Hi All
This is Mark Bennett Co-Owner and creator of Illusions Magic Bar
Well this is my first blog, I've never done this before so please forgive my spelling and grammar.
Having been here since the start, I thought I would start to write about my experience being a Bar Magician, and how this bar began.
I started being a magician back in 1992 - now believe me, magic was quite different then (more about that later!).
Magic was instilled into me by a fellow college guy called Simon Virtue also known as Dan Masters. The trick he showed me was what I know now as "Out of this World". This trick blew me away and I pestered him to tell me how it was done. "I promise I won't tell anyone". Oh my god, how many times have I heard that line since. Simon was very adamant that he will not show me unless I was truly interested in Magic. The deal was if I went away and learnt 2-3 magic tricks myself he would show me.
The game was on! Where to start? This was 1992 remember, no internet. So I went down to the trusty WH Smith and asked the desk if they had books on Magic, and low and behold they had a few books in the GAMES / CARDS section although the scarcity of the literature made me think I was trying to crack a secret society or something (little did I know!) I looked at the books and noticed this little black book on the side it said "The Royal Road to Card Magic" By Jean Hugard and Fredrick Braue. And what ran through my head was wait that trick might be in here! Genius! Well I handed over my £4.99 and then went to the Board Game shop in Southampton (for the life of me I had no idea what the place was called) but I went in and asked for a nice deck of cards, the assistant gave me a pack of cards with a Gold edge! Wow I thought £10.95! Well I was set and watch out Simon I'm coming back with your trick!
So I sat down and opened the book.
'Preface' well lets see what they have to offer.
On reading a few pages I have actually lived by then words written and I have tried in my years to pass great knowledge onto other magicians who are starting out.
"We reiterate that there is a vast difference between doing and performing card tricks. Since your primary purpose in performing sleight of hand with cards is to entertain those who watch, it is not enough that you should achieve technical perfection alone."
from The Royal Road to Card Magic
So that was it Entertainment. that's the key!
Well, I'm off now and will hopefully add to this blog soon.
Mark
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions, Day 5
Monday June 20, 2011
My last night. I’m sad. Where's my tissue? I love performing here. No worries, I’ll be back. Soon.
In the afternoon I had a student (Joe is his name) coming over who wanted to learn a couple of card tricks. I met him on my first night here and he asked me if I was able to teach him. As I like to share magic, I was very honored to do so. Joe is very enthusiastic person who really practices. I taught him a couple of magic tricks which will take time to get down. However, once he has them mastered he has a couple of miracle up his sleeve. We also talked a bit about the theory of magic and I hope to meet him again and see him perform.
Mondays is usually not that busy at the bar. I was prepared for that so I took it easy and made my performance more intimate. I tried new material and closed with my act that got a silver medal at the last Dutch convention.
Often I see magicians perform for just the people in front or worse, even to themselves with no interaction whatsoever. But if you can include the people in the back as well, you can create a unique experience for the whole group. How can you do that? I do this by showing a selected card to everyone or by interacting with the people in the back as well. It makes the group bigger and it shows you pay attention to the ones that are standing in the back. As a reward they'll tip you. It's a small effort, but it makes a big difference.
In the afternoon I had a student (Joe is his name) coming over who wanted to learn a couple of card tricks. I met him on my first night here and he asked me if I was able to teach him. As I like to share magic, I was very honored to do so. Joe is very enthusiastic person who really practices. I taught him a couple of magic tricks which will take time to get down. However, once he has them mastered he has a couple of miracle up his sleeve. We also talked a bit about the theory of magic and I hope to meet him again and see him perform.
Mondays is usually not that busy at the bar. I was prepared for that so I took it easy and made my performance more intimate. I tried new material and closed with my act that got a silver medal at the last Dutch convention.
Often I see magicians perform for just the people in front or worse, even to themselves with no interaction whatsoever. But if you can include the people in the back as well, you can create a unique experience for the whole group. How can you do that? I do this by showing a selected card to everyone or by interacting with the people in the back as well. It makes the group bigger and it shows you pay attention to the ones that are standing in the back. As a reward they'll tip you. It's a small effort, but it makes a big difference.
