Magical Monotony

[Steerpike]

I originally was writing this for the Ellusionist boards, but after seeing what's going on here, I think it's just as relevant.



This is a subject I've been sitting on for a long time, and I figured this might be the easiest way to air my concerns. Go through this simple questionnaire and judge the results for yourself whether or not it may be time to re-evaluate your priorities in the world of magic.

1. Do you buy exclusively from one retailer, rationalizing that they have a monopoly on quality?

2. Do you rail against certain retailers for stocking certain products (i.e. single trick DVDs) but never take the creators to task for creating those products in the first place?

3. Do you participate in rivalries, real or imagined, between magicians or groups other than yourself despite a lack of any personal stake in said conflict?

4. Do you spend time on YouTube looking for exposure videos so you can flag them, but not before leaving nasty comments on the video itself?

5. Do you spend more time hunting down exposure than you do practicing or seeking out new material?

6. Do you find yourself looking for a chance to take potshots at other magicians or groups, no matter the situation?

7. Do you take Theo Anneman's famous quote, "[Mentalism] is a more grown-up phase of magic and mystery," a little... literally?

8. Do you find yourself more impressed with the method than the performance theory that goes into the actual presentation?

9. Do you find yourself studying performance theory to the point where you're starting to get rusty at sleights and methods you once had second nature?

10. Is there any magic that you consider "beneath" you?

11. Do you have a generally suspicious or even negative impression of new young magicians?

12. Do you find yourself anxiously awaiting for new releases from favorite artists or companies to the point where you start neglecting material you already have?

13. Do you find yourself relying on gimmicks/sleight of hand to the point where you completely neglect using sleight of hand/gimmicks?

14. Do you actually try to convince your spectators that you possess supernatural powers?

15. Have you ever uttered the phrase, "If I could just get ___________ then I could really blow people's minds!"?

16. Do you often lay the blame for the problems you percieve in the magic community solely on one person, going so far as to say that they are ruining magic?

17. Do you find yourself creating effects for the sole purpose of trying to market them?

18. Are your presentations carbon copies down to the last word of whoever you first saw performing them?

19. Do you scoff at certain performances and say, "How could anybody fall for that? It's so obvious!"

20. Do you believe that there is a universal best of anything in magic, and not simply "best for me"?


All simple yes or no questions. There's no scoring system here. I trust you're all smart and lucid enough to figure things out based on your own answers.

 

[Zeus375]

Great thread Steerpike, and nice to see you over here. I don't have time to answer all those questions but I truly believe that this is a good thread and I'll probably be back later to answer all of them. I think that we all have something in here that we need to work on to further our magic priorities.

 

[Avancer]

Well, good Idea, I'll try to answer most questions:

1) No, for me it doesn't matter where it's from, as long as it's a great product that I can use.

2) No, I do not "rail" against any certain retailer, for me they're all the same, just certain ones may have lower quality products than the others, it all depends.

3) No, I do not participate in rivalries, unless they personally affect me.

4) Unfortunately, I do not go on youtube to flag exposure videos or leave comments on them either.

5) No, I do not

6) No, I do not, personally, I have no "beef" with anyone and therefore have no need to take potshots or throw hate words around.

7) Sorry, I don't understand this one

8) Depends, usually the method kicks in, but once you know how the method is learned, all the work goes into practice and performance work...

9) No, I don't study theory too much, barely at all, which can be a bad thing, so no, I tend to practice the physical part more than actually read up on the theory.

10) No, especially since I am still fairly new to this whole scene.

I'll answer the other ten at a later time....

 

[Color Changer]

I feel the only one I put a bad response for is 15, "have you ever uttered the phrase..."

I said that about Electric Touch until I got it. "If I could just add shock to the routine, I would blow minds". I don't often use that, but electric touch was something I truly yearned for. I, in all honesty, can't think of another effect I've ever said that about...


~michael

 

[Avancer]

I feel the only one I put a bad response for is 15, "have you ever uttered the phrase..."

I said that about Electric Touch until I got it. "If I could just add shock to the routine, I would blow minds". I don't often use that, but electric touch was something I truly yearned for. I, in all honesty, can't think of another effect I've ever said that about...


~michael

I'm with Colour Changer on this one, back when I first started, I always kept saying this, but then realized all I needed was better practice and then even the simplest tricks could blow minds.

 

[HarbingerOfDeath]

Hmm interesting thread Steer, I'll try to answer the most I can and as best as possible:

1. No, I try not to limit myself to one site or store. As long as it's a great product I can care less where it's from


2. No, it depends there are many low quality products out there and i don't rail against them

3. No, i have better things to do then hold grudges that don't concern me

4. No

5. No, I like to give credit were credit is due to the creators of the effects.

6. No

7. That's the first time I heard that, so I gotta say no

8. Depends on the situation I guess

9. I don't study theory at all, I practice more on the physical level then mental

10. I'm open for anything

11. Not sure I've never come across any. I've heard many things about them however, sich as "all they want to do is know the secret and expose it and blah blah blah," but I guess it's something I have to see first

12. Not really

13. Personally I prefer Sleight of hand over gimmicks because I like the fact that I was able to "wow" my audience with skill over a little device doing all the work for me. But I in no way neglect Gimmicks I have a few I use but not as much as non-gimmicked effects.

14. No, I let them tell me that

15. No, to me simple hits hard give it the practice it deserves and you can amaze many with something simple as an erdanase change. I'm not into spending 200+ dollars on a single trick that claims it will wow the socks off your spectators

16. No

17. I never created an effect

18. I try to make my own patter sometimes it's hard I'll admit, I need a little help in the creative department ^_^

19. Never

20. ??? I guess I have to look this one over again, maybe I didn't understand it lol

 

[The Dark Angel]

I'll admit that I've taken part in the Ellusionist/Penguin Rivalry.

I've said "If only I had _____" about Greed. I would stare at a dollar bill thinking about how cool it would be to be able to change it right before their very eyes.

 

[4757joshua2]

No to all but 15.

 

[The Dark Angel]

No to all but 15.

Please try and avoid bumping older threads such as this one, it can be frustrating to some members to see dead threads brought up again.

All the best,
TDA