Fascination Close-Up Magic – From the beginnings of table magic to great show magicians and famous tricks

The performing arts encompass diverse forms and concepts. Some aim to stimulate thought, others deliberately provoke or draw attention to social injustices. Still others simply seek to entertain. In the broadest sense, magic be considered an entertaining form.

Close-up magic is often regarded as the pinnacle of magic .

What is close-up magic?

Close-up magic refers to the art of magic performed directly in front of the audience. Unlike grand illusionists like David Copperfield, close-up magicians typically perform for smaller audiences. close-up magic involves magic tricks that can be performed at close range. This means they are well-suited for small audiences and usually involve only a few viewing angles.

Of course, some of these tricks can be performed on stage or in a living room, but they can also just entertain a few people if you are in a restaurant, on the street, in a bar, or simply visiting a friend and their family.

Obviously, magic comes in different categories; card tricks and coin tricks are usually perfect for performing up close.

Magic for virtual shows is in many ways a kind of close-up magic, and there are a lot of mind readers and mentalists among close-up magicians who are masters of close-up magic.

What are the different types of close-up magic?

Just as every singer has their own style and can give the same song a different twist, close-up magicians have their own unique performance style.

Old-school magicians may have a more traditional style with longer card tricks and routines involving a lot of talking, scripted jokes, and rehearsed gags.

In contrast, some magicians, and especially mind readers, are very serious (e.g., in the style of David Blaine ) and give guests the impression that real magic is being practiced or that mind reading is real and possible.

Others, however, are more lighthearted and fun-loving in their demeanor. A blend of mentalism and charming entertainment characterizes Munich magician Oliver Henke . As a close-up magician, he mingles with your guests and enters their thoughts and feelings. Besides his extraordinary feats, he impresses with his stylish stage presence and charming entertainment value.

In principle, close-up magicians can be divided the following categories

• • Card magic with sleight of hand
  • Visual magic with coins
  • Visual, fast-paced "Dynamo" and "David Blaine" magic.
  • Mind reading – PIN numbers, names, places and everything else you have “thought about” will be revealed.
  • Fork and spoon bending in the Uri Geller style
  • Comedy magic (e.g., with borrowed banknotes)
  • Pickpocketing and Watches theft (don't worry – everything "borrowed" will be returned)

• Magic with borrowed phones and borrowed objects

What is the special charm of close-up magic?

It's a very direct form of magic. It's impressive, astonishing to its audience, and definitely practical, as few props are needed. There are many reasons why this type of magic trick is so popular right now:

• Many tricks happen directly in/in front of the spectator's hands
• You can hear and see the audience's reactions immediately
• No expensive props are needed
• Close-up magic can be performed anywhere, anytime, and at any event
• No special lighting or sound system is required
• Magicians can practice their tricks at any time and try them out on people
• Most great close-up magic tricks are based on skill, not on elaborate staging

Spanish legend Juan Tamariz & card tricks as a spectacle

The Spanish magician Juan Tamariz has been a professional magician for 52 years. During this time, he has accomplished the unique feat of becoming a living legend of magic far beyond the borders of his country.

maestro by magicians worldwide . David Blaine has called him "the greatest and most influential living card magician ." In his native Spain, Tamariz is a veritable icon—less like Blaine or David Copperfield—more like Kermit the Frog.

In the United States, the most popular magicians of the late 20th century were stage illusionists like Doug Henning , David Copperfield , and Siegfried & Roy —all of whom worked with large-scale productions and massive stage shows. In other words, the sort of magician who could actually make someone's wife disappear.

This put them in competition with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas as well as with their predecessors in magic; they were creators of spectacles witnessed from afar.

But Tamariz, on the other hand, appeared much more modest on stage and screen, armed with little more than his two hands. Instead of relying on carefully constructed devices, he constructed his audience's attention. introduced Spanish audiences to the "close-up" , performed with ordinary objects at close enough range for conversation and involving the audience.

Tamariz made a single appearance on American television in 1994 in an NBC special titled "The World's Greatest Magic ," as reported by US journalist Shuja Haider in a New York Times article . Until then, he had largely withdrawn from Spanish television after appearing regularly for almost 20 years.

