Magic Nights in Belfast

Are you a fan of the flourish, a sucker for sleight of hand or dazzled by the discovery of the disappeared?

Belfast based Caolan McBride  has teamed up with Seedhead Arts and the Black Box to bring you an evening of close up and performance magic at the Midweek Magic Club. Each show will involve a grand total of FOUR local magicians trying out new and innovative material in the intimate surrounds of the Black Box cafe, and in between sets the performers will show off their latest close up skills around the tables of the venue.

The Midweek Magic Club will allow you to see established Belfast favourites like Caolan alongside ambitious newcomers, and move the art of magic on from traditional top hats and velvet curtains and into the 21st Century. Expect an intimate, interactive and fun-filled night.

Wed 8th Feb
Wed 14th Mar
Wed 11th Apr
Wed 9th May

Doors 7.30pm
Admission £4

For detaisl and booking tel: 07843 59 00 97.  Email Seedhead Arts here.  Seedhead Arts on Twitter

Best of luck to Caolan from IrishMagicNews

Caolan McBride at The Portrush Playhouse this Saturday

Caolan McBride will bring his Magic Show to the Playhouse Theatre in Portrush this coming Saturday.  With two shows, at 5pm and 7pm and great value tickets priced at £3 you'd be a fool to miss this rising star in action.  Full details on The Playhouse Theatre website.

USM Dinner & Paul Nardini Night Reviewed

Last Saturday week saw the USM host their annual dinner which was coupled with a day time lecture and evening performance by Paul Nardini.  IrishMagicNews' correspondent up north, Nicola Cunningham was there to report on matters.

"On Saturday 12th March it was that time of year again when the Ulster Society of Magician’s all get together to celebrate another year in Magic as a club. This year, our Chairman, Caolan McBride and the committee had loads of treats installed for both Magician’s and muggles alike.

 

The event was held in Malone Lodge hotel in Belfast which was a fine venue for all the Magical goings on. And who better to bring over to join our festivities other than Paul Nardini, member of the Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star, and with his wife Mhari billed as The Great Nardini, best comedy act and winner of 2003 FISM Championships to perform his lecture for the club during the afternoon and then perform his cabaret act in the evening as part of the festivities. Everyone who attended his lecture will agree with me that Paul’s lecture was highly entertaining and filled with extremely useful stuff. Paul was very charismatic and when listening to his advice and talking to him both during the lecture and in between it, I think we all would agree that Paul was a really dead on guy who absolutely loves Magic. I think we all learned a great deal from him as a professional performer.

Then for the dinner. This year we decided not only to have the main act perform in the evening but we also asked younger and more experienced members of the society to perform close up magic around the tables during dinner, so that non-members could see the talented magician’s that our own society have. This was a very successful idea and really helped lead into the main event, Paul Nardini. 

Nardini’s stage act was again highly entertaining, very visual and hilarious. Doing tricks with money, cards and his mind, Nardini really brought variety to the stage and everyone will agree that it was a great performance and smashing end to the night."

Math 'a' magic at the USM this Monday

Nicola Cunningham passed on the following invite for you all...

If any of you Magicians are free and can get up north on Monday 6th December 2010 then why not come along to the Ulster Society of Magician's December meeting at the Platform Bar in Holywood Belfast.

 

USM Chariman, Caolan McBride, his partner Nicola Cunningham and Victoria Vettese from Cahoots NI Children's Theatre Company will be performing their award winning show Math 'a' Magic.

 

Math 'a' Magic a Cahoots NI production sponsored by Northern Bank, is a school show for P7's where Math's and Magic literally Collide! The show combines Performance, Magic, lots of Maths and Illusion. It is guaranteed to dazzle and delight all. Caolan McBride has brought the show especially to the society as a magical treat before Christmas. All Magician's from other societies are welcome to come along to what will be a very fun night!

Caolan McBride & Nicola's Garden Date

Northern Ireland magicians Caolan McBride & Nicola are performing in CahootsNI's 'Leon's Enchanted Garden' until October 24th in Belfast's Botanical Gardens as part of The Belfast Festival.  The show then continues on to Letterkenny, Lisburn and Omagh.  For a full list of dates, venues and show information please visit The CahootsNI website.

Update on Saturday, October 16, 2010 at 9:14AM by Brendan Byrne

Posting on her Facebook page Nicola says,

Amazing I'm loving getting to perform our act loads plus the students are awesome helping us loads!!! We had a cool we gig before the gardens doing magic for important people for the opening ceremony and then guiding them to the garden which was fun!!! It's great for me and Caolan!!!

ibm ring 85 convention round-up

Congratulations to The USM and IBM Ring 85 for a great weekend of magic at their recent convention in Belfast.  As always with Irish conventions it is the atmosphere created by the acts and convention goer's that make it all happen and Belfast proved this in droves.  A high quality line up of acts and pleasant company coupled with probably the best produced Gala show of recent years, including the ones your editor co-produced, ensured a smashing time for one and all.  The highlight of the weekend for most that I chatted to was John Kimmons.  John is a superb magician & vent and his Gala show performance and lecture were quite simply hysterical.  Many thanks to organisers James Hobart, Alan Kennedy and George Bleeks.  

The competition results we as follows -

The Gemini Award (For best under 18/young magician) - Paddy Gibson (SIM)

Close-up competitions.

The John Bowden Trophy (for IBM members) - Nevin Cody (SIM)

The Tony Thursby Award (for non IBM members) - Paddy Gibson (SIM)

Stage Competitions.

The IBM Shield (for IBM members) - Nevin Cody (SIM)

The 4 Provinces Trophy (for non IBM members) - Magic George (USM)

The Eric Pollock award went to The Society of Irish Magicians.

Speaking of Nevin, at the last SIM meeting your editor recorded a live interview with both Nevin and Joe O'Donnell which we hope to have up on our next issue.  Pictured are Caolan McBride & Nicola with outgoing IBM Ring 85 President Paul Gomac.