Magic Tricks

Performance art of illusion — sleight of hand, misdirection and stagecraft to make the impossible appear possible.

🌤both
Photo · Wikipedia

What is Magic Tricks?

Magic — 'conjuring' or 'prestidigitation' — is the performance art of creating illusions through sleight of hand, misdirection, mechanical devices and psychological manipulation. Modern theatrical magic dates from French clockmaker Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin (1845), the 'father of modern magic'. FISM (Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques) runs the World Championships of Magic every three years across nine categories.

Quick facts

Category

Party Games

Type

Individual

Players

1–1

Where played

both

Country of origin

🇪🇬 Egypt

Estimated origin

Ancient origins (Dedi of Egypt c. 2700 BCE); modern stage magic since Robert-Houdin (1845)

Olympic

No

Popularity

global

Sources & provenance

Last verified 2026-08-24.verified