Short answers, pulled from the story.
Magic as a performing art entertains audiences through tricks, effects, and illusions of seemingly impossible feats achieved by entirely natural means. It is explicitly distinguished from supernatural magic, which claims effects produced through supernatural forces. The art encompasses subgenres including close-up magic, parlor magic, and stage magic.
Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin is considered the father of modern entertainment magic. Originally a clockmaker, he opened a magic theatre in Paris in 1845 and transformed the art from a fairground spectacle into a theatrical performance audiences paid to see. His speciality was constructing mechanical automata that appeared to move and act as if alive.
The Golden Age of Magic refers to the period in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when performance magic became a staple of Broadway theatre, vaudeville, and music halls. Key figures include John Nevil Maskelyne, David Devant, Howard Thurston, Harry Kellar, and Harry Houdini, all of whom achieved widespread commercial success during this era.
The three cups and balls trick has been performed since 3 BC, making it one of the oldest documented magic effects. It is still performed today on stage and in street magic shows.
Reginald Scot published The Discoverie of Witchcraft in 1584 specifically to stop people from being killed for witchcraft by demonstrating that supposed magic feats were accomplished through natural means. Part of the book explained how sleight-of-hand tricks with rope, paper, and coins actually worked. Popular belief held that all obtainable copies were burned when James I came to the throne in 1603.
According to the Magic Castle, around 8 percent of professional magicians are women as of 2023. Well-known women magicians include Dell O'Dell and Dorothy Dietrich.