I.B.M. Ring 362
The Maine Mystics
Bangor, Maine

Ring Event Report
July 28, 2007

Ring 362 graduated its first class of twenty-four apprentice magicians on July 28, 2007, at the closing of the 2007 Summer Festival of the Arts held at Mount Desert Island High School. The students completed three weeks of magic classes taught by Ring member Kim Hawkins with guest appearances by Dr. Wilson. Ring members Kim Hawkins, Paul Szauter, Bryan-Keith Taylor and Danny Baker donated supplies.

The apprentice magicians performed two pieces of stage magic on Saturday, July 28, in front of an audience of hundreds, in a performance segment that also featured instrumental music, singing and dance. Fourteen-year-old escape artist Aidan Pasha had his wrists securely bound with eight feet of rope, then was wrapped in heavy chain and secured to a chair with padlocks. He escaped, dramatically.

Jacob Frankel and Reid Billings, two young illusionists, displayed the Shroud of Nefertiti, recovered from the ancient sands of Egypt. Reid remarked that it had actually been recovered from a local yard sale for $5. In return for his honesty, he was wrapped within the folds of the Shroud. Jacob Frankel waved his wand and chanted a mystic incantation. He whipped away the Shroud to reveal the living incarnation of Nefertiti the Endless! The vanished illusionist appeared from the audience. The Immortal (Catie Forthofer) demanded tribute from the two young illusionists before leaving the stage.

During lunch on the lawn, the other apprentices set up tables to entertain guests. Cards were selected and discovered, objects floated in the summer air, and cords were pulled through young necks as the audience gasped or scratched their heads. The torch has clearly been passed to the next generation!

The members of Ring 362 greatly appreciate the opportunity to be part of the 2007 Summer Festival of the Arts, and hope that this will be the beginning of a long partnership.