Review #1 by Dave Tryzenski

What follows, for those unable to attend, is a brief, personal account of Saturday's ICBM event from my perspective.

Kathy and I  started out of PA early and hit Connecticut about 3 hours later, arriving just in time to check in with Joe, and check out the dealer's tables and meet some in person some whom I'd only had the pleasure of dealing with through the network. Then we hit the close-up show. Vlad and Adrian from the list "killed." A better pairing of "g"hosts you'd be hard to dig up in a Salem cemetery.

Numerous fantastic close up performances including Vlad, Adrian, Bill Fienning, Evil Dan, Malak Greenwolf, and a humorous homage to the NLT by Gil Earl.

At lunch I was happy to butt into the conversation of the table behind me
when I realized one of the persons was Vlad (who first introduced me to the Shadow Network). My apologies again to you, Adrian, and the rest of your table, as my spirits (and enthusiasm) got the better of me! Still, these "children of the night" were quite pleasant and sociable.

Next came Bill Fienning's excellent lecture on how to elaborate on a presentation, using his close-up "Realm of the Pharaohs" as example. This was extremely useful information to me. Bill deconstructed almost every move and phrase to show each points importance as a building block to the overall presentation. Afterward we got a chance to see just how each of the impressive prop components of his presentation worked. Great stuff.

Then we went off to our room to rest up and change for the evening's main event. Cocktails at six, where the room quickly began to fill with all manners of creatures. Goth and Renaissance characters in stunning costuming were liberally sprinkled among those such as I who simply packed our mugglewear. Being a long time comic's fan, I must say my favorite costume of the evening was Joe Lantiere's incredible God of Thunder, complete with exact replica of the hammer, Milorjn.

The evening show was nothing short of spectacular. From the opening circle casting ceremony, through stunning performances by Walt Anthony and Jay Scott Berry, a moving moral from Brother Shadow, levity from Picard and Brittany, and outright belly laughs from Kardor! ("Kardor does the spooky stuff" had me in tears!) right up until Jeff MacBride's highly energetic finale, the only time we had to catch our breath was during the short break when the staff cleaned the tables!

One word: SPELLBINDING!

Despite a gracious invitation to the hospitality suite (where I'm told attendees huddled into the wee hours of the new day), we retired to our bed exhausted by 11PM.

My thanks to Joe Cabral and all those who organized and performed at the 11th Annual Inner Circle of Bizarre Magicians convention this past weekend.  Your work produced an event of true wonder.

Dave and Kathy Tryzenski.

Review #2 by Bruce Barnett

Great time at the ICBM. I wish it were longer.  Loved the performances. Jeff, Jay, Pecor, Kardor, EvilDan. Great performers all. We roared with Gil Earl doing Poinc's Phoenix Bird routine.

Brother Malek is growing in skill in leaps and bounds.  And Vlad was a joy as always. I love these two guys. Every time I see them there is a "freshness" to them that is unique. These guys are constantly re-inventing/refining their personas and it shows.

I had too many friends to talk to, and not enough time.  First time I met Sister Circle, and Sister Roo.  Great talks with them as well.

The ICBM is a special convention. My welcome packet included several free effects with props from Brother Malek and Brother Larry.  Three of the lectures gave out the notes for free. The spirit of sharing was constant.

The diversity of the attendees is another great part of the ICBM. Two of the women there did custom costume work. Lisa (w/Jay Scott Berry)will be coming out with a web site for magicians to select semi-custom clothing. I talked to her about finding the right costume for one of my characters.

The dealers "room" was great. I snapped up many items from Mary Tomich, all at a bargain rate. I don't know if anyone bought the authentic Tibetan skull bowl ($198) from Mary. It was *cool*. Several of us had the same thought. Also get several small skulls, and do a Benson bowl routine! (Poinc would come up with a great routine!)

I really enjoyed the Eugene Poinc memorial. Many who knew Gene talked about their experiences with him. They brought photographs of the cave, and told stories of the couch and the flesh-eating dust bunnies. At the end, everyone who attended got a souvenir - a sample of Gene's artwork. We were given conditions from Gene: never put it in a frame
that costs more that $1.50.

We had lots of opportunities to examine the props of fellow performers and lecturers.  Brother Shadow's lecture was on how he made his "chest of tales" and we all examined the props afterwards.

Bill Fienning described how he constructed "Realm of the Pharaohs" in detail, and we had opportunity to also examine his creations. (He arrived with 5 suitcases).

I was there when Walt and Bill realized they were separated at birth (except for the height of course).  They bought lectured on the same topic, but at different directions. It was like listening to a painter talk to a musician. 

The hospitality room was the hub of activity as well. In one corner, Great Scot was talking about the effects in Reginald Scot's book, and in the other we were discussing forms of theater. In the next room, Tony was doing a S&M-based routine with Sister Roo. Brother Martin was telling me how he handles the regular wedding bookings he gets (wonderful!) I really don't know how to describe it. It's as if all forms of theater and performance are placed in a blender, creating a ever-evolving cocktail of creativity.

One thing was clear - if you needed help in an area, any area, someone there could help. It also rejuvenated and inspired me tremendously.

Two more moments stood out. The first was Brother Shadow telling me about some of his adventures growing up. I think Brother Shadow's autobiography should be required reading for all Shadow Digest members!  He has had the experiences of dozens of lifetimes, and I suspect only a few have a clue of the variety of these experiences. I, in all seriousness, think there is a potential for a nationwide best seller here.

The second was doing "My Pal Joey" for Jeff McBride in Brother Shadow's room. Jeff's jaw dropped and he was speechless. For a full minute. I think that's a good sign.

Bruce Barnett.

To see the photos and read more, CLICK HERE.