Connecting the tissue! Part 4 of 6

This is a continuation of this

Have a rewarding running trick!

Similar to a running gag in a comedy show a running trick is a trick is about repetition. There are two main ways of doing it. The first one is to attempt a certain trick over and over again, but failing. The Second one is to repeat a minor trick over and over until it becomes increasingly better and better.

Both ways need a rewarding finish. All this interluding stuff needs to add up to something.

Here is an example for the first way. You declare to perform the famous cut and restored rope. You show the rope, you cut it and then comment "This is the easy part. The next part.... well I'm working on it." Then you toss the ropes in a bag next to you.
Later you get out another piece of rope and cut it, this time you do a knot to get them back together and toss the bundle in the bag.
A few tricks later you attempt it again, Cut the rope, it is then visually restored but just as you take your applause the rope breaks again. You toss the pieces in the bag.
And finally you attempt it again, you cut and restore the rope. Being confident you take the bag, rip it open and from it all the pieces have become one long rope. Knowing the magic apparatus out there will make you understand that this routine is a self worker.

Here is an example for the second way. You borrow a 10 dollar note from one spectator and then another 10 dollar note from another spectator. Fold both together, then unfold, both have fused into a 20 dollar bill. So far the setup.... now you show two little bags, one red, the other one blue. "I'm gonna place the bill into one of the bags, then the first guy gets to guess where the bill is. If he's right, he gets to keep the bill. If he's wrong the game continues." Of course the spectator guesses wrong.
You do your next trick and after that you come back to the bills. "Now it's the second guys turn, red or blue? It was in the red one, maybe I put it there again, but I wouldn't be so stupid would I?" So he guesses and is wrong.... This can go on an on. Now for the finish.... "I'll make it easier." Now the twenty is openly placed into the blue bag. "You both get to choose. You can either trust me and take the blue bag or mistrust me and choose the red one. But whatever you get, the other guy gets the other bag." The choice is made and both open their bags at the same time. Both find nothing but their 10 dollar notes. Methodwise a TT gets your far ahead.

A running trick doesn't connect the tricks, but gives the impression to do so. It creates the illusion of a well thought out show. Try it, if you have nothing else.

The above image shows German magician Kalanag doing the Water from India running gag. The rewarding finish is that the bucket that supposedly holds all the produced water is dumped out and a rain of confetti goes airborne.

Connecting the tissue! Part 3 of 6

This is a continuation of yesterdays post, It all starts here.

Use the same props over again!

A really simple way to make your string of tricks feel connected is to reuse your props. As simple as this maybe I've seen magicians putting away the cards, getting out some coins, putting away the coins getting out a different deck of cards. It blows my mind. Switching decks.... sure thing, if it is not obvious. Best would be to do your card trick, do your deck switch (if you have to) as you are getting out the coins, then placing the deck to the side. After the coin trick you pocket your coins and continue with the "same" deck of cards.

Here is another example. The magic wand. The magic wand is more than a bit of motivation and more than a power claim. It can connect the tricks.

Here is an example from my repertoire. I do coin tricks, card tricks, using a lighter for a bill change a key and other stuff. Later in the show I do a trick with "random" objects. I ask my audience for stuff and I get out my lighter, my coins, the key and a single playing card. The audience has seen them, but now they are back. It even reminds them of the tricks they have seen 30 minutes ago. The reintroduction of the props for a different purpose connects the tricks in a subtle way.

This is no hard science. This is a simple devide that is underexplored. Try using it!

Please don't confuse this with reusing the same method or the same gimmick all over again. That is entirely different.

Connecting the Tissue! Part 2 of 6

This is a continuation of yesterdays post, either below this one or here.

Foreshadow the end!

The ending is what people will remember most in a show. So the ending needs to be special. Aside from being the strongest trick you do it needs to feel like a rewarding ending. One technique to do that is to foreshadow the end. You basically tell your audience what is going to happen, but not right on the nose but indirectly.

Here is an example from my repertoire. "I love old magic books. You find so many cool tricks in there that unfortunately you cannot do anymore. In one of the tricks - for example - a gentleman's handkerchief was borrowed. Usually his initials where sewn into one of the four corners. That was then stuffed into a pistol and then shot across the stage into a small locked box or some other impossible place. Nowadays nobody has a handkerchief with the initials sewn in. And a loaded pistol... the laws have changed. But I found an old magic trick that I can do...." 

Then I proceed to do that other trick. But in that story I have put in a few thing. First something about me, digging into old literature making me a bit more interesting, also answering the common question where to learn magic. Also it tells them something about my regret of not being able to perform such a cool sounding trick which pays off, because I just foreshadowed the end. 

My last trick of the show indeed is "Silk to apple" There a silk cloth is being signed then the silk cloth in being stuffed into a Nerf Gun and being shot across the room into an apple. 

So when this happens near the end, People get excited as they recall me telling the story about my regret of not being able to do the trick. It feels wonderful in the brain. People feels smart about being able to pick that up and it connects the show. The ending trick is not just a stand alone trick anymore. It feels like all has been building up to that. The ending feels rewarding and it tells people that it really is the end.

Of course you can foreshadow a lot of things in your show. But if you use that technique too much in becomes "unrewarding". However If you decide not to use this as a device to enhance your ending, because you may feel that your ending is strong enough I urge you to try it somewhere else in your act. Sometimes a natural spectator's response will help you greatly. Like you borrow a ring and you want to make it appear in a locked box. You do your magic method business, hand out the box and all you need to do is to make that "ring" disappear. But right before you do that the spectator says "If you can make my ring appear in the box that I'm holding, that would be a great trick."

