A touch of Asian magic
Posted: 19 January 2009 1519 hrs

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SINGAPORE : David Copperfield and David Blaine are two well known illusionists who don't need any introduction. But they will be getting more competition with many up and coming young magicians emerging from Asia and headlining acts which have thrilled both local and international audiences.

Singapore's magic duo, 'Magic Babe' Ning and J C Sum, are the first and only Asians to be invited to perform and lecture at the Southern England Magic Convention which will be held on 31 January in Surrey, England.

'Magic Babe' Ning is one of the few professional female magicians in the industry. The 27-year-old caught the attention of event organisers when she was featured on UK's largest magic magazine, MagicSeen, in 2007, and was invited to perform at the closing ceremony of the UK magic convention.

While lectures on magic are foreign to most of us, Sum said magicians across the world often gather to share "trade secrets".

"You don't often think of magicians giving lectures because it's supposed to be a very covert and elite art but actually there are conventions happening all the time across the world where we are sharing our 'trade secrets' within the community. We are sharing our ideas and original thoughts," he said.

And the pair are looking to bring an "Asian flavour" to the upcoming convention, "Coming from Asia but with a very American and Western influence to our magic, we bring quite a unique dynamic and that's why I think it's going to be interesting for the UK magicians," said Sum.

However Sum and Ning are definitely not your average party magicians.

“Magic tricks are really smaller scale stuff, for instance you do a party trick at a bar or kids shows, but for us we do huge, mega scale illusions,” Ning said.

“An illusion would be something that boggles your mind... something that hits you at an emotional as well as intellectual level,” Sum added.

The two magicians also revealed that inspiration for their performances can come anytime, anywhere.

“I get inspired when I go out to an art gallery, when I watch films, when I meet people, when I go to different places,” Ning said.

“I think our minds are probably different from most in the way we see things. We don’t see things so simply and clear cut. Even when we just go out to a hardware store and we’re looking at things, we see things from a magic perspective,” explained Sum.

Described as the “art of astonishment,” both magicians use magic as an “extension to provide laughter and joy to people,” which has a universal appeal.

If you want the duo to bring some joy and laughter to your life, catch their show "Ultimate Magic" Illusion show at The Area at Clarke Quay. More details at www.thearenalive.com.sg.

- CNA/km