Vish Vishvanath - Photographer.
Magical Marco

From scrapyards to ballrooms

1 / Magician to the stars

Marco is a middle-aged professional magician. By day, he works at the International Magic shop in London’s Clerkenwell, and by night he performs at private engagements or charity events. The story follows Marco during his performances and shows him in action, entertaining people with his banter and his magic. His life and history are alluded to – from running two West London scrapyards to the backstage bar at the Hammersmith Odeon for 20 years. Named Marco’s Bar in his honour, he entertained many rock stars and celebrities in his time there and ended up leaving the bar to perform full-time at their parties.

As photo stories go, it’s light-hearted, yet the nature of performance magic means that people’s reactions are nearly always genuine. The presence of a camera can often stiffen people up, but the delighted responses to Marco’s tricks supersede that.

Magic Marco:http://www.magicmarco.co.uk/
International Magic:http://www.internationalmagic.com/

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Tired after a long run at the store and nights of entertaining, but still the perfectly-tailored professional.
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Wand - check.
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A second pack of prepared cards, in case of being asked to repeat the trick immediately...
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Some accessories...
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And not forgetting...
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"Give us your money!" More polite than Bob Geldorf, but when performing for charity, Marco is more than a match.
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"I name your card Bob" - terrible joke, but they love seeing their card with the name magically upon it.
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Years of practice guarantees Marco an audience. He is a busy magician, working most nights up to Christmas. On a night like this, he only has a few hours to get around 600 people.
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A quick magician's shuffle. The sleight, or actual magic, happens well away from the moment, or performance. Here's Marco's right hand shields the left thumb from revealing its secret.
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Footballers. Say no more.
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The question is: What's Marco just shown her?
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"Have another drink, dear."
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The young lady discovers that the back of her card - that she signed - is in fact a ticket to the ball. Her companion spots that Marco's phone number is also on the card.
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A quick scan of the table before Marco chooses who to focus on.
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Marco asks "how many balls are you holding now?"
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After witnessing Marco produce some sponge male genitalia in her friend's hand, a young lady suggests some improvements to the trick.
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Marco prepares for the evening's show, overseen by Miaow.
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Magic invented by Marco and posted back to himself.
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From his days running the backstage bar at Hammersmith Odeon.
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