About Lochlan Masters and his magic

A born magician

Born in Australia, Lochlan was raised around the world by parents who traveled. His childhood was an eclectic mix of home-schooling, tutoring, public schools, and immersion in cultures that most people don't experience in a lifetime. From America to Asia to Australia, he was exposed to cultural differences in how people understand the world around them.

Along the way, he discovered that he saw the world through a different set of lenses than most people do. He was a magician before he even knew what a magician was.

From hobby to career

Lochlan remembers watching, as a little boy in California, a street performer plucking little foam hotdogs out of the air and plopping them into a bucket. It was his first magic act.

He began performing illusions as soon he was old enough to walk to the neighborhood magic shop by himself. He began with a deck of cards, walking through Brad Burt's San Diego store showing off fancy shuffles, flourishes, and cuts. Enough people stopped him and asked for card tricks that he decided he should learn some.

He moved out to the sidewalk, trying out card tricks on passersby. Cards led to coins which led to fire which led to, well, everything. He began working as a street magician in his teens. His first stage performance was at age 13 for an audience of several thousand. Lochlan used what he learned from his audiences to sharpen his craft throughout high school and college. He split his time after college between magic and engineering. Magic won.

For the past twenty years, Lochlan has been performing full-time for audiences around the world — at street festivals, corporate meetings, trade shows, restaurants, the Jay Leno show, private parties, and, of course, on the street wherever he goes.

Lochlan now lives in Madison, WI, with his wife, a biomedical engineering professor, and his two daughters. Madison's favorite magician has performed on stages at the Overture Center, Vilas Zoo, Alliant Center, Madison College, Monona Terrace, and Wisconsin Public Television studio, to name a few.