CARD MAGIC
INTERACTIVE CLOSE-UP ENTERTAINMENT
Hi. My name is Rob Mendell.
I am a Magician.I’ve been practicing, developing, and performing interactive close-up magic with playing cards since 1973. I design what I do to give my audiences the feeling of being magicians themselves. During my performances, you won't just watch me exhibit skills. Instead, you will discover your own magical abilities. It's a beautiful thing and very enjoyable. I perform new versions of classic effects of card magic, and I create my own pieces that no one else does, including some that are specifically customized for clients or situations.
At small gatherings, I typically perform at a table. At larger events, I walk around performing “strolling magic,” tactfully creating and entertaining ever-changing audiences, either standing with guests or approaching their tables. Laughter or applause or "What?! How did that happen?" attracts new people to watch or get involved, and word of mouth continues the momentum. I enjoy inviting people to partake in the amusement. I respect my participants so they have a great time too. (For details, see the Testimonials page.)
What is Interactive Close-up Entertainment?
Interactive
You are the essential element. Without an audience, the magic simply doesn’t happen. In my style of Card Magic, you’re not just picking a card and then watching. Your participation is vital to the successful completion of the effect. That means you might select four cards and discover they are the four Aces. That means I'll ask you to say a magic word that causes your card to invisibly jump from there to here. That means you will be amazed by what you can do. My act includes a fun variety magical happenings. When you are integral to the show, what you do and say affects the conversation and the outcome.
For me, audience participation is the essential ingredient for making spectators feel special and wonderful and delighted, which for me is really the point of all this.
Close-up
Things you can't explain happen right in front of you, sometimes in your own hands. You physically touch and hold and mix and then deal the cards, and somehow you say stop at exactly the right one; there are no camera tricks or hidden mirrors or editing. This is live and tangible.
Often I hear, "I've seen this kind of stuff on TV or YouTube but wow, it's so much better in person."
Entertainment
The show is fun and memorably mysterious. You and I and the cards are having a great time together as you successfully surprise yourself and everyone who’s watching. The simplicity, familiarity, and “playing” that are innate to my tools -- playing cards -- let us focus on the joy of the moment.
People remember how they feel.
INTERACTIVE CLOSE-UP ENTERTAINMENT
Hi. My name is Rob Mendell.
I am a Magician.I’ve been practicing, developing, and performing interactive close-up magic with playing cards since 1973. I design what I do to give my audiences the feeling of being magicians themselves. During my performances, you won't just watch me exhibit skills. Instead, you will discover your own magical abilities. It's a beautiful thing and very enjoyable. I perform new versions of classic effects of card magic, and I create my own pieces that no one else does, including some that are specifically customized for clients or situations.
At small gatherings, I typically perform at a table. At larger events, I walk around performing “strolling magic,” tactfully creating and entertaining ever-changing audiences, either standing with guests or approaching their tables. Laughter or applause or "What?! How did that happen?" attracts new people to watch or get involved, and word of mouth continues the momentum. I enjoy inviting people to partake in the amusement. I respect my participants so they have a great time too. (For details, see the Testimonials page.)
What is Interactive Close-up Entertainment?
Interactive
You are the essential element. Without an audience, the magic simply doesn’t happen. In my style of Card Magic, you’re not just picking a card and then watching. Your participation is vital to the successful completion of the effect. That means you might select four cards and discover they are the four Aces. That means I'll ask you to say a magic word that causes your card to invisibly jump from there to here. That means you will be amazed by what you can do. My act includes a fun variety magical happenings. When you are integral to the show, what you do and say affects the conversation and the outcome.
For me, audience participation is the essential ingredient for making spectators feel special and wonderful and delighted, which for me is really the point of all this.
Close-up
Things you can't explain happen right in front of you, sometimes in your own hands. You physically touch and hold and mix and then deal the cards, and somehow you say stop at exactly the right one; there are no camera tricks or hidden mirrors or editing. This is live and tangible.
Often I hear, "I've seen this kind of stuff on TV or YouTube but wow, it's so much better in person."
Entertainment
The show is fun and memorably mysterious. You and I and the cards are having a great time together as you successfully surprise yourself and everyone who’s watching. The simplicity, familiarity, and “playing” that are innate to my tools -- playing cards -- let us focus on the joy of the moment.
