By Shree Ann Mathavan

TWO Singapore magicians are helping put Singapore on the world map.

Come 31 Jan, magic duo JC Sum and Magic Babe Ning (pictured top left) will be performing and lecturing on their particular brand of magic at the inaugural Southern England Magic Convention in Surrey, England.

JC, 32 and Ning, 26 - who have a permanent illusion show, Ultimate Magic at The Arena, a club in Clarke Quay - have been invited to headline the convention, which is set to draw a crowd of about 1,000.

It is understood that the duo are the first Singaporeans to be invited to headline a European magic convention.

The other magicians slated to perform or lecture come from countries such as England, Germany and Turkey.

JC, the author of four magic books, will be giving a lecture on urban classic magic to some 500 magicians:

He said: 'It is an honour. International recognition gives credibility to local magic.'

His partner in magic, Ning, is also thrilled.

The invite for her headlining act stemmed from the interest generated after two articles about her appeared in top English magic magazine, MagicSeen, in 2006 and 2007.

Convention organiser Mr Colin Richardson contacted her a year ago as a result of the media coverage.

The duo are selective in attending conventions as their performance schedule is usually packed.

Apart from their regular show in Singapore, the duo also travel at least once every three months for various engagements.

Some conventions they've attended overseas include those held in Malaysia and Bangladesh.

While the duo acknowledge that the better-known magicians tend to be American, this is changing because the Internet allows magicians to reach out to audiences around the world.

Ning has an online shop selling magic tricks and the duo have their own website and a page on social networking site, Facebook.

JC said: 'Being such a small country, in terms of a percentage (of magicians) to our population, we have as many professional magicians who are at an international level as any other country.'

Being invited to such conventions are a good way to gauge how much international recognition local magicians enjoy, said Mr John Teo, 59, the president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians Singapore Ring 115.

There is currently no official ranking of magicians worldwide.

He said: 'In the last four years, Singaporean magicians have become more well known.'

Another magician pair who has made waves internationally is Pastor Lawrence Khong, 57, and his daughter, Priscilla Khong, 27 (pictured top right).

The professional magicians, who will be performing Pastor Khong's 'burning man' act at this year's Chingay, have been touring overseas since 2002.

One of Pastor Khong's proudest moments include being invited to perform in 2006 at the prestigious Academy of Magical Arts Award Show and Banquet in Hollywood - the Oscars of the Magic World.

It was at that same event that famous magician Criss Angel won the Magician of the Year for 2005 title.

The father-daughter team has toured the United States twice and was invited to the 4th China Shanghai International Arts Festival in 2002.

Pastor Khong organised two international festivals of magic here in 2003 and 2005, which saw magicians from the USA and Japan in attendance.

He is now working on a television series with a team of magic consultants - the same team behind Criss Angel's television success, Mind Freak.

But he acknowledged that achieving success does not happen overnight for the dozen or so full-time professional magicians here.

He said: 'We're going in the right direction. The accolades they receive can only do the art form and the industry good.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on Jan 24, 2009.