event magician

Magic Bar Tokyo

Magic Bar Tokyo Japan

In May I was on vacation in Japan to see my wife’s family and for 6 day road trip in Shikoku.  It was a fantastic trip. We rented a car in Shikoku, which is the smallest of the 4 islands and this enabled us to go to  places that you can’t reach with public transportation.

This time in Tokyo we put a visit in one of the city’s magic bar on the agenda. We went to a place in Ginza called Magic Bar Ginza 12 O’clock (マジックバー 銀座十二時 )

The fee is JPY 6000 (about 55 USD) plus tax which comes with an all you can trick ticket for tab beer or selected cocktails. The performances take place on a small stage. You can see 2 shows of about 25 minutes and in between magicians perform magic close up at your table.

The performance is all in Japanese but you will get the effects even with the language barrier. I speak some Japanese and was dragged on stage…

The room caters for about 40 people and it is advisable to make a reservation. Overall we had a really good time and it was good value for the money.

magic bar tokyo

 

 

Singapore Corporate Events

Singapore Corporate Event

Expeditors Singapore Corporate Event

  • Event: Dec 3  – Expeditors – 250 Guests – Annual Dinner and Award Event
  • Venue: Carlton Hotel
  • Package:  Stage Show

Expeditors is a global logistics company headquartered in Seattle. The subsidiary engaged my services for their annual award dinner event. The audience at this Singapore corporate event, consisted of all  the employees plus some guests from overseas. I performed  a 25 minute stage show during the dinner including the 2 VIP guests in the performance.

Close-up magician Sephora event

Close-up magician Sephora event

  • Event: Company party – June 23
  • Venue: Sofietel Sentosa
  • Package: Close-Up Magic – 130 guests

Sephora is a French chain of cosmetics stores. They engaged my services as close-up magician to perform for their employees during the cocktail hour.

event magician

Private Party – Strolling Magic

Strolling Magic at Private Party

  • Event: Private Party – June 18
  • Venue: Condominium
  • Package: Strolling Magic – 60 guests

On June 18 I performed strolling magic at  a private party. The guest were an international mixture of people from the UK, Singapore, India, South Africa and Ireland. This was a real fun performance and the reactions were awesome. Here an excerpt from an email I received after the  performance:

Dear Stefan

It was a pleasure meeting you and thank you for doing such a great job on Saturday.

We have had masses of feedback from our guests and they almost all mention you and how much they enjoyed your show. We (and our guests) were very very pleased with everything you did.

The most common comment was that people were amazed at how you performed magic right in front of their eyes when they were so close to you, and watching your every move. And yet they still had no idea how you did it.

Thank you for helping to make our evening a success. We will definitely recommend you.

 

event magician

corporate magician – Summary 2015

Here is the last update from the corporate magician Singapore for this year. First I would like to say thank you to all the people who have engaged my services, either the first time or repeatedly. Without you I wouldn’t be writing this entry.

2015 was, with over 100 performances, stage and close up,  great and I am looking forward to do more in the coming year. It is hard to pick a highlight since I enjoy and learn from all performances even the ones that don’t go to well.

Yes there are shows that could go better! I learn from each of them. In fact the shows that don’t go well are the ones I take the most out of. I am a perfectionist and I try to deliver the best job I can, however no matter how well you plan things sometimes go wrong. Who’s fault is it? Wrong question – what can be done better to avoid the same thing happening next time. I see performance like Kaizen – continuous improvement.

If I had to pick a moment from this year that illustrates what I want to achieve with a performance it would be this one:

I do an effect in which I borrow a coin which disappears and re-appears inside a small sealed envelope which was inside a zip closed wallet. I  offer my audience a long or short mystery. The short mystery is the option to open the envelope right now and validate that the coin is theirs’ . The long mystery is different. They don’t open the envelope. This means they have a mystery  as long as they have the envelope if it is really the coin with their initials on it. I claim it is – but I am a magician…

I have been performing this effect at my regular gig at the Grand Hyatt Sunday brunch for over a year now. Last week a family came back  and I was asked to come to there table. The daughter  (about 8 years old) still had  the envelope  unopened. The  last time they  were there was about 3 months  ago. The same happened with a  Gentlemen that comes to the Hyatt with his wife at least 5 times a year. He still has the envelope – not opened for over 4 months.

Why is this great? Because the performance is in their mind for a long time and they have a magical moment every time they look at the envelope. How many people open it right away? I would say about 75% and usually out of group pressure. However I still have them open it after I left the table. This means they will debate out after the performance is done.

My goal for 2016 is to have 50% not open the envelope.

Happy  Holidays!

Stefan

Finally some pictures from a recent performance. Amazing interaction

corporate magician - stage show

Magic Performance at RWS

How to get into RWS without paying SGD 100

This week I was hired by Resorts World Sentosa for Magic Performance at a dinner function that they hosted for VIP clients from Malaysia and Indonesia. The event was hosted in room backstage in the Casino. I am a PR in Singapore and this means I have to pay SGD 100 to get into the Casino premises. I had to fill out quite a lot of forms and do some phone calls until I had all the permits to get there without paying.  The picture below was taken backstage. I was at changing room that the bands are usually using and I took the chance to at least get a picture of the casino since have never been there. I also noticed that most of the bands that play there are either from Hong Kong or Taiwan. Well most of the Gamblers are from these places and China naturally.

