A Magical Season

Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre hosts the second Christmas MagicFest…

- Garry Fraser

AS if Edinburgh, the festival city, didn’t have enoughto boast about, it can claim to be the only UK cityto hold a magic festival at Christmas. MagicFest was founded in 2010 by the husband and wife team of Kevin and Svetlana McMahon, and since then they have produced regular summer magic festivals.

Last year, however, they decided to run a further festival at Christmas – and such was its success, they had no hesitation in repeating the format this year.

“It is quite a rare festival because it’s not funded by any of the main funding bodies,” says Kevin, a professional magician who goes under the stage name of Kevin Quantum. “We try and run it as a business as best we can, but we have to make certain concessions in areas that maybe sometimes you wouldn’t have to if you were funded every year.

“We make it work through love and sheer force of will.

“That means we do it all – scripting, administration, booking, marketing, organising and performing. It’s more a way of life, and not a career.