I run a little theater for well over a year now. A close up theater. I do 3-4 shows a week in addition to the regular bookings. When the project was still in making I knew I had to come up with new material. As the close up material that I had was about 40 minutes. 60 if you you really milked it for time. But I had to come up with two 90 minute shows, that are different from one another in both feel and choice of tricks. So I made a list of possible themes for a close up show. Here are some:
Magic from a Notions Box... tricks with needles, yarn, thimbles, buttons and so on. It was clear very early on that that would not fill 90 minutes.
The History of Magic... tales of magicians of the past and some of their tricks. While I liked the concept and I still do, I knew that this would be a show that is very little magic and a whole lot of talking. It might be interesting to some but a letdown for those expecting a magic show full of magic.
Just a magic comedy show... No running theme, just tricks after tricks and the only thing tying it together was my personality and some running gags. Eventually the show would lead up to a point that has been hinted at the whole time giving the audience a feeling of having seen a whole show instead of just bits strung together.
A show about the Perception and Deception... I would do a trick and then perhaps explain the principle behind it. Not the trick, but how our brain operates and gets fooled. Then in the end I would reveal that everything was a deception from the very beginning, and that people may have come to learn something, but they have not learned anything. It would be revealed that all explanations were fake but then I would have a closing trick to redeem myself for that lie where I would be honest all the way.
I decided on the last two show. That was in early fall of 2012.
More in PART II
Waiting for part II!!
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