Nevertheless, he was introduced by the host as "the greatest close-up magician in the world—perhaps the greatest who ever lived ." He was certainly not the American archetype of a stage magician who conjured doves from evening gowns and tails.

El Cochecito

Tamariz sat at a small casino table, wearing a purple top hat. "NOW I'M GOING TO DO A SPECIAL TRICK!" Tamariz practically shouted. He dealt a deck of cards and demanded, "SHUFFLE SHUFFLE SHUFFLE!" He lifted the table to show that there was nothing underneath. The spectators flinched at his abrupt changes in volume.

The trick he performed is called El Cochecito and is one of Tamariz's trademarks. In it, the audience is shown a toy car – the Cochecito – and asked to choose a card from a deck of cards. The deck is shuffled and spread out on the table.

Tamariz then invites another spectator to push the Cochecito along the length of the deck; it eventually seems to stall and stop in front of a card, resisting the spectator's hand.

Tamariz eliminates most of the cards and lays the remaining ones face down in a different configuration. But no matter which path it takes, the Cochecito always seems to stop at the same card. The ending, like a perfect rhyming couplet, is both unexpected and inevitable: it is, of course, the chosen card. Tamariz interrupts the moment of climax by caressing an invisible violin and drones a melody as he saws away.

David Blaine popularizes Tamariz's style

Three years later, David Blaine's special "Street Magic" popularized the close-up style that Tamariz had introduced to Spanish television. Since then, close-up has proven more suitable for online videos and social media than the former fog and the use of mirrors.

A mobile phone camera can easily capture a pair of hands within its frame, and a surprising visual effect makes for an easy-to-share miniature; “magic tricks” are now among TikTok’s main search categories between “everyday life” and “comedy”.

In "Fool Us ," a TV show where magicians attempt to perform a trick the duo doesn't understand, Tamariz is often mentioned by name. Spanish magicians appear regularly on the show, outperforming the hosts at an exceptionally high rate. "When we see and hear someone with a Spanish accent playing cards," Penn Jillette says in one episode, "we get scared."

In an interview, Jillette attributed her success to Tamariz, who “created a whole generation of people in Spain who take magic seriously”.

Escuela Mágica de Madrid and magic as an established school of thought

That may be an understatement. In the 1970s, Tamariz decided that magic needed an established school of thought like the French Surrealist movement and wrote a manifesto . It became the founding document of the Escuela Mágica de Madrid , a collective dedicated to promoting its craft.

Although the group modeled itself on an artistic movement, it functioned much like a research laboratory: The magicians conducted clinical trials, gathered spectators to witness their performances and ask for feedback, and produced a peer-reviewed journal called the Circular .

Magic isn't often considered a fine art by outsiders, but Tamariz makes a strong case to the contrary. That he does so while wearing a purple hat, playing the air violin, and shouting at the top of his lungs is the kind of paradox that unsettles cultural critics but not the public.

And as ubiquitous as his presence on Spanish television was, Tamariz's works can also be found on the shelves of every magic shop on the planet. Unlike most literature in this field, many of his books do not consist of methods for tricks, but rather explain, in dense, philosophical detail, the aesthetics of magic : the question of how to make someone experience something that should not have been possible.

In Tamariz's writings, a deck of cards is a medium for investigating human perception . On stage, it could fly through the air at any moment.

symbolic dimension in all classical magical effects . The most obvious case is the cut and repaired rope, where a rope is cut in two and magically rejoined, thus staging the allegory of destruction and resurrection that recurs in myth.

The same principle applied to a seemingly frivolous trick like the Egg Bag , in which an egg disappears and reappears in a black bag. For Tamariz, there could hardly be a more literal manifestation of the creation of life .

It even manifested itself in such an abstract effect as the Ambitious Card , made famous by the Canadian magician Dai Vernon , who fooled Harry Houdini with a version of it in a historic encounter between the two magicians.

A card chosen by a spectator is repeatedly placed in the middle of a pile, but always reappears on top. For Tamariz, the trick is a hero's journey : the card representing the spectator experiences a rise to power, an ascent, and a liberation.

