Do you believe in magic?

"Abracadabra," "hocus pocus," "Oops." These are all phrases that you might hear at a meeting of IU's premier Magicians Club. In the great tradition of magicians in the past, Houdini and David Copperfield, these brave men and women forge ahead to improve their skills so they too can turn a broken egg into a beautiful dove with the simple "whisk" of a spatula. \nJunior Jonathan Finch is the president of the Magicians Club. Finch explained that the club's purpose is "to practice the art of magic by assembling regularly and to spur one another on toward good technique and understanding of magic." With around 20 members, the Magicians Club provides a casual atmosphere for magicians to rehearse their magic tricks for one another, and to perfect their stage presence. \n"Being a member has fine-tuned my skills insofar as every member there, after having seen me perform, can give me good feedback," Finch says. \nChris Shickles, a junior, advises those aspiring towards "Magicianhood" (this is not a real word, but a state of mind) to begin simply.\n"Start with the small things. Read books. Find someone better than you, and bounce ideas off of them," Shickles says. \nThe wonderful thing about being a magician may be that there are no basic requirements. Perhaps you are majoring in German, SPEA or even business -- do not despair! The Magicians Club does not require you to take 30 hours inside your major, nor must you buy hundreds of dollars worth of books that you will never use again after the conclusion of your time in the club. Outside of the club a person can work on magic skills for as long or as little as he or she would like. There seems to be no mudslinging among the members of the Magicians Club. You can be a member of the Magicians Club without fear of underwear raids or hazing of any kind. And above all there are no fees to participate in the Magicians Club. What you put in is what you will get out.\nIf someone is interested in joining the club he or she should get in contact with Finch. He says that while there is no "ideal candidate" for the Magicians Club, the members look to find people with an insatiable curiosity for how magic tricks are performed, a love of magic itself as an art form and who look good in a cape. He says being a magician is about taking chances. After years of practicing, Finch is able to both levitate and steal a watch without the owner ever noticing. As the president of the Magicians Club, he is highly respected as a magician.\n"The king of manipulators, in my opinion, will always be Jonathan Finch… In his hands, the playing cards become not pasteboard but living creatures obedient to his commands… whenever I see Finch with a pack in hand, I expect the cards to burst into song," says Paul Allen, Finch's roommate.\nSophomore Richard Herren, a veteran member of the Magicians Club, explains that although there are no defined elements that make for the perfect magician (as each magician is unique), there are some areas where the publicly recognized and unrecognized magicians excel. \n"(These magicians have) the desire to create an original act, the drive to practice and perfect it and an inherent ability to connect with an audience," Herren says. \nThe club does not hold auditions, instead, in order to become a member the magician must complete a brief interview process.\nAlthough the club does not perform together, or meet on a regular basis, the members say it is a great way to learn from other magicians about the art of magic. Many of the magicians in the club began their careers in other areas of entertainment. Shickles began in a juggling club, learning about the magic club through a conversation with Finch. When recalling his progression to the magician he is today, Shickles reflects that progressively his ability to manipulate the audience has improved. \nThe age of your audience will also impact the manner in which the tricks are carried out. For example, with children the magician must be much more animated, while with adults a sense of calm creates an ambience of sorts. The illusion begins as soon as the magician enters the stage. As the widely considered "father of modern magic" Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin said, "a magician is an actor playing the part of a magician."\nFinch says as a whole the club consists of people who love magic, and love learning and improving their skills as magicians.\n"Magic is a very individual thing," Finch says. "It is about presentation, it's about learning how to entertain"