Melbourne magician Josh Staley frequently has shows on during the MMF, however this year he was involved in three of his own shows and I was able to see all of them (which is a rare occurrence as often I can only make it to one or two). It’s an amazing feat in itself to have one show in the festival, let alone to have three! Josh introduced himself to the intimate audience and mentioned that this particular show was all about card magic (which seems to be his favourite kind of magic).

The audience was gathered around a close up table, and Josh prepared to entertain the crowd using his magical skills and various decks of cards. I enjoyed his opening set, in which he invited a couple of children to mix the cards up (like mixing a ‘card salad’) and to display signs to the audience to refer to what was happening during the routine.  I found this routine to be entertaining, with a few surprising twists thrown in. Plenty of miracles with cards were presented during this show, and the audience was transfixed watching all the magic happen right under their noses. Often the entire room was silent while Josh weaved his magic – aside from regular cries of “NO!” and “Get out!” when something unbelievable occurred. Card predictions found and displayed in creative ways was a strength of this show – my friends were shaking their heads and making frustrated sounding noises when their chosen cards were found. Overall it was an impressive show, and one to look out for ion future if you particularly enjoy card magic.