The word Magician can mean different things to different people.
For some a magician or warlock, witch, wizard, enchanter/enchantress, or sorcerer/sorceress is a fictional character in a film such as Harry Potter.
For others a magician is someone you hire for a children’s birthday party, but for most when you say the word magician they think of someone doing card tricks at a party or wedding.
Hi, I’m Roger. I am a professional table magician based in Hampshire, near Southampton and I also perform my magic across the UK.
I will describe below 7 different types of Magicians.
1. Wedding Magician
So a wedding magician is someone who specialises in wedding entertainment. They will normally perform a mix of close up, mix and mingle, table magic and for some weddings even a cabaret performance. The main benefit of a wedding magician is the experience you are getting. Your wedding day is most likely the biggest day of your life so you will want all your suppliers to be the very best you can get. I have performed at 100s of weddings and understand how the day works and how I can fit my magic into your big day.
2. Cabaret Magician
So onto the second type of magician, the cabaret magician. Now this can take many forms and most people when they think of cabaret think of a theatre where they would go do see a show.
A cabaret magician is just someone who can perform their magic to a large group of people. This is also called Parlor Magic.
The definition of the word cabaret is:
“entertainment held in a nightclub or restaurant while the audience eat or drink at tables”
So whilst this description is not exactly as I have described it, when you are looking for a professional magician to hire and you ask them if they can do cabaret, you are normally expecting them to be able to stand up in front of the entire group and perform magic which can been seen by everyone.
3. Close up Magician
Close up Magic is the type of magic that most people have heard of and ask then they are hiring you. “We are looking for a Close-up Magician” Sometimes referred to as a close hand magician basically means performing magic so close to people that they are literally inches from the trick but still cannot see how it is done.
I really enjoy performing close up magic because people will always say “Can you do that again?” The second time they will watch even closer thinking they can spot when it happens but it just makes it even more confusing!
This type of magic is perfect for house parties or where you are just performing in one room or with limited space.
4. Table Magician
Table magic as the name suggest is performed at a table. This is usually during a dinner where all the guest are seated enjoying their meal and the magician will move between the tables performing their magic.
Most of the tricks require the use of a table to put things on and this type of magic is often performed with the magician also seated at the table.
This differs from close up magic which can be performed anywhere.
5. Street Magician
A street magician, as the name suggests performs on the streets. This is a tough gig as they are not being paid and have to perform their act to tourists and people passing by and at the end of their show get people to put some money in their hat. Most street magicians are very skilled at holding a crowd and then encouraging them to put some money in their hat before they just walk away.
6. Mind Magician or Mentalist
As the dictionary describes it a Mentalist or mind magician is someone who performs feats that apparently demonstrate extraordinary mental powers such as mind-reading.
Someone very famous for this is Derren Brown whilst it appears he is performing amazing mind reading tricks he puts all his performances down to showmanship and mind control and has never claimed any extraordinary mental powers.
This type of magic is fascinating for most as it is not sleight of hand and cannot be explained as you only have your mind, and how can someone possibly know just the name of my first pet I was only thinking of!
7. Christian Magician
Although not technically a type of magician a Christian magician is someone who uses their magic to help spread the word of god.
Performing tricks to amplify their message can be a very powerful thing.
I myself am a christian and am often asked to perform in churches at at church events. Also known as gospel magic it is usually a mixture of all the types of magic but being used to amplify a message.
Listen to me below on Premier Christian Radio talking about being a Magician, a Christian and a member of the magic circle.
Conclusion:
So whilst this list is certainly not exhaustive, there are so many different types of magicians that I cannot list them all here. I hope this has been some help and if you would like to hire me to perform any of the above at your event please get in touch.
