'The art of magic can be elevated'
By Rennie Whang
The New Paper
Sunday, Dec 11, 2011
A magician has made Singapore proud by taking the No. 2 spot in the Asian Championship of Magic organised by the International Federation of Magic Societies.
Jeremy Tan, 26, has also qualified for the World Championship in Blackpool, England next year.
He is the first Singaporean to do so, following Singapore's inaugural attempt in 2009.
Tan, who has been performing professionally since he was 16, was surprised with his placing.
He said that he had seen many of his 18 competitors on television - on Korean and Taiwanese variety shows, for example. Some were even past winners of the competition.
He said: "I told myself that I would do my best, and enjoy myself. Every competition is a learning experience."
He did his eight-minute routine in front of a panel of six judges and an audience of 300.
"I like to share the experience of magic with people," he would start by saying, at the same time causing three Morgan Silver Dollar coins - large silver discs about 2.5cm across - to disappear and reappear across his hands.
Then, he would place the coins in the hands of an audience member.
Coins would then "vanish" from that person's hand and arrive in his.
That's the heart of his magic philosophy - to "make people happy, to share and let them experience the magic".
Sometimes, that involves education - at corporate events, for example, he might share how gamblers can cheat with cards.
With more people appreciating magic, he believed, "we can elevate the art."
Tan does 15 to 18 shows a month.
Constant practice
The routine for this competition took a year to prepare, and he practised every opportunity he got. The skills used, though, "have taken my whole career".
Routines are practised "countless - hundreds of times," in front of a mirror or a video camera when he's on his own or at his shows.
He noted that competition magic is different from commercial magic, however.
A candidate may be disqualified if he is caught copying material used by somebody else in the market.
Tan said: "You have to come up with your own routine. If they don't like you, they can dismiss you within the first three minutes."
Originality was one of the six categories he was judged on in the Asia Championship of Magic.
Explained Mr John Teo, president of the Singapore chapter of the International Brotherhood of Magicians: "With laymen, you can get anything off the market and still impress.
"It's at competitions when creativity comes in; Jeremy's skills are good, and the way he puts his material together is very unique."
Tan's impressive coin trick was conceptualised by his assistant and girlfriend of two years, Miss Lee Hui Bin, 23.
She was an operations executive at a bar when they met, and today handles his finances and bookings, and is his stage assistant.
Miss Lee had been tinkering with his props, when she discovered how the coins could be handled.
"She's still half a layperson," said Tan. "After shows, she can tell me what went wrong."
Mr Tan is hoping to prepare an even better theme, over the seven months leading to the World Championship.
"It'll be something that looks even more magical," he said.
By Rennie Whang
The New Paper
Sunday, Dec 11, 2011
A magician has made Singapore proud by taking the No. 2 spot in the Asian Championship of Magic organised by the International Federation of Magic Societies.
Jeremy Tan, 26, has also qualified for the World Championship in Blackpool, England next year.
He is the first Singaporean to do so, following Singapore's inaugural attempt in 2009.
Tan, who has been performing professionally since he was 16, was surprised with his placing.
He said that he had seen many of his 18 competitors on television - on Korean and Taiwanese variety shows, for example. Some were even past winners of the competition.
He said: "I told myself that I would do my best, and enjoy myself. Every competition is a learning experience."
He did his eight-minute routine in front of a panel of six judges and an audience of 300.
"I like to share the experience of magic with people," he would start by saying, at the same time causing three Morgan Silver Dollar coins - large silver discs about 2.5cm across - to disappear and reappear across his hands.
Then, he would place the coins in the hands of an audience member.
Coins would then "vanish" from that person's hand and arrive in his.
That's the heart of his magic philosophy - to "make people happy, to share and let them experience the magic".
Sometimes, that involves education - at corporate events, for example, he might share how gamblers can cheat with cards.
With more people appreciating magic, he believed, "we can elevate the art."
Tan does 15 to 18 shows a month.
Constant practice
The routine for this competition took a year to prepare, and he practised every opportunity he got. The skills used, though, "have taken my whole career".
Routines are practised "countless - hundreds of times," in front of a mirror or a video camera when he's on his own or at his shows.
He noted that competition magic is different from commercial magic, however.
A candidate may be disqualified if he is caught copying material used by somebody else in the market.
Tan said: "You have to come up with your own routine. If they don't like you, they can dismiss you within the first three minutes."
Originality was one of the six categories he was judged on in the Asia Championship of Magic.
Explained Mr John Teo, president of the Singapore chapter of the International Brotherhood of Magicians: "With laymen, you can get anything off the market and still impress.
"It's at competitions when creativity comes in; Jeremy's skills are good, and the way he puts his material together is very unique."
Tan's impressive coin trick was conceptualised by his assistant and girlfriend of two years, Miss Lee Hui Bin, 23.
She was an operations executive at a bar when they met, and today handles his finances and bookings, and is his stage assistant.
Miss Lee had been tinkering with his props, when she discovered how the coins could be handled.
"She's still half a layperson," said Tan. "After shows, she can tell me what went wrong."
Mr Tan is hoping to prepare an even better theme, over the seven months leading to the World Championship.
"It'll be something that looks even more magical," he said.
