IF MAGIC 2003 - Review

Challenging themselves to reach new heights in their art, Lawrence and Priscilla aspire to promote Magic as an art form in Singapore. They desire to see the development of local magical skills and performances and to create more opportunities for amateur magicians to hone their craft.

Inspired by a vision of world-class magicians bred and groomed in Singapore, Lawrence and Priscilla organised the first-ever International Festival of Magic (IF Magic) in Singapore in 2003.

The Festival was a showcase of amateur and budding magicians from Singapore and countries in the region. Six lectures were conducted with workshop presentations of renowned magicians Jeff McBride, Eugene Burger and Max Maven drawing the largest crowds. A total of nine dealers from Thailand, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Hong Kong, The Netherlands and the United States were represented.

The Festival attracted a crowd of 950 to the TOUCH Community Theatre, where all the IF Magic events were staged. About 158 professional and amateur magicians registered for Asian Pro Magic Challenge, one of the programmes in the Festival. Eight magicians were selected for the finals, they were Jeremy Pei and Joe Yu of Singapore, Kim Jung Kuk from Korea, Dai Peng Heng from China, Maebaya Kyoto from Japan, Panjarat Chairattine from Thailand, PJ Wen of Taiwan and Danny Cole from the United States. The first prize, the Magic of Lawrence Trophy and a cash prize of US$1000, went to Danny Cole. First runner-up was Maebaya Kyoto, with PJ Wen receiving the second runner-up award.

Closing the Gala was The Secret Art, an acclaimed illusion show featuring Jeff McBride, Eugene Burger and Abbi Spinner which attracted a sold-out crowd of over 1000 people.