Tuesday, July 24, 2007

I'll Be On TV Tonight!

.:The Sweet Life HP7 Launch Episode Is TONIGHT!:.

Check out "The Sweet Life" on QTV-11 tonight, 6:30 PM,as I will be having my fifteen seconds of fame as the magician at the Harry Potter 7 Book Launch they covered last Saturday in Fully Booked @ the Fort.

Lemme know how you like it!

.:Fully Booked Recap:.

So yes, I was booked at Fully Booked (I love saying that.) as the magician-on-call for the Harry Potter 7 book launch (Book Review coming next week, but I finished the ruddy book on the same day I got it.). I got there around 6:20, a good forty or so minutes before the store was going to open, and I immediately saw people in line, albeit not as many as we anticipated at the start.

I immediately got to work, and performed for the first six people in line. They were genuinely pleased with my routine, as one of them was genuinely floored even by my Ring Thing opener, and the Ultimate Transhypno effect was worthy of being a finisher for this group. Nonetheless, I capped my short routine off for them with Liquid Metal, and left it at that.

From there, I moved onto various people, and even ended up being interviewed by some people from QTV-11, and someone from Correspondents Asia, although I think they got disappointed to find out I wasn't a member of Hogwarts Philippines, which was mainly because I have a sinking feeling if I started joining NWA-affiliated organizations, I'd spread myself out too thin. I also love The Matrix, LOTR, Star Wars, and so forth, so if I joined PHP, it'd be a crime not to join the other groups. But I digress.

So in any case, I performed for the next couple of hours, including once for Hope and her cousin. I had some other performances here and there, but I kept my routine mostly the same as most of my walkaround bits everywhere else, since I knew that stuff has always served me well.

However, I knew I was merely gearing up for a short stage presentation, and I told Paolo of NWA about that. I was slowly building a reputation for Osterlind's Rubik's Blindfolded Solve (Henceforth, this effect shall be refered to as ORBS.), and I knew it had to be done.

With much fanfare and a few preliminary effects, I managed to pull the effect off smoothly, and with that, I capped my bit off, and went ahead to collect my bounty: among other things, I received a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows for my efforts, and hopefully, a good deal of awareness that there's yet another magician/mentalist running around the metro... =P

Monday, July 23, 2007

Oops!

.:Erratum:.

Apparently, my TV appearance on Channel 11 wasn't tonight, but this Wednesday night, around 6:30 PM. This is for the show "The Sweet Life", and features my magic gig last Saturday for the Harry Potter book launch.

That being said, hope you guys can catch it!

My Magic On TV! (Hopefully)

.:The Sweet Life, QTV Channel 11, 6:30 PM:.

Hey, guys! I might be on TV tonight, or tomorrow night, because of the show I did for the Harry Potter book launch at Fully Booked last Saturday.

Lemme know how it turns out, since I have class!

Thanks!

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Magical Update...

.:Booked At Fully Booked!:.

I'll be there at the Harry Potter 7 launch of Fully Booked in the Fort. I know it's way too far and way too early at7 in the morning, but I'm sure there'll be a lot of people there. Perfect opportunity for me to build my rep up...

I'm still looking for bookings. Here's hoping I find a few more by August...

.:Pre-Show: A Call To A Gellasenheit Of Wonder:.

Well, as I mentioned, I was booked on a Friday the 13th by Sir Nonoy and his wife, as there was a birthday party they wanted me at, the 79th birthday of the man fondly known by his grandchildren as Lolo Etong. Unlike most of my other bookings, I was going to do a pure mentalism act, and I was fairly glad I finally got the chance to flex my muscles in this endeavor.

So I got there at Kamay Kainan early enough, and I was preparing a few of my items, which is why I brought a jacket with me, which was purely going to be for walkaround. I had a few decks of cards, and of course, my ring for the De'Ring + Ring Thing routine, as well as some effects for my calling cards. Soon enough, dinner was served, and as I was famished, I made sure to fill up before even starting. Performing on a competely empty stomach is not good at all...

Food was great. It was a buffet of Filipino cuisine, so you have everything from Bistek to Liempo to Kare-Kare. That was really awesome.

In any case, walkaround was a very simple matter of course. I usually do this stuff, but I had to give everything I did, barring De'Ring, a mentalist edge. The Ultimate Transpo was a demonstration of low-grade hypnosis, and it worked very well. It was a setup for my attempt at mass hypnosis later on in the night.

This was a unique experience because the kids in attendance, the standout being Alwin, were genuinely interested in mentalism. Normally, mind-reading is a concept lost on kids because they're more likely to go for the visual and spectacular magic, not the subtle yet mindboggling effects mentalists do. The fact that I personally endeavor in both allows me to experience the differences firsthand.

That being said, there was ample anticipation built up by my walkaround routine. It was only a matter of nailing the stage show when we finally get there.

.:The Main Event: Mission Accomplished!:.

Let me give credit where credit is due. Much gratitude to the five main originators of my act: Richard Osterlind, Max Maven, Banachek, Morgan Strebler, and Devin Knight. I picked and chose the best elements of these five upstanding mentalists, resulting in last Friday’s program. Of course, my thanks to the people who directly led me to these esteemed people: Mr. Bing Lim-It, and Dr. Ronnie Moraleta.

Unfortunately, just so I don't give away the contents of my routine in public, I will simply say that I've done a lot of effects that were meant to floor the audience present, and I'll let their glowing comments speak for itself instead. I'd want to keep people on their toes so they don't know what to expect from my show except that it's going to be one Hades of an experience for them.

