There have been many great women magicians throughout history. It wasn’t easy for them, as women were seldom encouraged to be magicians, and magic clubs did not allow them to be members. The famous Magic Circle in London did not allow women members until 1991. Many have been lost to history. See how many you know about in these fun quizzes. Just select a topic. If you don’t know the correct answer, just guess. It will take you to a complete biography for the correct answer that tells her story along with many rare photos and playbills. You can also just go to the list of featured biographies (but you will miss out on a lot of interesting information).
Firsts
Here are women magicians that were the first to do things usually associated with male magicians, as well as those who were the first to do things that a male magician has typically been credited with doing first.
Daughter to Magician
Before the modern era, women entered many careers normally limited to men through their fathers. Most women painters throughout history that we still remember today were trained by their painter fathers. It was a societally acceptable way for women to break barriers, and it was also true for many other male dominated careers, including magic.
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Wife to Magician
Another route for women to become magicians historically was as wives who worked as assistants in the show. Sometimes their roles grew and they wound up becoming magicians in their own right.
Take the quiz (coming soon)
Partner Acts
In a partner act, the male and female performers work together to create the magic rather than one of them being an assistant (and yes, some women run acts used their husbands as assistants).
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Mystical Acts
Many women magicians throughout history have found success with mind reading, spiritualism, and other more mystical types of performances.
Take the Quiz (coming soon)
This is an ongoing project with continuing research. My husband Geoff is a whiz with Photoshop so he’ll be contributing by digitally cleaning up a lot of photos, ephemera, and magic posters. He says the images are mostly 1080P in resolution, which means they looked great when cast full screen onto our 4K TV.
If you have photos or information on women magicians of the past and would like to share them, let me know on my Contact page. We want to make this as extensive an archive as we can.