Hey folks
i was asked to prepare a 2 hrs workshop in our local club about "Magic" for non-magician people yet interested in magic
i was thinking of introducing the history of magic, type of magic / effects, big names in magic, ........ and maybe teaching 2 or 3 self working tricks, BUT wait I am not revealing secrets , ill just help them to do self working tricks already exposed on youtube and other websites so I don't want anyone to think that I am ruining the art of magic that is not my point !

i think it will be nice workshop for people interested in magic to know more about the art of magic

any thought or advice ?

My initial thoughts and experience is most people become really bored and are uninterested in the history of magic. A few words on Houdini and more recent familiar names could be more interesting. You are correct, they are likely to be more interested in learning several tricks that they can easily learn and perform for family and friends. Demonstrating different types and styles of magic could be appealing as well. Good luck, most of all have fun!

I am speaking as a teacher and not as a magician here. 2 hours is a long time. After an hour and a half or so you may find many people going to the bathroom or out for a break. Work a break in after about an hour to aviod that. Don't do any one thing for too long. If your history of magic is more than 20 minutes, heading for a half an hour, break it up with a trick or something. Getting people to stand up (for a self working rope trick or something) can be very helpful. Your ideas are fine, just keep in mind that you may enjoy your work more than they do.

Do you have teaching or public speaking experience? If you do, then you already know what I just told you. If you don't... Practice a lot! I mean it!

I remember my freind was asked to teach an adult course on a subject he knew very well. He crashed and burned. He thought that his knowlege and experience would carry him. It did not. He had only a limited ability to hold the audince attention, and when he found he could not keep their attention he used the time honored tool of shouting. That did not work either. The class ended very early. I felt bad for him. He said he wanted to try again, and he woudllcoach me to be the leader of the class. I was willing, but it never happened. They guy who set up the class had lost all faith in him.

If you need or want specific help with any of this feel free to pm me, I will do all I can for you. If you don't need help.. Better still, good luck with it.

Thanks for your helpful reply
maybe your right 2 hrs is a bit long, we can start by 1 hr or 1h:30 as a start because they are willing to do it once a month for people who are interested

I kind of disagree, if your audience is non-magicians, what they want is to see is magic, not learn it. Just like many of the members on the Café, that are not magicians, but they have to have and know what every trick looks like and how every tricks works.

A person that likes magic is not like a magician. We are constantly looking for a trick that fits into our acts and our personalities. A person who likes magic is interested in that boring stuff, the "Need to see and know about magic tricks". This is their entertainment.

You are actually asking the wrong people. Contact the people you are setting up the lecture for. They will tell you want they like and why they are interested in the magic.

It is really a bad idea for you as you are thinking like a magician and not a person interested in magic. I would bet you do not have the full collection of Doctor Albo's tapes, DVDs, book, and any of the props on Okito and Thayer magic.

From your post, I take it these people are already members in your club, but are not participants at any of the club meetings. There is a reason, they don't want to perform, they just like very interesting stories of magic, it's people, and tricks.

Please don't get trick off YouTube, most of the so called secrets are not correct in any way. Get a beginners book at the local book store. They have some really good trick in them.

Sounds like you are knowledgeable enough to take on this project. I would advise you bow out. Then educate yourself by reading the books of the greats, so you know what you are talking about, some of these books cost in the $2000 range. Houdini, Cardin, Robert-Houdin, David P. Abbott, Al Baker, Ching Ling Soo, Roy Benson, Thurston, DuVal, Jarrow, Malini, Lipzig, and Dante, just to name a few of the well known creators of the magic world. If you are not interested, how can you possibly give a lecture to this type of audience.

Thanks bill for your interesting reply
let me clear some point , this place is not a "magic club" its about large rooms and they do different workshops for different topics all week long , one of the topics will be magic , of course people who will enter will be interested in learning some tricks . because I don't want it to be just me talking and performing , they have to learn "something", that "something" wont be the newest secrets in magic industry .

i bet that almost everyone at least knows 2 or 3 tricks in cards, rubber bands, coins ..... so ill teach them more how to perform the tricks they already know in a better way , and for the ones who don't know any tricks ill teach them some easy self working tricks which usually the professional magician don't perform .
by the way I am performing magic since 9 years so I really respect the art of magic and I know how to keep secrets .



do you thinks guys it will be an interesting workshop ?

