In the shadow of the Crowe

Raymond Crowe is Australia’s only unusualist. The term basically means he deals with the unusual, perhaps a step further along than the usual magician.

You may know Raymond best for his hands shadows YouTube performance accompanied by Louis Armstrong’s ‘It’s a Wonderful world’. This display has enthralled people the world over. One image that particularly resonates is the adult hand grasping the 3 month old baby hand (based on Raymond’s son). A testament to the awe and admiration Raymond’s take on the song has created, is that Raymond was sent an original sheet music of ‘It’s a Wonderful World’ signed by Louis Armstrong Himself. The hand shadows, although they have brought Raymond fame, are not the only magical experience in his act, he also is a ventriloquist without dolls, and makes jackets among other illusions.

The images Ray creates with his hands demonstrate an incredible knowledge of how the body moves and shapes itself, befitting someone who studied mime. His mime teacher an imposing Czech lady who has almost a hundred years of wisdom.’Madam’ as he calls her, told Ray if he could harness that essential humanity in his work he would travel the world.

It seems Ray has found that quintessential humanity in his hand shadows and true to his teachers prophecy it has enabled him to travel the world, including appearing in Las Vegas at an NBC recording of a magic special featuring the world’s 20 best magicians . Ray’s also appeared on the David Letterman show demonstrating the universally loved ‘It’s a Wonderful World’ routine.

Its been sometime since Ray been here in Tassie, possibly in 1985 when he toured as magical support to Ross Skivington and then again about 15 years ago when he did a school tour of Hobart and Launceston. Ray also does frequent corporate performances. This visit to Tasmania Ray hopes to show his son some snow!

Most of Ray’s magic tricks are self taught and both his now famous YouTube hit with the hand shadows and his knowledge of general magic have a connection to Tasmania!

It’s a lovely little irony that it was during a visit to Tasmania that Ray was introduced to some of the magic he now incorporates into his act. On one occasion he had been performing at the casino and found in his pigeon hole there a magicians book from Don Poulson, a Tasmanian magician. It was also in Tasmania he was given the suggestion that his hand shadows routine would work well accompanied by ‘It’s a Wonderful world’, so the connections with Tasmania are strong.

As to the recent number of ‘spoiler’ TV specials demystifying magic secrets it doesn’t really worry Raymond. He believes people don’t retain all the information they get and even if they do they can only be amazed at the ability of the magician to hold the audience spellbound with their performance skills.

Raymond also has no qualms about his show being called ‘charming’ in fact he loves that it is a show the whole family can enjoy.

Raymond will be touring Turkey and the Ukraine among other places in the near future and of course his promise to his mime teacher ‘Madam’ as she approaches her centenary to be part of her birthday party back in Czechoslovakia.

Raymond says this may be the last time the show will be in this format it is and that he hopes to evolve a simpler show for subsequent tours.

All the more reason to get out and see Raymond on his upcoming tour of Tasmania.

You can see Raymond at the Wrest Point Casino on Friday 6 July and at The Launceston Country Club on Saturday 7 July.
Paula Xiberras