Magic which is Accessible for Everyone
‘You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it”
(To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee)
Why is accessible Magic important ?
In 2018, I performed at an event for children with rare diseases at Guy’s Hospital. I prepared meticulously for the event, arrived first and left long after all the other entertainers had departed. But, regretfully, no one had told me that one of the children was blind and I was not able to perform any magic for her. Feeling disappointed, I resolved that it would never happen again.
I realised then that I what I could contribute to magic world was a broader appreciation of special needs and how to bring full access and understanding to those who found conventional performances inaccessible. I would thus combine my 25 years of specialist teaching experience with magic.
The opening project is a fully accessible show for the Deaf Community
Frequently, shows presented to the Deaf Community are performed with the use of a signing interpreter. Thus the attention of the deaf audience is divided and is not fully engaged on the performer.
Close-up magic is usually performed one-to-one or to a small group using everyday objects such as cards and coins. Close-up illusions are often performed with the audience as the integral part of the illusion and the magical effects occur in their hands. Although close-up magic can be very visual, its performance often relies on an extensive spoken component, often meticulously scripted and sometimes wordy. This can make it hard to access for the Deaf Community.
In order for the deaf community to experience the full effect of close-up illusions it would be necessary for the magician to communicate the script in sign language and perform the sleight of hand.
When I proposed the idea, nearly all my fellow the magicians thought it would be impossible to be doing anything additional with my hands. Some magicians even suggested doing the magic to music! However, my teacher, Justin Higham, thought that something might be possible.
I proposed a project in collaboration with a Local Authority Sensory Service to develop a magic show that is fully accessible to the deaf community. I wanted to bring the full experience of close up magic to the deaf community. The service embraced the idea and scheduled some time with two British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters.
Magic and BSL the perfect partnership
The sessions were a painful and frustrating process for both the interpreters and myself. Many BSL signs use both hands and I would frequently ask if I could use one hand. One interpreter told me she had a headache after our sessions! A great knowledge of synonyms was required but slowly a list of signs emerged. Armed with a possible set of signs I spent several weeks, 10 hours a day re-choreographing the magic. I wanted to present the tricks as they were for the hearing public with no compromise on magical content or script. I scripted the illusions to incorporate sign language and re-choreographed the illusions to accommodate the enhanced visual perceptual skills of Deaf Community. I had to create some new sleights of hand which was a daunting task to relatively new magician! Almost immediately I realised I would have to learn BSL.
The Deaf Community is not a silent world
My first impromptu performance was at a Deaf pub night. It took some courage to approach a deaf group and ask them if I could show them something. They were delighted with the few tricks that I was able to show them and asked me to return. Thus far my performances have been warmly received by all in the deaf community that have seen them.
At the end of the project I interviewed the sixth form students and their interpreters. The students confirmed everything I suspected about their experiences of shows. They stated that they rarely went to shows and almost never looked at the interpreter and consequently they often did not understand the show.
After I then performed the signed close-up magic to them both myself and their interpreters were overwhelmed by the response. It was like an awakening for them. They said,
‘We had never thought it was possible’
‘Why hadn’t anyone made the effort before?’
‘That’s so impressive!’
One of the tutors said of a profoundly deaf 18 year old boy:
“I have never seen him smile in two years and he smiled all the way through as you did the magic in his hands”
I have not forgotten about the blind girl and I am currently collating material for a full multi-sensory show for blind.
READ THE FULL STORY OF SIGNED MAGIC (CLICK BELOW)
Magic by Goldie 