This happened to me more than one time and it is a great moment. "Yeah that would be a great trick.... and I'm sure you all, but especially you would go crazy and applaud like there is no tomorrow.... but I'm not that good!" Basically unbeknownst to the spectator he did the foreshadowing him-/herself. I don't need to tell you how to go from here.

More tomorrow...

Connecting the tissue! Part 1 of 6

When you create a show, the least you can do is to string your tricks together, one following the next. The tricks get stronger and stronger and the strongest one is the one you end your show with.

It's a no fail scenario based on the dramatic device of raising the stakes. But a boring one.

You have to create the impression of a show that is more than that. Having created and performing five 90 minute shows I have a few tips for you.

Create loose ends!

People love it, when things come together and hate it when things are left open. In magic you can use that to great dramatic effect. 

In a simple mind reading routine for instance you can write down a city, lay down the piece of paper and then have a city named.... you nod and address the next spectator to think of an animal. You write down the supposed animal and lay down the piece of paper on the table. So far you smell the one ahead nature. You do that as often as you like, but in the end you don't have somebody think of something. Instead you are getting a psychic impression. You write that down and look at the paper. You shake your head in disbelieve saying "Nope, that doesn't make any sense!" and then place that piece of paper far away but still in view. Now you reveal the remain pieces of paper to be a correct and be done with the trick.....

Surly people are interested in the last piece of paper that you lay down. It is a loose end. It feels unresolved. Two or three tricks later something might go wrong. Seriously wrong. Maybe a freely named card was not what you wrote down on your giant prediction banner, but instead the King of Spades is named. Now you return to that piece of paper you left on the table earlier. You remember it suddenly... "Yes, now it makes sense!" Have a spectator pick it up and read it. It says "Sorry about the wrong prediction, of course it was the King of Spades.

Can you see how this plays much bigger that the two tricks just strung together. They are connected. The show feels connected.

More tomorrow...

Your own spin!

Maybe last post came across as me thinking that the failure lies with not crediting the creator of the magic trick. No! In a performance you don't credit the creators. The performance is about you.

However... if you do any TV work, or any work actually, I think you need to do your own material. It's okay to use classics but you better put your own spin on it. And making it your own doesn't mean it is your own thing, when you perform it.

And in that regard many fail. Here is my theory: If you see someones routine that is for sale. And you can imagine doing that routine yourself without any changes, then your character is either undefined or very, very bland.

Changes have to happen. Be it premise, plot, patter or method!

And just in case you have a problem figuring out what the four things mean:

• A premise is an assumption that something is true. For example: Coins can be hung in the air invisibly on sky hooks.
• A plot is what happens, within the premise that is set up. For example: one coin will be hung on the right, one on the left side. Then they are picked up again and become visible again.
• Patter is what you say. Preferably it states why you are doing it. For example: "Hanging them there is the best way to protect yourself from thievery!"
• Method is the thing that magicians are obsessed with.

So if you change the color of the handkerchief you vanish from red to blue, you are not changing any of the four points, ergo you change nothing of value. 

Changing the premise can often do great things about a routine. Maybe the cards are not switched, but change into one another. If that is the premise, an ambitious card becomes a totally different trick. As the card does not jump to the top, but the top card will turn into the spectators card. For whatever reasons.

Changing the plot does change everything up as well. Imagine the card not going to the top every time, but instead it sinks to the bottom and eventually even further down through the table. Just changing the direction of the effect logically dictated the climax. So it is no longer an ambitious card, but maybe a shy card....

That brings us to the change of patter. What if the card really is shy. And tries to get away. "You signed the card, that makes the card feel embarrassed a bit. The card tries to get away."

And finally changing the method is what magicians love to do most. So instead of a DL as the main modus operandi we use the glide.... wow, what an accomplishment!

Of course whatever element you change you change to fit your character. And that requires to have a defined character to begin with.

How to actually get things done PART IX

So how do you run a close up magic theater? There are tons of little things. Like cleaning the rooms, the toilet, the outside. Keeping the window nice and clean, making sure to have enough drinks, toilet paper and tickets. Keeping the stock of take away flyers up to date and so on. Tons of things.... so where to start. First let's talk about Location.

I live in Kiel. A city in the very North of Germany. The theater however is in Lübeck, a city 80 kilometers more to the south. That is about 50 miles for those few readers who live in a country with no superior metric system. So whenever there is a "theater day" we drive down there and back. And the reason is simple. Kiel is ugly as Hell. Nope, Hell is actually much, much beautiful. Kiel has been a nice city in the past, but then WWII came and went and left a bomb crater. So they build all sorts of buildings after 1945. With no thinking about looks and design. The result is a mess.

Lübeck however was spared a bombing (for the most part) so it still looks old and cool. Walking along those narrow streets gives you a feeling of nostalgia and belonging. It's weird. The city's roots date back to 748. Yep that old. So there is history and somehow a magic vibe is in the air. Also lots of tourists and the fact that the old city center is on an island.

It is in close proximity to Hamburg and two federal subdivisions, enlarging the pool of possible guests. So we knew very early on that the city we wanted was Lübeck. We also knew we wanted a place in the old city center on the island. Best would be a prestigious street. And yeah we got that. Even if it means we have to drive more than 300 kilometers per week.

It took us over two years to get the location. Some where not on the main streets, some way too expensive, some way too small and some other... we would have had way too much to renovate.

