How do you join The magic circle?
Many people ask me "how do you become a member of The magic circle?", so I thought I would make a handy little guide to do this.
The magic circle is the world's most premier magical society, founded in 1905 in central London when 23 magicians met up with the intention of forming a club.
The first president of the club was magician David Devant, widely known for being the best in his era.
From the original 23 members it has now grown to around 1500 of the leading magicians from all around the world.
In this blog I'll talk you through the process of joining the magic circle, as well as my experiences with the process, and the benefits.
If you are not an established magician, there are training programs and apprenticeships available, which I will touch on a little later, but lets first assume you are already an established magician and have your eyes on membership within the magic circle.
Apply to join the magic circle:
The first step is to apply. You must fill out the forms required to start your application. This includes questions about your knowledge, your interest and your skills, essentially an overview of you.
Part of this application needs to be supported / sponsored by two existing members who have known you for at least a year. They will act as references for you.
The interview:
If you pass the criteria required you will be invited to an interview. The interview is normally held at the magic circle headquarters in central London. It is a bland and normal looking building from the outside, but once you step through the doors a whole world of magic opens up before you.
You will be met at the reception and bear witness to the grandeur of the inside, first seeing the blue and white spiral staircase that leads to the in house theatre.
You will be asked to wait in the club room where magicians congregate for secret talks about all things trickery. You will be treated as a guest for the night, which means for this one time you will be allowed to mingle in the room, meet with your sponsors and who knows, maybe you will spot one of your magic idles!
When your interview time arrives you will be led to meet with 2 members of the council, normally the magic circle secretary and exams secretary.
They will probe you with questions about your knowledge, level of interest and questions generally relating to your involvement in the world of magic.
They will ask to see a couple of effects and a short performance demonstrating what you can do.
They will be looking for a certain level of competency, skill and presentational ability.
You are then free to explore the magic circle Hq, which includes a museum and many other gems around the building. This is a great opportunity to get a feel for the club, the people and magic circle as a whole.
The Audition
If you are successful with your interview you will likely receive an email congratulating you on being able to move to the next step, and a date and time to attend a formal audition.
The Audition is the most nerve wracking part of the process. However, It is your chance to show off your skills in front of the magic committee and other members of the magic circle.
You will be asked to perform for a period of time between 8-10 minutes.
You will perform in the Devant room, which can occasionally have upwards of 100 magicians watching your audition, some of the biggest names in magic! It was the most nervous I have ever been for a performance! .
Part of that audience will be the judges, who will make notes as you do your performance and the performance will also be filmed and potentially shown to the committee during the next stage.
You will be judged on a range of skills from magical ability and technique, presentation and performance style, structure of your act, originality, appearance and more.
You need a strong score to be considered for membership.
Once you have done your audition, it will be sent for review during the next committee meeting where they will make a decision about your application, and decide if they will grant you membership.
You will normally find out if you are a member of the magic circle between 2 and 6 weeks after the audition depending what time during the month you auditioned.
Hopefully, it will be good news for you, and if it is, welcome to the club! If you do not pass, you are able to retake you exam after a period of 6 months.
Benefits of joining the magic circle
Once you pass your magic circle audition you will have access to many benefits the club offers.
Access to the headquarters, which hosts a grand theatre where lectures and magic talks / shows are hosted all throughout the year.
The exclusive magazine, which has hints, tips and news about the latest magic and magical goings on.
Access to many education and development programs, to help you grow into an even more advanced magician.
Access to the library which has a huge amount of historic and teaching books by the best in the world.
You can use the letters MMC after your name, or y ou could even get into AIMC in your first audition.
There are of course many many more things such as networking opportunities, prestige and of course that all important magic circle diploma and one of the very few magicians in the world allowed to use the world famous magic circle logo.
Levels
There are various degrees within the magic circle, starting at member of the magic circle (MMC) followed by Associate of the inner magic circle (AIMC) and finally Member of the inner magic circle (MIMC)
To gain to the AIMC you must score extremely highly in an exam. To get to MIMC you must be appointed only by the president and is reserved for a very select few magicians.
Apprenticeship scheme
If you are not ready for the above process, but are still interested in becoming a member, the apprenticeship scheme is a great alternative option.
You can receive many of the benefits of being a member whilst you build the skills needed to gain full membership.
In order to be offered an apprenticeship at the magic circle you must first demonstrate that you have the potential to gain the skills and knowledge required to pass.
This can be a great option for many budding magicians as you will have access to ongoing support where you will be taught and offered advice consistently about how to get to the desired level.
You must be over 18 to apply and be sponsored by 2 existing members of the magic circle.
Young magicians club.
If you are under 18 you may be interested in the young magicians club at the magic circle. This is a program for development for those not yet of age to become full members.
You will be able to meet with others of your own age, as well as members of the circle who work with you to develop your skills.
You can get full details about this on the magic circle website page, which has up to date information about the processes due to Covid.
As you can see the magic circle is a fantastic organisation, and although a tough process is required to become a member, its well worth the effort. Since joining myself 2 years ago I have never looked back and I look forward to many more years to come!
Comments