Magic Everywhere Archives - GeniiOnline

Aaron Rabkin considers himself an entertainer first, and a magician second, and a large part of that is how he uses comedy in his shows. Originally dabbling in improv and stand-up comedy, Rabkin embraced his magician side and used his sleight of hand to elevate his jokes, and vice versa. The the final part of our interview, Rabkin shares his thoughts on what makes comedy magic work, and his own thoughts on how to craft humor.

For more from our visit to the magic destinations of Chicago, check out our video interviews with Mark Toland, Dennis Watkins, and Nick Roy, and our Magic Anywhere special, focusing on the unique, hands-on approach to Chicago-style magic.

It’s rare for someone to land their dream gig right off the bat, and such is the case for Aaron Rabkin. His Chicago venue Trickery is the culmination of years of practice, first as a kid in various magic camps and competitions, then later in one-man shows, street performances, and corporate magic. Nothing felt right, though, until he finally decided to make a go of it with his own intimate theater in the heart of downtown Chicago – and the rest, as they say, is history. Learn about his journey through magic in part four of our five-part interview.

When you’ve got an audience of only 30 people, you can actually see the close-up magic, well, up close, and this allows for a much deeper connection between the performer and the crowd. In part three of our five-part interview, Aaron Rabkin explains the benefits of performing in a smaller venue like Trickery, how he uses the energy from the audience to enhance his own performance, and describes what an audience can expect when coming to his show.

Aaron Rabkin loves theater, but as a young performer, he also knows how hard it is to get a tech-savvy generation raised on instant video streaming to come out and see a play. That’s why he built Trickery, an intimate venue in the heart of Chicago that he hopes will be a gateway drug for people, not just to magic, but for live performance as a whole. In the second part of our five-part interview, Rabkin talks about crafting a unique show to get people interested in magic, what he thinks does (or doesn’t) define Chicago magic, and the origin story of Hoppy, the Psychic Wonder Bunny.

It’s a bit strange to hear Aaron Rabkin, magician and owner of the Chicago venue Trickery, say he hates magic – but it’s not without reason. For Rabkin, magic is about impressing and entertaining his patrons, many of whom are laypeople, not other magicians. It doesn’t matter if he’s performing standards or the most technically complex trick he knows, as long as the end result leaves his audience satisfied. In part one of our five-part interview with Rabkin, he talks about what excites him about magic, what he tries to accomplish at Trickery, and how Fool Us has helped foster a wider appreciation of magic.

Dennis Watkins’ Magic Parlour is specifically tailored for a small audience of less than fifty people, and there’s a reason why: magic is much more powerful when you can see it up-close and personal for yourself. In our final video interview with Watkins, he talks about developing a parlour-type show in the heart of downtown Chicago, and why he prefers to perform smaller, more intimate shows nightly than larger shows less frequently.

For the rest of our interview with Dennis Watkins, check out the links below:

Part one: Dennis Watkins on the perks of growing up in a family of magicians

Part two: Chicago magic is all about the up-close and personal touch

Part three: The evolution of the Magic Parlour

And for more from our visit to Chicago, check out our video interviews with Mark Toland and Nick Roy, and our Magic Anywhere special, focusing on the unique, hands-on approach to Chicago-style magic.

The Magic Parlour is an intimate evening of mystery and illusion created by Dennis Watkins, specifically designed to cater to only a few dozen individuals at a time. While the show currently resides at the Palmer House in Chicago (the same venue where his House Theatre of Chicago is held), it wasn’t always that way. In the third part of our interview with Watkins, he talks about the evolution of The Magic Parlour, beginning as a fundraiser for the House Theatre, and eventually blossoming into a nightly, can’t-miss event.

For the rest of our interview with Dennis Watkins, check out the links below:

Part one: Dennis Watkins on the perks of growing up in a family of magicians

Part two: Chicago magic is all about the up-close and personal touch

Part four: The power of performing magic for a small audience

And for more from our visit to Chicago, check out our video interviews with Mark Toland and Nick Roy, and our Magic Anywhere special, focusing on the unique, hands-on approach to Chicago-style magic.

When you think of Las Vegas magic, your mind immediately turns to the opulent stages and extravagant productions of the biggest names in the business. Chicago magic, however, is a bit different. In the second part of our interview with Dennis Watkins, he talks about his definition of Chicago magic, and the personal, collaborative process between illusionist and audience that makes the city’s approach to magic unique.

For the rest of our interview with Dennis Watkins, check out the links below:

Part one: Dennis Watkins on the perks of growing up in a family of magicians

Part three: The evolution of the Magic Parlour

Part four: The power of performing magic for a small audience

And for more from our visit to Chicago, check out our video interviews with Mark Toland and Nick Roy, and our Magic Anywhere special, focusing on the unique, hands-on approach to Chicago-style magic.

When your grandfather owns a magic shop for several decades, you have the kind of access other magicians would saw someone in half for. Such is the case for Dennis Watkins, who grew up learning magic from his grandpa Ed, who ran Douglas Magicland for over 30 years. This exposed Dennis to a vast world of magic resources, including a variety of tricks, loads of books, and the array of illusionists who passed through the shop. In our interview with Watkins, he talks about how this helped get him his start in the business and how that (along with acting lessons) led him to create the House Theatre of Chicago and The Magic Parlour.

For the rest of our interview with Dennis Watkins, check out the links below:

Part two: Chicago magic is all about the up-close and personal touch

Part three: The evolution of the Magic Parlour

Part four: The power of performing magic for a small audience

And for more from our visit to Chicago, check out our video interviews with Mark Toland and Nick Roy, and our Magic Anywhere special, focusing on the unique, hands-on approach to Chicago-style magic.

Following a spin through Charlotte, North Carolina, our Magic Everywhere video series hopped a plane and an El train to explore Chicago, Illinois. After visiting four of the Windy City’s magic clubs and chatting with several top performers around town, we’ve got a good picture of what Chicago-style magic looks like.

Hint: it all starts with booze.

Chicago has a rich history of good times and good entertainment, and was an early home of bar magic. As you’d expect with that lineage, the resulting style of close-up magic now practiced by many of the locals is brash and high-energy. It also usually favors lots of participation from the audience, whether they’ve had many drinks or none. With both sides ready to dish out the sass, you can expect a very good time in any of Chicago’s latest crop of magic venues.

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