Tamariz's most detailed description of the experience of magic comes from an essay in his book "La Vía Mágica" entitled "The Theory of False Solutions and the Magic Way" . The path is depicted in a painting by Tamariz's then-partner, Marga Nicolau.

The spectator rides in a carriage drawn by two horses, one winged and one earthbound. The route takes various turns, some of which represent false solutions—every idea the spectator might have about the method behind the effect. The magician must prevent the spectators from even considering the false solutions by leading them away from the true one as well—leaving the impossible as the only logical explanation.

In other words, the magician uses our own capacity for empirical observation: With careful guidance, our active interpretation of the perceptual material can allow us to see what is not there.

The influence of Tamariz on close-up magic, table magic, and card tricks cannot be overestimated.

Great representatives of the wizarding guild

Looking at today's international magic scene, two names in particular cast a long shadow and define the standards of magic: David Blaine and Dynamo .

1. David Blaine: From street magician to endurance superhero

David Blaine is probably one of the greatest living magicians. He became famous for his amazing street magic , tricks for celebrities , and extreme endurance feats. He likes to push his performances to the limit.

Some of David Blaine's most famous endurance stunts —from burying himself alive for a week to standing on a giant block of ice for almost three days—have taken him to the edge of this world and the next. There, he says, he feels closest to his mother, who died when he was a teenager.

Blaine took street magic and redefined it in a career spanning more than 25 years. He pushed his body to the limits of human endurance and nearly died performing some of the most dangerous illusions in the canon of magic.

As a teenager, David performed in nightclubs and at parties. His career was just beginning when his beloved mother, Patrice, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. At first, the disease progressed slowly, so Blaine continued working. He had moved to New York and experienced his breakthrough during this time.

By the time of his mother's death in 1994, Blaine was becoming increasingly well-known in the industry and had befriended many celebrities. Inevitably, television came calling. In 1997, Street Magic aired on ABC and worldwide, followed by Magic Man .

In both shows, Blaine used handheld cameras and performed street magic tricks on astonished passersby. His ultra-cool, understated manner, combined with the audience's amazed reactions, made watching them irresistible.

Soon he was appearing on late-night talk shows in front of a much larger audience. Conan O'Brien called David Blaine "The Tiger Woods of Magic" .

And then came the stunts

“I was buried alive in a coffin in New York City… in April 1999 for a week ,” he once said in a TED Talk. “I lived there with nothing but water. And in the end, it was so much fun that I decided to do more of those things.”

The following year, he was frozen in a block of ice for three days and three nights, again in New York.

"That was much harder than I expected. Afterwards, I stood on a 100-foot pillar for 36 hours. I started hallucinating so intensely that the buildings behind me began to look like large animal heads."

For his fourth major endurance event in 2003, he went to London and floated in a plexiglass box over the Thames for 44 days to survive on the water.

He gives back…

Throughout his career, Blaine has always given back. In November 2006, he transformed himself into a human gyroscope above New York's Times Square for 52 hours to raise money for the Salvation Army.

In 2010, Blaine performed "Magic for Haiti" , raising $100,000 for earthquake relief in Haiti. Blaine also donated two $1 million Tesla coils to the Liberty Science Center after performing an electrical stunt.

Since the age of 18, he has performed for free in hospitals, often for sick children. This didn't stop during the Covid pandemic. He went online via FaceTime to entertain patients, first responders, and medical staff.

Although David Blaine is an international showman who makes many headlines, he has developed into a modest, almost reserved, quiet person. He is a magician whose actions speak louder than his words.

2. Dynamo and its Impossible Magic

Steven Frayne , known by his stage name Dynamo , is also a shining star in the world of magic. The British magician performs everything from elegant card tricks to epic stunts like levitation and walking on water. His show, Dynamo: Magician Impossible, has won numerous awards and received critical acclaim.

Dynamo began learning card magic at the age of 10. He quickly developed his skills by watching videos of top performers like David Stone , who was his mentor and close friend. Dynamo traveled from Spain to perform for David Stone and saw the success he could achieve with his confidence by performing magic tricks.

This is where his urge to manipulate cards began, leading to his success in live shows throughout Europe and television appearances in Germany, Spain, England, Finland, Poland, Russia and Ukraine.