The place we got used to be a gallery, before that a tailor, before that a shoemaker, before that a spinning works and everything before that is lost in history. The building itself is relatively young. About 300 years old. It has been rebuild 150 years ago. But the cellar is still in the original condition. The cellar is connected to some tunneling network, that has been used to smuggle stuff. Pretty cool. But those tunnels are now used for waste water disposal.

There is way more to tell about the place, but let's talk about the next big issue. The price of the tickets and all of the other stuff.

More in Part X

How to actually get things done PART VIII

After the Cups and Balls I do my trailer bit, which I wrote about earlier. After that follow the second part of the prediction. I get out a box, clearly labelled "end time generator" And from the box I dump out a few cards. Blank cards, but on each there is a scenario written and drawn on. "Zombies", "Godzilla", "Global Warming", "Nuclear Winter", "Kraken", "Robots", "The Grim Reaper", "Aliens", "Boredom", "Sun Exploding", "Mutation", "Comet", "Volcanic Eruption" and many more.... The spectator/prophet "chooses" one. The method of our demise is then noted.

Then it is time to open the envelope I gave to the spectator earlier. It is opened and two pieces of folded paper fall out. First one is picked up by the spectator and opened. It openly predicts the method. Then the other piece of paper is opened up and inside written with big marker the freely chosen date of the doomsday.

This gets a strong reaction. Especially compared to all the magic they have see. It connects the first part of the show with the second part and makes the whole thing tied together in a way that the audience perceives the show not as a bunch of tricks string together, but as a whole construct.

Earlier I told the audience about the stages of magic, claiming that mentalism is the highest stage. Now we are logically there. It feels like the show has been building up to that. Give the audience a nice round feel. I continue this by doing a little bit of even more mentalism, which is totally hands off. A great contrast to the previous stuff.

This contrast has a few reasons to be there. First: It is a contrast, therefore more memorable. Second: It enhances my character, makes the audience feel that there is more than all the finger flicking. Third: It varies the act, giving people who expected mentalism said mentalism.

Then follows the the book test which finishes the show. It's strong, it has great jokes and leaves the audience with a bit of real mystery, as it cannot be explained by "dexterity".

Then comes the encore piece with the finger and the rabbit, which I described earlier. It's a pure comedy piece, designed to tie up all the loose ends. It is great in the end, because I could not follow up the book test with an even stronger piece of magic/mentalism. Because if I did, why the hell is it not in the show?

So that is my main "comedy" show. It's full of magic and surprises. But let's not talk about that show anymore and focus more on the business aspect of running a small theater. How does the booking work, the calculation of the ticket prices, what about taxes, drinks, snacks, wardrobe and all of the other stuff that has very little to do with the magic?

More in Part IX

How to actually get things done PART VII

The first part of the show had this running gag of a bill getting bigger and bigger. That was a trick that connected the tricks. In the second part of the show the running theme is the supposed selling of a new magic prop, called "The Thing".

The Thing is great. It can teleport, copy, transmogrify and all sorts of things. It is made up of a phoenix feather, parts of the true death star, was forged in Mount Doom and runs on three triple A batteries.

I tell the story of the four stages of magic. It starts with the magic kit stage. Then follows the library stage (nowadays substituted by the YouTube stage), then the actual practice stage, followed by the oh so esoteric mentalism stage. (thereby foreshadowing the end of the show) But now we can go back to the magic kit stage as The Thing does all the work. What work? let me show you!

Then I move into my sponge ball routine. Which is very basic actually. It ends in a classic way. A ball travels from one hand to the spectators hand. The only difference... the hand that the ball vanishes from is NOT my own hand. It's a spectator's hand. Yes, after I placed "ONE" ball in the spectators hand I pick up the remaining ball and fake placing it into another spectators hand, who is instant stooged to play along. That stooge still gets a magic moment as he/she has no idea how the ball ends up in the second spectators hand. I've never seen anybody do that and I claim ownership of that with the end of this sentence. *insertevillaughhere*

The actual magic phase is done using TheThing. Which is hilarious. The fart sounds bring down the level so low, that the actual magic hits so much harder in contrast. People dig that. This just highlights the before mentioned "teleportation" function. "And you can get that too, for just 24,95 €"

Next would be the "copy" function... which leads into the Ring in the box routine. It has all sorts of jokes, but the basic premise is, that I borrow a ring claiming I can make a copy of it. And it works, but in the process the original ring gets lost. The spectator gets to choose between the cheap copy or the box "that contains the wonders of the universe" Once they go for the box, the ring transforms into the key, that is needed to open the box. Inside they find the ring. It's a solid routine that I have done for many, many years. "Mind you that the copy function worked perfectly, it is that the original got lost. So you can get The Thing for just 24,95 € we sell then after the show!" That last line, aside from being serves a purpose, which will become clear in a moment.

Then the card trick. I won't go into detail, as it is not my routine, but here is premise. The Thing can actually prep a spectator to not being able to do a mistake. To proof that wondrous claim a card trick is done. Card is picked, then lost. The spectator himself find the card using dice. It is an extremely powerful routine and it is self working yeah.... after that trick I do that line "Now imagine we use The Thing in the context of getting lottery numbers.... Oh yeah we sell this.... for 24,95 €.... as well as gift certificates." Now you see what this has been leading up to. Some advertisement, reminding the audience that they could actually buy gift certificates for friends and family. It's a pretty cheesy reminder, but in a funny context. And why not? People are having fun at that point... and now they mentally connect the idea of a possible gift certificate with the fun they are having. As a matter of fact we do sell gift certificates after the show and we sell way more than the time I didn't use the line.