Now I often explain a card trick. Most magicians would throw me burning in the river, but if they can do a simple card trick, they will appreciate more when they see another magician perform magic. They feel honored that you give them a sneak peek in the world of magic. It's all about sharing, isn't it?
I had a great time talking and interacting with my audience. Bar maids, hair dressers, DJ’s, military men, students, etc. I made many new friends and I hope to see them soon in the near future!
I had a great time talking and interacting with my audience. Bar maids, hair dressers, DJ’s, military men, students, etc. I made many new friends and I hope to see them soon in the near future!
Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl His favorite day is Wednesday.
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions, Day 4
Sunday June 19, 2011
This will be a short entry..... thank you for reading, please stop by tomorrow. Just kidding.
Last night I performed at a private party. It was a birthday party and everybody was dressed up. Very sexy people and not what I am used to see at Dutch birthday parties. Although the atmosphere was fun and happy, it was hard to perform because the band was very loud. So while the band was playing, I did magic where I didn’t had to talk. That was something I did a lot when I was working in Tokyo, Japan. But I could tell by their body language that they wanted to leave and go dance. So I kept my act short and sweet.
Because the party ended around midnight, I was able to hang out with the staff at a different pub and have a great time with them.
Because the party ended around midnight, I was able to hang out with the staff at a different pub and have a great time with them.
Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl He cannot spell ADHD.
Monday, 20 June 2011
Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions, Day 3
Saturday, June 18 of 2011
You might be wondering why I’m not wearing any underwear. Maybe not, but you might wonder what I’m doing at daylight. Hmm... that sounds like I’m a vampire or something. Anyways, by day I’m preparing my magic for that night, help the manager out with errands, and have a powernap. You have to know that every time I do my set, it absorbs a lot of energy. So it’s important to eat healthy and keep hydrated throughout the day. Plus I go to bed really late because of hanging out with the staff afterwards. I think this is very important when you work at a magic bar. You have to know your team players because you are part of the team.
Saturday nights are the best nights. Good crowd, fun atmosphere, but this Saturday it wasn’t. You do your best, but no reactions whatsoever. I could pull an elephant out of my pants and they still had their poker face on. It was like performing on a cemetery. Even the other magicians I was working with had the same experience. It’s a frustrating feeling that you know your magic and jokes are good, because last night they were laughing, clapping, and throwing money. But that feeling of putting up a magnificent show and not getting the response that it deserves can very disarming. Then again, what can you do? I have to accept that this can happen and just remember the ones that were great.
Luckily, my last two sets were great! Even though two guys kept discussing to each other how I did it, it got a stronger response than the folks who were comatized. I met some amazing people from Canada, Cyprus, France, and USA and as a remembrance of a special night we had a picture together. Now I always go talk afterwards with my audience. Some magicians don’t do that, but I want to get some feedback on my show and answer questions they might have. How long you’ve been doing magic? Are you really from Amsterdam? How does Derren Brown do his tricks? Do you really don't wear any underwear? Once those questions are answered I’ll make sure it’s not about me anymore but about them. I'm a people's person, so I have a genuine interest in what they do for a living, what their interest are, and what they are plans are for the weekend. I believe that’s more important, because then you make it very personal and therefore memorable.
Like I said in a previous entry I always try to learn as much as possible. What? You didn’t read that one? Shame on you and do it now! Besides seeing the other magicians’ shows and getting inspired, we also sit down and try to come up with new tricks and presentations. These sessions always go on til very late.
Oh and thanks to the person who tipped me with Latvian coins. I can buy that Ferrari now.
Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl He likes it when he hasn't have to wear underwear and he hates coins from Latvia.
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions, Day 2
Friday, June 17 of 2011
Dear diary... that sounds very 13 year old. Anyways, after a short night of sleep I woke up very tired. Luckily Mark was there to take me out for a big cup of coffee. Hello caffeine! I hadn’t spoken with him in a while, so it was great to catch up and talk about various subjects. One of the things we spoke about was radio magic, a subject that sparked my interest after I was asked to do magic on a radio show.
Afterwards I had a powernap I took shower and got ready with an energy drink. Douglas was up the first half of the evening. A talented wizard that is very smooth. Later on it was up to me and Rich to wow the crowd. Rich is one of my favourite magicians to see perform. He entertains the crowd at the highest level. I wasn’t feeling all that well after my second set, but the show must go on. I’m so glad that I did because the energy of the audience transformed that bad feeling in a hyperactive magician again! You know you did a good job that after your 25-minute set people want to see more. And the different types of people that see your magic: architects, nurses, amateur magicians, accountants, etc. It’s great because magic transcends any background and therefore everybody experiences the same moment of astonishment.
