Jonah is joined by Rafael Benatar to discuss his translations of magic masters into other languages, the secrets to memorization, and cultural differences in magic performances.

Hailing from Venezuela, Rafael was more into sports than magic. His father was the magic enthusiast and it was during a visit with his father to Magic Castle that showed Rafael that magic was an art-form he couldn’t ignore.

Having studied music in London and Switzerland and fluent in Spanish and English, Rafael was uniquely suited to translate the nuances of magic practices in different countries. Developing his own style he is quick to point out that a direct translation is rarely a good idea, even when the translation is technical in nature, you sometimes have to rephrase and say it as you would say it in the translated words. Rafael also notes how different the styles are between different countries. For example, Americans are good at practicing but a Spanish magician will be good at a covering move.

Rafael has lots of stories to tell about the magicians he has translated from Arturo de Ascanio and his spin on the magic lecture to Roberto Giobbi’s theory of “The Critical Interval”, the precise moment when magic happens, and the “crazy genius” of Juan Tamariz. Rafael’s translations go well beyond simply translating the words. He needs to understand the context of every trick and confirm that they can be performed as they have been written, no matter how complex they may be.

Rafael applies many of the things he learned in music towards his magic. The most important is his system of practicing. Learning anything from beginning to end has its own issues which usually means you remember the beginning much more than the end, having practiced it more than the rest. But Rafael knows that memorizing a stack is something anyone can do, if you put in the work. Rather than learn from beginning to end Rafael recommends you learn the stack backwards in groups. And the secret trick? Practice memorizing right before you go to sleep! Your brain will keep working on the practice while you sleep and internalize the patterns. 

Camilo and Mark Mitton

People are not happy to just read the instructions and do the trick. Good magicians are always going a step further. Now people are changing things around and giving them good twists. This leads magic down an artistic past.

If you learn a technique from a sleight or a book, don’t be happy to just do what the book says. Be concerned about the cover. Try to put yourself on the side of the audience and try to imagine that you’re doing a more difficult move and cover it. 

Penguin Magic: https://www.penguinmagic.com/magician/rafael-benatar

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