Author: ChrisPilsworth

The reactions a performer receives when they are performing a show, are what fuel the desire to keep performing. Knowing that you are the source of fun, amazement and laughter is intoxicating.

It takes time for every performer to get good enough that the reactions become consistently strong. Every performance is for a new group and experience leads to making good decisions during the show about how best to satisfy the audiences desire for a great time.

Before Performing a Show

Gaining as much knowledge about the audience beforehand is always step one to creating a superior show. Performing for 5 year-olds is very different from performing for seniors. Each group requires different engagement and energy. Knowing what to expect, helps to determine what magic the audience will enjoy the most. Adults like to have their minds blown with though provoking illusions. Kids like slap-stick humour.

During a Show

While the show is happening, my mind is split into watching the audience’s reactions, identifying potential distractions, looking for good volunteers, reacting to comments the audience makes, my script and the sleight-of-hand. There is a lot of processing power required to make it look easy. This only happens with plenty of practice and rehearsal and getting out there and performing. Malcom Gladwell suggested that in order to be good at anything, one needs to invest about 10,000 hours of practice. I agree because only then can many of the internal decisions happen like they are second nature.

The Results of Performing a Show

Performing a show that an audience will love even when the conditions aren’t ideal, is what great performers do. Someone with less experience will chock it up as a learning experience. When a show goes well, there is a mutual feeling that all the members of the audience bond and are reacting as one. When that happens, as it often does, the results are pure magic.

A subset of the magic community create and invent new tricks. When I began learning how to be a magician, the library was my primary source of knowledge. The books that I borrowed showed how to make simple tricks with supplies that could be found around the house. Many tricks in my first public shows were made at home.

New Tricks

My love of creating new ideas was born when I started, but has continued to this day. In order to create, I start with an idea about what I want the magic to look like for the audience. Then the process begins of trying to solve the problem without resorting to real magic. One technique I use to help overcome barriers, is to imagine that another magician has already come up with a solution. This allows me to think that a solution is possible. I also think that there is more than one solution to every problem.

I’ve probably created over one hundred magic tricks that range in size from smaller tricks that can be presented to one or two people, right up to large stage-size illusions that are meant to be viewed by thousands in a large theatre.

A Cactus Inside a Balloon?

The one trick that magicians always remember, is one where I magically put a cactus inside a balloon. The idea began when I saw a photo of the comedian, Steve Martin, holding a cactus in a flower pot in one hand and a balloon in the other. I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if I could put a cactus inside a balloon? I sketched the idea in my ideas book.

Persistence Pays Off with New Tricks

The idea laid dormant for a while, but then piece of the puzzle began to reveal themselves to me. After about a year the first version of the trick was ready. I debuted the trick at a magic competition in New York. When I finished the trick, I had to wait for the judges to decide. Finally, it was revealed that I’d won first prize in the stage category. That made all the creative effort even more worth while.

Constant Refinement

Since then, the trick has undergone some major revisions. Even though the trick was created about 30 years ago, I’m still finding little ways to make it even better.

Whenever you see a new trick presented in my show, you can be assured that it is merely the tip of the iceberg. Creating is both fun and frustrating, but seeing the results in the expressions of my audiences make the development time totally worth it!

Learning to be a magician can only happen when more experienced magicians share their tricks, wisdom and knowledge. When I started to learn how to be a magician, the library was a great place to discover magician’s secrets. I probably took out all the magic books in the library multiple times each. That helped me to absorb the tricks and tips that they were revealing to me. I’m so thankful that other magicians before me also found value in sharing magic.

Giving Back

After having been a full-time performer for most of my life, I’m sharing my magic creations with other magicians. My ideas are very well respected in the magic community and have enabled me to perform at magic conventions across Canada and the States.

Sharing Magic Lecture Tour

Currently, I’m getting ready to head back to China to present some shows and also give lectures and workshops to magicians in multiple cities throughout China. The tricks that I’ll be teaching have been refined over many years and are all in my working repertoire. Fairly soon, I’ll be sending the text of the instructions to my contact in China. He’ll have it translated into Mandarin.

Sharing Magic through Illustrations

The two illustrations above I created and are just a few of the many that help to explain the tricks I’ll be teaching. Each illustration starts with a photo and from there I create a line drawing by hand. There is an art to providing the correct amount of visual information in the illustrations. Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Win, Win

Sharing magic is great fun as it continues the tradition of passing along secrets from one generation to the next. One additional benefit of sharing magic is that I also learn new techniques and ideas from the magicians I meet globally.

