MagicShow.Tips – Page 241 – A daily blog about magic by Louie Foxx

Solve Problems…

Today I’m working to fix a couple of small things on props in my show. In my show I do shadowgraphy, which is commonly known as hand shadow puppets. This is where you use your hands to make shapes on a wall or a screen. If you’ve never seen it, here’s some historical footage of … Continue reading “Solve Problems…”

One of the issues that I’m having with my screen rig is that the bottom isn’t fixed to the stand. Sometimes if the air conditioning turns on and hits it just right, it will start to pivot a little bit on the stand. While not a huge problem technically from the performers standpoint, as I can easily adjust, it can make it hard for some people in the audience to watch.

My goal today is to make some sort of clip or clips that will hold it in place. Realistically what’s going to happen is I’ll probably create some sort of clamp with magnets, then 3D print a clip to hold it in place. It’s the little things that make big differences in the show and how the audience perceives the show!

Can’t Stop the Hustle, But Maybe You Should…

Oh man, so recently in an Facebook group for magicians someone posted a news report about them with a streaming TV deal. The problem with post it in a magicians group was mainly that it really served no purpose for that group. It was a “Look at how great I am” sort of post, but … Continue reading “Can’t Stop the Hustle, But Maybe You Should…”

Oh man, so recently in an Facebook group for magicians someone posted a news report about them with a streaming TV deal. The problem with post it in a magicians group was mainly that it really served no purpose for that group. It was a “Look at how great I am” sort of post, but more that, in my opinion it’s all smoke and no fire.

I’ll let you watch it and decide for yourself:

So, do you think it’s relevant in a magicians group? I personally don’t and it’s someone trying to inflate their ego and I’m not a fan.

Here’s the nuts and bolts of this. In my opinion he hired someone to do a news report, as there’s no news company’s logo on the video. So far that’s fine, it’s a promo video. Second the news stories is that he’s “shopping” a show to the major streaming sites, which really isn’t news, but still in some sort of promo that’s fine. Next he tagged all three streaming services on it, which is unusual. I’m not an expert in pitching TV shows, but I’ve heard that once you get to the actual pitch, usually things go on lock down so no one swipes your idea. Once it’s out there, someone with a higher profile, more money or connections can steal your idea and get it made.

The big one is that he’s saying he has almost 40K views, which I’m sure he does. This is what he’s selling hard, that he has 40K views in the post. However personally I’d guess he bought those views. Here’s why I think this, the post only has 70 likes/hearts/etc and 5 comments. His rate of engagement is insanely low for having 40K legit views. With my high school math the rate of engagement from the video is something like 0.0018%! That’s not a good rate.

Maybe in May 2019 when this is on Netflix I’ll be eating my words, and I hope I do.

How is this relevant to being a magician? Pretty simple, if we are supposed to be good at the art of deception, at least think about what you are doing. Look at it from all angles. Don’t just buy views, buy likes and comments. Now look at your tricks from all angles, what do you need to cover? Is there a bad angle to that palm? Can you fix it?

Make your magic better than just “good enough”!

Play Big or Go Home…

One of the things that really dislike about a lot of mentalism that is performed is size. The props and predictions are small, and I can’t see or read them from the fourth row of the theater. Sure there’s always video projection, but it’s not always used, or can be used due to the method.

Here’s an example, someone locally in Seattle does the Kurotsuke effect, where you have five marbles, four are one color and the fifth is another. Then five people reach into a bag and grab a marble, and you tell who has the odd colored one. The problem of the trick is there is no visual payoff for the audience as we can’t really see the marbles. Sure, it’s how you play it, but the center of the trick is the prop, and we can’t see the prop.

Personally I’ve been working hard to make my props play a lot bigger, so the whole audience is doing the trick, not you doing the trick for one person. An example of the difference would be a prediction written on the back of a business card, versus a prediction written on a sheet of paper that’s three by four feet.

TLDR: Make the payoff of your tricks play BIG!

Mentalism and the Misses…

One of the things that armchair mentalists say is that having “misses” in your show makes what you do feel real. I get what they are going for, however I’m not sure if they mean complete misses, or close enough to kinda be a hit on a technicality misses.

Here’s the example people use to describe why it you need misses. Let’s say you go see on of the TV mediums who talk to dead people’s spirits. They throw out stuff all the time and that doesn’t land. However if they did a full program without only a couple of hits, I think you’d probably never buy a ticket to see them again. Also they are doing a different type of show than a mentalist show and the audience expectation is very different.

Back to a mentalism show. If you miss the word someone is thinking of completely it’s a loss for your show. Typically this happens when your method for the trick fails, like you don’t get a good peek at the word. This is bad.

A good miss that, while still a miss, but is a hit goes like this. They are thinking of the word and the word is “submarine”. You ask them to visualize the word. You say, “There’s a “U” in it? Great. Is there an “A” in it?” You continue, “visualize not the letters, but what you are thinking of, like in a scene from a movie…” You then write down and reveal the word Underwater, which is wrong. However you can then show that essentially they mean the same thing. The word sub means below, and the marine means water, or however you want to connect the two. this is a good hit, because you’ve planned it out and it’s not really a miss.

TLDR: Script your misses, so they aren’t really misses.

Mic Technique…

Last night I went out and saw a mentalist perform, and one of the things that stood out to me was how much audio can affect a show. I guess what I mean is that audio problems can really affect the show in a negative way. When sound works correctly, you don’t notice it as an audience member, however when it fails it’s very obvious.

Let’s start with one of the things that I hate, and that’s starting a show by saying, “can you hear me?”. That’s the worst opening line ever. You should just start talking and the sound guy, or audience will let you know if that can’t hear you.

The next thing is to be aware of your mic. The mentalist last night wore lapel mic clipped to his shirt (not jacket) at right in the middle of his chest. It was much lower than most people would wear it on their jacket. During the show he kept reaching into his inner jacket pocket and rubbing his arm across it making a loud scratching noise. For people in the audience, this is not comfortable on the ears.

The moral of the story is if you are doing a real show, and charging real admission, then get a real mic and learn to use it. The audience will never notice this, and that’s a good thing!

Magicy Week!

This week has been a very magicy week for me. With going to see Michael Carbonaro, to my friend from Ireland, and tonight I’m going to see a mentalist named Eran Raven. One of the pieces of advice I tell magicians is to go out and see all the shows that you can see. Being … Continue reading “Magicy Week!”

Being exposed to what is out there really contributes to your growth as a performer. You will notice trends, then its up to you to either embrace the trend, or stay away from it. Either way you know what the herd of magicians is doing.

For example one of the big trends in magic right now is having a prediction reveal on a scroll that you unroll. It something that plays really big and is typically referenced during the show. Darren Brown, Penn and Teller, and tons of other magicians use this. Normally it’s used for a confabulation type routine.

Personally I’ve always liked the confabulation premise, but wanted mine to look different. Knowing the scroll reveal is popular, I looked for another way to do it. I ended up with doing an audio reveal from a recording. It’s got a different feel for the audience, so if they’ve seen someone do the scroll reveal, it’s a different trick!

Introductions…

Last night I went out and saw a show that a magician friend of mine from Ireland performed in. He’s in Seattle working on some new material. From a performing style point of view, we are very different, however we do some similar stuff. What I found interesting was the way the audience reacted to things he did.

He was introduced as a “mindreader” where I’m introduced as a magician. Right off the bat, the mindset of the audience is very different. Also the “mind reading” stuff that I do is deeper into the show. My friend being initially presented as a mindreader gets bigger impact out of his material than I do.

It’s all context, and in your introduction it sets the mood for your show. A magician that tells you what you are thinking is fun and trick. When a mindreader does that, it’s more, he’s reading your mind!

How does your intro set the initial tone for your show?

Upgrade Your Show!

This morning I upgraded a prop that I’ve been using for years. Current technology allows me to make part of the gimmick smaller, lighter and slightly more durable. The prop was working just fine, so why upgrade it? Simple, by upgrading now when I’m not in a time crunch, like it broke while I’m on … Continue reading “Upgrade Your Show!”

This morning I upgraded a prop that I’ve been using for years. Current technology allows me to make part of the gimmick smaller, lighter and slightly more durable. The prop was working just fine, so why upgrade it?

Simple, by upgrading now when I’m not in a time crunch, like it broke while I’m on tour allows me to make sure I get it right. I’m making a lateral replacement, it’s an actual upgrade.

As a general rule, upgrading before replacement is required will get you better results. Upgrading along with proper maintenance of your props is essential to avoid them failing during your show.

Really???

On an internet group of magicians, someone recently posted about how they did a library show for one kid, then asked if they should put a minimum number of kids for the show to happen.

This is crazy, why would you do it that?

If I was a booker and I saw that, I’d not book the person. I’d feel that person is going to be a pain to work with. What is the penalty if they don’t get enough people? Let’s say there was a 6 person minimum and if I was paying for it, I’d round up 6 people and make you do the show. The problem with this is you are going to have six people who are completely uninterested in your show watching it. That show is going to be worse than doing a show for one person.

My suggestion would be to play. Do a trick, hang out, improvise. Be an artist, not a craftsman.

I’ve been there, I’ve had to do a show for zero people. The only thing that stood between me and a paycheck was an empty room and that’s what the casino wanted me to do, so I did it. I’ve also done a show for one person that ended up getting me booked to a 22 show tour. Give it you all, and don’t be a pain to work with!

Modern Manipulation Act

The other day I was taking a shower and it hit me that with the success of Shin Lim on America’s Got Talent the traditional “manipulation act has changed. It’s no longer split fans and billiard balls, it’s at a table, with a video camera and projection to a screen. The new stage manipulator won’t … Continue reading “Modern Manipulation Act”

The new stage manipulator won’t be loading up a jacket with doves, they’ll be loading up a table. I think this a step forward for magic. The last time I saw a manipulation act was on the Illusionists tour and he was good, but producing cards really felt dated. We’ve done this before, and the audience has seen it before.

While I personally don’t do a traditional stage manipulation act (I did do a manip act when I was younger), this still does affect me. Every magician needs to be aware of the changing times. If you choose to not keep up with the times, you need to be aware of that you aren’t.

Also being aware of the how magic is changing even if you choose to not change with it, keeps it in your head. From a creativity standpoint you may see something a year from now that will spark an idea for a modern manipulation act.