There are several events that a   close up magician is the perfect entertainment to stimulate a buzz and break the ice for various adult and family functions. The most common uses for   professional magician hire are at parties including weddings, corporate events, private parties, banquets, Birthdays, Christmas parties and many more.

This modern generation of sophisticated professional magicians that are available for hire are also called table magicians, up close magicians, walk around magicians, strolling magicians, mix and mingle magicians and street magicians. They often perform their tricks with borrowed objects, playing cards and money right in front of your eyes for a couple of minutes at a time at each table during an event or each group mingling with the guests near the lobby.

There are lots famous magicians worldwide and many of them started just by performing at corporate parties, trade show events, birthday parties, school proms, weddings etc.

Hiring a  corporate magician will certainly transform a plain party into an unforgettable one and all of the guest will surely be enthralled by their astounding entertainment. Professional magicians love their art and they love performing for your guests.

What is close up magic?

You have probably watched street magicians like David Blaine, Criss Angel and Dynamo performing on television, but not a lot of people have actually experienced a close up magician in person…

Instead of performing on a big stage where trap doors, smoke and mirrors might be part of their illusions, with close up magic you get to witness micro miracles right in front of you, often in your own hands!

There are no camera tricks when it comes to close up entertainment! Booking a magician for your next up-coming party is certain to break the ice and set a fantastic atmosphere that will leave everybody talking and remembering how much fun they had at your party. A good professional close up magician is not only dedicated to providing brilliant entertainment while being friendly and fun during their performance but they will ensure each part of organising your event is as straight forward and easy as possible to guarantee everything runs smoothly on the day of your function!

Supplies: 

A deck of cards of any size is all that you will need.

For starters:

Firstly you must get your deck of cards prepared and you do that by simply selecting a card that you want the audience to choose. You are the one that chose the card despite the fact that they think they have made the decision. It is important to remember which card you choose. That is really the only skill involved in this trick. The hardest part of the trick is the part when you select a card and must remember what it is. The chosen card goes on the top of the deck so place it there.

This is the first step:

Someone must select a number between five and ten so group together some people and ask a single person. The number they choose is of no consequence. It may be ten, seven, eight, six, nine or five. Be sure the cards are facing down. So now they tell you their choice and you answer with, “Please count backwards from ten through the deck. Here, I will show you how.” Once they have been told this you take the deck of cards back from them and begin to make a pile on the table counting from the number they just said. For instance, if they picked the number seven you would take the top card and lay it face down on the table saying, “Seven”. The next cards will be placed on the table while you continue counting from the first card, “eight, nine and ten.” Because you have been placing the cards down in order, the card at the top of the pile is the ëforced card’ which you selected at the beginning.

Now you pick up the stack of cards you counted out and put them back on the top of your deck of cards keeping them face down. Give the audience member the deck of cards and ask them to count to ten while going through them. The cards will be laid out by them. Now explain how the tenth card is the one they chose but do not let them show you what it is. You are not supposed to see it but they are all free to see what it is.

The Big Finale:

The card they are holding is being focused on by you and let them know that the answer is coming to your mind. You pretend to be concentrating on trying to predict the card and then you say, “It is a Ö” The card is the one you decided would be your ëforced card’ and is the one that you originally placed on the top of the deck. If the Ace of Spades was your chosen card then you would insist, “You are holding in your hands the Ace of Spades my friend.” Obviously this card is the one they are holding. They will be unaware that you made them choose the card they choose. It will amaze them.

Learn the secrets of home staging,  painting workshop and triage training.

1.  Decide what kind of magician you’re looking for.  Yes, there are MANY different kinds of magicians. Some perform exclusively for children.  Some are more geared toward adults.  Some feature clean comedy.  Some are more adult-oriented.  If you’re planning a corporate event or trade show, you definitely don’t want a magician that does kid magic and balloon animals!

2.  Check out their promotional material.  Most professional magicians have a website and a brochure to help you evaluate them and make your decision.  A good magician will not be afraid to show you video of his performance so you can see him in action in front of a group like yours.  Most will have video on their websites, or you can request a DVD.  Start by doing a Google search for “magicians in Houston” or whatever city you’re in to get some websites to investigate.

3.  Check the magician’s credentials.  You definitely do NOT want a magician who is just beginning his career. There are fewer things more painful than watching a bad magician!  On the other hand, there are fewer things more entertaining than watching an experienced, professional magician.  Ask for references and check out his previous clients.

4.  Spend the extra money and get someone really good.  Do your group a favor, and get a professional whom you KNOW will do a great job entertaining your audience.  You won’t regret it!  If a magician is inexpensive, there’s probably a good reason. Remember the old saying, “The quality will be remembered long after the price is forgotten!”

5.  Ask questions.  Find out exactly what the magician is offering, what kind of magic he will do, and how long he will entertain your group.  Ask if he will perform close-up magic before dinner to warm-up the crowd.  Ask if he has more than one type of show available.  Some magicians have illusions geared for large audiences, while some are better suited to smaller group performances.

STEP 1 – Evaluate your audience.  Take a mental inventory of your group.  Are they crazy and loud, older and subdued, or a mixture of everything?  This will determine your entertainment choices.  For example, a comedian or hypnotist might be great for a younger group, but a corporate magician or entertaining speaker might be better for an older or mixed group.  These days, it’s very important that the performer’s act is 100% clean.  It is not worth losing your job because the entertainer you hired tells off-color jokes that offend someone in your organization!

STEP 2 – Make a list of the types of entertainers you like, then narrow the list down to one or two types.  For example, if your group likes to dance, put “band” on your list.  If they like to laugh, list “magician” or “comedian.”

