Selecting The Right Material?

[William Draven]

What separates the act that a 14 year old "novice" does for a kids birthday party from the act a "veteran" does when they are the same length in run time?

Is it the types of tricks chosen to be presented, the delivery, the patter, the character or presentation? Is it the confidence that only comes from years of experience, or is it something else all together different? It's the constant examination of Where am I now vs Where do I want to be that spurns me to examine myself over and over. It drives growth, and fuels creativity, but when it comes to show time there is only one question on my mind; What do I do now?

What is your creative process that you go through when you are building your act for a performance? What kind of effects do you gravitate to- why? What inspires you, and how do you take that inspiration and embody it within your own performances?







So what kind of material do you do when you give a show? What do you think about when you know you are going to perform, and need to select the stuff for your act?

 

[RealityOne]

What separates the act that a 14 year old "novice" does for a kids birthday party from the act a "veteran" does when they are the same length in run time?

Is it the types of tricks chosen to be presented, the delivery, the patter, the character or presentation? Is it the confidence that only comes from years of experience, or is it something else all together different?

I think what separates the novice from the experienced is the that the experienced magician's show is more than a series of tricks. There is a coherence that ties the show together. A coherence in terms of character, in terms of the theme, in terms of how the effects transition from one to another. Another difference is that the show is, for the most part, static. A novice performs a different show every time while an experienced magician performs the same show every time. With that comes a level of polish and professionalism. A novice magician asks what new effects can I perform while an experience magician asks how can I perform these current effects better.

What is your creative process that you go through when you are building your act for a performance?

The process isn't linear and it isn't pretty. I used to do exactly what Shadow suggested. Pick effects, stick them in an order and then perform. But as I've been trying to make my shows more than a collection of effects, it has become more complicated.

I start somewhere. A prop, an effect, a story, a song. Actually, I start at several somewheres. There are lots of props I have that are waiting for a presentation and lots of presentations and themes that are waiting for the right effect.

But there is a BIGGER SOMEWHERE - the theme. How do I tie the whole show together. Now the theme can come from a presentation. That is, I expand the theme used in the presentation of a single effect to encompass the entire show or I take the theme of a single effect and finding a larger theme related that can be related to the entire show. I could start with the theme. I could start with a single prop -- I've been looking at a deep blue mad hatter type hat and wondering what type of show a magician that would wear that had would do.

The design of a show is a major project. It is no longer something I throw together before heading out the door. Every effect needs to be integrated -- to the other effects, to the show as a whole, to my character and to my style. Every part needs to be scripted. That is before I even purchase or learn the materials.

What kind of effects do you gravitate to- why?

Lately, I've been looking at classic effects - linking rings, miser's dream, billiard balls, sponge balls, etc. and trying to find methods and effects that I can pair with interesting patter. I'm also intrigued by methods beyond mere sleight of hand. Those that know me know that I'm a big fan of Jim Steinmeyer's. I love how he thinks about the design of an effect. Also, I gravitate toward props - a brushed stainless steel champagne bucket, pool balls for a finale in a cups & balls routine, a 36 inch silk with a dragon, 3D sponge bunnies, a home made square circle in blue and gold, a bottomless shoe box covered in black contact paper for a Slydini routine. Why? I think it is a desire to be unique. To take something that is a classic and give it a new presentation. To find magic that is ingenious in method. To use props that scream professional rather than cheap magic prop.

Most importantly, I want effects that can be routined into strong magic. What the audience sees has to be strong magic and the effect has to lend itself to a strong presentation.

What inspires you, and how do you take that inspiration and embody it within your own performances?

What inspires me? The fact that magic can touch people's emotions. It can make them smile, it can make them astonished, it can make them hope, it can make them feel.

