NewsKPBS Public MediaOctober 25, 2026San Diego County
Cape Town's College of Magic teaches illusion and performance skills to youth
Photo: KPBS Public Media
About 190 students ages 10 to 18 attend Saturday classes in magic, juggling, and stage performance at Cape Town's College of Magic, which has operated across racial and economic lines since its founding during apartheid in 1980.
Read the full story at KPBS Public MediaWhy It Matters
The six-year program provides artistic training and youth development for participants from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds in Cape Town, with roughly 80% of students supported by private donations due to program costs.
Key Facts
- The College of Magic in Cape Town serves about 190 students ranging from ages 10 to 18 every Saturday morning.
- The school was founded in 1980 by David Gore and operated as a multiracial institution during the apartheid era.
- About 80% of the students cannot afford the course fees and are supported through private donations.
- The curriculum includes puppetry, mime, clowning, juggling, card tricks, illusions, mentalism, stage magic, theater production, and escapology.
- A 2021 study by researchers at the Universities of Hertfordshire and Edinburgh found that learning magic improves creative fluency and originality in children.
- South Africa records nearly 60 murders per day, and multiple students and alumni experience violent crime in local townships.
- Former student and volunteer teacher Duma Mgqoki was killed in a shooting in July prior to the school holding a memorial service.
Who's Mentioned
PersonJoshua Clyde“14-year-old student unicycling at the school”PersonDavid Gore“Founder of the College of Magic”locationMakhaza“Township where Lubelo Mthenjana lives”OrganizationCape Town's College of Magic“Africa's only school for youthful stage magicians and illusionists”OrganizationUniversities of Hertfordshire and Edinburgh“Conducted a 2021 study on learning magic and creative fluency”PersonLubelo Mthenjana“11-year-old apprentice magician competing in the junior magic contest”PersonYandiswa“Lubelo's mother”PersonDuma Mgqoki“Former student and volunteer teacher killed in a shooting”locationCape Town“City where the College of Magic is located”locationSouth Africa“Country where the school operates and where apartheid took place”