scholar    •    magician    •    consultant

One of the highlights of consulting for Houdini and Doyle: World of Wonders was working with Banachek and Rebecca Liddiard to engage in some Houdini-inspired debunking. Years ago, I wrote a review following the premier of Banachek’s one-man show The Alpha Project when it came to Toronto. Ever since, the work of Banachek, James Randi and others who have continued Houdini’s tradition of duplicating and discrediting fraudulent claims of supernatural powers has been a source of interest for me. I researched “The Alpha Project” hoax perpetrated by Banachek and Randi in depth while writing my dissertation. The “Psychic Surgery” episode we shot in March reveals another, rather bloody, fraud. To prepare, I studied what Randi and others have published on the subject. This provided some excellent explicit — or book-learned — knowledge on the subject. Actually being on set to collaborate on the filming of Banachek’s performance moved this study into the category of practice-based research. Preparing the items that make this demonstration of bare-handed surgery look so convincing, is a tactile and experiential thing. As with cooking, you have to have the right ingredients and know how to use them. When it comes to the performance of an illusion, learning from an expert how to prepare and handle what’s needed is precious tacit knowledge. What I learned onset isn’t in the books, but I had to read them to know that. I hope you enjoy the results. A large number of talented people worked on this.

A whimsical article about Martin Gardner and dice was published today in The New Yorker. Flipping through Ricky Jay and Rosamond Purcell’s Dice: Deception, Fate, and Rotten Luck, while reading Gardner’s Scientific American article “Mathematical Games” is highly recommended:

Houdini and Doyle: World of Wonders has launched! As the magic consultant for this web series, I had the pleasure of working with Shaftesbury, Smokebomb Entertainment and many talented performers this winter. I’ll say something special about each of the magicians who performed with host Rebecca Liddiard, who stars in the new fictional TV series Houdini and Doyle. The goal of the web series was to share some magic history and practical demonstrations inspired by the real-life relationship of Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle. Click on the image above to watch “Séance” with Nicholas Wallace.

The brick and mortar magic shop plays a unique role in the education of a magician. I was reminded of this yesterday when I popped into Phil and Evelyn Matlin’s store Perfect Magic. They found the secret items that I desired in a few minutes. We then chatted about Montreal’s magic history, the latest news in the art, and various magicians who have come through the Matlin shop for at least an hour. I learned that Sam Cramer’s was the first magic shop that Phil visited. I received the name and phone number of a local prop builder who I wouldn’t have found on my own and I met one of Perfect Magic’s youngest customers: Caiden.

This little magus is ten, but is already coming up with his own touches on the effects he buys at the shop. I asked him about what kind of magic he likes, why it speaks to him, and recommended an appropriate book or two. Phil had some great suggestions about Montreal libraries and other places to learn sleight-of-hand, showmanship, and various skills that help put a youngster on the path to becoming a great performer early on. Caiden asked for a trick, so I showed him some hat manipulation. His father, David, took this photo of us after our chat.

I look at it and see three generations of curious fellows in one magic shop, learning secrets that can’t be found online:

This exciting new magic and fiction find will be auctioned off on April 9th by Potter & Potter.

It’s good to have friends like Shakespeare expert, Dr. Jennifer McDermott.

Today, I had the pleasure of giving a sixty-minute guest lecture and performance for her Witchcraft and Magic literature course. What a wonderful excuse this was to thoroughly work through one of conjuring’s earliest and most important works in the English language: Reginald Scot’s The Discoverie of Witchcraft. All serious students of magic have heard of this seminal text, which was first published in London in 1584. Sadly, few of them have read it.

If you have learned how to read and enjoy Shakespeare, then Scot’s Early Modern English descriptions of how to perform various magic effects are both accessible and fun linguistic puzzles. And don’t make the common 21st-century mistake of thinking that the book is filled with basic magic effects. There is plenty of real work in here. Many of the items described are performed by some of today’s top professionals. Others were hits during the Golden Age of stage conjuring (1875-1925). Still more can be purchased today at your local magic shop.

In addition to all of the great material for performers, there is the significant cultural and dramaturgical value of the book to consider. It is an invaluable source for any adaptation of Elizabethan plays that touch upon themes of witchcraft, sorcery, chicanery, astrology, alchemy, etc. Hint: nearly all of them do.

So, the next time that you read or teach or watch Christopher Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus or Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist don’t forget to also check out The Discoverie of Witchcraft.

Amazement will be your reward.

As co-founder and magic consultant for Ars Mechanica, I’m excited to announce that our troupe will be in residence as part of the HATCH program at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre. This April, we’ll be working on a new performance titled SISI. I’m working on some magic inspired by Empress Elisabeth of Austria for this. If you’d like to see what we come up with for this first stage of creation, click on the image above or this link for more details.

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 how to allocate time to watching important performances versus creating (writing, consulting, rehearsing, performing my own stuff). Screwups happen, however, and tonight I was forced to choose between going to a show that I’d already paid for and staying home to get some important creative work done. I hemmed and hawed up to the last minute. It pained me to realize that there was no way to give the ticket away, but I was also excited to put some time into a secret project.

Then, I realized that this was a psychological trap. As soon as I tossed the ticket into the recycling bin, I knew that I’d made the right decision. Tonight, I am creating instead of watching and I couldn’t be happier.