Paul Bates, magician and children’s entertainer
KNOWN to kids as Zappo, local magician Paul Bates has been pulling rabbits out of hats and making kids laugh for almost two decades. Bates is one of the organisers of the Wellington Magic Convention event on this weekend, when jugglers, magicians, and street performers from here and abroad will descend on the city to showcase their talents in a number of shows.
Bates says there are magicians like Boston-based Mike Bent, who has performed at the White House nine times. ‘‘Guys like him are like magician royalty!’’
But Bates is also talented, so much so that he was recently named the top children’s entertainer by the Variety Artists Club, winning the title over two Auckland-based kids’ entertainers.
‘‘I love what I do. Children give me so much back. They treat me like a rock star! But I never get complacent – you’re only as good as your last show.’’
Dividing his time between a flat in Wellington and his house in Greytown, he says: ‘‘There are houses I’ve gone into 10 times over those years, entertaining kids and their siblings. It’s scary.’’
Bates is a second-generation magician – his 82-year-old father, Ken Bates, is still performing in Whanganui. ‘‘He’s known as the grandmaster of magic. He is still young at heart and he taught me a lot of what I know.’’ Eating out at
the Crab Shack brings
back childhood memories for
Bates.