All in all, not bad. I'd rate the show a 'B-,' with some good lessons learned and inspiration to 'get back into the work harness.'

The good: My practical 'workers' with plain ol' sleight of hand and good storytelling continue to get attention. 6 minutes with a piece of rope and a pair of scissors? Thanks, Abbott's Encyclopedia, etc.

I got paid, applauded, AND tipped.

My new persona seems to work. A ringmaster who ran away from the circus instead of an 'outlaw magician.'

THE BAD

The Magic Cake Baking Routine, which I've really worked on honing, probably has to go. I use a foam cake for the finale appearance from a modified Chick Pan, and it was underwhelming today. ("That's a FAKE cake! It's not a MAGIC cake, it's a FAKE cake!")

It's REALLY tough working for a wide range of ages in one party. Involved set-ups that were meant for the older kids resulting in a chorus of "this is BORING" from the 4 year olds. Simple, fast stuff for the younger ones (yay!) resulted in "I know how THAT'S done!" from the 10 year olds. *sigh*

Tickets from the game machine can make a projectile. Disarm the children before starting the show.

I've said before that Magic beats carpentry -- I've been a carpenter a LONG time and NOBODY has ever applauded me for installing a door. Today, I got applause, payment, AND a tip, for something I rather like doing. Now to figure out how to do it better, more deceptively, and stay a step ahead of the rugrats!

Leland
aka "Charlie Lutton"

Well, I've never applauded a contractor, but the good ones deserve applause, cause most aren't so good.
Yeah, mixed age groups are tough, it takes a lot of trial and error to find stuff that works for a variety of ages and works for you.

Leland,

You post confuses me. Exactly what are you talking about? Are you talking about a birthday party? If so, what were the ages of the children?

I also gave a glance at your website. I also find this very, very confusing. It just doesn't seem to go anywhere. If it's just a work in progress then I can understand that.

Maybe it's just me and I'm missing something.

Sorry,

Gerry

Hey, Gerry-

My bad on both counts, which each displayed a lack of clarity. The Web site is indeed an ongoing process, and I appreciate your comment regarding its confusing intent. (Should you be inclined to provide an additional critique, it would be appreciated.)

In my prior post I left out critical details, forgetting that readers rely on my post for details that I have access to through internal memory. Doh! To clarify that post, yes, I was performing for a birthday party, which was attended by a mixed age group from age three to adult. The venue was a local pizza parlor, which has an adequate stage area on their patio. The young crowd was a broad range of temperaments, from children who were very shy, to very well-behaved ones, to manic little terrors. In all, business as usual!

Thanks for the explanations.

As for your website, I see no way for folks to send you an e-mail other than perhaps requesting your birthday party booklet. I do think you need a few links in there (contact page/form, a bio page) and some more photos to sell your services. You might want to check out other entertainer's websites just to get a sense as to what others are doing. You'll learn what to do and what not to do. I am by no means suggesting that you should steal other's materials. Still, it will give you a sense of direction.

I realize performing birthday parties can be a bit tricky, especially when you have a wide age range of children and adults. This is not uncommon and you just need to have all your ducks in order.

The cake baking routine you mentioned has been a staple in children's programs for years. My best educated guess tells me your routine just needs more work. I've seen many magicians present this with great success at birthday parties and other functions.

I have to run this morning. I hope some of this helps.

best,

Gerry

That's some bloodshot eyes in the photo.

A lot of the time you just have to think on your feet to turn round the stuff they shout out
Off the top of my head if they shouted ("That's a FAKE cake! It's not a MAGIC cake, it's a FAKE cake!")
"yes that right its a SPONGE cake" prod the top of the cake smile and move on

But it does sound to me that you had a tougher then normal audiance!

I always find it strange that a lot of magicians will not spend 10 minutes of their time to make a real cake. That's all the time it takes for me to grease my pan, mix the ingredients, and then eventually ice the cake.

Many times at the end of my show, out of all the magic I might have done, someone will come up to me and say; "How did you make the cake appear?"

I'll pit my real cake routine against anyone's sponge cake routine any day.

Gerry - My cake pan routine does need some tweaking. It's usually a lot of fun at shows because the assistant and I get dressed up (apron, goggles, bunny ears), and parents enjoy the photo opp. But I use empty containers (ketchup and mustard squeeze bottles, milk carton, plastic egg). These props are supposed to be cartoony, but sometimes (as yesterday) the audience merely sees -- and denounces -- them as fakes. As I'm typing, it occurs to me that I could add a Foo Can to the bit...more later.

Futureal - They're actually sunburnt eyes, as I spend a good deal of time squinting in bright sunlight during my work as a carpenter. I'll touch them up in the next version.

Mr. Shiney - Very gracious of you to offer me a way off the hook like that, but yesterday's crowd was only slightly more boisterous than average. While getting something thrown at me was a bit unnerving and a new low, I could easily have imposed discipline (I've been a substitute shop teacher, and I'm used to corraling unruly kids). BUT: Maintaining both order AND a fun atmosphere, well, there's the rub, eh?

Wizard - No need to contest with my cake routine, as yours would overwhelmingly outshine mine. Now, in the spirit of "Magicians Helping Magicians," would you care to offer a few pointers?

