Wonder and entertainment
Illusion, sleight of hand and the pleasure of being fooled.
Wonder and entertainment is the aim of the stage magician: to astonish an audience who knows it is being fooled. Conjuring, illusion, mentalism and street magic belong here, from the cups and balls of ancient Rome to Robert-Houdin, Houdini, Harry Kellar, P. C. Sorcar of India, Siegfried and Roy, and David Copperfield. This page covers the art, its history and its ethics, and does not reveal how any trick is done.
The art of the honest lie
A magician promises a trick and delivers astonishment. The pleasure comes from the gap between what is seen and what is known. Performers speak of misdirection, timing, patter and showmanship. Magicians also keep an informal rule not to expose methods, so that audiences can keep the pleasure and the craft keeps its livelihood. This is the most open part of the subject, in which no one is asked to believe.
Where it is performed
Magic has always had a street and a stage. In India, P. C. Sorcar Sr. (1913 to 1971) toured the world and became a national name. In China and Japan, conjuring was part of variety theatre and a distinct craft. In the Arab world and the Ottoman empire, performers worked in coffee houses and fairs. In the West, the music hall, the television special and the Las Vegas show carried the art into mass entertainment.
Who is welcome
For much of its history, the profession was dominated by men, with women as assistants, though performers such as Adelaide Herrmann broke the pattern. Racial stereotypes shaped acts: Western performers played Chinese or Indian magicians in costume, and Chung Ling Soo's disguise was a famous case. Today, magicians from many countries and women performers are widely visible. Magicians from Egypt, Lebanon, Iran and Nigeria now work on global stages and in festivals, and a few have become well known beyond their borders.
Entertainers against fraud
Houdini and James Randi spent years exposing mediums and faith healers who claimed real powers, arguing that honest conjurers protect the public. Scholars of the mind use magic to study attention, memory and belief. The boundary matters: claiming genuine supernatural power for a trick and charging for it is fraud, not entertainment. As the code puts it, the trick can be admired and enjoyed without the secret being known, and children and adults alike keep that pleasure.
Wonder and entertainment on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy ring
A natural ring of mushrooms surrounded by folklore about dancing spirits and witches.Belief · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreMantraमन्त्रम्
A sacred sound or phrase repeated to focus the mind and invoke spiritual powerText · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreTarottarocchi
A set of cards for games and divination, with roots in fifteenth-century ItalyText · Wonder and entertainment · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreAshtamangalaअष्टमङ्गल
A set of eight sacred symbols used in Indian religions to mark auspicious occasions and teach spiritual truths.Tradition · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreLag BaOmerלַ״ג בָּעוֹמֶר
A Jewish holiday marking the end of a mourning period with bonfires and outdoor playTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇱🇻 Latvia and 1 moreLatvian mythology
A collection of myths about gods, spirits, and the afterlife from the Baltic region.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇪🇸 SpainFolklore of Spain
The oral traditions, legends, and folktales of the Iberian PeninsulaTradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇱 ChileCaleuche
A luminous ghost ship of Chilote mythology that sails the canals and seas of southern Chile.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomBeltane Fire Festival
A modern Edinburgh performance celebrating the start of summer with fire and danceRite · Wonder and entertainment · Power and authority Living
🇮🇹 ItalyThe MagicianLe Bateleur
A tarot trump symbolizing power and the link between spirit and matterText · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇴 ColombiaColombian folklore
Beliefs and legends passed down through generations in ColombiaTradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇺🇸 United StatesHex sign
Pennsylvania Dutch barn symbols that range from folk art to talismansCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇪 IrelandIrish folklorebéaloideas
The oral traditions, myths and customs of IrelandTradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 3 moreCaribbean folklore
The blended tales and spirits of the Caribbean islandsTradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreBrocken spectreBrockengespenst
A giant shadow cast by an observer onto clouds, often surrounded by a rainbow halo.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇱 ChileChilean mythology
The myths and legends of Chile, blending indigenous roots with colonial influences.Tradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreMoon rabbit月兔 (yuètù)
A mythical figure seen in lunar markings, pounding elixirs or rice cakes across Asia and the Americas.Being · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇲🇲 MyanmarMythical creatures in Burmese folklore
A collection of spirits, beasts and hybrids from Myanmar's stories and playsBeing · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇱 IsraelSeder hishtalshelusסדר השתלשלות
A Kabbalistic cosmology mapping the descent of divine light through spiritual realms to the physical world.Belief · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇳 IndiaBaakবাক
A shapeshifting water spirit from Assamese folklore that mimics humans and fears torn nets.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreHaunted doll
A doll claimed to be haunted or possessed, often linked to film and urban legend.Belief · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreBesomвеник
A twig broom used for sweeping, folk magic, and fire responseCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreVanishing hitchhiker
An urban legend where a motorist picks up a passenger who vanishes, often leaving behind proof of their death.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Wonder and entertainment Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Mantra: Markrosenrosen, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tarot: World Web Playing Card Museum, Public domain, source
- Ashtamangala: Redtigerxyz, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lag BaOmer: Yoninah, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Latvian mythology: Dezidor, CC BY 3.0, source
- Folklore of Spain: Mikipons, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Beltane Fire Festival: Stefan Schäfer, Lich, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- The Magician: Pamela Colman Smith, Public domain, source
- Colombian folklore: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Hex sign: Smallbones, CC0, source
- Irish folklore: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Moon rabbit: An artist, Public domain, source
- Mythical creatures in Burmese folklore: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Seder hishtalshelus: Daderot, Public domain, source
- Caribbean folklore: Biblioteca Juvenil Mayaguez ( talk · contribs ), CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Haunted doll: Cayobo, CC BY 1.0, source
- Brocken spectre: Draceane, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Besom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cox_(artist), Public domain, source
- Fairy ring: User:Mrs skippy, Public domain, source