Fake Fruit

I read a magic history book the other day. It told the story of a magician who did a trick with a vanishing egg. The performer made a big deal out of the fact that the egg was unboiled. Obviously that condition mattered to the audience, as it eliminates possible solution how the vanish might be accomplished. The story goes on. The egg he was showing around turned out to be boiled. And it was not the fault of the magician. It was the fault of the housekeeper. She thought it was wise to boil the eggs first so if they break it would not be such a mess. As cute as that anecdote may be it made me think about conditions in magic.

There are lots of conditions that matter. Rolled up sleeves comes to mind instantly. But what are others?

How about drinking glasses that are actually made of glass. A real drinking glass, gaffed or not will be handled much more delicate (and therefore more real) than a plastic glass. How come that it matters? Well I am not quite sure. But I am aware that a glass actually made of glass sounds better feels better and elevates the quality of the act. And that matters.

For years I made fake fruit appear at the end of my cups and balls routine. And I thought it was good. Then I switched to real lemons, because I forgot my fake lemons. Right after I made them appear I felt the need to state that those are real fruit. I did not do that before because I could not hand out the fake fruit. And people actually came up to me and asked to see if the fruit was real. And I gladly handed out the fruit and I even let them keep it. And that suddenly raised the level of my performance. I was shocked.

I heard other magicians before telling others to use real fruit but I did not believe it. Well I can only assume that my plea is unheard too.