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Magic Talk is a series of conversations where we explore various aspects of life through the lens of magic. In each episode, Anson Chen interviews magicians from all walks of life about their unique perspectives on magic and how they use their magic to create change in the world. Dedicated to all those with a love of Magic.
Episodes
Saturday Apr 01, 2023
Saturday Apr 01, 2023
Hello!
So excited to be releasing this episode of Magic Talk with you guys.
Today's conversation is with Teller from the legendary Penn & Teller.
As most of you already know, Teller doesn't speak when he is on stage, but in this episode he dropped countless knowledge bombs and gems that I've found to be super valuable advices.
Big thank you once again to Teller for being generous with his time and presence. Really loved every moment of this conversation.
Hope you enjoy the episode! Be sure to share the podcast with your magic friends!
07:00 The Secret of Misdirection
11:18 What makes art art.
11:55 Teller’s Favourite Acts on Fool Us
15:00 Self Expression in Magic
19:15 Why Teller stopped talking
21:30 How Penn & Teller Approach New Material
22:48 The Creative Process of P&T
24:30 Teller's view on Creativity
25:38 What happened with Madonna on SNL?
32:45 Teller’s thoughts on Social Media
34:00 Biggest misunderstanding about Fool Us
37:24 Lessons Teller learnt from Johnny Thompson
40:25 Penn & Teller learning The Great Thomsoni Act
47:30 A Johnny & Pam story
48:50 Teller’s advice for young magicians
Wednesday Mar 01, 2023
Wednesday Mar 01, 2023
Today we are speaking with Ben Seidman,
Ben is someone who I really admire in the industry, he has a unique ability to combine magic, stand up comedy, sleight of hand and pickpocketing all in one to create impactful experiences for his audience.
In this episode we talked about how Ben approaches new shows and TV appearances, we spoke about his take on combining comedy and magic and the process he uses to continuously refine his material.
Hope you enjoy the episode!
Anson
Friday Jan 27, 2023
Friday Jan 27, 2023
Today we are speaking with Harapan Ong.
Harapan is a wonderful magician from Singapore, he is an incredibly creative inventor of magic as well as the author of Principia, Close Cull & Stylo.
Harapan shared a his thoughts on how to apply story structures in magic to make your performance more impactful, why he thinks magic is the number one conversation killer and we discussed some of his more controversial opinions on magic.
Hope you enjoy the episode! Get in touch with me @mransonchen on IG if you have any feedback or ideas you'd like to share!
Don't forget to click subscribe so you stay updated with future episodes!
Best,
Anson Chen
Tuesday Jul 19, 2022
Tuesday Jul 19, 2022
Today I'm speaking with Doug McKenzie. Doug is one of my favourite magicians on the planet, he is highly innovative and the way he approaches magic is unlike anyone I've ever met.
In this podcast we spoke about Doug's journey in magic, his experience of getting arrested in Hong Kong and how he got out of it with magic as well as how he thinks about transforming tricks into unforgettable miracles.
Hope you enjoy the episode. As always, if you enjoyed the podcast, please share it with friends. If you have any suggestions or feedback, or you just want to get in touch, simply send me a DM @mransonchen on Instagram.
Peace.
Anson Chen
Wednesday Mar 16, 2022
Wednesday Mar 16, 2022
Today's guest is Armando Lucero.
Armando is an absolute legend in magic who is known for his superb skills as a sleight of hand artist, a highly original performer and a great teacher in magic.
Armando is one of my earliest mentors in magic, I met him nearly 13 years ago when he was in Hong Kong, we've became friends ever since and I have learnt a tremendous amount from him, his philosophy and teachings have deeply influenced my understanding in art and magic.
In this episode, Armando shared his view on the importance of learning how to learn, his unique path towards mastery, tips on practicing, his experience with FISM, stories about Johnny Thompson and the legendary Long Beach Mystics.
