InSession, Ellusionist’s new service to connect you with face-to-face, customized magic training, has been generating a lot of buzz on message boards and internet magic sites. One of the biggest posts came from one of the biggest magic sites on the ‘Net: iTricks. On Tuesday, Editor Justin Robert Young had some praise and some skeptical thoughts about the new service, and gave it a good review:

“Although the prices may fall and some personalities will undoubtedly prove themselves more suitable for this kind of work than others, the concept is valid and we wouldn’t be surprised to see is applied on sites other than Ellusionist.”

Back to some of thosee skeptical questions: They were good questions. Young asked them like the pro he is, and Ellusionist Vice President Jason Brumbalow answered them in the latest edition of the iTricks Magic Week in Review. In the podcast, JBone talks about how the idea got started, how resistant the sessions are to someone who decides to record the chat and post it live, an update on shorter time increments and more.

You can listen to the podcast on iTricks here.

Thanks to YouTube, Eric Ross went from underground magic creator to performing on “Ellen” in about a week.

The story is generally known: Ellen DeGeneres saw a YouTube video of Eric performing Rizer. Her staff called and, a week later, Ross is getting gasps and applause in front of a TV audience and millions of TV watchers. What you may not know is what he did between the phone call and the performance.

Ross talked to us about the whole experience, including more about what Ellen’s producers wanted, the trip to L.A., how he came up with his presentation, the night out spent with a star of “Human Centipede,” what he DIDN’T perform, how many rehearsals he had before showtime and how he came across that double deck of Ellen playing cards that he used. Ross also gives us a hint of what kind of doors opened for him after his appearance and what he would have done differently if given the chance again — including that repetition of the Crazy Man Handcuffs.

He even addresses the controversy and criticism behind his appearance. Yeah, controversy. Truth be told, we didn’t know there was any until Dan Sperry and Justin Robert Young broke it down on last week’s Magic Week in Review on iTricks.com. They, like us, believe that an impressed audience is what matters. We made no secret about what we thought of his performance: He killed it.

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Rizer has been out a few days, and already it’s pulling out some stellar reviews and reactions. Before it was released, we wondered how it got created, so we went directly to the source.

In this podcast interview, we talked to co-creator Eric Ross about Rizer and how it came to be. While we had him on Skype, we talked about Election, Conspiracy, how he and B. Smith worked together when they keep different hours and what it’s like to work with Cyril Takayama. Oh, Joe couldn’t stop talking about the kinds of magicians who have no fear of ending dirty, so there’s some preaching in there, too. Enjoy.

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Wayne Houchin is currently on a lecture tour, hitting places such as Nashville, Tampa, Memphis, Jacksonville and Tel Aviv, Israel. Before he’s done, he’ll have hit Kansas City, Chicago, San Antonio, Portland and the Dominican Republic.

I made it to his lecture Friday at Steve Lancaster’s Top Hat Magic and Costumes in Tulsa. It was worth the two-hour drive: Houch covered several of his classic effects and a few new ones, including a torn-and-restored card effect that yanked the breath right out of a room full of magicians. He also delivered a 20 minute talk about success that features some must-hear info.

Afterward, Wayne and I went live for a quick, almost-halfway-done-with-tour podcast. There was laughter. There was whistling. There was a hollering of “Boomer, Sooner.” There were Kanye glasses.

Oh, I would like to personally apologize for my bad joke about Texas. Which is the home state of my boss, Jason Brumbalow. I think I’m getting disciplined for this podcast. Enjoy:

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Thanks for a great time, Tulsa! That means you, Steve, John (nice Turners, by the way), Justin (is there a magician you HAVEN’T met?), Rick (I’m off to YouTube!), Dave and all the other cool guys I met. Especially Michael King, who caught a shot of the Kanye glasses, and my failing attempt to hide the price tag:

For many magicians, it’s enough to perform magic with no explanations, patter, banter or other talk. Others, however, want to get some laughs as well as amazement. But putting comedy in a routine is not as simple as it sounds.

Michael Kent is a master at getting laughs. His smartass personality gives his magic an edge that keeps fans engaged, impressed and energized. He is the life of the party during his shows, and that’s no accident. He figures out exactly what kind of reactions he wants, then sets his performance accordingly.

Kent stopped by to elaborate on his creative process, why humorous scripts might not be the best for close-up gigs and one of the best ways to guarantee that you get more calls for business. Enjoy:

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During the podcast, we reference two of his routines. To watch them, click the jump: (more…)