Afterwards I had a powernap I took shower and got ready with an energy drink. Douglas was up the first half of the evening. A talented wizard that is very smooth. Later on it was up to me and Rich to wow the crowd. Rich is one of my favourite magicians to see perform. He entertains the crowd at the highest level. I wasn’t feeling all that well after my second set, but the show must go on. I’m so glad that I did because the energy of the audience transformed that bad feeling in a hyperactive magician again! You know you did a good job that after your 25-minute set people want to see more. And the different types of people that see your magic: architects, nurses, amateur magicians, accountants, etc. It’s great because magic transcends any background and therefore everybody experiences the same moment of astonishment.
Although I’ve been into magic quite some time now, I always welcome new learning experiences. Rich gave me an excellent tip if people are not sitting in front of the magic bar. Take out your playing cards and start throwing them at the people. You heard me. Hit the folks with the pasteboards! Go all Ricky Jay on them! Rich continued by saying: “Bring the card to the bar.” Once they’ve arrived he’ll ask if that was the card they were thinking of. Regardless of their answer you’ll say that you can do even better and tadaa, you can start with your set. Also, it was fun to do a trick together with Rich for the audience which was received well.
I always feel very honored when people take time out of their lives to sit down and watch my crazy Dutch magic. That's why my audience deserves a great show and I always try to give more than they expect. I want my audience to leave astonished, entertained, and that they go tell their friends that they left the bar astonished and entertained. If I can make people smile and made them experience wonder for 25 minutes and do let me know their appreciation by clapping, laughing, and a tip, then my mission is accomplished.
After cleaning the magic bar and I had something to eat, I was so tired I got to bed and threw some angry birds at green evil pigs.
Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl You can wake him up in the middle of the night for chicken nuggets. Don't forget to bring the barbeque sauce!
Saturday, 18 June 2011
Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions
Thursday, June 16 of 2011
For the next five days, I (Fritz “with a Z” Alkemade) will be a guest magician at Illusions. Within the following entries I’ll share my experience with you working as a magician at a magic bar.
Tell me Fritz, why would you work at a magic bar? I’m so glad you asked! In Amsterdam, that’s where my house is, there are almost no places where people come in to see magic. At Illusions they WANT to see magic! It is the best scenario for any magician. Now there are couple of reasons to do bar magic. Because of the many shows you perform a night (and thus the different people that sit down and see your show) you can hone your social, improvisation and people skills. You can break in new material or you could polish your act. For me, it is meeting new people, getting even more fluent in English, and the unlikely things that happen during the show. No matter what your reason might be, you will always learn and become a better performer doing bar magc.
As I was talking with manager Matt in front of the bar, a girl came in. “My friend has never been here and we would like to see magic.” So I put on different clothes, got behind the bar, and dazzled her friends. Yes, I popped that girl’s magic cherry. No worries, she enjoyed just as much as I did.
As card magic is my specialty I try to mix my show up with other objects such as coins, markers, paper, earplugs, and balloons. The more you do more bar magic, the more you come to the conclusion it’s not about the magic but about the experience you create with your audience through astonishment.
Well Fritz do you have an interesting story to share? Yes, I have. After my third set, this guy came to me and asked me if he was able to do magic as well. I said “Sure!” and asked him to name any card. He said the Seven of Clubs. I asked him to cut to Seven of Clubs. Boom! He cut to Seven of Clubs! A miracle! He couldn’t believe it (neither could I), asked me what I wanted to drink, and told his mates about the wonder that just occurred. Now he has a great experience to share with his friends.
Well Fritz do you have an interesting story to share? Yes, I have. After my third set, this guy came to me and asked me if he was able to do magic as well. I said “Sure!” and asked him to name any card. He said the Seven of Clubs. I asked him to cut to Seven of Clubs. Boom! He cut to Seven of Clubs! A miracle! He couldn’t believe it (neither could I), asked me what I wanted to drink, and told his mates about the wonder that just occurred. Now he has a great experience to share with his friends.
