Jeff McBlog

“Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.”
— Goethe

Dear Friends:

We’ve heard that some people take summer vacations — but, frankly, we’re having too much fun doing and teaching magic to want to take a break. In the past week, Jeff has performed, lectured and conducted workshops in Raleigh, Cocoa Beach & Atlanta. While in Atlanta he taped a segment for CNN — perhaps some of you got to see it. And now he’s on the way home, and busy preparing for what promises to be a most amazing Wonderground on Thursday. More about that further down the page. First, we want to talk about —

Media Magic

We did it! We made it happen! Last week Bryce sent you the news — we opened the new online Virtual Magic School! The response has been great, and we have students coming online from all over the planet!

Bryce tells me we’ll have a myMoney! – Torn and Restored Billroutine online by the time you get this email.

Media is changing the way we watch and learn magic. Our VIRTUAL MAGIC SCHOOL is the newest way to learn, and a way for all of us here at the Magic and Mystery School to share our magic with you — and you don’t even have to leave your own homes. Visit the siteand see what’s already there for you — and come back often, because we’ll be growing the online school rapidly.

More Media Magic

In July, the first ever online magic conference ever will take place — on the internet! The Essential Magic Conference is sponsored by Marco Tempest, Luis da Matos and David Britland, and will feature 33 “live” speakers, all speaking directly to you over the web from Luis’ TV magic studio in Portugal. In addition, top magicians from around the world have recorded interviews for the conference, and Jeff’s is already online. You can view it (and a dozen other fascinating short talks from various stars of magic from around the world) at:
http://essentialmagicconference.com/videos/31

Master Class

Our Extended Master Class from August has been sold out for almost a month now… but the class scheduled from June 26 to July 4 still has two spots left. This is your last chance to be a part of an Extended Class this year. Sign up now for this, or one of the remaining shorter classes this year (they are filling up quickly, too), at: www.magicalwisdom.com.

News from the Wonderground

June 17, 2010 — shows start at 8pm and go ’till 11pm!

Our Amazing Line up Jeff McBride’s Wonderground This Week:

Featured Close-up Show (8:00)

Paul Vigil - A Pure Magic Experience

Close-Up and Strolling Magic (8-10 pm)

Jean Pierre Kraft - Hands of a God!
Circe Martinez - Close up Magic Delight
Eduardo Martinez - Cuba’s Master of Manipulation
Samina - The Sorceress

Parlour Show (8:30)

Jordan Wright - Your Host
Tim Wise - A New Beginning
Tawney Bubbles - Elastic Fantastic
Mat Black & Captain Jack - Very Dangerous!
Bizzaro - From America’s Got Talent
Bram Charles - Magic Comedy

Stage Show (10:00 – each act performs one 3-5 minute piece)

Jeff McBride - Kabuki Magic
Jordan Wright - Vintage Memories
Bizzaro - Cutting Edge Magic
Jean Pierre Kraft - Magic from Dusk till Dawn
Sean Critchfield - Grand Slam Poetry Champion
Mickeyo - New Vaudeville Eccentrics
Anthony Rais - Marionette Theater

PLUS!

DJ Master Diaz
The Mojo a Go-Go girls
The NWR dancers
Live Art, Body Painting and Psychic Side Show!

FOR COMPLETE DETAILS GO TOWWW.VEGASWONDERGROUND.COM

You can participate live on the internet starting at 9pm (PST) by logging on to www.streetofcards.tv

See you at the WONDERGROUND, at the Virtual Magic School…or live at a Master Class someday soon!

Magically yours,

Jeff and all the McBride Magic Family

From Bryce:

It all started about 10 years ago. Actually, it has started and re-started several times for various reasons, many of which were technology-related. We were trying to do something that the world wasn’t quite ready for… until now.

We love teaching classes in Las Vegas, but also realize that not everyone is able to spend a week hanging out at Jeff’s house working on their magic. Even those of you who have been to Vegas know that we have more information to pass on than we can even cover in just one week. Of course, both Jeff and Eugene have DVDs and books for sale. But then you’re paying for shipping, waiting for the product to arrive and then you are left on your own to work on the material unless/until you email or call one of them for some help (which can be daunting the first time and tricky because they both travel so often).

We wanted a more efficient way to pass on the collective wisdom of our teachers. The internet was the obvious choice as a mode of communication, but how would we make it work?

We now have the answer:

The Virtual Magic & Mystery School

The idea is simple. We’re putting pieces of our collective wisdom online. We’ve started by taking apart Jeff and Eugene’s existing DVDs and posting each segment online as an individual lesson. You no longer have to buy a 3-DVD set if all you want is one effect. Breaking out the material this way also allows us to provide the individual segments and much lower prices. Think iTunes versus a CD.

Got questions or feedback? Each lesson has its own discussion forum. Not only do you get the basic teaching from Jeff or Eugene — now you can brainstorm ideas and ask questions of other people that are working on the material. Jeff and Eugene will drop in now and then to answer questions and provide further insights.

Jeff is also offering private sessions online via Skype. The ones he’s done so far have been hugely successful. Whether you’re working on routining your show or just trying to perfect a move, having real-time video help from Jeff is the way to go.

Now that we have filmmaker Jordan Wright on our team, we’ll be able to get new material to you faster than ever. New content goes directly online once it’s edited; no need to wait for DVD production or shipping.

In addition to the material from the DVDs, our first new, never-before-seen footage should be up on the site by the time you get this email. It’s an interview I did with Eugene on the business of close-up magic, a topic which he’s never talked about before. Jordan even managed to make me seem almost natural on camera (the things terrify me).

The whole Virtual Magic & Mystery School is still a work in progress, so feel free to poke around and email me comments or questions. As with our Master Classes, we want to create the highest quality learning experience possible.

I should also mention that the Virtual Magic & Mystery School is only the first step. I’ll be finishing up work on two, even bigger ventures in the next week or two. The first is a digital store for magicians that uses the technology I created for the Virtual School. In addition to Jeff & Eugene’s materials, I’m working with other magic creators to get their content online. This is going to be a great new resource for magicians and students of magic.

I’m also forming alliances with people who have expertise in other areas (hypnotism, martial arts, marketing, basket weaving, etc.). The idea is to partner with experts who can serve as “Wisdom Filters”… people that can provide quality instruction based on true experience. The internet is full of charlatans. My goal is to get people connected with the true masters. If you are interested in contributing material, please drop me an email at bryce@mobiusmagic.com.

I look forward to seeing you online at The Virtual Magic & Mystery School!

Sincerely,
Bryce Kuhlman