Following, the Cups and Balls, as a final proof of The Thing. This time teleportation, copying and transmogrification will be combined in one great demonstration. I do the entire routine, ending with four steel balls from two cups and close with the following line: "I told you in the beginning that this trick is old. And in the past it used to be done on the street. Right after the show the performer would go through the crowd selling all sorts of wondrous gadgets for the cheap, cheap price of 24,95!" which gets a laugh "Not today, you get a fifth ball" as I lift the cup again and reveal yet another load, but way to big to actually fit in the cup. This feels like whipping up the applause even more.

Now we are moving closer and closer to the end!

More in Part VIII

How to actually get things done PART VI

The second part of the show is structured around a prop. I call it "The Thing"... no not the Bill Abbott product. Basically it's a gadget gun from a toy store. It makes fart sounds. But that is secondary.

Oh I forgot to mention. Part of the Doc Eason routine that ended the first part is patter that consists of all puns. And prior to that I say that there a three types of humor. Way up would be the intelligent situational humor, then way, way lower would be TV comedy and then even lower would be puns.... "And if you had to add an even lower one it would be fart humor."

Then follows the pun routine. Back to the second part of the show: As soon as the fart gun makes the fart sounds you can see the merry go round of themes. But how is the gun being used? Well like a magic wand. But first here are the tricks:

Warm Up
Sponge Balls
Ring to Box
Finding a Card using Dice
The Cups and Balls
ADVERTISEMENT
THE TRAILER
The second part of the Prediction about the End of the World
A little bit of Mentalism
A Book Test
Encore

As you can see two things are a little bit weird. Advertisement? A Trailer?

Yeah before I go on with the show itself let me explain both things. I never see any theater doing this, sometimes comedy clubs do this. I tell my audience, that if they like the show they can help us out by writing something in our guest book, liking us on Facebook and telling their friends about it. I do all of that with some funny patter, but with a sense of seriousness. This is direct marketing. And this usually is not part of an act. But I run a business here, so I do that bit. And it works well. Well all know that word of mouth is the best advertisement you can have. It's free and full of "testimonials". Think about it. At that point in the show people like me already, they would gladly help to let me continue. They are having fun, and they are about to have some more fun. And in the middle of that some advertisement. It's perfect timing.

And then the trailer. This I have not seen anybody do, but I think it solves so many issues at once. Let me tell you what it is first. The trailer is a trick from the other shows. First: it redeems me doing that advertisement. Second: it creates real interest about the other shows they are missing. Third: It feels like they are getting a bonus, more than they paid for, which is always good. Fourth: It makes the show longer without doing any actual work. Fifth: In theory it is bad to have duplicate tricks in different shows. But here I get to show a highlight from the other show, giving them a strong piece of magic that actually is a duplicate and there is a reason to do it. Sixth: It expands on my character. It tells the audience, that there is more to me than just this flavor of a show.

Back to the fart gun!

More in Part VII

How to actually get things done PART V

So I get the 20-Euro bill and then hand it to some other spectator. He has to do the magic now. I turn on the lighter "Before we do this, please remember that the flame of a lighter is as hot as a fire place. So don't burn yourself. And don't burn the bill either, otherwise you will get into trouble with him" pointing to the spectator who owns the bill.

The bill is passed through the fire twice, but nothing happens. No change to a 50. "That's odd?" as I unfold the bill and it turns out it is a mismade 20-Euro bill. "Oh my, that's a mess. But here, look, all the parts are there! here and here and over here. Check out the bill make sure it's legal tender in an illegal state." The bill is examined. "Let me go back a little, sorry about that!" I take back the bill and hold the lighter back under the bill. As it is unfolded it is now the original 5-Euro bill from the beginning. "This doesn't get better. I went back a little too far. But see it this way. You have as much money as you started with, but you feel a lot worse." I straighten the bill a bit and add: "If that was real magic, you could keep it" then hand it back.

This gets applause and laughs. "Buy yourself something nice during the break."

So you see the function of that magic running gag. It give the first part of the show some closure. Yet I've set up several threads that will lead into the very end of the show.

Then a 15 minute break takes place, where the people leave the room. This gives me enough time to reset the first part of the show, get some secret stuff done and to prep for part two. And to get a drink and to clean up the room a bit.

Then it is time for part two.

Which is follows in Part VI

How to actually get things done PART IV

Right after the rabbit story I come back to the cards starting the second card block, which is the multiple card selection/ Truimph routine. After that I ask the spectator with the 10-Euro bill, if he/she wants to have a 20-Euro bill. People usually expect me to revert it back to the 5 that we started with. But it actually turns into the 20-Euro bill. "If that was real magic, you could keep it" that line gets repeated. 

Imagine the reaction. It feels like it is building up to something, but you are so unsure about it.

Now we are nearing the end of the first part. So I wondered if there is an element that can eventually carry over to the next part of the show after the break. It took me a while to figure it out. Mentalism seemed like the way to go. What if I handed a spectator an envelope with a prediction asking him to hold on to this until the very end of the show? I liked that. But what could be predicted?

The outcome of a trick, a prediction of the person's clothing? It all depended on the method. If I would switch out what's inside then anything could go, but then again there would would be a lot of heat on that. If I force whatever is inside it would weaken the impact, as the process of the selection would be a process... So I was thinking. And with the help of some friends we deceided on the best of both worlds. Part of it would be switched out and part of it would be forced in the second part of the show.