Here are a few acts that I’ve found to work very well at corporate events:

Comedy Magicians – Make sure the magician specializes in corporate events and performs a CLEAN show suitable for adults (no birthday party magicians).

Clean Comedians

Bands -Again, make sure they routinely perform at corporate events!  You don’t want Metallica at your corporate function.

Hypnotists – - Be careful here for liability issues in case one of your executives ends up acting like a chicken in front of everyone.

Murder Mysteries -These can be a lot of fun if your group likes to actively participate in the entertainment.

Fortune Tellers – Palm readers, etc. -Make sure they don’t do negative readings or focus on the occult.

Caricature Artists – These are great, because your people will get to take home a cool souvenir.

STEP 3 – Search the Internet.  Make sure and narrow your search for the city where your event will be.  For example, if you are in Houston, enter “magicians in Houston” or “Houston magicians” or “clean comedian Houston.”  The better artists will have websites with video, pictures, and testimonials from other corporate clients that will help you prequalify them before you make the call.  You can also take the easy way out and call a talent agency who can recommend a variety of entertainers.

STEP 4 – Call or email the performer for a price quote.  Make sure and explain exactly what you want, how many people are going to attend your event, and how long you’d like the performance to last.  Make sure and consider the advice of the performer, as he or she probably does this every night and can give you some great tips to make sure the entertainment is a smashing success.  I strongly recommend you do NOT shop by price alone.  There is usually a REALLY good reason that some performers are more expensive than others!  In the end, it’s always a better idea to spend a little more money to get a professional entertainer who is going to make you look good!  Make sure and ask for references and follow up on them.  Most previous clients will be more than happy to tell you whether or not a particular entertainer delivered the goods.

STEP 5 – Get a contract!  Don’t skip this, no matter what!  All professional corporate entertainers use contracts.  This will give you the peace of mind knowing that the performer will be exactly where he is supposed to be at the time he’s supposed to be there.  You may have to pay a deposit to hold the entertainer.  Don’t worry; this just ensures that the entertainer is holding the evening for your event and won’t book something else that comes along.

Not Perfect

However, in reality it is erroneous to consider illusion magic as being perfect though it is certainly very interesting while also quite confusing as well. In fact, this form of magic happens to be a topic around which there is so much debate that it deserves a special mention whenever the topic of magic is being discussed.

True understanding of illusion magic can only be experienced if a person delves very deeply into the deepest recesses of the human psyche and in fact, according to sages, the understanding of magic would actually be incomplete unless a person is able to understand them. A master of illusion magic will of course be extremely adept at casting tactile, visual as well as auditory as too taste and scent illusions and will also be someone that can accomplish their tasks with consummate ease.

The difference between a student of illusion magic and a master of this art is that when told to “make an apple” the student will only ensure that the apple crunches when bit upon whereas the master will go deep into the subject of an apple and point out its many flaws, or to be more exact, lack of flaws in the apple.

Magicians know and have mastered the art of making the human mind, so intent on perceiving perfection of form, react dramatically when the mind is made to face up to anything that defies this notion of perfection that exists in most people’s minds. Actually, sorcerers will have to realize this fact that individuals react differently when they see the effects of illusion magic.

Creating an apple is the secret of their success that might seem not perfect to an observer, that might have the effect of making the apple seem actually more real to them. Furthermore, some people are not very responsive to illusions while others are. So, a non-responsive observer would deny that the illusion magic trick even took place while a responsive observer would believe the opposite thereby giving rise to debate on illusion magic. Nevertheless, there is a bit of illusion magic in everyone, which can best be seen in the way people try to look more glamorous than they really are.

magic

Say the word ‘magic’ and most people will picture fluffy white rabbits being pulled from top hats. However, magic has a long and bloody past. In this article, we’ll uncover the history of magic and reveal how mystical powers still play a large role in modern society.

The earliest signs of practical magic are found in the history of ancient Egypt. A ‘magician‘ during that age was a class of priest or ‘magi’. A large number of Egyptian magical papyri in Greek, Coptic and Demotic have been recovered. They contain early examples of the use of “magic words”, believed to have had the power to command spirits, as well as the use of wands and other tools.

Practitioners of magic believe that it works in a variety of ways but is based in natural forces. These magical forces are said to exist alongside the four fundamental forces of nature: gravity, electromagnetism, the strong force and the weak force. These believers are said to manipulate the elements using symbols and other objects. Symbols are believed to magically take on a physical quality of the phenomenon or object that they represent. By manipulating symbols, users can manipulate a target.

Concentration or meditation can have tremendous magical powers. According to renowned writer and mystic Aleister Crowley, focusing on an imagined object produces mystical attainment or “an occurrence in the brain characterized essentially by the uniting of subject and object.” Others believe that the subconscious is capable of contacting spirits who in turn can work magic. Versions of this technique are used today. For instance, a runner about to run a race will visualize crossing the finish line ahead of his competitors. Or, someone who is trying to overcome addiction will picture themselves leading a productive and sober life. One element that magic and prayer share is a foundation in religion. Both magic and prayer involves worship and possibly sacrifice to a supernatural being or god. This divine being is then expected to intervene on behalf of the person offering the prayer. However, prayer requires the approval of a god. Magic does not require this kind of consent. A black magician can achieve his desire by performing a ritual or controlling spiritual beings addressed by his spells.

Mysticism may have taken a backseat to science, but the magic of the unknown continues to be a part of our society. It’s easy to think that magic is nothing more than the musings of primitive peoples, but we must ask ourselves why some individuals cling to these beliefs. Is it possible to commune with the gods via prayer and rituals? Consider this – countless people are afraid of black magic. Why would they experience fear if history didn’t show that there was something of which to be afraid?