Behind the Scenes

A native of Fairhaven, MA, Chris Richard became interested in magic after seeing a local  magician, Armand Landry, perform at a grade school assembly. He soon read every book on magic at the town library, including the Amateur Magician's Handbook by Henry Hay and The Great Houdini by Beryl Williams and Samuel Epstein. Before long he was splitting his allowance between penny candy, comic books and magic tricks purchased at Cheap John's Joke Shop in New Bedford, MA.

There was, alas, a more talented and determined young magician in the same town, so Chris shifted his interest to puppetry, performing shows at parties, libraries and small fairs through his high school and college years. He also performed in local amateur theater. A "real world" career in graphic design, advertising, publishing and, later, tourism promotion, put show biz on the back burner for many years, though it popped out now and again in the form of guiding walking tours in period dress and historical reenacting.

Finally, Chris brought magic back into his life by performing short period-style routines at local historical reenactments. While rekindling the magic sparks, Chris found that though the wonders of the internet he could communicate with and learn from well known magicians throughout the US and abroad. He found inspiration in the performances of working magicians including Pop Haydn, Master Payne and Bill "Merlin" Palmer, as well as in great performers of the past whose routines are now available to watch online.

Ezekiel Boggs grew from a ca. 1778 reenacting character Chris developed at historical Fort Phoenix.

Ezekiel the Green is a newer character--a wizard set in the timeless RenFaire era.