Member Spotlight (Current) - Magician Ethan Schleeter

My first exposure to magic was as a young child. I received a couple of magic sets as Christmas gifts and saw magicians on television, such as Doug Henning, Harry Blackstone Jr., and David Copperfield. While in elementary school, an older cousin of mine fooled me badly with some card tricks at several family functions, and he eventually let me keep the book he learned them from (Garcia & Schindler's "Magic With Cards"). However, I didn't keep up with the magic, and I gravitated toward other interests until I rediscovered it as an adult.

In the mid-2000s I moved to an apartment in Chicago that was only a couple blocks away from the Lincoln Avenue location of Magic Inc. I liked popping in there every few months to quietly lurk and gawk at the counter-demonstrations. In early 2012, I was researching some magic concepts for an art project and thought I should join a magic club to learn more, but I wasn't finding much information on Chicago clubs. That summer while visiting family in Tucson, Arizona, I made a chance visit to Williams Magic, operated by the extraordinarily helpful and friendly Emory Sr. and his son Emory Jr. Due to their mobile magic shop project they were able to give me the contact information for IBM Ring 43 and the rest is history.

My favorite Ring 43 memory is my first meeting, which was also my first magic lecture. I arrived late trying to find the Evanston hospital where the club met at that time, and I circled the entire building looking for the entrance. When I finally got inside and found the group I was treated to a brief performance and an amazing lecture by the mentalist Banachek. Mentalism was one of the branches of magic that got me interested in magic again as an adult and this lecture absolutely blew my mind -- I was definitely hooked after that!

There are many things to recommend about IBM Ring 43. It feels somewhat more accessible to me than some of the other local clubs. The club's vibe these days is pretty laid back too -- there's no pressure to perform if you just want to hang out and watch the magic; but it's also a safe space to try something new because you can make mistakes and still receive encouragement and support for the attempt. There's a good mix of meeting formats throughout the year including lectures, contests, open performance, instruction, show and tell, etc. and the fellowship (holiday party, after meeting dinners) helps strengthen the magic community.

This year I have a lot of magic in the works! In January I kicked off a new book with my monthly Magic Study Group (Bobo's "New Modern Coin Magic"). I also recently started volunteering at Lurie Children's Hospital as a magician with Open Heart Magic. And there are plans for me to teach some additional classes at Magic Inc. where I continue to work part-time (keep your eyes peeled for an introductory Tarot class and possibly more...).