Is a wedding magician tacky? It’s a question that gets posted from time to time so I thought I’d help answer it. It doesn’t really help from forums when people with no experience just answer Yes or No. The answer is – it depends.
Magician Wedding
I have performed at weddings for over 20 years and have seen many different types of entertainment. I’ve also been known to take the occasional weekend off and go to my friend’s weddings so see it from the other side (as a guest) as well. I’ve never been to a wedding and overheard the Bride and Groom saying “I wish this was more boring and had less people laughing and enjoying themselves”. The fact is this, a good magician will make guests laugh and clap. A great magician will be a talking point of the day. I get emails all the time saying how much the magic really helped guests bond with each other. A shared experience.
I don’t know how formal a wedding would have to be for a smart, well dressed close up magician performing to small groups at a time would be considered crude or out of place.
Can a wedding magician be tacky? Yes. Definitely. If you hire a magician who comes along and starts doing balloon modelling with phallic hats (great for the kids!) then yes, it’s tacky. If the magician is wearing a bright suit that looks like the type of thing you’d be too embarrassed to wear for a Shadows fancy dress party, again, tacky. Many magicians will perform for children’s birthday parties so their performing style can be a little bit over the top for weddings in my opinion.
Things to look out for… If the magician also performs at children’s parties, is a lot cheaper then everyone else, hasn’t got many pictures of themselves performing at weddings or is wearing a garish or simply cheap looking suit, then maybe they aren’t the right choice.
Having a magician at the wedding isn’t tacky, but a tacky magician could be a mistake.