So this is a case of working out the trick starting from the method. So I needed a prediction that would have two things about it. I realized that most predictions in mentalism are incredibly mondane. So I finally decided to go all goofy. I decided to predict the end of the world.

I would declare the bearer of the envelope a prophet and would ask him when he thinks the world would end, taking all of us with it. And that is funny. Imagine the room. This guy giving us a year. So I would write down the year, openly and then the month and the day. I do a joke on each element. "A thousand years from now? So you are on the safe side. You don't wanna be one of those lunatics who are wrong in their life time.... good call!" "In September? Good, we can all go the beach at least." And so on. 

So the process of writing down the information would be a fun one. "Now here is the hardest part of being a prophet... you will be approached during the break. Everyone wants you to open the envelope. But you say no! Because you can. So what do you say?" "No!" "Right.... and if I approach you during the break with a suitcase full of money, what will you say?" You can see that there is comedy potential.

Yeah I almost forgot, it is a comedy show!

Then I end the first part of the show with Doc Eason's Opener with the nuts and bolts. It is a great little routine. Check it out.... However there is just one more bit before everybody leaves the room.

"Hey you with the 20.... Want a 50-Euro bill?"

More in Part V

How to actually get things done PART III

After having one 3rd of the 90 minutes show being cards I had to add way more non card material. For years I have done a certain rope routine that heavily borrows from Francis Tabary and George Sands. I also had this Ring and Rope routine. It was a nice match up. I knew both would be my opener. But I realized that it may got to the magic too quickly. This is strong stuff after all. I needed some luring in. And then I was reminded of my old days of me doing ball manipulation. A quick one ball routine would do it I guessed. So I got me some bounce no bounce balls and went for it. A ball bounces then doesn't. Then the ball gets tossed in the air a few times and then vanishes. A quick sequence of the ball being placed in the pocket and then coming back a few times followed by a color change. After that the rope act and then cards already?

It still felt too rushed to get to the cards. So was thinking.... this was the perfect time to include a running gag that may get resolved at the end of the first part of the show. Then it struck me. Money! If I would borrow a 5-Euro bill and then transform it into a 10-Euro bill and then give that 10-Euro bill back to the spectator that would keep things a bit unresolved. Why would the magician give out money? I liked that. As I could go back to that and then borrow the 10-Euro bill again and turn it into a 20, then a 50 perhaps.... and always giving it back to the spectator. That would indeed be a magical running gag. So that is what I went for.

And it plays great. "Does anybody have a 5-Euro bill for me. I'm gonna do a trick that makes sense for a change." then I would do the transformation "If that was real magic, you would be allowed to keep it" after a brief moment of hesitant wait I would give it to the spectator "Keep it, it's yours!" suddenly there was a emotional reaction that was worth exploring. "Yeah and all of you others... now you wish you had given me the 5-Euro bill I asked for!" That got such a great laugh so I kept it in the act.

And now I would transition into the card bit with the Chicago Opener and the kings.

Then coins! I have a rather lengthy 3 coin routine, that I split up and part of it made it into the act. It ends with the three coins going under the playing card that was remaining from the last bit. Then I would tear up the card and three quarters of the card would turn into three more coins. With the six coins I would do my coin thief routine, which ends in a transposition of a coin in the spectators hand.

So far the show has been non stop magic. I felt it was too much in a way. The audience needed a break. Then I turned back to my initial idea pool. The history of magic... Wouldn't a magic story give the audience some time to recover? I thought so, so I tell the story of Mary Toft and how she gave supposed birth to 17 rabbits, leading eventually to the rabbit from the hat trick. Then I would explain why I wouldn't do the trick, as rabbits are way too big to fit in a hat and that people believe anyway that magicians do that trick all the time. So there is no need to do it. As some sort of compensation I would do another little bit that deals with birth, death and animals, and the best part people can do this at home. What follows is the famous towel chicken. But mine would lay an egg in the end.

The story had one problem: People still expected me to produce a rabbit now. And then it struck me! What if I would keep that thread loose. And only tie it back together at the very end of the show. And then a few more ideas followed leading into the actual ending I have now.

It's a bit hard to explain. So hear me out. During the entire show I have some bits that feel unresolved and then I drop them. For instance: I tell the audience that there is one specific type of spectator that is the worst. The person not wanting to know how the trick works. No even in the slightest. For those spectators you could do the bit with the fingers jumping from hand to hand and they would enjoy that: "And doing finger magic is the lowest form of entertainment. Whoever enjoys that must really be out of his mind!" This line is important.

In the end, after the last trick I would announce the fact that the show has now come to the end. The scream for an encore always happens. Then I roll my eyes saying "Alright, we'll do it, we do the rabbit from the hat." You cannot believe how things fall into place after the line.

Then I do my routine with my fingers representing a rabbit that would do all sorts of tricks... It's not magic but it ties up all the loose ends. And "whoever enjoys that must really be out of his mind!"

So what about the money thing? Will the spectator get to keep it?

Feels unresolved doesn't it?

More in Part IV

How to actually get things done PART II

Before I go on: Big thanks to my girlfriend as she is actually the one who pushed me into doing the theater thing. It was a long dream of mine and she forced me to do it. If there was one thing hindering me from doing it the most it would be the initial steps. Finding a location, planning, getting the inventory like tables and chairs, registering the business at the public authorities and so on. She did all of that, so I could concentrate on the magic shows itself. Otherwise it would have taken a lot longer. Back to the magic...

So I deceided to do a comedy magic show and the show about the perception and deception. I knew that the later would take way more effort to put together so I kept the first one very light.

