Bound And Gagged!

.:232/365: Magfi:.

Y’know, all things considered, I’m somewhat tempted to make my Project 365 about Philippine magic two months long, particularly since I haven’t settled on a theme yet for September, to begin with. Or maybe just eliminating themes altogether until December, where I can talk about issues in magic that need to be tackled for the new year or something.

Either way, even after the end of August, I would still definitely be having some topics about Philippine magic, since these stories are really riveting and interesting, to say the least.

Anyways, speaking of riveting and interesting, today’s topic is the group known as the Magician’s Foundation, Incorporated. Founded by businessman David Lim through other charter members like Wanlu, Danny Luchavez, and Domenico Tapiador, this group was the first glimpse of a continuing crusade by magicians in elevating the art form and looking out for each other.

Many magicians have been in the country for far longer than the lifespan of Magfi, but only in 1990 did a group by magicians for magicians truly come into fruition, and Magfi was it. Working as a valid organization under both Philippine law and even the International Brotherhood of Magicians, Magfi earned its stripes in the art by assembling a who’s who of magicians out there, including current luminaries such as Jeffrey Tam, Ronnie Moraleta, and a host of other names out there.

While the MCP was mostly a coming together of closeup magicians in its initial stages, Magfi was housed in the tradition of great stage acts, and to this day, even if it has opened up to welcome a few other performers in other genres, it is still the fabled stage acts devised by Magfi members that tend to be etched in everyone’s memories.

In 2004, under Doc Ronnie, Magfi earned the coveted Superior Quality Ring Award from the IBM, thereby cementing its status as one of the most prestigious congregation of magicians not just in the country, but perhaps even in the world.

It’s groups like these that really assure the magic world that the Philippines will continue being a country of note in the world of magic. It’s hard to imagine Philippine magic without IMC or Magfi being there at the forefront, giving the world a chance to take notice of just what we have to offer.

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.:Project 365 (198/365): Sawed In Half?:.

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.:Another Fine Night!:.

I met some awesome people at last night’s show in Taumbayan with Stan and Sir Ony. Look for us to be doing even more shows soon, though. Heh.

Tonight will be awesome too, as we take over Grub in Paranaque around 9:00PM. I’m sure it’s gonna be an awesome time.

.:Front Act!:.

Around 4:30PM, catch “Front Act” on Solar 9 with Mike and Stanley. It’s bound to be fun. Check it out!

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.:174/365: Ellusionist:.

I don’t think Theory 11 and Ellusionist are that far apart, but this video just felt so appropriate for me to use to get my point across.

For years, we’ve had excellent magic from L and L magic, giving us quality material although with less than stellar production values. They may not have slick sets and great split-cam angles, but they more than made up for it with the quality learning that you get from magicians like Aldo Colombini, Richard Osterlind, Daryl, and Bill Malone.

See, these instructional videos were around even before David Blaine burst into the scene, and they were doing very well, and influencing a very meticulous new generation of magicians who had a kind of esteem for their craft and were fully capable of versatility, given the nature of the product. Was it perfect? Of course not. But we could do without the sizzle if there was a lot of meat in the steak, and more often than not, when it came to this facet of the material, the L and L videos delivered in spades.

And then came Ellusionist.

Not much is readily available about Ellusionist’s history, save for the fact that it is nowhere near as old as L and L or even Penguin magic, and that its frontman, Brad Christian, has an abnormal amount of at

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.:Yet Another Successful Taumbayan Variety Night!:.

Last Friday, myself, Stanley Chi, and the great Ony Carcamo took Taumbayan by storm one more time as we performed for a packed house in T. Gener corner K-1st in the Kamuning area. It was a night filled with laughs and gasps, and I was pretty happy about how things went for everyone that night, as I went significantly longer than I normally do, going for a full half-hour of magic and comedy as I established the rhythm for the other performers that night.

I opened with the Coloring Book repeat, followed with some shackles and some rope, then went off to do some good ol’ mentalism by doing some card improv, the shaker, some psychokinesis, and of course, the piece de resistance, levitation.

Stanley was on fire last Friday as he went close to half an hour of old and new (!) material that just had everyone chuckling and then guffawing like mad. The audience was a perfect mix, as half of the audience were laughing because they got the 80’s jokes, and the other half were laughing because they realized they were too young to get the joke.