Nothing wrong from being a carpenter. If you have ever tried to hang a door, you would applaud.

If I had spent more time using a hammer rather than juggling one, I could probably make more of my props.

It is priceless to be able to keep the preschoolers engaged,(longer than 2 minutes) while entertaining the older ones.
Finding a mentor was invaluable to me. Also working in a school and getting help from the "shop teachers" is one of my perks at work.

Harris
still tweaking his act after 30 years....(OIL CAN...said Nigel the puppet imitating the Tin Man)

I'd love to.
First off you need a dove pan. Next, if you have a Hobby Lobby in your area then you can get a mini spring form cake pan. 4"X1 3/4" If you do not have a Hobby Lobby in your area then you can get it off of their web site. They are $5.99 each.
Turn your oven on 350* I still grease my pan, (even though the pan is non stick), using Crisco, and I coat that with a light layer of flour. I then use 7 ounces of cake mix. (Save your mix in fridge) You can make 3 cakes out of each box. Then I use 1/2 cup of oil, and 3 to 4 tablespoons of oil, (depending on the cake mix) if it says 1/3 cup of oil for a full size cake then I use 3 tablespoons, if it calls for 1/2 cup, I use 4, and 1 egg. I mix this for 30 seconds on low speed and 2 minutes on medium speed. I can do everything just in time as the oven heats up. I then put a layer of aluminum foil under my cake pan. It will overflow out of the pan. Bake about 35 minutes. Do the toothpick test, if need be.
When it's done, you'll need to let it cool, before icing it. You'll have to shave off the extra overflowed cake mix. I turn my cake upside down to ice it. I like to use the whipped type icing. It seems to be easier to put on the cake. I then trim 2 pieces of wax paper a little bigger then my dove pan. I put each piece into the 2 pans. This is so that you can grab onto the wax paper to lift it out of your pan after you produce the cake. The other piece is for the outer pan, basically so no one wonders where the wax paper came from. After icing my cake I like to put sprinkles on it and even candles if you are doing a Birthday show. Put the candles in a little further then you would normally do. Then put your lid onto the inner pan and put it in the fridge until you are ready to leave. At your show, invite the Birthday child up. You show your outer pan, with it's wax paper. Have the Birthday child put in a small amount of cake mix. I save my empty boxes of cake mix and I put a small amount of mix in a sandwich bag, inside of the box. I do the same thing with my icing containers. I use a small amount of flour if it's white icing and a small amount of chocolate cake mix if it's Chocolate icing. I then put some sprinkles in the pan, and how many candles that are needed. Lastly I add an egg I hollowed out. You can use a regular egg, but that is messy for clean up later. Then I light a piece of flash paper, and put the lid onto the pan. The Birthday child says the magic words, and presto, a real cake with candles on it. I lift out the cake and put in onto a small paper plate and lead everyone into happy birthday after lighting the candles. This will be a big, big hit. I charge $10 for this. It seems that everyone gets this add on. BUT, make sure you tell the client that this is just an individual cake, only for the Birthday person.
This is really easier then it might sound, and the pay off is huge.

Wizard - That sounds like something I'd like at MY birthday party! Pretty cool, I'm going to have to experiment with that; since I use a Chick Pan, I wonder if I could simply make a single-serving cake solely for the birthday boy or girl? I can do this at no upcharge, there's usually a cake already for everyone else, and I like being able to lagniappe my shows where possible. Thanks for the write-up, that really is a winner!

Harris - After hanging the first 40 or so, it's pretty much all downhill from there. Just don't get the hinge side and the knob side of the door reversed, or door #41 will come out of your pay. You'll probably just want to trust me on this one!

You know, I've been ruminating on this show all day at work (carpentry is pretty automatic for me anymore, Magic keeps my mind occupied):

I know I should have stopped the show when the unruly kid in front chucked something at me; there were other quiet kids in the audience whose enjoyment of the show was impaired the snot locker's antics. However, I didn't want to look like a stern disciplinarian; I'm still cogitating on finding that balance point between being a fun entertainer with whom it's okay to let off steam and pulling in on the reins when someone needs to be brought up short.

Leland-A regular cup cake might work in a chick pan. I also have a chick pan, I'll have to check it out.

Yeah, the wheels are turning on this one. Thanks again for the inspiration -- this routine could definitely more fun AND impressive.

BTW, for what it's worth: I've had a sharp-eyed kid spot the gimmick pan after the production and (naturally) yell out "HEY! There's ANOTHER pan there!" A quick bit of paint and a little faux finishing on the rolled edge of the outer pan has effectively camoflauged this error.

Sometimes kids are pretty eagle-eyed. I never acknowledge anything a kid says, right or wrong. I just go on with the show. I noticed a couple of weeks ago that one of my outer pans was slightly bent out of shape, and because of that you could see the inner pan if you knew what to look for. I have 3 dove pans.
Everyone needs to inspect their pans on occasion.

Ha leland
why not make magical bubblegum
and throw it out to the kids
after the routien.

Bowers, that's a thought worth exploring -- thanks for chiming in!