Why do you want to see magic?

[visualartist]

Two years ago,a friend and I were cutting class to go chill at a cafe.
We were sitting there in a very coffee and cigarettes fashion. He then asked me "hey,show me some magic". And without thinking I responded

"why?Why do you want to see magic?".
And he just kind of stared off for a while thinking..
This began a very intriguing,two hour long discussion on the why of magic.
My question to him, I feel, is almost exactly the same as "You do magic.Why should I care?"(or maybe its the exact same question)but from a different vantage point.That of the spectators.The most important part of our magic. Him and I came up with multiple reasons of why people like to see magic and what they expect out of a show/performance.And why some(most?) magicians fail to satify their audiences.

I see many people here use the quote ""You do magic.Why should I care?" yet very few have bothered to give a real answer.Maybe if we can answer my question,we can answer this one.
I have multiple answers to my own question and I will post them as the thread progresses.

And please no "as long as they're entertained" type answers.That is not a real answer.This thread is for those that see their magic as more than a hobby and/or seek to become professionals.

 

[Randy]

Well if he didn't care about your magic, he wouldn't have mentioned it or asked to see it. Simple enough.

Why do you people care about magic? Because it is something unusual and is something that MOST have not seen live or in person.

 

[visualartist]

Why do you people care about magic?

That is a different question than mine.

Because it is something unusual and is something that MOST have not seen live or in person.

dont preclude deeper thought.
Theres more to it than that.

 

[Randy]

Not really. You may THINK there is more to it. But really the only reason most people care about magic or enjoy seeing it, is because it is something unusual and different. Different usually stands out more than anything. This is also why magic tends to be remembered more than a movie or a concert.

 

[Steerpike]

But really the only reason most people care about magic or enjoy seeing it, is because it is something unusual and different. Different usually stands out more than anything. This is also why magic tends to be remembered more than a movie or a concert.

Makes me wonder why it's so hard to work professionally as a magician? Oh right, because it ain't that simple! Durr!

I've continually told every person on this board that if you want to perform you need to remember your spectators are all asking, "What's in it for me?" To this day, I've gotten... 3 maybe 4 answers.

 

[Randy]

What's in it for them? an unforgettable memory that will last them a life time. Something they will always be able to recall no matter how old they get. Which is true. I am sure you can remember the first time you saw David Copperfield on TV or David Blaine or Criss Angel or anybody else.

Now go back and try to remember a episode on TV that you saw last week. Or what you had for lunch on Friday.

 

[Steerpike]

What's in it for them? an unforgettable memory that will last them a life time. Something they will always be able to recall no matter how old they get. Which is true.

Well whoop-dee-doo! I remember my first trip to the Smithsonian at age 6 better than I remember the first magician I ever saw.

This is part of the problem. Magicians are so god damn arrogant that they think their ultra-generic card tricks are enough to coast on for an entire career. They assume they will be loved by the masses because of the supposed rarity of their talent.

I'm sorry, but contrary to what your elementary school teachers told you, you're not that special. Assume I'm a non-magical mook. Imagine that I'm a potential client. Why should I pay you to do magic?

Now go back and try to remember a episode on TV that you saw last week. Or what you had for lunch on Friday.

Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO and Chick-Fil-A.

 

[kevin]

care to share steer?

your three of four answers I mean.

 

[Steerpike]

Share? How so? My reason for clients booking me?

 

[Randy]

Because I'll form a friendship with you and will introduce you to the impossible. I also don't see you has another pay check.

 

[LBarnes]

One of the reason I enjoy watching magic is that I see it as a puzzle. Better to have my brain doing some thinking than just watching mindless TV shows or something.

 

[Steerpike]

Because I'll form a friendship with you and will introduce you to the impossible. I also don't see you has another pay check.

I've got about 10 other local guys with the same rates as you who claim the exact same thing. Next!