Here’s another miracle that happened. I do a three minute routine with a single coin, or as the magi liked to call it “a coin flurry.” Close to end of the routine, the coin magically appears under somebody’s watch. I did this to a girl. She looked at her watch, pushed it forward and turned her wrist over. Somehow the coin kept stuck to her skin. As I asked her again to look at her watch, in her mind the coin just appeared on her wrist. She gasped and shouted “Oh my Fritz”. After she tipped me, she dropped her phone number in the tipping hat. I think she enjoyed that trick and might be wondering what other things I can do without touching her.
Even though people come to drink and see magic, do not underestimate it. It is really hard work and very different from table hopping. Every performance I have to give 110%, get my energy high and make sure that the audience is entertained for almost half an hour. For me the reward, besides the tips and drinks are being able to meet new friends and making sure that’ll come back again.
Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl
Monday, 13 June 2011
One night at Illusions Magic Bar
Illusions Magic Bar
Bristol, 2009
Alex Rangel recounts one night at Illusions
Really Fat Penguins, well I just thought I'd say something to break the ice.
My name is Alex Rangel and this is not a story about me. This is a story about an experience. I believe an experience cannot be owned by a single soul. It takes the perfect amount of timing and events as a whole to complete the experience. This is the story of my night at Illusions Magic Bar in Bristol England. To quote my good friend Doc Eason, this is the story that “I might not remember, But I'll never forget.”
Recently on tour with Daniel Garcia we were on the tail end of about negative 4 hours sleep..... The funny thought of justifying leaving England five days early versus the cost difference in hotel, train rides and food had weighed heavy in our minds... It was Saturday morning, stuffing my last “chip” AKA French fry in my mouth my left hand retrieved my lighter, my right already had a delicious Newport waiting. The first puff of the day is always the tastiest. We stood silently watching passer byes, a little Asian boy successfully retrieved a monstrosity of a booger he had been working on the entirety of time we had waited across the busy sidewalk cafe. After ten minutes or so Danny broke the silence by simply saying, “well” I nodded “yep”. The invitation of a free steak diner, open bar and let's just say plain old debauchery had been extended the night before. On one hand this seemed very pleasing, on the other an unfortunate amount of bad events from the previous evening made us want to leave as soon as possible. We kicked around ideas with not much real thought then Danny said, “hey what about the Magic Bar”? Nice, I replied.
A few days earlier, in fact on the first night of Blackpool, we had bumped into a guy that claimed to have the biggest magic bar in England. This immediately sparked my interest having worked at the Tower Magic Bar side by side with Doc Eason, Eric Mead, Bob Sheets and so many other great influences. Disappointingly when I asked other English magicians about the bar, their general response was “oh I haven't been myself, but I've heard it was really nice.” Nice? My grandmother, God rest her soul was nice....... I wanted details, something.
By chance we had met a young lady also in Blackpool named Annabel de Vetten. She was pimping her custom designed deck of playing cards aptly named the “Jill Deck”. After some wine a few fags and some cider Annabel was soon chatting up about her artwork, the Jill Deck and this magic bar in Bristol that we had to go to. So that was that, Danny and I were off to Bristol. About an hour in a half into our train ride I decided it would be best to text Annabel to find out the name of this bar and the name of the owner for that matter. Danny did a quick Google search for Illusions Magic bar and gave the owner Mark Bennett a ring. Seeing as we had made no hotel arrangements, nor let our future Bristol host privy to our intentions, I thought it best we should let him know we were popping in. (Taking a brief moment to explain. Danny lives in a world where things always just seem to work out and I'd have to say I live in reality. Inarguably I will say 98% of the time he is right. I just didn't want to end up on the streets of a foreign Country freezing standing outside a closed magic bar. “Hence the phone call” Danny hangs up the phone and says “we're good to go”.
Taking advantage of our first class seats we ordered a coffee and hot coco. Next stop taxi ride to Illusions, now that's a whole other story for another time. Our driver proceeded to take us on an unintentional misguided scenic tour of down town Bristol. It was foolish on our part to assume that just because we had the full address, post code and name of the establishment that “Michael” would know where to take us. Danny made another $6 phone call to Mark who stood on the street waving his arms like air traffic control. We spotted him and exited the cab about a hundred and fifty yards off target. Mark was posted outside leaning against a white mini SUV with the illusions logo proudly pasted on its side. Ahhh, time for quick cig and a bit of small talk before walking into the bar.
