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Magic of the Pendragons #1

Charlotte and Jonathan Pendragon

L&L Publishing

(Based on 1 review)
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Stage illusionists historically have been extremely secretive about their craft. Not just about the secrets to the illusions themselves - the mechanics are just a small part - but about the real secrets of what turns a stage illusion into a breathtaking moment of pure magic.

Now, for the first time ever on video, Jonathan and Charlotte Pendragon, the "First Couple" of magic and perhaps the greatest exponents of grand illusion ever to grace a stage, lift away the veil and show you the real secrets of stage illusion - the insider information that could only be gained by performing in over 50 countries for the last quarter of a century.

THE HINDU BASKET
  • Introduction
  • History & Concepts
  • Why Not To Use Fire
  • Sword Choice And Safety
  • Basic Swordsmanship
  • The Foulard
  • How To Get Into The Basket
  • Placing The Swords In The Basket
COLOR OF EMOTION
  • Introduction and Concepts
  • Materials, Preparation and Presentation
THE SHADOW BOX
  • The Work
CLEARLY IMPOSSIBLE
  • History and Discussion
BONUS MATERIAL
An in-depth interview with Jonathan Pendragon by Patrick Martin (Part 1)

When the history of magic is written, Jonathan Pendragon will be remembered as one of its most creative performers."

Reviews

Christopher Carey

Official Reviewer

Sep 03, 2009

On disc one of this four volume set, Jonathan Pendragon talks fondly about his first visit to Las Vegas when he was about 18. He saw Siegfried & Roy on that trip and he marveled at the way they did the Substitution Trunk. It made a big impact on him.

When I was 18, I too visited Las Vegas for the first time and I saw many acts: Lance Burton at the Tropicana, Joseph Gabriel at the Flamingo, and The Pendragons at Bally's. Their performance of the sub trunk definitely had an impact on me as well! I had already seen them do it live on the famous "Houdini" special the year before (which featured Charlotte coming out of the trunk at the end, but the bottoms of her costume staying behind) Ahhhhh, live television! But seeing them do it live took my breath away. It was astonishing.

The Pendragons start by taking the viewer on a journey to performing The Hindu Basket. It's a perfect first illusion, they say, and after watching this, I'm sure you'll agree. No detail is spared and even though I've never performed a large stage illusion, it made me want to go right out to the local Hobby Lobby and get a basket!

Charlotte's beautiful COLOR OF EMOTION is described next and even though it's not my cup of tea, I enjoyed watching the process. This is followed by many ideas on building and performing The Shadow Box. The thoughts on this are priceless. If you are ever thinking about doing this, you MUST watch this section.

And then we get to Clearly Impossible, and I just have to say this was one of the most fascinating things I've ever seen as it relates to the process of creating magic. Jonathan and Charlotte tell us about the evolution, history and complications of finally bringing this to the stage, and you feel like you're being let in on a private conversation between Harry and Bess Houdini!

There's a great interview with Patrick Martin at the end with Jonathan and he gives even more helpful tips about what an illusionist should be. If L&L charged $120.00 for volume one alone, it would be under-priced. There's more value in this one disc than just about any DVD I own. Even if you never plan to perform illusions, there's plenty of material to chew on here about the creation of magic. I can't wait to watch the other three volumes....which I'm off to do now.
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