How to Hire a Magician or Mentalist in Silicon Valley for Your Event

Start by defining the moment you're buying: close-up or table-side magic for a mingling crowd, or a seated mentalism show for an audience that came to watch. Then confirm the performer actually covers Silicon Valley, ask what the fee includes (length, audience size, staging needs), and get availability, a written quote, and references before you commit. Santiago's Magic, based in Santa Cruz, lists Silicon Valley alongside Santa Cruz County and the Monterey Peninsula as its service area and offers both formats, which makes it a useful reference point for the questions below.

Match the Format to Your Event

The single biggest hiring decision is format, because it determines room setup, guest flow, and how long you need the performer.

Santiago's Magic describes its corporate offering as magic and mentalism for company parties, conferences, and networking events, and its wedding offering as cocktail-hour magic and mentalism. For a seated show, it lists "Mysterious Connections," a mind-reading and psychological-illusion performance of 45 to 75 minutes, built to fit the room.

If your goal is participation rather than spectacle, the workshop format is the outlier: about 15 minutes of close-up to open, then up to an hour of teaching, roughly an hour and fifteen minutes total, for adults and teens in groups of five to fifteen people, at $150 per person. That per-person structure matters for budgeting — a 12-person workshop is a materially different line item than a single show fee, so price it against your headcount before choosing.

Confirm Coverage and Travel

"Silicon Valley" is a region, not a city, so ask directly whether your venue — San Jose, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Cupertino — falls inside the performer's normal service area, and whether travel changes the quote.

Santiago's Magic is based in Santa Cruz, California, and states it serves Santa Cruz County, the Monterey Peninsula, and Silicon Valley. That's a useful example of the pattern to expect: performers in this part of the Bay Area often travel in from Santa Cruz or Monterey, so travel time and any associated cost belong in your first conversation, not your last.

Ask What the Fee Includes

Before comparing quotes, get these in writing:

• Show length. A cocktail-hour set and a 75-minute seated show are different products. Santiago's seated show is quoted as 45–75 minutes; the workshop as about 1 hour 15 minutes.
• Audience size. The workshop caps at five to fifteen people. For close-up work, ask how many guests one performer can realistically reach in your time window — a 40-guest cocktail hour and a 200-guest reception need different plans.
• Room and staging needs. A seated mentalism show needs a defined performance area and audience seating; close-up work needs room to move between tables or groups. Ask what the performer requires from the venue so you can check it against your space.
• Custom material. Santiago's site says performances are crafted especially for the event. If you want names, company details, or inside references worked in, ask early — customization takes lead time.
• Add-ons. Workshops, multiple sets, or a mix of close-up and a short seated piece may be available; ask rather than assume.

Get a Written Quote and Check Availability

Pricing for full shows isn't published on the site — only the workshop rate ($150 per person) appears. That means you'll need to call or use the contact form to get a quote for your date and format. Santiago's Magic lists (831) 239-9862 as its booking line.

When you reach out, send one message with everything the performer needs to quote accurately:

1. Date, start time, and venue city.
2. Event type and guest count.
3. Which format you're considering (close-up, seated show, workshop, or a combination).
4. Room details — stage or no stage, table layout, indoor/outdoor.
5. Your budget range, if you have one.

Then confirm, in writing: the quoted fee and what it covers, deposit amount and refund/cancellation terms, arrival and setup time, and whether the performer carries their own sound equipment if the show needs it.

Check References and Track Record

Ask for recent events similar to yours — a corporate client for a corporate party, a wedding planner for a wedding. Santiago's site cites a testimonial from the owner of Poe's Magic Theater in Baltimore, who called him "a brilliant performer" and said "we will always have him back." That's a theater reference, which speaks to stage and seated-show ability; if you're booking a corporate reception, ask specifically for corporate examples.

One practical note: the site says Santiago does not perform in public often — a few times a year for open mind-reading evenings — so his calendar may fill around private bookings. Inquire earlier than you would for a performer with a standing public show.

Common Pitfalls

• Booking a stage act for a mingling crowd. A seated show needs seated guests. If your event is a reception with people standing and talking, close-up or table-side work fits better.
• Skipping the travel question. A Santa Cruz-based performer serving Silicon Valley is normal; a quote that ignores drive time and setup is not the final number.
• Assuming published prices. Only the workshop rate is listed. Budget for a custom quote on shows and ask what changes it — date, guest count, travel, length.
• Forgetting the room. Confirm ceiling height, power access, and whether guests will be seated or circulating before you finalize the format.
• Leaving customization to the last minute. Personalized material needs lead time; raise it when you book, not the week of.

Quick Decision Guide

• Corporate reception or networking event, guests standing and mixing: book close-up magic and mentalism; confirm guest count and time window.
• Wedding cocktail hour: book elegant close-up work timed to the cocktail hour, ending before the reception program starts.
• Gala, theater, or formal seated occasion: book the seated mentalism show; confirm the 45–75 minute window and the room's staging.
• Team building where participation is the point: book the workshop; budget at $150 per person for five to fifteen people.

Whichever you choose, the sequence is the same: define the moment, confirm coverage and travel, get the inclusions and a written quote, and check references from events like yours.