Magician Keith Brown has been performing magic since he was 13 years old, and believes magic can be applied to any life situation. Brown believes there we have a natural sense of curiosity in life that is similar to a magic trick.
“Normally in the real world, mystery can be dangerous, there’s repercussions to it,” he said, “if you tell that person how you feel about them, they may not feel the same way. What if you move to a different city, or start a new job, or go somewhere to school? You could take time off your life, it may not work out, whatever, whereas with magic, you’re in a theater, you’re in a safe space, and you get to explore mystery without anyone getting hurt.”
Children’s entertainer Peter Mennie says it was tough finding age-appropriate entertainment for his children, so he started performing kid-friendly comedic magic shows. He says one of the challenges is coming up with tricks and comedy that appeals to kids from ages 3-12. On one hand, a joke that a four-year old would find hilarious would seem sub-par to a nine-year old, “but if a nine-year old finds it funny, then the four year old doesn’t get it.”
Mennie studied at Western University and Fanshawe College before he decided to pursue his passion as his career. “I’ve had ‘real jobs’, but being an entertainer is no different, and this is something I’ve learned 30 years ago. It’s no different than owning a small business,” he said, explaining that both involve an annual gross rate and paying other people.
When Brown’s parents asked him if he would ever find another job outside of magic, they stuck up for him, saying he learns business, problem solving, and communication skills, and has the opportunity to travel all around the world.”People are like, ‘Oh, you do this cause you love it, so why don’t you just do it for free?’ I’m like ‘well, you’re a doctor, right? You save lives because it’s meaningful, do you want to just give up your salary?” he said, adding, like a lot of people, he has to pay his bills and got an education.
Both performers are playing at the London Fringe Festival. Brown’s show, Absolute Magic, debuts on June 3rd at 9 p.m. Mennie’s AbraKIDabra! Magic Show starts on June 6th at 1:30 p.m.