 

[football2136]

The reason why people want to see magic is for that moment of astonishment. It is a feeling that most people don't get to experience. It is that moment when the spectator can take a break from reality and their everyday life and enter a reality where anything is possible. The best magic centers this moment of astonishment around the spectator. Magic that is centered around a spectator allows the spectator to become emotionally involved, and it is from this involvement that the spectator can truly let go and experience something that they will remember for the rest of their life. In the True Astonishment DVD set, the moment of astonishment is constantly brought up, and I believe that it is the reason why people want to see our magic.

 

[Randy]

This is getting off topic.

Visualartist asked why WE watch magic.

I watch magic because I like to be fooled and entertained.

As for Steerpikes question. This isn't something that can be answered on a message board. It is better done than said.

 

[demon5magic]

Because I'll form a friendship with you and will introduce you to the impossible. I also don't see you has another pay check.

every single insurance company says that too! But strangely, I don't remember every insurance commercial I see, care to explain why?

 

[visualartist]

This is also why magic tends to be remembered more than a movie

Non-movie buffs know/remember of The Godfather,Citizen kane and Jaws.Films are just as memorable as magic. Arguably,they are the same in terms of affecting people.
Brings me to one of the points my friend and I talked about.One of the reasons people like to watch magic is the same reason they attend the cinemas.
To escape.To excite the senses and have an adventure or see something new that seems to show substance.And much like in movies,magic,is alot of spectacle and no soul.Which is why many over the top action films are easily forgotten.Its like watching a magician fourish in a performance and do eye candy tricks.
Yeah its cool after a minute or two but whats the payoff?There is no reason to see it other than to watch the damn thing through to its end.

 

[visualartist]

This is getting off topic.

Visualartist asked why WE watch magic.

I watch magic because I like to be fooled and entertained.

As for Steerpikes question. This isn't something that can be answered on a message board. It is better done than said.

No,i asked that question to a laymen.Try to see it from their point of view is what im saying.and what steer is saying too

 

[visualartist]

The reason why people want to see magic is for that moment of astonishment. It is a feeling that most people don't get to experience. It is that moment when the spectator can take a break from reality and their everyday life and enter a reality where anything is possible. The best magic centers this moment of astonishment around the spectator. Magic that is centered around a spectator allows the spectator to become emotionally involved, and it is from this involvement that the spectator can truly let go and experience something that they will remember for the rest of their life. In the True Astonishment DVD set, the moment of astonishment is constantly brought up, and I believe that it is the reason why people want to see our magic.

mmm not an original answer but good so far.

Magic that is centered around a spectator allows the spectator to become emotionally involved, and it is from this involvement that the spectator can truly let go and experience something that they will remember for the rest of their life.

How many people here honestly perform with this in mind?

 

[Steerpike]

In the True Astonishment DVD set, the moment of astonishment is constantly brought up, and I believe that it is the reason why people want to see our magic.

There's certainly a strong case for that, but why should they want to see you instead of someone else?

As for Steerpikes question. This isn't something that can be answered on a message board. It is better done than said.

If you don't have an answer, just admit it. I do not pass judgment on those who willingly and humbly admit to their ignorance, only those who try to cover it.

Non movie buffs know/remember of The Godfather,Citizen kane and Jaws.Films are just as memorable as magic.

Notice that those films also had a message that audience could relate to. Jaws for example was the story of one man's rite of passage into manhood. The shark was his trial in which the boy had to die so that the man could live. This was a message that audiences could relate to on some level or another, especially the young men in the audience who found Richard Dreyfus's character spoke to them and their feelings as they grew into adults.

Get it?

 

[Randy]

If you don't have an answer, just admit it. I do not pass judgment on those who willingly and humbly admit to their ignorance, only those who try to cover it.

Ignorance. No.. Just not an answer you wanted to hear.

So here it is. Rather than having you sit back and watch me do something like you are watching a movie. I will make you apart that movie. That movie will connect with you.