Performing in public

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MerlinsMagicShopMike
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Performing in public

Post by MerlinsMagicShopMike » Sat Jun 07, 2014 11:52 pm

I just wanted to say that the very art of magic is in the hands of the performer, I for one am not the best at slight of hand or card manipulation but when I perform an illusion, I Practice Practice Practice in front of a mirror when you get to the point of fooling yourself in the mirror you are ready to perform in the pub.I have seen a lot of failed (myself included) performances go bad just because the performer was not ready for prime time. Tenyo magic is for the most part very forgiving but still to get the best effect it still requires practice. Please keep the art of magic alive and don't dim it by bad performance of an otherwise incredible illusion made up by masters in the magic business. You are the master of the performance, don't do a half witted job be the best you can be and you will reap the benefits due to a magician and never ever do a trick again for the same group of people. Some exceptions apply. I myself don't do a lot of tenyo in my bar performance but I do in more intimate situations and the same rules apply, practice practice practice!

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VictorS
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Re: Performing in public

Post by VictorS » Sun Jun 08, 2014 12:45 am

Totally agree with you Mike. Perfect practice makes perfect. Many magicians forgot to practice without correct source of knowledge and correct technique to perform the magic. So practice without a good mentor is also nothing. That's what perfect practice is important. Reading books, learning some sleight of hand techniques with the dvd from the expert could help a lot. Many of good magic prop for example like thumbtip was underestimated nowadays. It took me years to master it and I only see few magicians who really good to handle a thumbtip naturally.

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David DeTenyo
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Re: Performing in public

Post by David DeTenyo » Sun Jun 08, 2014 12:23 pm

I also completely agree. When I first started collecting Tenyo and someone asked me to perform something I did without hesitation. I never actually practied most of the tricks and I often completely made a fool of myself resulting in two things:
- never be able to perform the trick anymore because people figured it out
- having the label as a 'bad magician' for those who I performed for a few years ago :(

Now I always have one or two tricks I practice before people visit, not three, not four. And when they ask me to perform something else I do a classic card trick like Gemini Twins or another self worker.

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SimonC
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Re: Performing in public

Post by SimonC » Sun Jun 08, 2014 1:30 pm

I have a 'go bag' that I always have on me with about 4 tricks I can perform any time. no tenyos but I do like zone infinity as a pocket trick.
card warp is stored in my brain rather than my bag, all restaurants/pubs etcs have a stack of calling cards you can use for maximum impact, it's a KILLER.
Now you see me...

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kellebotond
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Re: Performing in public

Post by kellebotond » Tue Jun 10, 2014 9:01 am

I would not be that hard on this. As I work at a magic shop I get to see a lot of magicians performing (from total beginners to advanced world-class magicians). I think that for a professional paid performer what you said is totally true: it is unacceptable to deliver a non-rehearsed, non-polished performance. But as far as showing tricks to your friends or family: I think that mistakes are natural and actually good. We have to test our tricks and performance in front of an audience. I do a lot of shows at retirement homes, children's hospitals, foster homes, family support services and I almost always test new material there. If I make small mistakes there probably no one will notice, but I want to make sure that my material is road tested for my paid performances. Sometimes I make huge mistakes when something is new (like dropping something or naming the wrong card) but I always deal with this situations in a funny way. Many times these situations become the basis of new jokes or moves that otherwise I would never come up with. I also do test tricks a lot of times at costumers and magicians coming to the shop. And I always ask two questions afterwords:
- have they seen any funny moves or felt anything is unnatural?
- how do they think I have done the trick?

This gives me a feedback a mirror could never give. Concerning practicing in front of a mirror: I prefer the video camera over the mirror. It is more cruel to watch the recording of yourself but you have a much better feedback. You can also experiment by placing the camera at different angles. The recording and the feedback from spectators combined give me directions to improve my tricks.
Tenyo Rocks!!! :–)
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