The first show basically was my close up/stage set that I did for years. Rope, cups and balls, sponge balls some card tricks, some coin tricks, something with a finger ring and so one. The first thing I did was to put the stuff in order. From weakest to stongest. Then I ran into the first problem. I have been doing table hopping for so long, that I realized that even my card tricks were to darn strong. There was no proper build up. And that is totally great for table hopping where you don't have a lot of time to establish anything. But for a theater show.... The tricks got to the point to quickly. I needed to milk time. All the card tricks I had were FASDIU. Then it struck me. It doesn't have to be. It's a controlled situation. I could do an elaborated card set with deck switches and gimmicks and all of that.

And what a Pandora's box I opened with this. The card act now consists of 6 deck switches and is gimmicked to the max. Why? Because I can!

I was asking myself how many card tricks I could put in the 90 minutes show. And I think it was Tim Ellis telling me that 30 minutes split up into three 10 minute sets would be okay. That helped alot.

The first card act as follows: The deck is examined, Chicago Opener, a production of the four kings. A card is selected and turns into the four kings, then turn back into the selection. The selection is signed, and again turns into the four kings. The selection is pull from the inside pocket and then is lost in the pack. The four kings turn into the selection one by one, then revert back to being the kings. As I go for the pocket to reveal that the selection has gone back into the pocket the opposite happens and I pull the four kings from the pocket and in place of the kings in now the selection. Then I repeat the Chicago Opener but this time not the card changes color, but the deck.

It's a lot of stuff happening and keeps people alert.

The second card act: The deck is examined, then I do a slip slop shuffle to mix the cards face up and face down. I claim to righten the deck using the magic tool of misdirection. I pull out a jumbo card and ask a spectator to name any card. Basically I do the 52 card gag. Leaving the jumbo card on the table. Then I show that the deck is now all cards facing in one direction. What follows is a multiple card selection routine. 5 people each stop at a card and remember it. I claim to find all of the cards using different ways. Skill, Magic, Luck, Misdirection and Planning. The first one flies out of the deck, the same card then turns into the second spectator's card. The next one is found reversed in the deck and the next one is under the card case. But then the deck vanishes. I look confused and look at the fifth specator.... then I grab the jumbo card again asking him to tell me his card. The jumbo card is now his selection. The it is revealed where the deck has gone, in the card case of course. Then offer to do that trick again where I shuffled the cards face up and face down, this time without misdirection. And then it's the most clean Triumph I could find. And with clean I mean gimmicked to the max.

Again a lot of stuff happens. The third card set happens after the break. And is basically hands off. I won't go into detail here, as it is not my routine, except for the gags.

After I decided on those big blocks, the rest was just filling.

More in Part III

How to actually get things done PART I

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

On Premises

Here is a constructive post (it's rehashed, but the other blog is no longer available)

Coming up with a premise for a trick can change the impact of a trick drastically. So I play this little game, simply called: "Same trick over and over again". The plot is a coin vanishing in the left hand and then being reproduced. The structure is that the coin is transferred from the right to the left hand three times (two times the condition the audience) and on the third one the coin is gone. Sticking to that plot and that structure there is only room left for premises. So playing that game means I need to make the same trick different each time without violating the plot or structure. Here is what I came up with:



1. Three ways to make a coin go form one hand to the other.
Here the conditioning is part of the premise. "Arc" and "Straight Line" are very easy to understand concepts. And offering a third version to make the distance even shorter has some real world implications. That is why it works well for a not so drunk crowd.

2. The doggy stick story.
This is just great for kids. I've done it many times. It has a "pretend" element, it refers to an outdoor activity and has a funny outcome. Poo jokes are funny for kids.

3. The shrinking coin.
This is my least favorite. But instead of doing this with a coin, do it with a bill. Rolling it up and press it into the fist. When you open it up it will look considerably smaller, because of the wrinkles. So on the third time vanishing the bill - sorry I meant shrinking the bill - so it cannot be seen anymore makes sense. Then reproducing the bill/coin by stretching it is a neat finish.

And some more:



4. The Camera Trick.
This works well with a single coin, but imagine the effect is has with stuff like Three Fly! It's a tongue in cheek presentation and should be presented as such.

5. The Sucker Bit.
This is pretty old school. But as you can see you can work in the old gag into the plot. Technically it's not a sucker trick, as the sucker element is missing, but it feels like a sucker trick, as the function of the gag is that people think no magic will occur, lowering their expectations. That makes the final "travel" so strong. Works great with drunk people.

6. The Invisible Coin.
Here the coin doesn't vanish, it doesn't shrink or hide. It's just invisible. Sometimes I prove this by tapping the invisible coin against a glass creating a sound. You need a relatively sober audience for that. Each time the same freaking trick seems different. And whenever I create some magic sequences that I like I try to get away with it again, without it being an obvious repeat. This is when a different premise comes in handy. So that makes the game that I play a valuable asset in my creative toolbox.

Hell, even more:



7. The Déjà Vu.
As you can see that changes the effect drastically. Suddenly the coin didn't vanish, but somehow reality seems to jump back. I think this is a good example how a changed premise (structure and plot remain the same) changes the overall perception of the effect.

8. The Wishing Well.
I like this one. You could even include fancy color changes. The wishing well routine by David Williamson is such a great trick. And wishing for money bit is actually a nice subtext justification why you the great magician do not do magic that is meaningful, like world peace.

9. The Toss.
Let's be honest this is just to milk time. But I like the covering the eyes part while at the same time hiding the coin in a motivated action.