This is a special one that I've wanted to share for a while, as always, if you enjoyed the conversation please help share with friends who might enjoy this.
Peace.
Anson Chen
Thursday Mar 03, 2022
Thursday Mar 03, 2022
In this episode, I'm speaking with Calen Morelli.
Calen is one of the most creative minds in magic today, he has consulted for some of the most prominent projects and the biggest names in magic today. His ability to construct original illusions are in my opinion unparalleled and I really enjoyed his views on magic and creative process in this conversation.
In this episode we spoke about the vision he had for Ellusionist and the magic scene in general, his thoughts on how to authentically share work online as a magician, we also dived into how Calen personally deals with anxiety and perfectionism, as well as the importance of creating your own universe as an artist.
I apologies for the audio quality on my part, somehow my proper microphone wasn't connected when we had the conversation, luckily the overall quality of the audio was fine and I hope you enjoy it anyway.
If you haven't already, please be sure to check out his Instagram account @thenothingexperiment. (warning: mind bending content.)
Peace!
A
Thursday Jan 20, 2022
Thursday Jan 20, 2022
It's been a long long time since I've updated this Podcast, thought it's time that I bring it back.
Today's guest is John Wilson, John a brilliant magician/ wizard/ hypnotist/ tarologist/ conceptual artist, he is also the author of "YOU & ME & THE DEVIL MAKES THREE" and "POSTIDIGITATION".
In this podcast we covered a wide range of topic from the performance of magic to tarot, to the Tao De Ching and Creativity.
I am experimenting with a new format as you can see, if you have any feedback, questions or suggestions please send DM via Instagram to @mrchenting or write me at ansonchen0131@gmail.com , would love to hear from you.
Enjoy the episode!
You can find a summary of the conversation below:
00:15 Superman Problem
03:35 Showman, shaman and the egg
08:12 Overcoming an audience’s expectations
11:28 On the label of Mentalists
16:14 Dream Catcher
19:31 Enrique Enriquez’s influence
24:04 The Way of the Tarot
26:36 The origins of the tarot
33:50 on books
35:00 Tao De Ching
39:40 meditation & creativity
44:50 On Motivation, Confidence and Taking action
48:30 on doubt and Imposter syndromes
49:35 Magic of Tarot
Monday Oct 21, 2019
Monday Oct 21, 2019
Anthony Jacquin is one of the best Hypnotists in the world, we recorded this podcast episode when I was in the UK doing a hypnotherapy course with him.
Anthony is the author of Reality Is Plastic, a performing hypnotist and also a highly experienced professional hypnotherapist, no doubt one of my biggest influences. In this episode we spoke about Anthony's crazy stories as a hypnotist, various applications of hypnosis and influence in life and how YOU can learn hypnosis and apply the techniques in your performance, art and daily lives!
Enjoy the episode and let me know what you think!
Friday Sep 20, 2019
Friday Sep 20, 2019
Jared Kopf is a true inspiration to me and many others. He is no doubt one of the smartest men in magic and his thoughts and ideas are always insightful.
We recorded this episode on the last day of Jared's tour in China, this podcast almost didn't happen because we just had so much fun talking and jamming throughout his stay here in Shanghai (Joe, Jared and I talked until 5 am the night before we recorded the podcast, hence the raspy voices and randomness in this podcast ). Anyhow, I am glad we recorded this and really hope that you enjoy this episode!
As always, let me know if you liked the podcast, please subscribe and share this episode with all your friends!
Tuesday Aug 20, 2019
Tuesday Aug 20, 2019
Thanks for listening to the FIRST episode of Unconsciously Speaking.
Luke Jermay is without a doubt one of the world's greatest mind reader who is currently performing his show Strange Power at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival. I had a chance to sit down and record this podcast with him after the show, we talked about his journey to become The Modern Fortune Teller, taking risks as artists, tarot cards and many other fascinating stories.. Enjoy the episode!