May

22

It’s Magic!

Posted by Christopher Waldrop

May 22, 2008 |

“The template is, if a chick is on stage, she’s wearing a bikini or holding something.”–Maritess, Queen of Magic

The June/July 2008 issue of BUST, the magazine “for women with something to get off their chests”, has an article titled “Use Your Illusion”, an all-too brief history of women magicians. Fortunately Julie Sobanski, a Milwaukee-based magician, is researching and writing a book about their history, and she’s already uncovered records of three-hundred women magicians. Although there are records of women magicians going back to 1787, when Mrs. John Brenon (her first name has been lost) performed sleight-of-hand tricks with her husband. Most striking, though, may be sedaris1.jpgDorothy Dietrich, who’s literally stared death in the face. In 1980 she performed the bullet catch trick–a trick that’s killed some magicians. For Dietrich, though, magic was more than just a trick; it was a way for her to escape an abusive father. As the article poignantly puts it, this was “her first true escape act”.

Surprisingly there was an explosion of women magicians in the 1950’s, with some, especially Dell O’Dell, getting their own television shows. O’Dell also marketed herself heavily with everything from dolls to hand cream. A lot of these magicians have been forgotten, but then so have their male counterparts. David Copperfield, Cris Angel, and Penn & Teller have earned mainstream success, but magicians of either gender are mostly on the fringe of the media world. They’re performers but, in spite of the incredible skill and dedication required to become a magician, they’re never given the same respect as actors. To get any attention magicians have to be at least a little bad, a little on the edge. Celeste Evans, like others, used her sexuality. Wearing a sleeveless dress she produced doves. When someone asked her where the doves came from, she replied, “You’ve never noticed how flat-chested I am?” Women magicians aren’t alone, though; male magicians from Houdini to Cris Angel have made their physical prowess part of their act. You can’t hide anything in your sleeves if you’re not wearing sleeves–and very little else. Is it exploitation or empowerment? That’s a tricky question.


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