Upon entering I quickly noticed the original Artwork of Annabel de Vetten displayed on the walls. The floors were clean and there was no smell of smoke as you would find in most Texas bars. A baby grand piano sat staged to the right, an L shaped bar adorned with classic magic posters at its base lay in the middle. To the left was a nice comfortable lounge area. And in front of that, not to sound “Cheeky” is where the magic happened. It was a six seater hand made bar, with a velvet curtain that laid in the back, a display case of common magic goods sat to the left and the house butler stood to the right. There were no liquor bottles, no beer taps, this was a magic bar. Get your cocktail sit down shut the @#$* up and get ready to be entertained. THIS WAS A MAGIC BAR and I was home. A small group that honestly just walked in, were now wrapped into a 30 minute set of awe and disbelief. Jezza was pounding them with close up effect after close up effect. Curse words flew as fast as the pints. It was now six thirty and that rumble in my stomach was a gentle reminder that breakfast had been over 8 hours ago. We politely excused ourselves and asked Mark where we might get a quick bite. He said he knew of just the place and before we knew it he was joining us at ZiZi's Italian cafe. They treated us like rock stars, a bottle of wine and a full belly later we walked back to the bar. I couldn't imagine that more than an hour and a half had passed since our filling dinner and now the Illusions patrons had quadrupled in volume. Mark hustled us through the crowd taking time to shake hands and smile. Danny and I just exchanged glances, this was going to be a fun night..........
Back stage is a place I've always enjoyed and this was no exception. Concrete floors, beer storage, a stainless steel 3 well sink and a plaster wall graffitied with past visited magi's autographs separated us from the anxiously waiting crowd. Now keep in mind we were never “asked” to perform, it was more that within the first 24 seconds of meeting Mark he had “told” us we would be going on. What Mark didn't know, is you couldn't have kept me away from that crowd with a s%&*@ mop. I could feel blood rushing from my neck down my arms and finally enter my hands. Don't get confused boys and girls, this was not fear by any means. This was the thrill, the excitement the adrenaline right before the kill. Tonight there was no need to tone it down, no neck ties no screaming kids, a little term Danny and I like to call “all meat”.
Mark gave a quick introduction and Daniel Garcia was first up. Now I wish I could tell you that Mark and I watched every second of his act, but instead we dashed out into a secrete storage for yet another puff. Well that didn't last long, abrupt laughter and the echoing voice of DG made us quickly toss our fags on the ground to rush back in. Armed with a deck of bikes and a blue megaphone Danny was making his American presence well known. Again, all meat....... Straight to the point in your face no smoke or mirrors magic. Earlier Mark had handed Jezza one of the house magicians my camera, Jezza took more pictures than a paparazzi sitting in front of Brittney Spears house on a Saturday. Danny was in rare form a scene that few have ever witnessed before. Danny took his well deserved applause, gave me a soccer pat on the ass and I was next. Working with a borrowed deck, a borrowed sharpie and a half borrowed act (kidding ok not really no really) I found my rhythm. The cool guy stood in front not wanting to beak. An ambitious card to mouth routine I had done a thousand times notedly broke down his tough guy demeanor. Amanda was the beauty I had chosen to be the star of the show. Well probably every guy in that room wanted that girl to be the “star” of the show. Mark shot me a whisper “one more” he says. I'm almost glad he did because I would have stayed all night.
Oh did I mention? Yes we ended up staying all night. Mark the home town hero took it from there and from the sound of cheers he knocked it out of the park. It was now time for some serious business. Fresh squeezed delicious British pints of nectar softened our pallets for the long road ahead. A young and hip blend of music played nicely in the background. We sat on the black leather couches watching the show from the spectators point of view. In SnowMass we had a mirror that hung above the bar as to catch all the angles. Well Illusions had to one up us Yanks, a 42inch flat screen with wireless video camera took care of that. Danny, Mark and I just sat and watched, sipped our pints and watched some more. Around about 5:30 in the morning I guess we figured we had told each other enough lies and called it a night. While Mark took about sixty or so steps up to his apartment Danny and I soon found out that our “right around the corner” hotel ended up being an honest 3/4 of a mile hike.
