Magic conventions

Magic conventions are gatherings of professional magicians, magical hobbyists, dealers, collectors of magical apparatus, books and ephemera, and other students of the art of magic. They provide a place for lectures of subjects related to the craft, as well as a series of sample performances of noted or innovative techniques. Many conventions also hold competitions to judge who excels at a particular style, and present awards in various categories such as sleight of hand, card tricks, mentalism, stage illusions, and International Magician of the Year. The largest magic convention is The Blackpool Magician's Convention which is attended by over 3,500 magicians^[1].

Scope

Some conventions are internationally known, and others are specific to a particular city or region, but still bring in attendees from around their particular region such as the "York Magic Festival" in York, England, which brings in performers from across the United Kingdom.

List of well-known magic conventions

International

• Fellowship of Christian Magicians, annual week long convention held in Marion Indiana at Indiana Wesleyan University in the month of July.
• The International Brotherhood of Magicians Annual Convention. Late June through Early July.
• The British Ring Annual Convention September 22 - September 25th 2011: Southport, UK
• The International Magic Convention,London (Ron MacMillan's) http://www.internationalmagic.com. [Every November, London UK - since 1972]
• The Southern England Magic Convention, [Bournemouth, England] Every January. http://www.semagicconvention.com
• The Blackpool Magic Convention, Blackpool, England. Held every February.
• FISM (Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques)
• Magic Valongo, Valongo, Portugal. Held annually in September, since 1992.
• World Magic Seminar February 28 - March 3, 2010: Las Vegas, NV, USA
• VISMAYAM 2008 May 1 - May 4, 2008: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, INDIA
• [SAM] Society of American Magicians Convention. Held annually in early July: ATLANTA June 30 - July 3, 2010; PITTSBURGH July 13-16, 2011; LAS VEGAS 2012; WASHINGTON DC 2013.
• PCAM - Pacific Coast Association of Magicians. Held annually for 75 years in the Summer.
• Achambha 2008 Jadu Sansthan Agra August 28-30 2008: Agra Uttar Pradeh, India
• MAGIC Live has been presented four times, once each in 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2009. Past events produced by MAGIC Magazine, with the next event being in 2011.
• The Northern Magic Circle Convention (2010 Convention to be held at the Marine Hall, Fleetwood, Lancashire) http://www.northernmagic.co.uk
• C.U.M.C.I.S - Close-up Magic Convention in Sussex (yearly magic convention in Haywards Heath in Sussex) http://www.paulgordon.net/cumcis.html
• The Saint-Vincent Casino Magical Convention (2010 Convention entried in the Guinness World Records of London)
• [The Shenanigans Magic convention held every 3rd year during the first weekend in May, in Dublin, Ireland

Regional - U.S.

• Metro-Magic, annual October convention run by Bill Wisch, Bob Solari, and Carl Bajor and located in Northeastern New Jersey
• S.E.A.M. Magic Convention, Atlanta, GA (Southeastern Association of Magicians) Hosted every summer in a different southeastern city.
• Abbott's Get Together, an annual gathering in Colon, Michigan, founded in 1937 by Percy Abbott and Harry Blackstone, Sr.
• Midwest Magic Jubilee, founded in 1956 in Missouri
• Magi-Fest, begun in 1931, one of the most historic and longest-running annual conventions, currently held in Columbus, OH.
• TAOM (Texas Association of Magicians)
• Winter Carnival of Magic, Tennessee
• KIDabra International, The Association of Family and Kidshow Performers: Meets Every August
• Bob Littles Super Sunday, A One Day Convention with lots of Dealers, an Auction, a Lecture, A Social Hour, and a Show : Meets Every June and November
• FUNARAMA, A two/three day convention for magicians and clowns: Meets Every July
• Magicians Alliance of Eastern States, (M.A.E.S.) An Annual three day North Eastern US convention: Meets every August or September.
• Portland Magic Jam, An annual 3-day convention for magicians each September in Oregon.
• [1] Florida State Magic Convention

Invitational

Some small conferences have great prestige within the industry, but are not open to the public:

• FFFF - Fechter's Finger-Flicking Frolic, held on the east coast of the United States since the 1970s, and limited to fewer than 200 hand-picked attendees.

Reports and Listing

The MAGIC Magazine Convention Guide provides a comprehensive list of upcoming magic conventions and allows events to be compared to each other based on dates, price, location, number of events, etc. The site is run by MAGIC Magazine, the world's largest-selling magazine for magicians

Independently run Magic Convention Guide which was the first dedicated online guide to Magic Conventions, and still provides news and updates on conventions, as well as live coverage of some events. They also provide guides to some conventions, listing places to stay, eat, and shop.