I can offer a few suggestions:
Utilize video to share the history. 15 minutes maximum and let them know the length prior to starting. Alternatively you can weave it in throughout your workshop.
Re-read Bill's post. He is dead on in my opinion. Tie in certain effects and educate them on how/why they advanced the art (without discussing method). Discuss the various forms of magic, again considering video. Engage the audience and ask their perceptions and knowledge throughout. Do share a few easy tricks, but focus more on teaching the psychology behind the effect and what is important to the performer beyond the method. The reason more people do not have an interest in performing magic is that it bores them. Keep this in mind as you prepare your workshop. Good luck, let us know how it goes.

Would your classes be for adults or children?

There are many performers who do magic classes and magic workshops for children. There's even information products available on the subject.

I've also heard of magicians offering magic classes, magic workshops, and private magic lessons for adults.

So, this is not a new concept. From your posts, it almost sounds like you think it's a new idea, and you're asking us what we think of the idea (but that could be just because English isn't your first language, and something's being lost in translation).

- Donald

I would take everyone's advice here except Bill's, and those saying to follow Bill's. You don't need to spent 2000 dollars on a book to get an education, and you definitely don't need to bow out.

Hady.87, I think it's a great idea.

Two hours is about right if its for adults or older kids. For the younger you may want to cut it back some.
You also may want to plan it out for 30 min sections. Here are a few suggestions and tips that might help.


The first 30 minutes:

Do a 15 to 20 minute magic show. This doesn't have to be all close up.

Introduce yourself by telling how you got into magic, type shows you do, etc.

Make everyone feel comfortable and put them at ease by telling them there will be no tests, no one is judging them, and they are to be commended for taking lessons in something that they have no prior experience.

Explain that you will be teaching Close-Up magic and not stage magic. Everybody will learn something that they can do.

Briefly have everyone give their name.

Spent 5/10 minutes talking about the history of magic.



Second 30 Minutes:

Perform the first trick that you going to teach.

Now explain how the trick is done. Break up the moves in segments.

Next have the class follow you along and duplicate your moves while you do it....slowly.

If you look to see who is having the most difficulty and then teach at that pace, everyone will easily learn it.
If you see someone having a hard time, work with him. You can also have one of the other

Go to trick number two doing the same thing.

Repeat for trick 3 and 4.



Third 30 Minutes.

Now that the whole class is comfortable in learning the tricks, have them pair off and do it for each other.
Have them use patter, either yours or their own to keep the trick in context. Walk around watching and helping.



Fourth 30 minutes:

If you haven't already, take a short (10 Min) break at the beginning of this section.

Ask if anybody wants to get up in front of the group and perform one of the tricks they have learned.
This is very hard for most beginners to do so don't expect much and don't pressure anyone.

Recap all the tricks. Maybe brainstorm different patter that can be used.

Suggest and talk about a few good beginner magic books to those that may want to learn more on their own.

Thank everybody and invite them to come back next time.




I hope this brief outline can help with the planning.

I know for a fact something like this will work for kids or adults.

If I can help with the planning, just let me know.

Good luck with it,

Tom

Agreed. When I referred to Bill's post as being dead on, I meant the reference to the audience interested in the entertainment value more so than the intricacies. The last few paragraphs of his post went in a whole different direction that I didn't really follow.

Hello Guys .
sorry we got busy last few week and the event is on May 30
http://www.facebook.com/events/705150676216024/?ref=22

and this is my primary outline

-introduction to magic tricks
-history of magic tricks
-magic in everyday life
-type of tricks
-type of effects
-tv magic vs magic on tv
-"Big" magic vs "small" magic
-big names in magic
-magic vs illusion
-brain games
-things gone wrong in magic
-lets learn some magic
-Q&A

i would really appreciate suggestions

Thanks a lot

Hady

This is a what again?

Exactly - I love these threads.

I didn't get it