out. But I'll be appearing on this month's Tricks In The Six, put on by the Toronto Magic Company. Tickets are now available for Thursday, July 27th at 8PM at the Paintbox Bistro (555 Dundas Street East.)
I'll be joined by their founder, Ben Train, and a mind reading duo, The Sentimentalists.
From the Toronto Magic Company:
"Tricks in the Six; featuring The Sentimentalists, James Alan, and host Ben Train
Toronto’s Premier Variety is back with a BRAND NEW show!
Tricks in the Six is Toronto’s premier magic variety show, featuring incredible magicians from around the world, mind-blowing illusions, and non-stop laughs in the intimate and beautiful Paintbox Theater. Every show is different, so this is your ONLY chance to see this lineup of amazing talent.
This month’s headliners, fresh back from The Magic Castle in LA, are The Sentimentalists; two real life clairvoyants. Is it a trick or do they have real powers? The only way to find out is to experience it yourself!
Opening is the star of the sold out show Magic and Martinis, James Alan. With his sophisticated and classical style of magic James will transport you back to the 1950s and then back to the 21st century with his modern twists. You’ll see it but you still won’t believe it.
And of course Ben Train, founder of The Toronto Magic Company, will be hosting the show. Using psychology, influence, and good old-fashioned sleight of hand Ben will read your mind, predict the future, and make you question your every thought. Are you brave enough to let him try?
This is a once in a lifetime combination of incredible entertainers. Seats will sell out fast so act quickly so you don’t miss out (and to take advantage of our awesome early bird special)!
Be sure to grab your tickets before they disappear!"
Tickets are $25 but you can get discounted early-bird tickets if you order before July 20.
