Face2Face - Again

A few weeks ago, I sat down with David Peck, the host of the Face2Face Podcast and ridiculously tall Canadian magician Brian Roberts to discuss their upcoming lecture "Spare Change for Social Change."

Both David and Brian have appeared several times as guests on Magic Tonight. I've been a guest on David's podcast twice already (see here and here) and but this time I was able to steal the microphone and serve as interviewer and host. We met in the mysterious back room of the Browser's Den of Magic, who will be hosting the lecture later this month. 

We talked about the process of sharing and uncovering secrets and the value that different magicians place on different branches of the craft of magic. Eventually, David's inner philosopher reared its ugly head and we discussed the role of the modern performing magician in today's society. It was a very interesting conversation to be part of. 

You can download the podcast here (episode no. 263) or subscribe in iTunes. Tickets are available for the lecture on Saturday, February 26 at 6:00 PM, $20 when you reserve online. 

*The unhealthy obsession with "introductions" in the podcast is a dig at a previous appearance of mine on the "Discourse in Magic" podcast... long story.

A little Spanish magic

Dani DaOrtiz, whom we hosted for a series of special events in 2013 (and again in 2016) is a true wizard. And he has a very special way of making your brain hurt. He does this sort of thing*

* Shared for no other reason than to add a bit of magic to your Wednesday. 

Introducing Discourse in Magic

Earlier this month, I sat down with Tyler Williams and Jonah Babins, the hosts of the Discourse in Magic podcast. The podcast is primarily a resource for younger magicians who are looking to improve the quality of their performances in a thoughtful way. So, with a bit of a beginner's mindset, we discussed some of the finer points of putting together a longer-form magic show. Listen here...

The theme of the discussion was the long list of little things that goes into making for a better show — thinking in terms of marginal improvements instead of trying to hold out for "revolutionary" ideas. The idea is that invisible insignificant changes add up to something extremely significant.

One of the most effective techniques I've employed for creating a more complete and inclusive magic experience is the notion of subtly pushing up the start of the show so that you have a head start making a positive impact in your audience is something that I've enjoyed for years. At all of the Magic Tonight & Magic & Martini shows, we work on setting the stage well before the curtain goes up. One of my favourite steps in this process is taking the usual boring pre-show announcement about turning off your cell phones and exploring different ways to make that more fun and exciting and providing more evidence that what follows is more unusual than what you were expecting.

One small part of this is by providing your own introduction. Most people don't know how to give an introduction (because it's something they rarely have to do in their every day lives). The closest they get is saying, of a person standing beside them, "This is Steve." And introductions are hard. How would you compress the decades of your life into something under 100 words? Now add the challenge of making not sound like someone was monotonously reading out an Encyclopedia Britannica article about you. Now also make sure it doesn't sound like a aggrandizing commercial written by your press agent and/or mother. 

So I wrote an introduction for the hosts, which was supposed to be a quick invisible subtle addition to the program, and in a meta-ironic twist, it became all they could talk about. So while there is a rather severe face palm moment at the beginning, we do get around to talking about some very interesting things in what I will always remember as the interview about introductions. 

Starry Night

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to perform at the Starry Night Gala hosted by Asia Star Corp and the Dream Building Service Association. It was a night to come together and celebrate important charitable contributions; in particular, groups supporting children in need in Kenya.

Here are some images from the event hosted at the Westin Prince Hotel in Toronto taken by photographer Alglid Alfrgany Abdulmagid.

Face2Face - Podcast Interview

I sat down recently to have a chat with David Peck, the host of the Face2Face Podcast. As far as I can tell, David is a man who never sleeps. In addition to putting out a prodigious number of podcast interviews (mine is number 222) he also teaches in the International Development Program at Humber College, practices magic and has a family. David has been a guest on Magic Tonight a few times, so this was a chance to return the favour.

Actually, I've appeared on Face2Face before along with the magician, skeptic and humorist Michael Close. This time, we talk about mathematics, magic and mystery, risk and about how to leverage small secrets, and why it’s not about how smart you are, but it’s about what you know.

Listen to the interview at DavidPeckLive.com or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.

A Sense of Proportion

As Douglas Adams famously proved, "if life is going to exist in a Universe of this size, then the one thing it cannot afford to have is a sense of proportion."

#TotalPrespectiveVortex