The Magic Circle

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The Magic Circle is a British organisation dedicated to magic. Its headquarters are in London, and professional magicians who wish to join need to have known two members for a sufficient period of time. These two members then act as referees on the candidate's application form and propose him or her as suitable for membership. Following the receipt and processing of the application, the candidate is invited to an interview, usually at the London headquarters with the examinations secretary. If the candidate proves suitable and sufficiently knowledgeable, a performance exam is scheduled. This takes place in front of judges, and the candidate must demonstrate skills to members in a rehearsed act. The final stage is by vote of members of council, who approve the candidate as a member. There are approximately 1,450 members (including Charles, Prince of Wales)[1] in 41 countries. Members must be at least 18.

The Magic Circle was founded in 1905 after a meeting of 23 amateur and professional magicians at London's Pinoli's Restaurant. The first official meeting was at the Green Man public house in Soho, but meetings were later in a room at St George's Hall in Langham Place, where David Devant and John Nevil Maskelyne were regularly seen. Devant became the first president of the Magic Circle, and in 1906, Maskelyne edited the first issue of The Magic Circular, a regular feature for members ever since.

The club was men-only until 1991, when a large majority voted to admit women.

The president (March 2008) is Alan Shaxon whose term will end in September 2008.

The motto of the society is the Latin indocilis privata loqui, roughly translated as "not apt to disclose secrets"; Members give their word not to wilfully disclose magic secrets other than to bona fide students of magic. Anyone breaking this or any other rule may be expelled.

Since 1998, the Magic Circle headquarters building in central London has been available for meetings and corporate entertainment. It has been voted best unusual venue by the hospitality industry. A virtual tour of the building and information are available online.

The Magic Circle headquarters houses a theatre, museums, libraries, a dining room, a clubroom and bars.

One of the society's youth initiatives is the Young Magicians Club, open to magicians 10 to 18. The Young Magicians Club has a magazine called Secrets.

Membership of the Young Magicians Club requires no interview or exam. New members are often almost beginners.

Membership of the Magic Circle requires the applicant to undergo an interview and to pass a performance exam to show proficiency and skill. The alternative to the usual performance is a written thesis relating to magic. Members of the Society use the letters M.M.C. after their name .

Members may take a further examination to achieve the degree of associate of the Inner Magic Circle. The designation A.I.M.C. shows this higher membership. The A.I.M.C. degree can also be attained through thesis, and in rare cases, examinees taking the M.M.C. exam are awarded the A.I.M.C. degree. Those who attain an A.I.M.C. degree as a result of a performance examination are given the A.I.M.C. with silver star.

Within the society, there is a number of members never exceeding 300 known as the Inner Magic Circle. Full membership of the Inner Magic Circle is denoted by the letters M.I.M.C. after the member's name. Membership of the Inner Magic Circle is by call of the society's president. The M.I.M.C. degree may be awarded with a gold star, in recognition of the holder's excellence as a performer, although not all holders of the M.I.M.C. degree are performers, and hence, not all are M.I.M.C. with gold star.

[edit] References

  1. ^ 'About us', Official web site of The Magic Circle

[edit] External links

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