It is nearly mid September and the two-month In Our Town programme of street entertainment in Dumfries is drawing to an end. But not yet. Last Saturday we saw Murray the Magician and Fearchara performing for a crowd of kids, their parents and interested onlookers basking in the sun in front of Midsteeple.
Cameron Murray brought the world of illusion to the streets of Dumfries. The show diverted people for a little while from buzzing Yes and No political campaigns launched ahead of the upcoming Scottish Independence referendum, although the spectators turned up with their badges and other paraphernalia.
Murray the Magician’s act is very different in mood and approach from the one by Todd Various I photographed earlier in the season. Rather than showering his audience with a stream of jokes, he demonstrated mind reading, sleight of hand and card tricks and his signature shock magic. Some stunts appeared quite dangerous and caused a few gasps from youngsters. These included piercing his tongue with a knitting needle, setting a pack of cards on fire, or trying to guillotine a volunteer’s hand as a forfeit, or cutting a rose in Fearchara’s mouth with a sharp razor while being blindfolded, only guided by a bell ring sound.
Understandably, the magician had to call up mostly grown ups from the crowd to participate in his demonstrations although lots of kids enthusiastically raised their hands to volunteer.
It was an enjoyable show!