It was a great run-up, really, because after about an hour’s worth of performances, after packing the house to the point that people were actually watching us by the stairs already since the venue had two floors worth of people watching, sir Ony Carcamo took to the stage and gave everyone more than their money’s worth by doing an hour of amazing ventriloquism. Everyone was in stitches over how funny the jokes were, and he even did his own brand of mentalism while he was at it, as he joked around and “botched” predictions left and right, only to prove to everyone that he knew all along what was going to happen.

All in all, this was a pretty amazing show, and I even managed to sit down and chat with none other than John Lapuz that night, whose movie, “Here Comes The Bride,” I was especially fond of. Hopefully, when we do our show again next month, even more people would come and see it, because at 150 bucks, the show is practically a steal.

Thanks, everyone! You can expect more from us in the days to come.

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.:124/365: Michael Ammar:.

When you think of “card magic”, it’s hard to imagine any experienced magician not include this man’s name in their shortlist of people they have studied. Ask ten good cardicians you know if they know Michael Ammar, and I’d be surprised if any of them said they didn’t.

Many believe Ammar to be a “magician’s magician,” and the only other guy I’ve heard call that was Daryl. He has taught magic to arguably more professional magicians today than anyone else ever has (No, Brad Christian teaching you how to do 2CM mediocrely does not count.). His resume as a professional performer is thick, and his renown in the magic industry is top-notch, as he has managed to rise through the ranks as an amazing performer, having been trained by the best, including the late great Dai Vernon himself.

Why I chose Ammar as the first card magician to discuss should be rather obvious. He is the man responsible for one of the biblical resources for cardicians out there, “Easy To Master Card Miracles”. The man is all about simplicity and style, and doesn’t rely on knuckle-busting sleights performed at breakneck speeds. You want that? Look for Dan and Dave. You want elegance, class, and jaw-dropping magic at the same time? Michael Ammar is your man.

Just by watching his video here, you already get an idea why he’s a big deal. His version of the ambitious card routine is definitely basic, but his smooth execution, deliberate timing, and his economy of movements has been nothing but remarkable. Furthermore, his deck vanish at the end is one of the cleanest, most amazing things I have ever seen.

Although he is not exactly a pure cardician, Michael Ammar’s body of work and contribution to card magic is extensive and important. Before you fall all over your Daniel Garcia’s or your Wayne Houchin’s, do yourself a favour and treat yourself to a classy classic. Michael Ammar is bound to astound you and impress you, and is an exercise in contrast to all the flash and pizzazz of the new generation of magicians out there.

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.:Tagayan Sa Taumbayan: The Repeat!:.

Because last Friday’s show at Taumbayan was a roaring success, yours truly, standup comedian Stanley Chi, and the premiere ventriloquist of the Philippines, Ony Carcamo, will be back yet again for a night of laughs and gasps!

Free entrance, and the show starts at 9PM. What more can you ask for? This is definitely going to be a show for the books, and you can be sure that this is just the start of even more exciting nights for this unlikely but uproarious trio.

.:Still Gobsmacked:

The past week was quite a whirlwind as I performed for my personal heroes. Last Friday, I opened for Ony Carcamo’s show in Taumbayan by doing some comedy magic, and then last Saturday, I actually hosted

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.:64/365: The Straightjacket Escape:.

Insanity!

This is always a crowd-pleaser, and it’s amazing how enduring this particular escape has been for decades.

The straightjacket escape is one of the most revered forms of escapology, simply because the association that comes with the straightjacket has always been notorious. As a method of restraining the clinically insane, this device, despite being simple and merely made of cloth tougher than usual, has forever been associated with insanity and the fruits of it. For you to have to be restrained by a straightjacket and for you to have to go through the constricting, even claustrophobia-inducing psychological pu
nishment of one, is a nerve-wracking experience, given proper circumstances.

An escape performance that has been popularized by Houdini himself, the straightjacket escape is insanely popular precisely because it is used to contain those who are insane. That a person can, right before your eyes, wriggle his way out, often through dislocating his own shoulder, a regulation straightjacket, is often a cause for amazement. This really is what escapology is all about: skill at its finest, with no frills being shown to the audience. Just the sheer ruggedness and grittiness of having to get out of one of the most feared forms of restraint of all time.

