I receive at least one email per month from magicians around the world. Their notes usually begin like this:
Dear Mr. Cohen,
I am a magician in [name of town] trying to build my client base and marketing reach.
I would like to use your idea of doing parlor magic using a high end hotel as a base. Would you object if I used that approach here in [name of town]?
Any advice you can offer would be appreciated. Do I split ticket sales with the hotel? Or, does the hotel pay me a fee and take all ticket profits? Does the hotel supply drinks as a part of the show price? How long should the show be? How much should tickets be? etc. etc.
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Before I offer an extremely rare rant (not the type of prose you’ve come to expect from me), here is my form-letter response: […]
The following text is from Dick Cavett’s introduction at my recent award dinner. I can’t tell you how honored I was to be introduced by this legendary television host. Dick Cavett: I love magic, and when I saw Steve Cohen the first time, it was in front of this building. This fellow came up to […]
I received a Hollywood welcome when I arrived in Los Angeles last week. Actors Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, How I Met Your Mother) and Chris Williams (“Krazee-Eyez Killah” on Curb Your Enthusiasm) both came out to my show at the Beverly Wilshire hotel, and director Steven Spielberg even bought tickets for himself and his […]
The photo leading this post is one of my new favorites. It may look small, but you MUST click it to view an amazing panoramic view of the gorgeous St. James room in Boston’s Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel. It was taken minutes before the doors opened to the public. As you can see, the mahogany walls and soaring window drapery provided the perfect backdrop for a classical magic performance.
Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge brought his whole family to the show, and even […]
After a public show, the audience files out and I’m left alone in the empty room. There is no evidence that something extraordinary had taken place. The moment has passed.
There was a stretch of time when I felt a giant disappointment after my performances. The flip side of two high-energy ninety minute shows, back to back, is the inevitable drop back to reality. For three hours, I gave pleasure and excitement to my audiences, brain and body working at full tilt. Yet, at that time, there was little pleasure in it for me.
The painting above resonated with me during this time of my life. […]
The Essential Magic Conference will be held on July 15, 16 and 17, in Portugal. I was asked to participate in one of their “passion videos.” This video just went live today on YouTube.
Steve Cohen does not have the marquee name of a David Copperfield, David Blaine or Penn & Teller. What he does have, at 39, is Chamber Magic, five shows a weekend at the plush suite in the Waldorf-Astoria where Crown Prince Sultan of Saudi Arabia stays when in town. Mr. Cohen’s specialty is parlor magic, fusing close-up maneuvers and tricks with common objects for small audiences. He models himself after conjurers who entertained the aristocracy in European salons in the 1800s. He does not saw women or make elephants vanish. […]
Billionaires, millionaires, media personalities, and other distinguished guests joined forces to support the Mercy Corps Action Center to End World Hunger on December 8, 2009 at the Magic4Mercy Benefit.
I presented a one-hour show that was well-received by business and community leaders, actors, fashion designers, and other luminaries including billionaire Steven A. Cohen, Founder of SAC Capital, and his wife Alexandra, who both served on the Honorary Committee for the event.
