One of the first questions organisers ask is whether one magician will be enough. For a small dinner it usually is. For an awards night, a conference reception or a party for several hundred people, the honest answer is almost always no, and the reason is simple arithmetic.
Start with the guest numbers
Close-up magic is performed for small groups, typically four to eight people at a time, for a few minutes each. Over a drinks reception, one experienced magician can comfortably reach about 150 guests. Beyond that, the magician is still working hard, but some groups see nothing while others are visited.
So the starting point for a reception is one magician for every 150 guests, rounded up. Two hundred guests means two magicians; four hundred means three.
Then think about the format
A seated dinner is slower to cover than a reception. Guests are fixed at tables, service sets the pace, and a performer has to finish each table before the next course arrives. For table to table magic, plan on one magician for every 100 guests.
If your event has a reception followed by dinner, let the dinner set the team size. The same team covers the reception first, so nothing is wasted.
Count the rooms, not just the guests
A team needs at least one performer in every space guests are using at the same time. A reception split between a terrace and a bar needs two magicians even if the guest numbers suggest one, because a single performer moving between them leaves one space empty for long periods.
A worked example
- Guests: 320.
- Format: reception followed by a seated dinner.
- Rooms: one ballroom.
- Reception alone: 320 divided by 150 is 2.1, so three magicians.
- Dinner: 320 divided by 100 is 3.2, so four magicians.
- Recommendation: four magicians, covering the reception together and then a quarter of the tables each.
What changes the number
- Long receptions can sometimes be covered by a smaller team, because performers have time to reach everyone.
- Very short windows, such as twenty minutes between courses, may need a larger one.
- Busy rooms with loud music reduce how many groups a magician can reach.
- Guests of honour or sponsors you want looked after properly may justify an extra performer.
These are starting points rather than rules, and a good agency will explain its reasoning rather than simply quoting a number. Our coverage calculator does the arithmetic for you, and we confirm the plan once we know your timings and layout.