I hope you see, that just changing the premise can really make a difference. 

And to clear up some words!

Premise: Why it happens.
Plot: What happens.
Structure: In what order it happens.

Gimps vs. Noobs

Once in a while a question what I'm doing here. Openly criticising other magicians... Sounds like bullying a bit. But then I get send a video by my mother. She is an older lady, but knows how to operate her phone. She recorded another magician performing. And she send me the video, so I would get a chuckle. Well I didn't. It was the god damn worst performance I've seen in years.

And I realized something. There are noobs and gimps. Both words are used in the video game community. A noob is a newcomer, who makes wrong decisions, because he is inexperienced. A gimp however refers to a person that is in the business for a long time and still doesn't get it.

Magic is full of gimps.

So here are some pillars of magic. Knowledge, insight and skill. You need to build these pillars all at the same time and work on them equally. You need to stand on all three in a balanced way. Otherwise you "gimp".

Knowledge
Means your knowledge of magic history, about the principles of magic, entertainment and methods.
Insight
Means you get magic. You get what it is all about, what your place in it is, who you are and who you aren't.
Skill
Your actual sleight of hand, your ability to talk and to perform.

Think about your magic friends! What are they missing? And then do I dare to say it.... do some self reflection! What are you missing?

The bad seed within the good!

There is a build in flaw in the construction of a certain magic trick.

Here you see magician Steven Bridges doing "Detach" by Rick Lax. (He does it well btw)


The problem is shown in the comment section of the video:

Jahhshhdhdhdj wrote: "Not an illusion. Simply a gimmick piece concealed by the hands"

sam smolyar wrote: "fake"

kostasdeath1 wrote: "lol After Effects ? :D"

And Steven Bridges defends his point by answering to those comments.

The more you read into the comments the more questions are raised. One actually claims that this could not be done live. Another one demands the method to be exposed.

So here is the problem. The trick itself might be a cool, impromptu little thing. But the mere thought of an extra piece would destroy the illusion. And you cannot really fight the thought. Sure you can have them select a balloon in the beginning. You could have them sign the opening and the balloon itself. But suddenly we are venturing into a realm of necessary overkill in order to accomplish this illusion.

That makes it a bad trick. The same way the linking rings is a bad trick. The thought of "oh probably a gap" would explain ALL. That is why handing out the linked rings is so important.

With this you cannot hand out the balloon in it's magically altered state. And that is the downfall of the trick.

So to be a little more constructive here is the following:

1. Is the prop you are using free of the suspicion of duplicates? (like any borrowed object)
2. Can the altered state be handed out for examination?
3. Is there no "simple" explanation possible?

If just one of these points is true you have something to work with. If two of the points are true you have a gem. And if all of the points are true you have a freaking miracle.

Power Claiming!

Didi01  / pixelio.de

So my gf started blogging and her first post was magic related, Yeah! She made an interesting observation. Because of our advances in technology and our awareness of technology any power claim that we magicians come up with becomes more and more ridiculous. Be it the mystical stone that heals everything, the magic wand that causes the magic, or the accident you had as a kind that allows you to read peoples thoughts.

So magicians instead have compensated for that by not proclaiming any power claim and just doing the shit they are doing. The result is a mess. They mix classic routines which have implied various power claims. They keep using the wand when doing  the cups and balls. They use magic salt for the torn and restored napkin. Minds are read using clever psychological principles.

The mess lies in the fact that the show as a whole suffers, as the cause of magic remains unknown and everything feels like a movie that is cut together by using clips from different movies. It might be the best scenes, yet the whole show has no story arc at all.

I suppose that only good magicians are aware of it. But I assume that the majority of magicians are unconsciously aware of it. So they feel unhappy with their work and cannot really put the finger on what is wrong with their show.

So here it is: Add a power claim! Yes it will be ridiculous, it won't be seen as the serious cause for your magic. But it works as a MacGuffin. It will push the magic. It automatically tells you what tricks you can and cannot do. And you can expand on the claim and it can become a character on it's own.

Example: You are a magician. Your power claim is that "secret thing" your pocket that you never show. It makes all your magic possible. What it is exactly you will never reveal. So naturally you have to go into your pocket all the time, take that "secret thing" out and rub it against the torn pieces of a piece of paper, which then restores. Or you put two pieces of rope in your pocket. The ends are hanging out of the pocket. You then pull on both ends and the pieces have fused into a long piece of rope.

So far the "secret thing" has done restorations. You can of course add other abilities to the "secret thing" It can cause steel to penetrate steel. It can cause coins to become invisible. It can made sponges go from one hand to the other.
So you see. The "secret thing" becomes a cool thing on it's own. Aside from the totally practical aspect of having a motivation to go into the pocket all the time. The "secret thing" is a character now. Maybe it even has a mind on it's own. Maybe you can struggle with it, as the result of the magic is not quite as you intend it. Now we are entering the realm of a dramatic conflict (not a real one of course) and suddenly your show is about something instead of being about everything.

The ending could be all about revealing what the "secret thing" is. And I leave you alone with that.

Three Realities

What book would you recommend for a beginning magician? "Magic for Dummies" by David Pogue? "Close-up Magic" by Nicholas Einhorn? "Magic Tricks for Grownups" by Jon Tremaine? Or even "Magic: The Complete Course" by Joshua Jay?

Think back when you first learned magic. Did you really get a book first? Only a few of us have been so lucky? Before we got a book we had a trick.