It would be a night that we might not remember but I guarantee we would never forget.......... I say this to all magicians and laymen alike if you find yourself in England, some might consider it a sin to your own self not to find the time to visit Illusions Magic Bar. It was a joy that completed my total experience of England and for that I say with all my heart from Danny and I both, Thank you Mark Bennett, thank you to the staff at Illusions and thank you random reader that I forgot to mention.
As Always,
Alex Rangel.
Really Fat Penguins, well I just thought I'd say something to break the ice.My name is Alex Rangel and this is not a story about me. This is a story about an experience. I believe an experience cannot be owned by a single soul. It takes the perfect amount of timing and events as a whole to complete the experience. This is the story of my night at Illusions Magic Bar in Bristol England. To quote my good friend Doc Eason, this is the story that “I might not remember, But I'll never forget.”
Recently on tour with Daniel Garcia we were on the tail end of about negative 4 hours sleep..... The funny thought of justifying leaving England five days early versus the cost difference in hotel, train rides and food had weighed heavy in our minds... It was Saturday morning, stuffing my last “chip” AKA French fry in my mouth my left hand retrieved my lighter, my right already had a delicious Newport waiting. The first puff of the day is always the tastiest. We stood silently watching passer byes, a little Asian boy successfully retrieved a monstrosity of a booger he had been working on the entirety of time we had waited across the busy sidewalk cafe. After ten minutes or so Danny broke the silence by simply saying, “well” I nodded “yep”. The invitation of a free steak diner, open bar and let's just say plain old debauchery had been extended the night before. On one hand this seemed very pleasing, on the other an unfortunate amount of bad events from the previous evening made us want to leave as soon as possible. We kicked around ideas with not much real thought then Danny said, “hey what about the Magic Bar”? Nice, I replied.
A few days earlier, in fact on the first night of Blackpool, we had bumped into a guy that claimed to have the biggest magic bar in England. This immediately sparked my interest having worked at the Tower Magic Bar side by side with Doc Eason, Eric Mead, Bob Sheets and so many other great influences. Disappointingly when I asked other English magicians about the bar, their general response was “oh I haven't been myself, but I've heard it was really nice.” Nice? My grandmother, God rest her soul was nice....... I wanted details, something.
By chance we had met a young lady also in Blackpool named Annabel de Vetten. She was pimping her custom designed deck of playing cards aptly named the “Jill Deck”. After some wine a few fags and some cider Annabel was soon chatting up about her artwork, the Jill Deck and this magic bar in Bristol that we had to go to. So that was that, Danny and I were off to Bristol. About an hour in a half into our train ride I decided it would be best to text Annabel to find out the name of this bar and the name of the owner for that matter. Danny did a quick Google search for Illusions Magic bar and gave the owner Mark Bennett a ring. Seeing as we had made no hotel arrangements, nor let our future Bristol host privy to our intentions, I thought it best we should let him know we were popping in. (Taking a brief moment to explain. Danny lives in a world where things always just seem to work out and I'd have to say I live in reality. Inarguably I will say 98% of the time he is right. I just didn't want to end up on the streets of a foreign Country freezing standing outside a closed magic bar. “Hence the phone call” Danny hangs up the phone and says “we're good to go”.
Taking advantage of our first class seats we ordered a coffee and hot coco. Next stop taxi ride to Illusions, now that's a whole other story for another time. Our driver proceeded to take us on an unintentional misguided scenic tour of down town Bristol. It was foolish on our part to assume that just because we had the full address, post code and name of the establishment that “Michael” would know where to take us. Danny made another $6 phone call to Mark who stood on the street waving his arms like air traffic control. We spotted him and exited the cab about a hundred and fifty yards off target. Mark was posted outside leaning against a white mini SUV with the illusions logo proudly pasted on its side. Ahhh, time for quick cig and a bit of small talk before walking into the bar.
