Awards – raffle prizes – a mini-lecture – and magic performances. What more could one want for Valentine’s Day?
First on the agenda, the awards were handed out for the Ring’s magic competitions that took place last year. Beautiful first-place trophies were awarded to Alex Wu (Stage/Parlor) and to Danny Cheng (Walk-Around,Close-Up and Magician of the Year). Personalized certificates were awarded to the People’s Choice winners, Tom Collett (Stage/Parlor), Perry Yan (Walk-Around) and Luke Adams and Danny Cheng (Close-Up).
The free-for-members raffle followed with prizes of magic props and DVDs generously donated to the club by Fred Rasmussen, John Jones, David Martinez and Tom Collett.
David Martinez presented a mini-lecture on “Opening Lines.” Quoting Eugene Burger – “Every good trick deserves a good opening line” – David compared the compelling first lines of literary works to the typical opener of magicians: “Here I have an ordinary deck of cards.” David presented the characteristics of great lines and how to find them, with references to the ideas of Darwin Ortiz and Pete McCabe. At the end he handed out lecture notes with dozens of examples of openers.
In the open performances of the evening, in which feedback was provided by the members if the performer requested, the Ring enjoyed the following acts.
Anthony “Doc Boodle” Pratkanis – The Three Shell Game.
Gene Johnson – Four aces fairly lost in the deck rise to the top.
Danny Cheng – Coins fly from hand to hand.
Mitch Kothe – A new arrival to the Ring, presenting Valentine themed three card location with a color change, and the deck turning into a steel block.
John Jones – The Box of Doom card prediction.
David Martinez – Teleportation of a nickel from hand to hand as spectators held his wrists.
Ken King – The Wizard Clock prediction.
Raphael Delgadillo – Card magic.
Tom Collett – Vanishing ribbon.
Gary Goldberg – A Shuffling Lesson.
Stan Sieler – A divination.
First on the agenda, the awards were handed out for the Ring’s magic competitions that took place last year. Beautiful first-place trophies were awarded to Alex Wu (Stage/Parlor) and to Danny Cheng (Walk-Around,Close-Up and Magician of the Year). Personalized certificates were awarded to the People’s Choice winners, Tom Collett (Stage/Parlor), Perry Yan (Walk-Around) and Luke Adams and Danny Cheng (Close-Up).
The free-for-members raffle followed with prizes of magic props and DVDs generously donated to the club by Fred Rasmussen, John Jones, David Martinez and Tom Collett.
David Martinez presented a mini-lecture on “Opening Lines.” Quoting Eugene Burger – “Every good trick deserves a good opening line” – David compared the compelling first lines of literary works to the typical opener of magicians: “Here I have an ordinary deck of cards.” David presented the characteristics of great lines and how to find them, with references to the ideas of Darwin Ortiz and Pete McCabe. At the end he handed out lecture notes with dozens of examples of openers.
In the open performances of the evening, in which feedback was provided by the members if the performer requested, the Ring enjoyed the following acts.
Anthony “Doc Boodle” Pratkanis – The Three Shell Game.
Gene Johnson – Four aces fairly lost in the deck rise to the top.
Danny Cheng – Coins fly from hand to hand.
Mitch Kothe – A new arrival to the Ring, presenting Valentine themed three card location with a color change, and the deck turning into a steel block.
John Jones – The Box of Doom card prediction.
David Martinez – Teleportation of a nickel from hand to hand as spectators held his wrists.
Ken King – The Wizard Clock prediction.
Raphael Delgadillo – Card magic.
Tom Collett – Vanishing ribbon.
Gary Goldberg – A Shuffling Lesson.
Stan Sieler – A divination.