David Devant in the context of Shadowgraph

Magic is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It encompasses the subgenres of close-up magic, parlor magic, and stage magic, among others. It is to be distinguished from paranormal magic which are effects claimed to be created through supernatural means. It is one of the oldest performing arts in the world.

Modern entertainment magic, as pioneered by 19th-century magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, has become a popular theatrical art form. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, magicians such as John Nevil Maskelyne and David Devant, Howard Thurston, Harry Kellar, and Harry Houdini achieved widespread commercial success during what has become known as "the Golden Age of Magic", a period in which performance magic became a staple of Broadway theatre, vaudeville, and music halls. Meanwhile, magicians such as Georges Méliès, Gaston Velle, Walter R. Booth, and Orson Welles introduced pioneering filmmaking techniques informed by their knowledge of magic.

John Nevil Maskelyne (22 December 1839 – 18 May 1917) was an English stage magician and inventor of the pay toilet, along with other Victorian-era devices. He worked with magicians George Alfred Cooke and David Devant, and many of his illusions are still performed today. His book Sharps and Flats: A Complete Revelation of the Secrets of Cheating at Games of Chance and Skill is considered a classic overview of card sharp practices. In 1914 he founded the Occult Committee, a group to "investigate claims to supernatural power and to expose fraud".

Magic is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It encompasses the subgenres of close-up magic, parlor magic, and stage magic, among others. It is to be distinguished from supernatural magic which are effects claimed to be created through supernatural means. It is one of the oldest performing arts in the world.

Modern entertainment magic, as pioneered by 19th-century magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, has become a popular theatrical art form. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, magicians such as John Nevil Maskelyne and David Devant, Howard Thurston, Harry Kellar, and Harry Houdini achieved widespread commercial success during what has become known as "the Golden Age of Magic", a period in which performance magic became a staple of Broadway theatre, vaudeville, and music halls. Meanwhile, magicians such as Georges Méliès, Gaston Velle, Walter R. Booth, and Orson Welles introduced pioneering filmmaking techniques informed by their knowledge of magic.