Category: magic show tips

Dye Tube – Now Available!

I’ve been hunting for a source of Dye Tubes for a while now. In the past I’ve included Vernet Dye Tubes with my Applause Please 2: The Encore trick. I needed a dozen of them and after months of searching, I’ve realized that this year they’re hard to find in the USA. Sure, I could find one or two at a magic shop, but paying retail plus shipping for each unit made it cost prohibitive for me.

I finally sat down and designed my own Dye Tube.

dye tube magic
dye tube magic

This one is slightly larger than the Vernet one and has larger holes on the ends. My dye tube comfortably holds an 18 x 18-inch silk.
Here’s a side by side comparison:

dye tube magic

I posted a picture of it on my social media and many magicians commented that they wanted to, so I’m making a batch of them for other magicians.

If you want one you can get them at:
https://www.magicshow.tips/dye-tube/

Louie

Dan Harlan’s The Scoop

Awhile ago I picked up The Scoop by Dan Harlan for a show that I’m going to be doing in the spring/summer of 2026. It’s been sitting in my office and on Halloween I had an idea, here’s what it was:

@louiefoxx Magic trick for the trick or treaters! #magictrick #halloween #icecream @Tillamook @TWIX ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx

I really like the idea as a quick thing to do for trick or treaters, as it’s not really a long trick, it’s more situational magic.

Well, just now when I went to get a link for the trick, I noticed that Dan had the same idea for Halloween!

It’s a great prop, and I’m glad I had it laying around as was able to do this for Halloween!

-Louie

Magic Show Station

At a recent Halloween event, I was hired to perform at a close up magic station. This was simply a table that kids came by and I did close up magic for them.

close up magic station
close up magic station

This was a fun format to perform in, and with the table, I had more props with me than I would usually for a roving gig. When the crowd grew bigger, I did a couple of bigger tricks.

Another thing you can’t see in the picture is that I brought a speaker with me and used it to amplify my voice. The event was in a noisy gym, so a bit of audio support was nice!

-Louie

Aces to Ace, Two, Three and Four

A while ago I described a four ace trick where and Ace, Two, Three and Four turn into four aces. You can read about how it works here:
https://www.magicshow.tips/magic-show-tips/the-1-2-3-4-ace-trick/

I also just made a video demo and tutorial of the trick that you can watch here:

What I like about this is that there’s really nothing to it, just an Ascenio Spread and an open displacement of two cards.

-Louie

How to be a Good TV Guest

When I visit a television show, I try to be a good guest. Last week, I visited Everyday Northwest in the Portland, OR area to promote National Magic Week. Before the interview, they give out a sheet with the show’s timing and some of the questions that they’ll ask you.

Once I got the sheet and saw the questions, I started writing my answers in my notebook. The act of writing them down puts them in my head, and I fumble a little bit less when saying them. It’s like a mini rehearsal for me.

Also, when I see the questions, I try to write some jokes. In the interview, I’m asked “how magicians celebrate National Magic Week” and I have an answer with a joke. That’s part of the effort I put into these media spots: I try to be prepared and offer them more than just flat answers.

If you do a TV spot, make it a unique experience; don’t just rehash what you’ve done a million times.

-Louie

The Fortune Teller on TV (again)

On a TV appearance last week I did The Fortune Teller trick from my 2025 lecture notes. You can watch the appearance here:

What I like about this trick is that the moment you bring out the prop, the audience gets a hit of nostalgia. That makes it a trick that instantly connects with the audience.

Then my card routine with it has a three-reveal punch. The card routine I did in this TV spot is different from my stage routine, which wouldn’t work with this setup, with the host standing next to me.

-Louie
PS, if you like the routine, you can learn more about it at:
https://www.magicshow.tips/lecture-notes-2025/

Five Minute Magic Show

Last week, I was at a booking conference and they had a “pitch and perform” event. In this event, each person had 5 minutes to introduce themself, tell what they did, and give a short sample of what they do.

Here’s what I took with me:

Magic show props

There are two routines, one I intended to do is my Stand Up Chop Cup (it’s in my 2025 lecture notes) and the back up routine is a rope routine. Both magic routines would run about three minutes and the other two minutes would be the pitch part. What’s important about these two routines is that there is no set up and no clean up and they have a lot of magic!

I always try to have a back up routine for things like this. It’s only five minutes, but sometimes I’ll see the room and decide my main trick isn’t right, or there will be another magician who may do something similar to what I had planned. That’s why the two tricks I brought were very different visually and in effect.

A little bit of planning can help a lot!

-Louie

Magician Dick Barry!

Recently I was doing a gig at a retirement community and one of the people that lived there was magician Dick Barry!

Dick is retired now; however, he has created many magic tricks that were sold. He was also a performer at the Magic Castle. I had a great time chatting with Dick before the show. This is one of the great things about performing at a retirement community, you never know who you’ll run into!

If you want to learn more about performing at retirement communities, check out my book How to Perform for Seniors.

-Louie

Outdoor Magic Show in the Rain

This month I’m doing a few dates at a Halloween festival that runs 5 weekends. One of the days that I was performing, it was raining, and this was an outdoor festival. The stage was covered, but the audience seating was not covered.

The act before me performed for a few people with umbrellas that were standing behind the wet seats. What I did was move a bunch of seats onto the stage and dry them off.

magic show in the rain

I managed to fill up the stage seating and had great shows!

When you arrive at a show and the scenario isn’t ideal, consider how to improve it. I’ll usually run the idea by my contact at the gig to ensure there’s no reason why I shouldn’t do that.

-Louie