Today, Dynamo is considered a top performer by many professionals worldwide. He has performed magic and tricks at private parties for David Beckham, George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Paris Hilton, Zac Efron, Rihanna, and many other celebrities. Closer to his home in the UK, Dynamo has appeared on the BBC's "The One Show ," ITV's "This Morning" with Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby with a live card trick, and regularly performs in front of tens of thousands at events such as the Blackpool Illuminations Switch-on Party.

Dynamo first appeared on television in "The Magicians ," a documentary for Channel 4, in which he performed a card trick for an audience of journalists and magicians, followed by his first television appearance on "The Paul O'Grady Show" with a spontaneous street magic performance for unsuspecting people in the public.

He then appeared in the second series of "The Magicians," this time as a mentor, teaching a young magician everything about card tricks. Dynamo's television appearances weren't limited to the UK; he also appeared on Spanish television in "Para Toi," where he performed many street magic tricks and was filmed at David Stone's house high in the mountains, training and performing more advanced card tricks.

In 2011, Dynamo launched his own TV show , Dynamo: Magician Impossible . During the show's four seasons, Dynamo performed all kinds of magic: from small card sleight of hand to grand illusions like walking across the Thames. He fooled everyone from ordinary people on the street to celebrities and public figures.

Close-up magic as an event trend

When looking for an entertaining element that appeals to any audience, more and more event organizers are opting for close-up magicians. In this type of entertainment, a magician, dressed in an outfit and with a repertoire appropriate to the occasion, moves naturally among the guests.

This results in individual mini-shows at each table. If the artist is skilled, the mini-performances can be tailored to the specific group. The audience's attention is only captured for a short time – in the relaxed atmosphere of a small group.

Close-up magic is a rising form of event entertainment that responds to current trends towards immediacy and individuality. Modern audiences at business or private events no longer want to be entertained solely with stage shows and demand creative and original entertainment.

Therefore, close-up magic is an ideal way to meet these expectations.

Popular close-up magicians for events in Germany

Close-up magic, or table magic, captivates audiences with its direct interaction with the magician. With the three magicians listed below, you are choosing absolute masters of their craft.

André Desery – The Close-Up World Champion

Trust in the award-winning magic of world champion André Desery and delight your guests with high-quality entertainment.

With his infectious and humorous manner, André will skillfully mingle with your guests, going from table to table/group to group and performing amazing magic tricks.

Let yourself and your guests be captivated by this astonishing show and discover how the coin got behind your ear and where the ball suddenly landed.

Oliver Henke – Mentalist and magician from Munich

For more than two decades, the fascination with magic has held a firm place in Oliver Henke's life. His extraordinary tricks never fail to enchant his audience. Even the biggest skeptics are surprised and delighted after witnessing his performance.

Oliver has become a well-established figure in the European magic world. He has an extensive list of references and countless satisfied clients (see client testimonials here ).

Outside of Germany, he has already performed in more than ten European cities, and his talent for connecting with his audience is unique.

Florian Severin and his power of suggestion

Florian Severin is a versatile artist – magician, manipulator, and suggestor. He combines magic, skill, and various tricks to captivate his audience in a unique way.

His performances are unparalleled in their combination of cheeky charm and respectful behavior. You have never seen an artist like him before.

Booking tips: How to choose the right magician for an event

If you have an event coming up and want to offer your guests close-up magic as a special experience, your next step is to find the right magician for your event.

Here are some factors to consider when comparing your options:

Experience

A great close-up magician is more than just someone who knows a few "tricks." Hire someone with years of experience. This means the magician knows exactly what it truly takes to make magic unforgettable.

An experienced magician will listen to your plans, give you the best advice for your individual situation, and deliver the desired wow effect.

Don't risk booking someone who is still learning the ropes.

References

Book a full-time professional. This means you're hiring someone who has dedicated their life to magic. They have nothing to fall back on if the show doesn't go well. This usually means you get a better show and a more professional performer.

Also check if the magician is endorsed by The Magic Circle . Verify that they are an Equity member with professional liability insurance.

