Tonight’s speaker was Margaret Steele, magician, dancer, historian, and author of Adelaide Herrmann Queen of Magic: Memoirs, Published Writings and Collected Ephemera; a remarkable book, highly recommended to anyone interested in the history of magic.
Margaret’s lecture brought our magic legacy to life with her account of the life and times of Adelaide Herrmann along with her efforts to find the manuscript thought by many to have been irretrievably lost. Adelaide Hermann’s career not only spanned the decades but three continents as well, intersecting with many of the greatest magicians of the twentieth century.
Having tapped into a treasure trove of memorabilia, she recounted the development of the Grand Illusion along with the creativity and showmanship that have become the building blocks of magic today. Ms. Steele topped off her presentation with demonstrations of effects believed to be in Adelaide’s style including a superb Linking Rings routine and “The Gypsy Rope Mystery” – an amazing transformation while completely tied.
Bill McElvenney