People remember how they feel.
Performing at a trade show, bringing people into the booth
Sheraton Grand Chicago, 2016
Sheraton Grand Chicago, 2016
I love the art and act of entertaining through card magic. I draw people into the magic in an encouraging and friendly way. My show is not one where folks sit back and observe me doing what I’ve done a thousand times already. I invite them to explore unlikely possibilities with me by getting involved, and in doing so they become the most important part of the magic -- and magicians themselves -- interacting with me and the cards. Throughout my shows, the audience will cut, shuffle, spread, deal, and imagine cards, as well as select cards in an interesting assortment of ways, call out numbers, or even read my mind… and then find the cards they want without knowing how they did it. My professional style of Card Magic is an astonishing game where everyone wins.
I see each interaction as an opportunity for connection, fun, and audience-generated randomness. For example, I ask Frank to shuffle the cards and put them on the table face down. Then I ask Donna to make a shape by spreading out the cards on the table. I ask Mary to select a card from the table and show it to everyone but me. Already three people have been involved in ways that they can express who they are, and everyone knows something I don't know (which card Mary chose). This brings the audience together and creates dramatic tension. Already we've experienced three activities where audience members encourage one another and find humor in the play. After the card is back in the deck, I shuffle the cards a few different ways, explaining where the shuffles are used around the world, and then hand them to Tom to mix them up further, adding to the tension. I then make some guesses by showing several cards and placing them on the table …but none of them is the right card -- more tension. Magic to the rescue. I ask Victor to touch one of the cards and ask Sheila to say a magic word, which is typically Abracadabra or something that gets everyone smiling. After giving instructions to the audience, I count "1 - 2 - 3" and everyone says Sheila's magic word in unison. Mary turns over the card that Victor touched. It’s the one she chose! "No way!" Amazement. Laughter. Applause. The dramatic tension is released. Six people from the audience have successfully created magic. They will ask me, "How did that happen?" I answer, "Sheila said the magic word, so ask her!" I facilitate the magic, and the audience makes it happen. It’s inexplicable and brings people excitement, wonder, and unexpected delight, a respite from ordinary life.
I’m a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians and the Society of American Magicians.
I look forward to bringing Card Magic to your upcoming event.
I see each interaction as an opportunity for connection, fun, and audience-generated randomness. For example, I ask Frank to shuffle the cards and put them on the table face down. Then I ask Donna to make a shape by spreading out the cards on the table. I ask Mary to select a card from the table and show it to everyone but me. Already three people have been involved in ways that they can express who they are, and everyone knows something I don't know (which card Mary chose). This brings the audience together and creates dramatic tension. Already we've experienced three activities where audience members encourage one another and find humor in the play. After the card is back in the deck, I shuffle the cards a few different ways, explaining where the shuffles are used around the world, and then hand them to Tom to mix them up further, adding to the tension. I then make some guesses by showing several cards and placing them on the table …but none of them is the right card -- more tension. Magic to the rescue. I ask Victor to touch one of the cards and ask Sheila to say a magic word, which is typically Abracadabra or something that gets everyone smiling. After giving instructions to the audience, I count "1 - 2 - 3" and everyone says Sheila's magic word in unison. Mary turns over the card that Victor touched. It’s the one she chose! "No way!" Amazement. Laughter. Applause. The dramatic tension is released. Six people from the audience have successfully created magic. They will ask me, "How did that happen?" I answer, "Sheila said the magic word, so ask her!" I facilitate the magic, and the audience makes it happen. It’s inexplicable and brings people excitement, wonder, and unexpected delight, a respite from ordinary life.
I’m a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians and the Society of American Magicians.
I look forward to bringing Card Magic to your upcoming event.
...Rob was so good that I subsequently hired him for four company events to do his magic work. I continue to be amazed that, despite seeing Rob’s work many times and participating in some of his Card Magic effects over and over, up close and personally, I still have yet to spot the “trick” part of any of them. Rob is an amazing close up magician and I plan to use him in his Card Magic role many times more in the future.
— James E. Holtzman, Director - Board of Directors, KnowledgeHound -- LinkedIn review excerpt
— James E. Holtzman, Director - Board of Directors, KnowledgeHound -- LinkedIn review excerpt