My username is
Max Malini because he was my role model when I started performing professionally 13 years ago.
Apart from magic, my other interests are playing chess, playing piano, and I have a bachelors and a masters in psychology.
I'm not performing magic full-time right now because I've started a business that's unrelated to magic. When I started performing magic professionally, I strove to make my material visual; but now I don't like visual magic.
For example, magician Malini didn't do a visual color change... he held his hand over the black card, held it still for a couple seconds, then when his hand rose up, the red-card was now exposed for all to see.
I think this is more powerful magic, because the mind of the spectator fills in the gap with all sorts of wild and mysterious magic.
It's like a statue without a head. More mysterious.
I've been a member on the rotting-lime green "cafe" (no disrespect) for years.
Aside from the frustrating interface (there's apparently no way to sort the pages of threads from 'most viewed,' 'most-replied,' 'most-recent,'...unless I'm just a moron; and add to that the barrage of advertisements in my inbox that I have to delete one-at-a-time), it's become clear that threads get deleted willy-nilly, if they don't resonate with the owner.
In short, it seems like the cafe is the myspace, crude and tacky. And there must be a facebook where mystery entertainers congregate. Maybe this is it for magicians.
I'm a magician in the USA, but I've believed for years now that the UK is ahead of the US, not just in mentalism, but that's pretty clear. Even if that weren't the case, I think it's good for me, an American magician, to frequent a community that's an ocean away.
Anyway, recently my interest is making my material apparently prop-less.
If the prop is invisible, that's fine.
I just strive now never to whip something out of my pocket.
But again, from the spectator's perspective, he/she should not see a "prop."
What else..oh, I'm 33.