In my case it was the Ball and Vase that my grandpa used to own. It was a plastic version. It was dark green and the ball was black. Like a black pearl. He used to fool the hell out of me. And one day I stole the darn thing.

So that was my serious introduction to magic. A criminal act. Next Christmas I got my first magic kit... yeah who's been naughty or nice? My first book on magic was years later. I was in third grade and my reading skill finally has come to a degree that I had fun doing the reading.

But before I read the book I had tinkered with magic stuff many times. And if I hadn't done so I probably would have had a hard time to comprehend even half of what the book was talking about. I was 8 years old. I had a hard time to differentiate between the reality the spectators where perceiving and the reality I had. And that I had to pretend to have the same sort of fake reality that my spectators had. And rather difficult concept really! Now imagine the enlightenment the following trick had on me:

A bowl of rice. You place a wooden ball on the surface of the rice. Then you lift the bowl above every ones head. And then you shook the bowl slightly. And when you brought the bowl down the ball had become golden. I knew what was going on, but realizing to pretend to be amazed myself got me a greater reaction I slowly understood the meaning of magic. Because I didn't see the ball change my reality was the same as the spectators reality. Now I only had to deny the absolute reality of it being a trick and physics and all.

That knowledge really helped me to "pretend". Now when I change the color of a ball I see it. But I can pretend not to see it. Therefore I don't send any signals of guilt or that of a different reality apart from the spectator's reality.

And that is something that those books do not teach you. At all. I made this little drawing I should have seen many, many years ago:

Stuff from Stuff

Producing objects don't need a lot of justification. The simple fact that you can make something appear from thin air already is a great deal. Think about it. From nothing you make something by sheer will and it will be whatever you want it to be. These are enormous implications. God is supposed to have that sort of power. But of course any production can benefit from some sort of justification or logical or emotional reasoning.

Here is a bad example: Silk and Ball routines. They are pretty, yes but what is the relationship between silk and ball? Do they come together naturally? No! Yet all the production strike us as beautiful when done right. The intrinsic aesthetics are enough to make us not question the purpose of the choice of props. Is there a way to add to the routine by giving it a better justification aside from the "pretty"-aspect? Yes! Here is how:

Basically you talk about your childhood and all those things you encountered during that time. And that all those things might be responsible for your later outcome of your personality.
Of course a fitting music should go along that. Something nostalgic. Something that reminds us of childhood.
Then you grab a piece of silk and from it you produce a baby's rattle. Then a toy block, a mechanical tin toy, a toy car, a marble, a yo-yo, a Game Boy, a pager, a cell phone.
In between you show the silk to be empty. All the standard ball to silk moves come to mind when thinking about methods to accomplish this.
The aim is, that people will recognize those props. Either referring to their own childhood or the childhood of their own children. Along with the music it will lead to an emotional reaction, hopefully. And you end in the "here" and "now". Returning from memory lane.

This is an example of an emotional reasoning that make up the choice of props to be produced. You still have the God like power of creating stuff, but less random and with much more focus on a given subject.

Here is a cool little bit of wisdom. If people can choose what you produce the production will be stronger. Here is an example: Three imaginary coins are floating in the air. A 2 Euro coin, a 1 Euro coin and a 50 cents coin. The magician claims to hold a real coin in his closed fist. The spectator is asked to pick one of the imaginary coins. Then the hand is opened and the named coin is the only one in there. In terms of method: (C/S two times out of three or Shuttle pass, one time out of three.) Technically it's just a 1/3 chance that you are correct. But the fact that your audience could choose elevates it to a much more appreciative realm.

Let's give you an example for a logical production. This was created from the basic "bottle from a bunch of silks"-effect. It is designed to fit in a kids show.

Effect: Explain that you can Different pieces of clothing are shown. Warm socks, a scarf, gloves, a stupid hat. The kids realize, that all of that is needed in the winter. And from this whole bunch of clothing a thermos bottle is produced. The hot chocolate for later.

Method: A chair is standing around. Behind the backrest on a hook a sock is hanging. Inside the sock the thermos bottle. The clothing is shown and put on the backrest to show the next one. Near the end everything is picked up the loaded sock goes along for the ride. The bundle can be seen from all sides. Push down on the sock and the rest of the clothing and the thermos bottle will seemingly pop up.

You introduced the theme of winter. Coming up with stuff that keeps you warm. What could warm you more than hot chocolate? Right! Nothing.

A what the hell, one more: You may be familiar with the effect, that a rope is shown and a knot is tied. Then as the knot is tightened a colorful piece of silk appears in the knot. (Flash Silk on Rope by Doug Edwards Vol. 15 Issue 12 of the Apocalypse, read it, it's cool!)

Problem: There is absolutely no reason for the silk to appear aside from the surprise.
Solution: I put it at the beginning of my knot routine, by explaining that there are three basic simple knots. The first one; The real knot. I do a real knot to demonstrate. I open the knot again. The second one; The knot that is not. I do a false knot. And third; The magic knot. I do the knot and the piece of silk appears in the knot.
It is not the best solution, but it gives it a bit more reason and time... Yes time to see, that the rope is indeed normal.

And as an afterthought I might add a fourth knot. The knot that comes off. To do that, the piece of silk is twirled together like a rope and a false knot made. In your palm should be a removable knot, or it might by tied to the silk to begin with. That way you can pretend to take off the knot which would come as a real surprise and would justify the piece of silk in a strange way. And if you would open the piece of silk and it would have a hole in the center, it would even further explain why a cloth was used and not a rope. Aside from being funny.