I love a good magic show. I’m a simple soul. I love magic, sideshow, circus – both contemporary and traditional – and anything else that can bamboozle me.
One of my highlights of recent years was a flea circus I saw at Brisbane Powerhouse. It was terrific. At least I think it was. Did I see any fleas? Not sure, but I certainly imagined them.
And imagination is what enlivens the recently launched Theatre of Magic, a residency in a secret room in the historic The Elizabeth Picture Theatre in Brisbane’s CBD. Well, the room isn’t that secret anymore. The show runs Friday and Saturday nights.
This venue was formerly The Irish Club and the scene of some trauma for me. I once hosted a literary event featuring author and actor William McInnes and he mercilessly lampooned me all the way through the event because I was wearing a black turtle neck sweater. I explained to him that was my literary uniform but he pressed on, heaping insult to injury anyway.
I have returned to the venue to go to the pictures and recently I went again and felt a brief shiver because I thought I saw the ghost of McInnes, even though he isn’t dead.
I entered a little wood-lined room where things got rather interesting. You know those bumper stickers that say … Magic Happens. I always want to pull the driver over and ask, “Where does it happen?”.
But now I know. It happens at the Theatre of Magic downtown in a show that is the brainchild of talented master magician, producer and stage star Christopher Wayne, co-creator of the worldwide smash hit and the biggest Australian magic show in history, The Naked Magicians. No nudity in this current show though.
He also created the family magic spectacular Showmen.
I love this stuff and was pleased to be invited to an hour and a half of magic on a Saturday night in a room that would normally give me claustrophobia. When you enter, there are snippets from old movies flashing onto the wall, films to do with magic including more contemporary ones such as The Prestige and The Illusionist.
Wayne was absent the night I went because he and his fellow magicians revolve through this little show. We got close-up magic by acclaimed card master Josh Norbido, a semi-finalist on Australia’s Got Talent. Josh is amazing and he bamboozled us good and proper. I have no idea how he does what he does and I don’t want to know because that would spoil the magic.
Guessing which card people pick from a pack is rudimentary stuff, but he mixed that up a bit and we were all pretty awe struck with his tricks. And Norbido’s a real entertainer and a nice guy who interacts with the audience well. Be warned, you may be asked to participate!
After interval we were promised a “floor show”. I had strange visions of girls dancing behind feathery fans but all they meant was that instead of sitting at a table and performing close-up magic, Act Two, Kerry “Nigel” Domann came on … standing up.
He’s known professionally as Nigel (why, is another mystery) and he’s an old school magician. I know we share a love of the magic of British comedian Tommy Cooper from a conversation I had with Nigel on the way in.
You may recall that Cooper’s magic tricks always flopped, but Nigel doesn’t miss a beat. When he tore up a broadsheet newspaper in front of us then made it whole again in front of our eyes, with a mere twist of the wrist, I was gobsmacked. “How the hell did he do that?” I asked under my breath
Theatre of Magic is modelled on the world-famous Magic Castle in Los Angeles. The fact that this new show was only supposed to run for eight weeks and is now booking into 2024 says a lot about how hungry people are for something different.
You can get a drink or a snack at the venue, as it is a functioning cinema, then settle into your little Theatre of Magic. Nigel suggests you have a crack at playing the retro pinball machine in the foyer nearby before you go in.
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This pinball game is called Theatre of Magic too, which is spooky, as Dame Edna would say.
After that, enjoy the show. It’s a family affair with no nudity or obscenity. It’s just good old-fashioned magic and I have no idea how they do it. That’s the point, isn’t it?
theatreofmagic.com.au
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