Author Archives: jculpepper

Those who work in the arts often have to choose between watching and creating. I watch a wide variety of shows (magic, circus, theatre and more), which is an important part of being in touch with the artistic trends and communities that inspire me. And, of course, I try to plan as carefully as possible […]

At the end of my trip to France in November, I had the pleasure of dining with Philippe Beau, Raphaël Navarro, and Valentine Losseau (pictured above from left to right). I first heard about Navarro and Losseau’s magie nouvelle movement — a circus infused new wave of magic in France — sometime in 2012. At that time, I was […]

  Wayne Houchin and I grew up going to the same magic shop — Grand Illusions in Sacramento, California. We aren’t officially kids anymore, but we still go to the Johnson family’s store. In early November, I had the privilege of creating a full evening of magic in which Wayne, his wife Frania, and Steve Johnson (who continues to nurture […]

  I’m excited to announce that my interview with French magician and shadowgrapher Philippe Beau is now available in Genii magazine‘s December issue. I grew up reading Genii in my hometown’s magic shop in Sacramento, California. Years later, I lived with the Domergue family in Nimes, France, to learn their beautiful language. Nowadays, I work in Montreal (French-speaking Canada). […]

This will come in handy for teaching magic history to French speaking students in Montréal. I found it in the boutique of le Musée de la Magie in Paris. The publishing house — Editions Georges Proust — have translated quite a few foundational texts from the magic canon.

This is the first intersection I crossed while looking for my friend’s place in Paris today. I’ll be staying with her and her boyfriend who happen to live near the core of the November attacks. It’s surreal to be talking about the geopolitical implications of all of this with Robin, while also catching up with […]