But wait, there is more

Let's turn this into an event.

Did you know that Marek Caithaml has a "best of " video. Beautiful. Look at the stage picture, the character, the well structured routines and the funny bits.

When bloated ego meets ghastly skill

No need to add anything to that!

The fact that you probably don't understand what he is talking makes it even more hilarious, so you can marvel at the attempt of appearing like one of the grown ups.

The French Drop

I do love the French Drop. Not the most convincing of all the moves, yet the first one I learned. So I assume a bit of nostalgia is connected with that age old sleight.

Has it been explored enough? Did you know that you can vanish a stack of coins like that creating a nice click pass? Did you know that if you have a finger palmed coin in the hand that supposedly takes the visible coin you get a switch? Just saying!

If you can only do the French drop, now you have a switch and a click pass too. You don't need to thank me.

Hell yeah!

That should be backed: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1180201809/fallen-cards-rise-of-the-magician

Wow, that was worth a try!

So I used Adblock to block all the ads over at the Green Monster. Suddenly it's much greener. Can I actually use that to block certain users?

Sponge Balls

It's a good thing to be busy I assume. But it is exactly the opposite of what I once strived to achieve. Little work and lots of free time. I'm not complaining.

It gives you lots of opportunities to try out several ideas. And one of those ideas is the following: Sponge Balls... let's assume you do the standard routine. You get out the ball, you split it in two and you place one ball in your hand and one is the spectators hand. Some magic and you have none and the spectator has both of the sponge balls.

You can actually enhance the routine by adding the single ring from your linking ring set. First you get out the ring, show it to everybody and say, that when you pass that ring over your arm magic happens. You drop the ring over your arm and then reach into your pocket with your free arm getting out the sponge ball. You show the ball and FT it into the other hand. Grab the ring and pull it over the arm. open the hand revealing that the ball has vanished. Let a spectator hold the ring. Reach into the pocket and get out a second ball, keeping the first one in FP.

Explain that even more stuff can be done. Openly and slowly push the sponge ball through the ring the spectator is holding. Grab the ball with the other hand as well. "Now it cannot vanish" Move the ball towards yourself so it is hitting the ring. Then in a fluid action your release the ball with one hand while pushing the FPed ball into view as your hands continue to move towards you. It will looks like that the ball split into two as the ring cut through the ball.

Place both balls in one hand while the other hand takes the ring letting it fall over the arm. FT one of the balls into your hand (the side that is holding the ring) and place one(2) of the balls into the spectators hand. Apparently both of you have a ball. Slowly pass the ring over your hand and over the hand of the spectator. You have none, the spectator has two.

It's still the basic routine, but the addition of the ring changes the cause of the magic, making it seem different and cool. Try it. If you do the linking rings you have such a ring. If you do the ring and rope you have such a ring. Hell even a juggling ring will do.

This has been a constructive post. You may continue to do whatever the heck you were doing.

4 Cords

So I saw this music video on YouTube. The 4 Cord Song by the Axis of Awesome. Basically the song is about the basis behind a lot of popular pop songs. And naturally I saw great little similarities to magic. Basically if we master our 4 cords there is so much we can do. So it should be crucial to learn the 4 cords. Sleight of Hand, Presentation, History and Business. If you can do those, your success in magic is sure.

Preludes

I tend to think that preluding routines to the main routine is something that should be done more often. Think of it as a prologue that introduces the theme, the effect or whatever. Sometimes the trick you do before the main trick doesn't have to be related to the main trick at all.

Example: You introduce the deck of cards. It is red backed. You also show a blue backed card and place it on the table face down. You have somebody pick a card from the red backed deck and it turns out to be the Ace of Hearts. The blue backed card is turned over and it also is the Ace of Hearts. A moderate effect. Then you point out the obvious. All cards are probably the same. You turn the deck over and show an entire blank deck.

And that is just the lead-in routine for a stupid ACR with a blank deck. It introduces the deck in a good way.

Another example: You open you purse and get out three different coins. A half dollar, a Chinese coin and a copper coin. You also introduce a glass. And then it's coins to glass. You can even throw in a little bit of magicians choice to create the illusion the spectators have something to say about the order that the coins go into the glass.

And that would be a prelude routine for Copper Silver Brass. It shows the coins to be ordinary.

Yet another example: You show a deck of cards and have one card peeked at. You say that in order for the spectator to better remember the card the best it would be cool if the spectator can imagine himself tearing off a corner of the chosen card. Then in his mind he is to punch holes in the center of that card. Then he is to take an imaginary pen and he is to draw a spiral on the back of the card and to replace the card reversed in the deck. Then the deck is spread. A card is reversed. It has a spiral on the back, a few holes punched in the center and a missing corner. The spectator is asked what the chosen card was. He names it and the mutilated card turns out to be the card he is thinking of.

And that pretty much introduces the theme of Voodoo into the act.

Now why am I making this post? Because I see way too many magicians instead of choosing to do a prologue routine setting up a mood by talking. Doing a freaking monologue. And while there is nothing wrong with it, it becomes tiresome quickly. Change it up a bit.

This has been a constructive post. You may continue to do whatever the heck you were doing.

Video Rant - Hair Tie Coloration

In vino veritas

"Children and fools tell the truth" and "In wine (there) is truth" two proverbs.... so I wonder what happens if you fill up a few kids and you have to do your show in front of them. Will you be able to endure the feedback?