Read more about his education and biography. Check his client references and performance history.

rapport

The magician himself is the single biggest factor in whether your booking is a success or not. A close-up magician interacts closely with your guests. The audience needs to feel comfortable and entertained. Watch the magician's videos to get a feel for his personality.

Pay particular attention to this detail in customer testimonials. If all you see "they were incredible ," you only have half the story.

You get what you pay for

This rule applies to everything. If you save on price, the chances increase that you will "pay" .

This means you are more likely to book a no-show or be disappointed with what you get.

The greatest close-up magic tricks of all time (with a modern twist)

Let's conclude this article about the fascination of this art form with a short list of some of the best magic tricks of all time. Trying them out yourself is expressly encouraged 😉

The Cups and Balls

This is probably the oldest trick in the world. It is mentioned in Seneca's 45th letter to Lucilius over 2,000 years ago. There is also a painting in a tomb at Beni Hasan in Egypt that looks as if someone is performing this trick, but no one is entirely sure whether it is a magic trick or an ancient version of a game of chance.

Most modern versions of the trick are variations of Dai Vernon's routine . The Professor's routine consists of three cups and three balls. The balls disappear one by one to be found under the cups, the balls then enter the cups, the spectators then have the opportunity to choose under which cup the balls reappear, and finally, the creation of large objects, usually fruit, follows.

When you see The Cups and Balls performed today, it's usually a version of Vernon's routine.

The Linking Rings

Ernesto Melero is a damn clever guy. The linking of rings is incredibly well-known; it has been performed since the 19th century. An early explanation can be found in print in Nouvelle magie balance dévoilée, Vol. 2, 1854, p. 39 by J.N. Ponsin.

Until Ernesto came along, there had been no development in the main method for quite some time. He made it easy to connect and disconnect the rings, something that would be impossible without his special set. The idea is very simple, non-mechanical, and can be learned in minutes by anyone familiar with the traditional method of performing the trick.

We firmly believe that this is the best close-up version of The Linking Rings ever released.

Magic Loops

A simple loop of invisible thread allows you to perform miracles. The method was first published in 1907 in the Conjurer's Monthly Magazine , Vol. 1 No. 6, February 1907, p. 188.

Even back then, the article was titled "Some old tricks for new beginners" , which suggests that it was already an old idea.

The idea of ​​using elastic yarn came from Finn Jon . He sold it through Georges Proust in the mid-1980s.

Today, magicians like Dynamo have popularized their use. They are also used for PK touches, floating bills, and other PK-style effects.

Haunted Key

The Haunted Key was originally used for fortune-telling , a practice dating back to the 1800s. In this version, a large key was held between the pages of a Bible, its ends extending beyond the edges of the book. Two spectators placed the Bible and the key on their outstretched fingers. Similar to a Ouija board, the key could yes/no questions or even reveal letters .

The use of the key as a magic trick is also old, but printed references are hard to find. It was definitely in use in the 1900s and was considered old at the time. There is a reference by Joseph Kolar in *The Linking Ring*, Vol. 25 No. 6, August 1945, p. 108, for a method that balances the keys on the tips of the fingers and thumb. This was sold as a single page of instructions.

Today, The Haunted Key Deluxe combines the old methods with the aforementioned elastic loops to achieve a modern, incredible version of this old classic.

RD Insta

Henry Harrius is the undisputed king of dice magic. RD Insta is the most visually stunning solution ever created.

Although the idea of ​​solving a Rubik's Cube in a magical way is not new, Henry's solution is a breathtaking masterpiece of modern magic.

Double Cross

When it comes to close-range magic tricks, Double Cross is one of the most popular releases of the last 10 years. The effect involves drawing a small cross on your palm and then closing your hand. After a magical gesture of your choice, the cross disappears. The spectator opens their hand, and the cross is there.

The trick is based on the centuries-old Ashes on Palm effect , but is brought up to date by using a Sharpie.

Coin Bite

We can thank David Blaine for popularizing this very old trick. The folding coin used by Blaine was first by Sachs Sleight of Hand .

Then came street magic, and magic shops couldn't produce it fast enough. Let's remember how Blaine took a very old magic prop and updated it: