magic – Page 8 – MagicShow.Tips

Break In Time…

I’m frequently working on new material, and need places to try it out. that’s the thing with magic, it needs an audience to see how it actually plays. Frequently I break in new material as the “preshow” while the audience is waiting for the show to start.

Yesterday before a show I started breaking in the three ball trick that I’m working on. What’s interesting about the trick is that my method which is a little unusual for the three ball trick seems to work and be deceptive to the audience. Trying out an unusual method for a trick is one of the most stressful things that I do. You never know if people will see right through it, or not. I’m glad I tried it out, I’m going to keep moving forward with the trick.

Taking the leap and putting stuff in front of the audience is very rewarding when the trick plays out. You can learn a lot from a method or presentation that doesn’t. Whenever I”m breaking in new material I try to record it, so I can watch how the audience responds and use that info for future development.

Coin Size…

Recently someone asked me about what size coins I use. Personally I use silver dollar size coins, and I believe you should too. The reason is simple, they are bigger and more visible. There’s really no reason to use anything smaller. Sure some things are easier with smaller coins, but if you take that argument … Continue reading “Coin Size…”

Sure some things are easier with smaller coins, but if you take that argument to cards you’ll see it wrong. Poker sized cards are what 99% of magicians use, however there are bridge size cards which hardly anyone uses for magic. These cards are smaller making a lot of card magic easier with them.

Currently it’s easier than ever to get gimmicked coins custom made and they aren’t that much more expensive than standard gimmicked coins. If you wanted a larger size gimmicked coin you can do that. You’re no longer limited to what’s a stock item.

You owe it to yourself and your audience to use dollar sized coins…Unless you are making an artistic choice to use a smaller coin. For example my coin in bottle routine uses a half dollar, but there is a reason I’m using that coin in the presentation. This also doesn’t apply if you are using a borrowed coin for something like coin in ball of yarn.

Working Slow…

Recently I watched Anthony Jeselnik’s stand up comedy special on Netflix. In it he works really slow and really takes his time. I had also recently watched David Hira’s Penguin Live Lecture and on it he talks about using pauses. Last night on stage I decided to experiment and really take my time. I went … Continue reading “Working Slow…”

Recently I watched Anthony Jeselnik’s stand up comedy special on Netflix. In it he works really slow and really takes his time.

I had also recently watched David Hira’s Penguin Live Lecture and on it he talks about using pauses.

Last night on stage I decided to experiment and really take my time. I went at a what felt like a snails pace on stage, in real time it wasn’t nearly that slow.

It really took me out of my comfort zone, but well worth it. I got a lot more applause in the show and better laughs. For me, it’s mentally really hard to pause and wait for a laugh that may not be coming. Waiting for applause is easier, but the waiting for the laugh stresses me out onstage. Waiting is the better choice than just plowing through it and stepping on it.

Unfortunately bad gigs make it hard to do good gigs as they give you bad habits. Things like stepping on a laugh when you are really just trying to get through a rough gig. I think that I need to work bad gigs like they are good gigs and just do everything the way I normally would and almost treat them like rehearsal, and not like trying bail water out of a sinking ship. If I know it’s the gig (and not me), like a horrible set up, or whatever, then just treat it like a rehearsal.

Using Magic For Good…

One of the cool things about being a magician, is you frequently have the ability to change someone’s day. What I mean by that is showing someone a little card trick can change their mood. Here’s an example, I was stuck in line that wasn’t moving. Someone recognized me a the magician from the show and we chatted for a minute. Then I offered to do a card trick. Everyone in the line went from being annoyed at a non moving line, to laughing and having a good time. One little card trick changed the mood and experience of 30 people.

Sometimes I wonder why so many magicians say they never do a trick for people outside of being paid. Personally I thinks it’s a very self centered approach. Being willing to do a little magic trick, if very different than feeling like you have to do a magic trick. You can say no, and sometimes you’re asked to show a trick and it’s just night a right situation and in the end no one will really gain any real joy from it. But when you know it’ll improve someone’s day, you should do it!

This is part of leaving your mark on the world. Jeff McBride is really into this type of “giving” with magic. It doesn’t mean doing a show, just a quick thing to make someone’s day a bit more fun! That’s why in my wallet I always have a trick that I can do, that’s a good trick, with a direct plot, but also quick. It’s not a long routine, it’s a quick trick. I actually have a 15 min show in my wallet, but usually don’t do the full thing.

Artist vs Craftsman

One thing that I don’t get is the appeal of a coverband to a performer in one. What I mean by that, is your art is 100% other people’s art. You are taking something that someone else did the work on and taking credit. You are relating to the audience through other people’s art, which … Continue reading “Artist vs Craftsman”

This relates to magic, not just music. After David Copperfield did his snow routine on TV, and Kevin James started selling the prop, 99% of routines that were presented were about someone “never having seen snow”. This dumbs down magic. It gives performers a false feeling that they are artists, but it’s also why a lot of magic isn’t taken seriously.

Magicians say they are unique and this is the problem. If you say in your promo you have a unique take on magic, or a show unlike any other and you do standard tricks the standard way, you are doing everyone who is an artist a disservice.

I you are a magician that does tricks the bought and presents them in a way that’s standard, you should bill your show as “classics of magic” or something like that. I know we’re all guilty of having done standard stuff in the normal way, that’s part of the learning process. At some point you have to decide if you’re going to be a 1980’s cover band or Bon Jovi.

Practice Time…

Practicing is something that I’m amazed at how few magicians do. The kinda learn something, then it’s the end. Or the bigger one is when magicians complain that something is hard. That’s loser talk, yes somethings may be hard, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Everyone wants to be Shin Lim, but only Shin Lim put in the work to be Shin Lim.

In a broad sense practicing can take many forms. It could be working on the muscle memory for a sleight, it could be rehearsing an act, it could be writing a bit, it could be watching a video of yourself performing. There are a lot of ways you can put in the work. All of those things make you a better performer.

Personally, I’m writing this today to motivate myself. I’m in a situation where I have a lot of downtime while travelling to shows. Yesterday was day one of two weeks and at one point I was bored. I’m not bored, I was being lazy. There’s nothing wrong with relaxing, but being bored there is. Once I realized my thought, I picked up a book and started reading, I was practicing being me.

There’s a henry rollins quote that’s relevant to this: “No such thing as spare time, no such thing as free time, no such thing as down time. All you got is life time. Go.”. That’s true. I can spend my time wishing I had something to do, OR I can do something.

10 Card Deal…

When I was a teenager I remember reading Bob Farmer’s column in Genii Magazine (I think it was Genii) on the 10 card poker deal. I would read about it and work through it, but never did it. I played with the 10 card deal again about a decade later when I was learning a memorized deck, as the Aronson Stack has one built into it, but never really did it.

For about the last year I’ve been fascinated with the 10 card poker deal. It’s really an amazing trick that’s built on a very simple method. I’ve ready a lot of the modern works on it, however it appears a lot of the best stuff is pretty old. Bob Farmer put out a book called the Bammo Ten Card Deal Dossier.

This book is full of the history of the deal and most of the published works on the 10 card poker deal. Within it there are tons of routines. I’ve put together a three deal routine using parts of other routines that make the whole thing feel super fair, and each step gets more fair.

My three phase routine is something that I don’t think would play for a huge group in a live setting for me. It’s really a head to head “competition” with someone. However I am working on a stage version of this trick, but I think it will feel different from most 10 card deal routines.

There are tricks that come in and out of your life, that you dabble in here or there. They just aren’t right for you, or you aren’t right for them a that time. Then one day at the right time, you rediscover it and the trick finally works for you (or you for it). I think this is why it’s important to constantly be learning things and revisiting old things.

Themed Show?

Yesterday I went to Luche Libre Taco Shop in San Diego, CA. This is a Mexican Wrestling themed restuarant. One thing is that they go all out with the theme. It’s not just a picture on the wall, it’s all the pictures on the wall, it’s the graffiitti in the bathroom, it’s the toys in … Continue reading “Themed Show?”

Another place I went a few days ago was Hodads in downtown San Diego. It’s also themed out. It’s a rocker/skater/surfer themed, that had a late 80’s feel to it. Once again it was 100% themed.

These were two of my favorite places we ate at this week. Why? Simple, they were fun. They did the theme right. You felt like you were a part of something.

This got me thinking about people who do themed shows. People use themed props, themed costume, or themed patter, however not many people use all three. Typically you’ll have someone that uses two themed things, but not all three.

I think you need to jump in and do a full on themed show if you are going to do one. This is something that really brings the audience into your world.

Creativity Tools…

Lately I’ve been thinking about how to be more creative. My method for creativity isn’t very formal. It’s more of when I see something I think, “wouldn’t it be cool if…” then I try to figure out a way to do that. I’m trying to come up with a better way.

One idea was to have cards with all of the effects in magic.
For example one card would says, “appear” and another would say, “penetration”. Then I’d have another set of cards that would have a list of object. They could be objects that are common in magic like a card, or ball, but then a bunch of less common magic items like a toothbrush. There would be an optional third set of cards that would have items that must be used in the method, like thread or a magnet.

I was thinking of getting an app made for my phone that would randomly pick the effect and objects. This would make it more convenient than having three sets of physical cards, and make it easier to add objects.

I think having a system in place for creativity will help me churn out ideas. The key to creativity is volume, the more ideas you have, the more bad ideas you have. Getting the bad ideas out of the way, to get to the one out of a hundred idea that’s good, hopefully is an efficient manner!

Not So Close Up…

The tend in magic is the choreographed sleight of hand to music, like what Shin Lim did on America’s Got Talent. It’s style that’s been around for a long time, it’s just popular right now. I think of it as something that was a “magic convention act” in the past, and now is a mainstream act.

A couple of nights ago I was lucky enough to see Shawn Farquhar do his “shape of my heart” card routine at a show. It was really great. It hit all the musical beats, it had good visual magic, and overall it’s a great routine.

This kinda proves the theory that I’ve written about before that this style of close up when put on camera is the new stage manipulation act. I think audiences are getting better with watching a live show on a screen. Personally I’d rather watch it without the screen, however to the general public this is an acceptable way to view a show.

Over the last few months I’ve started to think about what I could do for this style of performing. It’s really not what I do, so I don’t know if I’ll ever come up with anything.