Magic societies

Some conventions are hosted by specific magician associations or societies. For example, the two oldest and largest magic organizations in the United States, are the Society of American Magicians and the International Brotherhood of Magicians. The Home Counties Magical Society ran the 'Junior Days', a convention specifically aimed at younger magicians, now having been replaced with the event run by The Magic Circle. The College of Magic is a unique society in magic - offering a 6 year specialist diploma course in magic to students aged 10 and over.

Other Magic-related organizations are:

• Fellowship of Christian Magicians, with many local chapters
• College of Magic - one of the largest Societies in South Africa
• The Professional Magic Dealers Association
• The Magic Circle
• The Home Counties Magical Society
• International Magicians Society
• Pacific Coast Association of Magicians
• Shore City Magicians Club, Auckland, New Zealand
• Magic Academy, India
• Magic Academy and Magic Club, India
• Paul Gordon's Card Capers Day of Card Magic
• Listing of all 130 Magic Clubs & Societies in The United Kingdom
• http://kilmarnock-magic-circle.co.uk/

Awards

Gold Medal - I.B.M.

The most prestigious "stage magic" award in the International Brotherhood of Magicians competitions is the I.B.M. Gold Medal International Award of Excellence in Stage Performance. Along with other annual awards such as First place, Second place, etc., there is a possibility of this special Gold Medal award being issued if the judges decide that they have witnessed a contest performance of Gold Medal quality. As of August 2006, only eight Gold Medal awards have been made, to:

• Lance Burton, 1980
• Howard Hale. 1985
• James Cielen, 1988
• Fanny Tjin (Jade), 1990
• Greg Frewin, 1993
• George Saterial, 1999
• Keiko Muto, 2002
• Arthur Trace, 2005

Gold Cups - I.B.M.

The most prestigious "close-up" award in the International Brotherhood of Magicians competitions is the I.B.M. Gold Cups International Award of Excellence in Close-up Performance. Along with other anuual awards such as First place, Second place, third place, etc., there is a possibility of this special Gold Cups award being issued if the judges decide that they have witnessed a contest performance of Gold Cups quality. As of August 2006, only seven Gold Cups awards have been made, to:

• David Williamson, 1981
• Johnny Ace Palmer. 1983
• Joe Givan, 1987
• Giovanni Livera, 1991
• Steve Bedwell (magician), 1994
• Oscar Munoz, 1999
• Chase Curtis, 2003

Magic Castle

Each year the Hollywood-based Magic Castle club gives out awards at a black-tie dinner.

Grand Prix - FISM

The most prestigious award given out at FISM is the Grand Prix. The Grand Prix is generally considered to be the most prestigious competition award in the industry. FISM is held once every three years and may award the Grand Prix to the best stage magician and best close-up magician at each competition, but need not give out either award at any given competition.

Previous winners of the Grand Prix include:

2009

• Stage: Soma (Hungary)
• Close-up: Shawn Farquhar (Canada)

2006

• Stage: Pilou (France)
• Close-up: Rick Merrill (USA)

2003

• Stage: Norbert Ferré (France)
• Close-up: Jason Latimer (USA)

Award duplication

Because there is little standardization in naming awards within the industry, some smaller festivals often give awards that have the same titles as the awards at larger conventions. Less scrupulous magicians will often claim that they have a prestigious award, without indicating its origin, or declare themselves an 'award-winning' act, implying a high quality of performance. Self-claims of fame and notability must therefore sometimes be taken with a grain of salt. If a magician is or has been a genuinely notable and successful competitor in magic contests, he or she will probably have won an award, perhaps more than one, which are recognised at an international, national, or at least regional level. Examples of this are awards bestowed by FISM, IBM, SAM, The Magic Circle (London, England) and the International Magic Convention Close Up Competition, also held annually in London.

There are also organisations that randomly give out awards to famous magicians in different countries, to boast their own organisation's importance. This is a bit awkward, as it many times is difficult for the performer to know if it is a real organisation or not, and might become embarrassing for the performer, should he use such award in his marketing and someone later track its origin.

Dealer rooms

Most conventions have a "dealers room", where magical supplies are sold, along with books describing various techniques. While the public might be invited to view certain performances, you must be registered at the convention to visit the dealers room.

Links to magic conventions

• FCM Convention Page, Fellowship of Christian Magicians
• MagicNewswire.com - News on the magic industry and conventions - Podcast
• Magic Convention Guide, The Magic Convention Guide, lists many world wide Magic Conventions, it also contains reviews and information regarding them.
• About.com - Magic events and conventions
• Magic Week, Magic news in the UK
• The International Magic Convention - Presented by Ron MacMillan
• Allmagic.com calendar
• Southern England Magic Convention
• The Blackpool Magic Convention

References

1. ^ http://www.illusionist.co.uk/magician-blog/2010/02/3500-magicians/