I'm glad they enjoyed the show, and I can only hope that there's more opportunities for me to amaze people this way to come.

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Prelude To Friday The 13th

.:Hey, Jay!:.

My thanks to Jay Mata for lending me his Pegasus Page copy of The Prestige. I must say, he did a pretty brilliant job at it, not to mention the few other stuff he constructed himself, which is just perfect for my next booking...

.:Speaking Of Booking...:.

Yes, blogging works! This Friday, I'll be doing a mentalism show for a birthday party, and I have prepared a stunning repertoire meant to really floor everyone. I'm going to take a page from Derren Brown's book and just run with it... ::winks::

So for anyone else who wants to add some pizazz to their parties, I'm still available for bookings (As I usually am.). It's time to unlock the boundaries of the mind, courtesy of yours truly. Feel free to reach me via e-mail at mistervader@gmail.com. =)

Wish me luck on Friday! I have a packed show!

.:Thanks, Crissey!:.

I owe Crissey a bit as well for being my willing guinea pig for my take on Black Ops Hypnosis.

I haven't perfected the effect yet, but the fact that Crissey *did* forget what just happened made me smile. Looks like I got things down to pat for the most part...

Looks like I have a finale for tomorrow's show.

.:Friday The 13th? Pah!:.

I'm... not... scared... Aja!

Friday, July 6, 2007

Taste Asia: The Party

.:Bloggers Assemble!:.

So last Tuesday night, at the behest of Aileen Apolo, I headed off to SM Mall Of Asia where the bloggers got together. My memory is failing me, but I remember running into quite a few popular bloggers, and I'll do the link-loving thing when I get a comprehensive enough list. Heh.

In any case, I came prepared with a short but sweet mentalism routine that was designed to really make an impact: Disposable Color, Nile Derivation, Lightning Box, Liquid Metal, Fork Flower, and the Blindfolded Rubik's Solve. Sorsi and JayVee were hosting, so it was definitely going to be a hilarious program whatever happened. After Aileen spoke up, Sorsi mentioned to the SM people that someone has been swiping their forks, and they're going to find out what this guy happened to do with these forks, and that was my cue to go up and do my schtick.

In any case, for a taste of one of my favorite acts that night (The Osterlind Fork Flower, here's a thousand words (Ergo, one picture...), originally from Karla Redor:


The power of Christ compels you! The power of Christ compels you!




And of course, Much thanks to Alliver and PJ, who were my “eyes” when I solved the rubik's cube for my finale. This time, the picture is originally from Alan Racoma:


I'm blind! Blind as a bat! How blind is a bat?




Well, it was a success all the way, and I managed to complete the cube quickly enough. Shari was her usual self, just staring in utter disbelief at the fork bending at her behest. Her brother, Robby, was more of the same. During dinner, I ran into a lot of other bloggers, and even a lot of other people I knew from outside of blogging. All in all, it was a really eventful night, and even latecomers like Rico and Sasha were welcome additions to the celebrations. One of the earlybirds would naturally be Ms. Janette Toral, and with blogging celebrity Ms. Noemi Dado, this was a star-studded event, to say the least.

Taste Asia's food was eclectic, considering how they had everything from sisig to siopao, and just about everything in between. The food was splendid, and with the mix of food they had available, there was definitely something for everyone, to say the least.

All in all, the party was a veritable success. One can only hope more of these events turn up soon enough, seeing how well-received it was by the blogging community.

Congratulations to all the people who made this possible! This was just a really awesome meeting of the minds!

And, as ganked from Aileen: Link-Loving galore!

An Apple a Day
Pinoycentric
Zoul1380's The Daily Me!
Misteryosa
Project Manila
Ramblings of a Princess
Sexy Mom
Ceskypooh's World
Keysinunez.com

Bambastic
Single Brown Mommy
Bakla Ako, May Reklamo?
Touched by an Angel
Teacher Julie
Bababa ba?
Ultradust
The Thumbsucker
Mimi and Karl (Cliquebooth owners)
Jerico
You Will Be Forever
Tom
Mr. Kwee for SM Hypermarket
Paul's Blog
Pinoyblogero
Biyahilo
Baratillo.net
Rockersworld.com
Techievangelism
Vignettes
The Chef at Chez Panda
Brian's Blog
Sharmskee
Rain Contreras
Prudence and Madness
Lamonster Traveler
Pinoy Photo Blog
Brian for IAMD
Brian on Taste Asia 1
Brian on Taste Asia 2
Janette Toral
SM Hypermarket
Paradise Philippines
Geeky Guide to Nearly Everything
Ala Eh, the Batangas Blog
Jedianalyst
Half the World Away
Alan Racoma Jr.
Kutitots
Mistervader
In the Brink of the Mental Warzone
Pinoyblogero
Guitarchic.net
Cliquebooth Blog
The Parody
Vaes9
Random Pieces of my Mind
Mike Villar
Vanidosa
Ganns Deen
Mind, Heart & Mysteries
Life's a Beach... (sorry AJ with the ... wholesome po blog ko eh eheheh)
This Week on Pinoycentric
Style Manila


Photos! Photos! Photos!

An Apple a Day
Ultradust
Jerico
Karla Redor
Noemi Dado
BA Racoma
Rain Contreras
Brian
Bayanihan Blog Network
Juned
Project Manila
Juned's Multiply
Vanidosa
Shutterhappy
Ann
Eugene
Ganns
Rebelpixel.com