There are many variations to escaping from this nefarious device, including some that attempt to make it even more dangerous, such as doing it suspended in mid-air, or while balancing atop an unstable platform, or even while sinking underwater in a packing crate nailed shut and set on fire. Ultimately, despite all of these, the appeal and allure of the escape from the jacket itself really is what piques people’s curiosity, and you’d be surprised how many people would want to experience being contained in a straightjacket, even just once. Let them find out for themselves how it feels, and let them understand just how insane you really are to willingly put yourself in one of those things. Not to mention the whole crotch strap part, for that matter.

There are plenty of magicians who have a variation of this very revered routine, and it only goes to show that if these people ever do go insane, the last thing you’d want to do is to put them in a straightjacket. You’d simply be asking for a world of trouble.

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.:55/365: Jay Sankey’s Electric Currency:.

I won’t include a picture this time, because you’ve probably seen Jay Sankey’s mug more than enough times in one month thanks to this Project 365, and I guarantee you, this probably won’t be the last time I’ll mention the man on this month, since his “Firestarters” DVD really is one of the few titles out there that gets to the very heart of this month’s theme.

Now, Electric Currency is a psychokinetic routine, and I must tell you that I’m a big fan of PK routines, simply because they never fail to attract people’s attentions. I don’t even mind having naysayers show up. Having one of them makes for a spicier show as you knowingly smirk at them as they try to reverse the effects of your demonstration with great futility. They’ll keep mouthing off various explanations to “debunk” you, but the only people he’s convincing is himself. Let him. It makes you look classier by just smiling it off.

Having said that, what I don’t really highlight about any given PK routine is the opportunity for you to really be in close contact with your volunteer, and if you’re savvy about it, this gives you a chance to really gel with the person in question. You can engage them in small talk, or really make them feel that you’re large and in charge, or outright poke fun at the fact that you’re probably holding her hand and she’s not the least bit put off by it.

PK is a very good conversation starter, and it doesn’t really matter if you are performing for a believer or an outright skeptic. Use the rapport as an opportunity to pick the other person’s brain, and to impress her with yours. If you look even halfway decent (Hades, some not-attractive-at-all people have met better results, so looks should hardly be an excuse.), mastery of the ability to establish rapport with a volunteer in a given one-on-oneish situation should really give you a leg up on catching her attention.

Is this tried and tested? I must say it is. By establishing a novelty in magic, you generate immediate interest, whether good or bad. By demonstrating your capacity to hold an intelligent conversation, you also demonstrate that there’s more to look forward to once the novelty has worn itself out. That’s a sound way to go about things, I have to say.

Well, if you want to know what happens in Sankey’s version, go buy his DVD. This may not be his best output, but it’s very useful, to say the least, and the fact that he’s not trying too hard to make you laugh in “Firestarters” is a huge plus for me. He annoys me when he tries to be funny, to be honest.

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.:Sabado Nights:.

Hosted Merei’s debut last Saturday, and I’m still on a high about it. Will write more some other time, though.

.:A Return To Magic:.

Joined a tournament last Sunday. This is the first time in a long time that I have, and I’m pretty happy that I did.

.:Met An Angel, Then A Reunion…:.

Last Monday, it was a great time to meet someone I’ve been speaking to only online and via SMS prior to last night. I also got to know her sister and her sister’s boyfriend, so at least it wasn’t an awkward encounter and we all hit things off just fine.

Afterwards, I headed out to UP to meet Ma’am Sining, who was in town for a couple of weeks. It’s been a while, and it felt mighty great to hear her tell me that she was proud of me.

Ma’am Sining was one of my favorite teachers in college. It wasn’t so hard to see why.
.:54/365: Daniel Garcia’s Stop:.

I know this is a plug for “Control”, but DG’s stuff is in this particular DVD.

Ever liked the feeling of someone leaning on your chest? Well, this is one of those incredibly presumptuous routines that can scare the Hades out of your spectator while giving you an excuse to cozy up to them.

While the video might be about “Control”, I’d rather save that particular routine for a different day, and focus instead on the bonus material in this Wayne Houchin DVD, known as “Stop”. His good friend, Daniel Garcia, shows a different side of himself as he performs this routine with all the homoerotic underpinnings they could muster as he stops his heart for Wayne Houchin himself to hear it very distinctly.

The ability of a human person to control his heartbeat has always been a matter of interest for a lot of people both in the medical profession and in the ninjitsu industry, all the same.

This is a routine that I wouldn’t suggest you to do unless you have the persona to pull it off. Asking a random girl to just put her ear to your chest seems to be asking for trouble if you don’t know how to play it off well.

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