From Ring Reporter Peter Rodgers.
16th November 2021.
Our November meeting was the first back into our club rooms after 4 months of been in a Covid-19 lockdown. Our president after welcoming everyone introduced Jack Sharp to host tonight’s meeting “Go-November”. To get started Jack performed his Rubik Cube routine that he originally developed for 11 to 12 year olds but now performs for 7 to 8 year olds. Perfectly suited for an audience of ageing magicians. Jack was then surprised by the number of people volunteering to perform with fifteen acts making up what became a great night. Garry Davis was Jacks first performer, he performed some close up effects which were difficult to see by the large audience present. He dealt out some number cards into a rectangle, like a calendar. Numbers were chosen, rows and columns eliminated until nothing was left. When the chosen numbers were turned over a message welcoming us back to the IBM was disclosed. Anthony Dillon swapped an Australian twentycent coin with an American Quarter held securely in a spectators hand. He then turned some paper money into a credit card. Phuoc Can Hua used his telephone to predict a playing card chosen by the audience verbally. This routine was based on an effect that Jack had performed for Phuoc previously. Phuoc had improved the effect by writing a new App that eliminated the need to handle the phone prior to displaying the prediction.
Michael Giblin had noticed that Alakazam Magic in the United Kingdom was advertising our own Sean Taylors “On Target”. Michael was excited about the effect and performed it for us tonight. He wondered how he had missed purchasing it direct from Sean himself where it has been available for many years. Peter Rodgers commenced with John Bannon’s Second Reckoning from Destination Zero. He then deduced two cards removed from decks of cards and another card not removed from its deck. BellaDonna discovered the six of diamonds then performed Roy Waltons classic Card Warp.
Jack Sharp came back with what appeared to be a comedy prediction effect but ended up with a seeming miracle. He listed three digit numbers called out by the audience. When totalled they failed to mean anything but when repeated he showed that he had predicted the result. Conway Restom using original patter based on the Game of Thrones television series performed the Chinese Linking Rings. Conways performance was greatly enhanced by him involving various spectators throughout his presentation. John Kanawati always impresses with his Ring 102 performances. Tonight he used just the four eights from a pack of cards, but the more he got rid of the more they kept coming back. A fine routine.
Our president, Dale Trueman has been working on his character, Snowy McKenzie – The Snow Man, for a year or two now and we were privileged to witness the current version. On the face of it Snowy is a fruit and vegetables vendor at Taylor’s Square in the underworld of a 1920’s Sydney. He is in fact a cocaine dealer. During the act ‘Snowy’ produces a table, a coin and a cut throat razor. A sugar bag, said to contain cocaine is the start of a cocaine production similar to a “Giant Salt Pour”. Tony Croft performed Steve Cook’s Swindle, available from Alakazam Magic UK. It’s a great two pill box “Just Chance” routine. He concluded with a play on words routine using “This, Yours, Mine, Something, That” on some poker chips.
Andy Nunn is a professional Magician Mentalist in Sydney. He started with a poker chip held by a spectator. Andy repeatedly deduced which hand held the chip was in. He then performed an Any Card at Any Number routine using methods made famous by such performers as Asi Wind and John Born. Andy then deduced a spectators astrology sign by asking just a few questions. Stephen Bell performed a Three Card Monte routine with four cards and then a returning black effect. He had three red and one black card but ever time he got rid of the black card it kept returning. He concluded with a signed card to pocket routine with the fifty one unsigned cards travelling on his second attempt.
Daniel Shields showed his skill with switching cards before performing an in the hands Triumph Routine using a Topsy Turvey (drunken?) shuffle. Clement Kwok again showed his skill with playing cards by performing a fast Three Card Monte routine using two blank cards and a spot card. He then produced Four Aces from a spectator shuffled deck and concluded the night with another Triumph routine.
Despite our months of lockdown it is obvious that the magic is back and is live and well in Sydney.
Peter Rodgers
Sydney Magic Club 