Designing magic and creating new mysteries is something I love to do! It is not always easy to come up with ideas about how to make the impossible possible. Sometimes I imagine that another magician has already come up with a solution. Then the question becomes, how would I do that trick?

Begin with a Strong Education in Design

After high school, I was accepted into Carleton University’s, School of Industrial Design, program. The year I entered, there were 300 applicants for only 30 positions. Every candidate had to go to an interview with one of the professors of the school and present a portfolio of art they had created. My portfolio consisted of art I’d made throughout high school and also some of the magic projects I’d created on my own. Industrial design is actually product design. The four year program taught me all the essentials for good design.

When I graduated, with distinction, I set out to perform magic full-time. The trick I create are possible as a result of a strong background in both magic and design. Other performers have also come to me to design ideas that they have, but are unable to fathom potential solutions.

This is one of my creations where I magically put a cactus inside a balloon. This trick has allowed me to headline at the Magic Castle in Hollywood, California. It also paved the way to consult on a 12 part TV series in China. While I was there, I conceptualized cutting-edge magic for the top Chinese magicians.

Above is a sample of the story boards I illustrated for the show. The second photo is the stage for the show, which was custom built in a large sound stage. If you look very closely, you can see a couple of performers on the stage. The curved section in the middle of the second photo is where the celebrity judges were seated.

Designing Magic Never Ends

I always have new projects on the go. They feed my creativity and it is very satisfying designing magic and seeing an audience’s reaction! What a fun life.

Being able to perform around the world is one of the benefits of being a world travelling magician. In a few months, I’ll be returning to China to perform some shows and present my magical creations to Chinese magicians at lectures in different cities throughout China.

World Travelling Magician gets his first Taste of China

Last time I was in China was 2017. I was hired for 6 months to create cutting-edge magic for Chinese magicians that were competing in a 12-part reality TV show. As one of 5 international consultants, I pitched ideas to be part of the show. It was an amazing experience!

The photo above, shows most of the team that created the 12 part series, The Amazing Magicians! It was a very young and enthusiastic group, working together to produce a show unlike anything that had been done in the world. This photo was taken in the room the team would meet at the Jiangsu Broadcasting Corporation. Their tower is located in the beautiful city of Nanjing.

Magic Consultant

That world travelling magician, consulting job came about because I’d met China’s top magician at a magic convention a few years beforehand at a magic convention in New York. We became good friends, as he loved the type of magic that I created. Some of my inventions made their way into his repertoire.

My friend is organizing this new tour and I’m really looking forward to going back to China. I’ll have a bit of spare time to explore the cities and enjoy the cuisine that is so varied. I know it is going to be another incredible trip and that I’ll meet some new friends from half way around the world. Once I return home, I’ll be able to post some of the photos and memories of this next global adventure. Like I said, it is fantastic to be a world travelling magician!

Entering a Magic Competition is scary. Imagine having to perform your own creations in front of hundreds of other magicians. If that weren’t enough stress, you also are competing against other highly-motivated magicians.

Let’s Do It

In my twenties, I competed often at the national and international levels. My goal wasn’t necessarily to win, as that was out of my control. I used the competitions as vehicles to improve my magic and perform at a higher level than local magicians. Often, I would prepare the magic a year before the competition was held. There were props to build, a theme to advance and lots and lots of practice and rehearsal.

Magic Competition Stress

I recall, at one of my first competitions in Montreal, that I barely slept the night before, because I was so nervous. My roommate stayed up late jamming with other night-owl magicians. He didn’t get to bed early. Had I not already been awake, I would have been woken. On top of that, there were several junior hockey teams staying at the hotel while they were at a tournament. Let’s just say, they weren’t too quiet in the hallways that evening.

My First Magic Competition Award!

For this competition, in the up close category, each performer would repeat his or her act three times, in three separate rooms, for three groups of about 150 magicians each. As it was in Montreal, some of my English script didn’t really hit the mark. I was disappointed after the first room. In the second room, I was more relaxed and the performance was better. By the time I got to the third room, I wasn’t really thinking about winning. I just went out and gave a really good performance. That room also seemed to have mostly English-speaking magicians and that really helped to improve the response.

Proud of Myself

Although I didn’t win the competition in up close magic, I did win one award that was given to a performer in either the up close category or the stage category. It was the Tom Auburn award. This memorial trophy was given in honour of Tom Auburn, who was a very well-respected Montreal, professional magician. That was the first of the trophies I won during my competition years.

A Different Kind of Winning

I always felt, that every competitor was a winner. For me, the moment I decided to compete, I knew that, win or lose, I would become a better magician as a result of the effort I put into the act. Becoming a better magician is still one of my goals, even today, after having performed for so many years.