 

[Craig Browning]

Not to detract from what R1 says above but I have seen 14 year olds do superior shows to those "veteran" acts deliver. The reasons are many thought the two main reasons center on personal charisma sat beside attitude. While skill and such does matter, a 12, 13, 14 year old kid that is passionate about what he's doing can frequently trump that 15 year veteran that become bitter as the result of "still doing kiddie parties" (and any dozen other "issues" he/she may have). Veteran performers frequently slip into a very ugly rut and it will show in their performances and general demeanor . . . and that's before we get to other ugliness the guys that have been around a while fall into far too often.

I've seen some absolutely brilliant kids however, that could give Lance Burton a run for his money. Not all young teens are awkward and immature, even those raised in a hick-town trailer park are known to rise up from the muck and do a solid class act. You will generally find that these same kids share a handful of "gifts", starting with that supportive parent(s) (the most important in my opinion; the family support is 90% of the secret at any age). The there's the kid's own way of looking at both, life and magic. Most teens are just discovering magic and want to show off -- it's a tool for socialization type scenarios (an Ice Breaker) and there is a strong psychological element to it when it comes to those that feel brow-beaten, put down, second rate -- DIFFERENT amongst other things. But every once in a while you have that one kid that literally falls in love with the idea of creating Magic at the artistic level; they will work till their fingers bleed learning controls & slights and will invest however must time it may require for making every single thing they do "perfect" and quite deliberate as well as effortless -- MAGICK!

It's something to think about.

 

[Simon_Magic]

I perform a lot on the Burlesque/Cabaret Circuit over here in the UK, and I must admit, it is sometimes the newbie performers that are a hell of a lot better than the ones that have been doing it a long time because they want to be able to impress and so will work and work on their act everyday, finding time between work to go and do something, whereas the ones that have been doing it a while, before going to the show will run over the motions once and then just go through the motions on stage rather than showing the emotions and excitement that the newbies do.

A UK magician, Romany Diva Of Magic practices her act EVERY DAY in front of a video camera. She has converted her living room into mini theatre so she gets the full experience and is used to performing on stage.

I think that shows the difference between a good/ok act and a Brilliant act. Constant practice of it, and finding time in your day to practice it fully at least once every 3-5 days if you can't every day to make sure everything is top notch, and to not just expect that when you get to the show everything will be ok. Your audience might not have seen you before, and if they think you were rubbish because you couldn't be bothered practicing then you've just lost a fan and maybe a booking.

In short, PRACTICE LOADS! Professional or Amateur. It separates an amazing act from an ok act.

Simon_Magic

 

[RickEverhart]

Lots of key points that I agree with have already been said. I think the big one that was mentioned already was that an amateur will purchase many effects and his / her show will be different almost every single time out there. Many working professionals will do the EXACT same show almost a hundred or more times and tweak it until it is absolutely spectacular. Each line, each transition, each little subtlety will become better and better. Look at people like Johnny Ace Palmer and David Kaplan. I went to Magifest last year and watched Jonny Ace Palmer to each close up room a few times to see how much he deviates from his patter, script, and effects. It was almost spot on every single time. Every line, every laugh, every hand gesture. I think this is imperative when developing a show. Like Craig said though, as long as the performer does not get in a rut and get complacent and then the performance looks lack luster.

As far as selecting material, hmmm....sometimes I've been burned on this. I will see a magician or a salesman demo an effect and it looks really cool and I do an impulse purchase only a few weeks later to find out that it just doesn't fit my style, or I don't like the set up / clean up, etc. I'm sure we all have loads of items sitting in drawers or closets that at one point we "thought" we were going to make miracles with and perhaps maybe they still can be used later on down the road. I think everyone's so called "right" material is going to be different depending on what they are trying to achieve and what their skill level is. There are other times I buy something only to find out that I simply don't have the time due to my job and family to give it justice in getting it to where it needs to be.

 

[Randy]

Yeah the whole getting in a rut thing can also make it look like you are bored of your act. I've seen people perform who were good, but their attitude looked like it was so very ho-hum for them and that kind of puts a drag on the show. I'm a firm believer that if you want people to enjoy what you do, then you should also enjoy it as well.