Upon entering I quickly noticed the original Artwork of Annabel de Vetten displayed on the walls. The floors were clean and there was no smell of smoke as you would find in most Texas bars. A baby grand piano sat staged to the right, an L shaped bar adorned with classic magic posters at its base lay in the middle. To the left was a nice comfortable lounge area. And in front of that, not to sound “Cheeky” is where the magic happened. It was a six seater hand made bar, with a velvet curtain that laid in the back, a display case of common magic goods sat to the left and the house butler stood to the right. There were no liquor bottles, no beer taps, this was a magic bar. Get your cocktail sit down shut the @#$* up and get ready to be entertained. THIS WAS A MAGIC BAR and I was home. A small group that honestly just walked in, were now wrapped into a 30 minute set of awe and disbelief. Jezza was pounding them with close up effect after close up effect. Curse words flew as fast as the pints. It was now six thirty and that rumble in my stomach was a gentle reminder that breakfast had been over 8 hours ago. We politely excused ourselves and asked Mark where we might get a quick bite. He said he knew of just the place and before we knew it he was joining us at ZiZi's Italian cafe. They treated us like rock stars, a bottle of wine and a full belly later we walked back to the bar. I couldn't imagine that more than an hour and a half had passed since our filling dinner and now the Illusions patrons had quadrupled in volume. Mark hustled us through the crowd taking time to shake hands and smile. Danny and I just exchanged glances, this was going to be a fun night..........
Back stage is a place I've always enjoyed and this was no exception. Concrete floors, beer storage, a stainless steel 3 well sink and a plaster wall graffitied with past visited magi's autographs separated us from the anxiously waiting crowd. Now keep in mind we were never “asked” to perform, it was more that within the first 24 seconds of meeting Mark he had “told” us we would be going on. What Mark didn't know, is you couldn't have kept me away from that crowd with a s%&*@ mop. I could feel blood rushing from my neck down my arms and finally enter my hands. Don't get confused boys and girls, this was not fear by any means. This was the thrill, the excitement the adrenaline right before the kill. Tonight there was no need to tone it down, no neck ties no screaming kids, a little term Danny and I like to call “all meat”.
Mark gave a quick introduction and Daniel Garcia was first up. Now I wish I could tell you that Mark and I watched every second of his act, but instead we dashed out into a secrete storage for yet another puff. Well that didn't last long, abrupt laughter and the echoing voice of DG made us quickly toss our fags on the ground to rush back in. Armed with a deck of bikes and a blue megaphone Danny was making his American presence well known. Again, all meat....... Straight to the point in your face no smoke or mirrors magic. Earlier Mark had handed Jezza one of the house magicians my camera, Jezza took more pictures than a paparazzi sitting in front of Brittney Spears house on a Saturday. Danny was in rare form a scene that few have ever witnessed before. Danny took his well deserved applause, gave me a soccer pat on the ass and I was next. Working with a borrowed deck, a borrowed sharpie and a half borrowed act (kidding ok not really no really) I found my rhythm. The cool guy stood in front not wanting to beak. An ambitious card to mouth routine I had done a thousand times notedly broke down his tough guy demeanor. Amanda was the beauty I had chosen to be the star of the show. Well probably every guy in that room wanted that girl to be the “star” of the show. Mark shot me a whisper “one more” he says. I'm almost glad he did because I would have stayed all night.
Oh did I mention? Yes we ended up staying all night. Mark the home town hero took it from there and from the sound of cheers he knocked it out of the park. It was now time for some serious business. Fresh squeezed delicious British pints of nectar softened our pallets for the long road ahead. A young and hip blend of music played nicely in the background. We sat on the black leather couches watching the show from the spectators point of view. In SnowMass we had a mirror that hung above the bar as to catch all the angles. Well Illusions had to one up us Yanks, a 42inch flat screen with wireless video camera took care of that. Danny, Mark and I just sat and watched, sipped our pints and watched some more. Around about 5:30 in the morning I guess we figured we had told each other enough lies and called it a night. While Mark took about sixty or so steps up to his apartment Danny and I soon found out that our “right around the corner” hotel ended up being an honest 3/4 of a mile hike.
It would be a night that we might not remember but I guarantee we would never forget.......... I say this to all magicians and laymen alike if you find yourself in England, some might consider it a sin to your own self not to find the time to visit Illusions Magic Bar. It was a joy that completed my total experience of England and for that I say with all my heart from Danny and I both, Thank you Mark Bennett, thank you to the staff at Illusions and thank you random reader that I forgot to mention.
As Always,
Alex Rangel.
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