Before the magic show starts, there is quite a bit of preparation. For smaller shows, I’ll spend about an hour at home to get set for the magic show. Some props need to be reset. There are other items in a show that are called consumables. They will need to be remade for the next show. If a prop gets broken, I’ll visit my workshop to either repair or remake the broken part. I also have a few duplicate props. Usually, when I’m getting the show set, I’ll listen to some of my favourite music on my playlist. It relaxes me and allows me to make sure that I haven’t forgot any important details.

Magic Show Checklists

After the show is prepared, I’ll double check with my checklist. It is better to run through the list as opposed to arriving at the destination, only to discover that a prop for a trick is still at home. I haven’t figured out how to transport it magically to my current location yet.

Sound Equipment for the Magic Show

In addition to the props, the sound equipment, including the music player and microphone all need to be checked to make sure that the batteries are full. Usually, I’ll plug them in after the last magic show I completed.

Costumes

Another part of the preparation is the costume. I have different costumes for different types of shows. The show for children has a more colourful costume. The costumes for adult shows can also vary depending on the age of the audience and also the performing venue and if the show will be indoors or outdoors. If I wearing dress shoes, they need to be polished. I also carry them in a golf shoe bag and only wear them while I’m performing.

Peace of Mind

Setting a show properly, gives me peace of mind before I’m about to begin performing. It allows me to relax and focus on giving the best magic show possible. I love performing magic and I want my audiences to have the best experience possible.

When I started learning to become a magician, I didn’t realize there were magic clubs and magic meetings. I was 11 years old and the library was my go to source for secrets. There were magic books in the children’s section, but I gravitated towards the ones in the adult section, as they were more detailed and comprehensive. Learning from books was great because they allowed room for modifying and adapting ideas. Watching other magicians leads to the temptation of copying exactly what they do, even if the presentation didn’t match my style.

This learning continues to this day. I’m still a voracious consumer of magic books. My library of magic books numbers in the 100’s of volumes. A few of my books were printed over 100 years ago. Interestingly enough, some of the magic in those volumes is still relevant and intriguing today.

Magic Meetings

When I turned 18, I was old enough to join the local magic club. Magic meetings were twice a month, except in the summer. After a year of attending the meetings, I had to pass an initiation test. I studied a very complex sleight-of-hand miracles that is a classic of magic. The trick is called the cups and balls. It’s a trick that is found in many beginner magic kits, however, the version I presented was published in a book called, the Dai Vernon Book of Magic. Vernon was originally from Ottawa, Canada before moving to the States and becoming a legend among magicians. His version of the cups and balls was the gold standard. After I presented this trick, I had to leave the room while the other magicians voted if I was worthy to become a member. I’m happy to say that the decision was unanimous.

The magic club was instrumental in my development as a magician. Two of my mentors were from the club. Now days, the club meets once a month. I love the camaraderie and the intriguing exchange of secrets and theory. On two occasions, I was voted magician of the year. That’s an award I’m very proud of. I’ve also held the position of President of the club.

Head Shot

This was one of my first professional head shots. I was probable about 22 or 23 when this photo shoot happened.

Giving Back

I’m now one of the older club members and I really enjoy sharing my knowledge and wisdom with younger members. I feel that I’m part of a continuing tradition of secrets being passed on from one generation to another in the world of magic.

When I was 12, I started my performing career as a birthday party magician. It has been an amazing career. Recently, I performed at a birthday party of a young boy. His friends and family loved the show!

Learning to be a Birthday Party Magician

When I started to perform magic, I was 11 years old. For magicians, back then, pretty well the only market that was open to beginners was the birthday party magician. The price was low and the expectations weren’t too high. It was the perfect place to begin to learn how to be a great performer. After university, when I became a full-time performer, I branched out into other stages, but I still love to perform at birthday parties.

When you’ve performed magic at birthday parties for as long as I have, an interesting phenomena occurs. The young boy’s birthday party that I mentioned above was not the first time this family had seen me. I was the magician at the boy’s mom’s birthday party when she was his age.

When I showed up to the boy’s party, his grandma approached me and showed me photo’s when I performed at her daughter’s party. It was an amazing trip down memory lane. My costume was different. The tricks were different. What was the same was the expression of joy and laughter on the kids’ faces. That is what encouraged the mom to bring me back for her son to experience. After his party, we took more photos.

Lucky To Be Able To Do What I Do

I love performing so much that I don’t really consider it a job. It is too much fun. It is, however, how I earn my living. That alone, makes me a very fortunate person. I’m still excited about meeting new audiences and learning new magic. I hope to keep at it for a long time to come.