Magic performance at Resort World

 

event magician

Tips on how to hire a magician

Tips on how to hire a magician

There’s one way to make your event truly magical – hire a magician! Whether you are planning a kids’ party, corporate event, or wedding, magicians can truly add something special to your event. But, there are lots of magicians out there – each with different styles and specialties. Finding the right fit for an event certainly takes time. Here are some tips that can help you to find the performer that fits your needs:

Know Your Audience
When selecting a magician, you should first think about the event you are hosting. Are you looking for a magician to perform at a child’s birthday party? Or are you looking for someone to amaze and interact with your co-workers and clients? These details play a role in your search. It’s important to know which type of magic you’re looking for from your performer. Some magicians specialize in close-up magic and can stroll from guest to guest at a party, while others will perform a more formal stage-magic show. There are adult and/or corporate magicians and there are children’s magicians. You wouldn’t want to accidentally hire a birthday party magician to perform for your top corporate clients.

Do Your Research
When you start your search for a magician – visit performer profiles and get to know what they have to offer. Clients should really do their homework and research before they even call an entertainer. They should only consider hiring magicians or other types of entertainers who have performance videos and testimonials on their websites. Reading client reviews on a performer’s profile is a very important step in the search process. Make sure to look at reviews that are appropriate to your event type. As suggested, you should also watch videos of the magician and view their pictures. If you would like more footage or additional references, you can always ask the performer to provide you with more information.

Considerations for the Kids
If you are hiring a magician for a children’s event, you will likely have concerns about inviting a performer (who you don’t know) around your kids. Many clients may be looking for entertainment for their children, and we all know our children are our most valuable possessions. You will want to find out if the magician you are considering is someone who works well with kids and can keep their attention for longer than 15 minutes. You also want the performer to be someone who is very trustworthy. Before you let anyone around your children you should know a little about who they are as a person. Ask for references from schools and day care centers.

Professionals Only Please
When a client is considering hiring a magician they should pay very close attention to the length of time the performer has been doing magic professionally. It’s not hard to go online and buy some magic props, but crafting routines and magic effects that will make your events amazing, fun and interactive take a lifetime of experience. Also, when a performer has worked hundreds of different types of events you can be confident that he or she will be able to adapt to your needs and deal with any changes or issues that come up at the event. You should also ask any magician you are considering hiring if they are insured. The truth is, about 80% of entertainers are NOT insured. In my opinion, it’s not worth the risk of hiring someone who is not insured. It is common practice for entertainers to be insured with at least some liability insurance. Live entertainers are working with props and people at your event, and though we don’t like to think of it, accidents can happen! When the entertainer is insured you have less to worry about and everyone is covered and can feel safe. It will give you piece of mind when hiring the entertainer.

Contact
When you have narrowed down your magician selection, you should contact them for a price quote. At that point the magician will contact you and set up a time to discuss your event in greater detail. Before you speak to the performer, you should have a list of questions ready, so you don’t forget any important details.

  • Tell us about your show, what type of show can we expect?
  • What types of magic do you perform?
  • What effects or type of magical effects will you be performing?
  • How long have you been performing professionally?
  • Are you a full time professional performer?
  • How many shows a year do you perform?
  • Where can we see you or where can we see video of you?
  • Do you do anything special for the guest of honor?
  • Do you have liability insurance?
  • Can you provide references?

You should feel free to ask the performers you are considering anything that crosses your mind. The more information you have, the higher the chances are of you finding the perfect fit for your event. When you are ready to book, make sure you get everything in writing with an entertainment contract. It’s the best way to safeguard your event.

If you need help finding a performer for your event you can reach out to us by calling +65 8188 2717 or emailing .

Magic shows Las Vegas

I made myself a present. I took a week of of to see Magic in Las Vegas and to attend a Magic Convention. It is a long trip and I am still jet lagged however it was great  to see what other performers are doing and to get ideas. I thought give some feedback on Magic shows in Las Vegas that I saw. Please note these were not the big headliners like David Copperfield or Criss Angel.

Mac King

I have seen his Magic show 3 times now and I can guarantee you will enjoy it. Mac is an amazing and funny person. A perfect mix of magic and comedy. His magic tricks are different even so he uses common magicians props like rope and cards. Every show is different because the volunteers he picks are different but no doubt Mac King makes all his improvs and shows funny! Go and watch it!

The Mentalist

Gerry McCambridge does a 70 min mind reading show. It is a great act and he puts in a lot of humor that gets the show moving. I would recommend this show to anyone who wants to enjoy a show in an intimate setting without all the dramatic music and lights of some of the other more expensive shows. If you have young kids don’t bother I don’t think they get the effects. Here is photo from the show

Singapore Magician

mentalist in Vegas

Laughternoon

This is a fun little late-afternoon. Adam London is a really talented magician with slick mental tricks up his sleeves dealing with player cards. You will likely wonder how he is able to divine what audience members are thinking. There is significant interaction with the audience and a ton of stand up comedy. The show is a really good deal and at Fremont Street you can also see free entertainment outside. Check it out.

Paranormal

I save the best for last. This show really impressed me. Frederic da Silva is french he mixes mind reading with hypnosis and I was fooled multiple times. For me it was not about finding out how the things are done but here you can see a true professional at work. The show is interaction from start to finish with no dead spots. Highly recommended this is one of the best live magic shows I have seen.

Singapore Magician visits Paranormal Show in Vegas

Singapore Magician in Vegas

A magician performs underwater

Entertainers in Singapore

Entertainers in Singapore

Last week I was hired to perform close-up magic at the Patek Philippe 175th anniversary event at the Singapore Pinacothèque de Paris. With me was another performer Ferris Yeo who specializes in mind-reading and psychological illusions. It was our job to entertain the guests according to special plans throughout the event. The reason why we were selehttps://www.pinacotheque.com.sgted was that there are only a few entertainers in Singapore specializing in corporate events. I know that Ferris mainly performs stage shows at corporate dinners and functions and I would say 75% of my performances are at events like this. The evening went well and it was great to see a performer who does something very different from me tableside. I hope I have the chance to see his stage show one of these days.