Coroneagh Park Goes Global for Memorable Magic Show

Our staff and residents at Coroneagh Park in Penguin, Tasmania, recently welcomed a very special visitor – Austrian magician Martin Tshannett, who took the opportunity to volunteer his time and talents to ‘wow’ our community with a fun-filled magic show. 

On holiday from his native Europe, Martin and his son had been staying in Northern Tasmania with a close friend, who happens to be a relative of one of our Coroneagh Park residents. When the idea was floated for Martin to get involved with our home, he jumped at the opportunity to entertain our residents. 

In a special event which also drew several guests from the community, Martin and his son Niklas (who is also a very capable magician himself) performed a series of tricks, all with a particular focus on involving residents and promoting their inclusion and participation.

“I really love doing magic. It’s a great way to engage people and I’m always happy to see people smiling and the surprise on their faces,” says Martin. “It was a terrific experience to do magic in an aged care home and the response from residents was great.  

“I like to include people in my tricks, so that they can be part of the experience. For example, if an older person can’t see too well, I get them involved. I’ll give them a sponge ball in their hand and before they know it, it has turned to three or four balls. They can feel the magic!” 

Residents were over the moon to welcome Martin and Niklas, with many also curious about their background and home back in Europe, especially considering the majority had not met anyone from Austria before.

“The residents were also very interested about our own background, and I told them we were extremely pleased to be able to share our magic from Europe with them. I could see they were happy to have us there and we appreciated their reaction and warm welcome,” Martin says. 

After several vanishing acts and rope and card tricks, Martin impressed residents with his balloon-twisting skills, creating a variety of shapes (and animals) upon their request. Each unique creation made the perfect gift for residents, who were happy to accept a keepsake of the memorable event.  

“For me, the day was a great experience also,” says Martin. “A personal highlight for me was being able to make a special balloon for a 104-year-old resident. You don’t get the chance to do that too often!”