Magician and mentalist in Los Angeles — Oliver Henke
Close-up magic for Los Angeles events
A German close-up magician and mentalist who has already performed twice in Los Angeles. Magic that happens in your guests’ hands — no stage, no technology, no interruption to your run of show.
The standard in Los Angeles is the same as at more than 1,500 shows before: your guests should leave genuinely impressed, not merely entertained.
At a glance
Everything you want to know before enquiring
Eight details organisers raise most often before booking a magician in Los Angeles — enough to judge in two minutes whether this fits your evening.
| Detail | For your event in Los Angeles |
|---|---|
| What you book | One magician and mentalist for the whole evening — not two acts with two briefings |
| Formats | Close-up magic at the tables, mentalist stage show – or both in one evening |
| Duration | Close-up two to three hours · stage show 30 to 50 minutes |
| How many guests | Around 80 to 150 guests in two to three hours, in small groups one after another |
| Equipment | None required. No power, no sound, no stage, no set-up in your run of show |
| Where he works | Los Angeles and beyond – Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Mallorca |
| Languages | German and English |
| Experience | More than 1,500 shows · 4.94 out of 5 on ProvenExpert, 100 % recommendation |
| Reply to your enquiry | Usually within 24 hours, with a note on which format carries your evening |
What it is
Magic that happens in your guests' own hands
Not a stage act. No announcement, no set-up, no break in your schedule — Oliver Henke moves from group to group, and the card is in your guest's hand.
The difference
Los Angeles hosts more entertainment per square mile than anywhere else on earth. Your guests have seen the spectacle. What they have rarely seen is something impossible happening six inches from their own eyes, in their own hands, with nothing to hide behind.
That is the entire idea. Oliver Henke steps into a group of five or six people, performs for three to five minutes and moves on. No microphone, no lighting cue, no moment where the room has to fall silent. Your run of show stays exactly as you planned it.
The practical effect matters as much as the astonishment: after a piece, people talk to each other. Guests who had only nodded across the room start a conversation about what they just watched. For a reception where the point is that people meet, that is a more reliable tool than any seating chart.
Why it works
Knowing that engineers scrutinise magic more closely than most, you managed within minutes to make us doubt our own grasp of physics.
Dr. J. StinnesbeckE.ON Engineering, Rotterdam
Formats
Three ways to use him in Los Angeles
Which one carries your evening depends on your run of show, not on your budget.
More on close-up magic
Two to three hours, moving between your guests. No stage, no sound, no technical requirements. Works at a reception, at dinner between courses, and at a rooftop bar where a stage show never could.
Stage show & mentalism
30 to 50 minutes with volunteers from your audience in the leading roles. Needs a seated room of roughly 60 guests or more, a wireless microphone and a small clear area.
Both in one evening
The most requested combination: close-up during the reception, the stage set later. It keeps a long evening moving instead of front-loading everything into one act.
Timing
Where in the evening it actually lands
The most common mistake is not choosing the wrong format — it is choosing the wrong moment.
Four phases
- Reception
The strongest phase
Guests are standing with a drink, half of them are strangers, and everyone is waiting for something to begin. Close-up magic fills that gap and breaks up the clusters before they harden.
- Between courses
The pauses that exist anyway
Every seated dinner has twenty to thirty minutes of dead time between courses. He works table to table in exactly those windows — the kitchen is never held up and no one takes a microphone.
- Early evening
If you want a stage set
A shared show works while the room can still be brought to attention. After about 10 pm that becomes difficult anywhere — in Los Angeles no less than in Munich.
- Late
When the room breaks up
Once the seating dissolves, a final pass through the remaining groups holds the evening together instead of letting it drift to an end.
Track record
Who has booked him so far
Oliver Henke has performed twice in Los Angeles. His regular circuit runs across Europe — the full client list is on the reference page.
Corporate clients
BMW, Siemens, KPMG, L'Oréal, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, GANT and Chanel are among the companies he has worked for.
Cities
Appearances in more than ten European capitals, among them Vienna, Paris, Stockholm, Monaco, Milan and Rome.
Experience
Over twenty years as a full-time performer and roughly 2,500 events, from trade-show receptions to weddings and galas.
Rating
4.94 out of 5 on ProvenExpert with 100 % of clients recommending him. Every enquiry is answered within 24 hours.
What hosts say
Feedback, recorded right after the show
We were thoroughly impressed by the professionalism and the sheer level of the performance. What struck us most was the closeness he built with the audience.
Event management
Romaco Group
Our guests and we were left speechless more than once. The audience was picked up perfectly and left astonished. Our expectations were exceeded by a distance.
Event management
Hexagon
He works in a smart, modern way that genuinely enchants people. Absolutely recommended.
Philipp Sauer
GEDORE
Before you ask
What organisers in Los Angeles ask most
Does he travel from Germany for a single event?
Yes. Oliver Henke is based in Essen, Germany, and travels internationally — he has performed twice in Los Angeles already. Flights and accommodation are itemised separately in the written quote, so you see exactly what the travel portion costs before you commit.
Is the show performed in English?
Yes, the entire show runs in English. A large part of the repertoire needs no language at all — your guests shuffle, choose and hold the objects themselves. That is why it works for mixed international audiences where a comedy set or a speaker would lose half the room.
How far in advance should we book?
For an international date, three to six months is comfortable — that allows flights to be booked sensibly and keeps the travel cost down. Shorter notice is possible and worth asking about; you will know within 24 hours whether your date is available.
What does he need on site?
For close-up magic, nothing: no power, no microphone, no stage, no table. Somewhere to leave a jacket and a bag is enough. A stage set additionally needs a wireless microphone and a clear area of roughly ten by seven feet.
How many guests can he reach in one evening?
In two to three hours he typically reaches 80 to 150 guests in small groups. Above that, either the time is extended or the effort is focused on the areas where people gather — reception, bar, terrace.
Does he claim to have psychic abilities?
No. The mentalism is presented as what it is: a piece of craft. In front of an audience that questions things for a living, that is the only approach that works — and it takes nothing away from the effect.
Can the show reference our company or product?
Yes. A product can become the prop, a message can become the prediction at the end of the show. It is built into the storyline rather than bolted on as an advertisement — otherwise the effect collapses. What is possible depends on the product and is discussed beforehand.
What does it cost?
It depends on duration, guest numbers, format and travel. No price list is published, because a flat figure would mislead you. You receive a written fixed-price quote for your actual run of show, usually within 24 hours, travel included and itemised.
Read on
The formats in detail
Close-up magic
Magic among your guests — no stage, no technology, no programme slot.
To close-up magicMore on the stage show
30 to 50 minutes of magic and mind reading as the shared highlight of the evening.
To the stage showThe second half
The mentalist half of a Los Angeles evening
A magician works the reception. A mentalist carries the seated part, in a city where the audience has already seen the spectacle.
On stage
Close-up magic works while people are standing and moving. Mentalism works the moment they sit down, and it is the half most enquiries forget to ask about.
As a mentalist he reads a word a guest wrote down and never showed, names a number someone only thought of, and opens an envelope sealed before the decision inside it was made. Thirty to fifty minutes, one guest on stage at a time, the rest of the room watching somebody they know.
What a Los Angeles room has rarely seen is the small version: no screen, no crew, one guest and one thought. The scale is the point, not the production.
Both halves belong to one evening and one fee: he works the tables during the reception, then takes the stage after dinner. Booking a magician and a mentalist separately means two contracts, two briefings and two people who do not know your run of show.
Tell me about your event.
Occasion, date and rough guest count are enough to start. From that it is easy to say which format carries your evening — and where in the run of show it belongs.