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Do you remember growing up watching magic occasionally, in your life, as an art of entertainment and how simple prestidigitation has transported you to an unknown world where it was all mystery, illusion and entertainment? It is not surprising that magic has historical importance although it gained respectability and strength in eighteenth century. Modern magic art owes a lot to Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin who performed in France and England. The 19th century magician of prominence, Harry Houdini magic guru took his stage name from French Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. The world remembers these two great names as magicians who brought respect to an otherwise, what was thought and practiced as an art of, occult and conjure practice.
How Is Magic Performed
None of the performers of this day claim to possess any supernatural powers baring a few who may be called as ‘charlatans'. Performers establish an unspoken relationship with audience even as they enter the stage, achieved through sleight of hand. And then what follows next is an illusionary and mind numbing combination of deception, misdirection, connivance with a member of the audience, mirrors, equipments and other apparatuses with mysterious mechanisms, and lots of other trickery.
The bafflement the audience falls into is beyond explanation that audience thinks it lost senses as they can't believe how anything that has happened, albeit before their eyes, has happened at all. Dumb stricken, having lost comprehension and thinking abilities, audience, in no time give in to the tricks and just become a part of the show before beginning to pay a role themselves.
Where Does It Stand Today
Unfortunately, for much of the 20th century, this great art of entertainment was ignored and marginalized. This is mainly because of the rise of celluloid entertainment which added stories to make believe shows. Stalwarts and enthusiasts have been at it for reviving this ‘children's entertainment', as it is regarded now. But the result, which, for much of the last 2-3 decades has been elusive, appears to be a distant possibility. The expression ‘all smoke and mirrors' which gained coinage coinciding with the decline in interest has also contributed too magic's present state today.
Some of the famous acts of magic are Escape Art, The Great Indian Rope Trick, Teleportation, Vanishing Act just make a small partial list of great acts interspersed with the routine fillers like innumerous number of card trick, pulling rabbits from hats etc.
The term magic has become synonymous with great performance in other fields too, especially sports. Can anyone forget Magic Johnson, at all?