I want to thank everyone who responed to my first post on top five pro effects. Now the other day my friend and I were called for a close up card show, we figured it would be a walk around show becouse it was a sweet sixteen. Turns out it was a house party with 10-15 people. Now I want to know what effects would you perform in one hour in the hands, no table, with a completely shuffled deck. I want the effetcs to be jaw dropping! ...In the hands! ...No table what so ever! ...Shuffled deck! And if you're performing, you cannot repeat...
Thanks Alot,
six

Six,

A very peculiar post indeed. I must say I've never had to do a show with these constraints:

1. 10-15 people in the audience
2. One hour long with no repeats
3. No table or other surface
4. Card magic only
5. Shuffled deck only

I've done tons of walk-around, under conditions with no table. I've done a fair amount of stand-up stuff as well. I've done a wide range of venues, including some peculiar stuff like bizarre magic, seance shows, and little old ladies' tea parties. This particular set of conditions doesn't seem to get close to matching any real world setting that I've seen. Even a card man like Ricky Jay wouldn't do a set that looks like what you're proposing. I have to question why you would ask for something so peculiar.

Why don't you grapple with this problem a bit yourself, and post something that indicates that you've actually thought about this problem?

Weighter Aces (Daley's Last Trick)--Greg Wilson
Twisting the Aces
Fair and Sloppy--Ron Bauer (without the tabled spread)
Be Honest, What Is It?--Fechter
I've Got a Surprise for You--Fechter
Jumping Gemini--Ortiz
Chicago Surprise--Whit Haydn

I rarely do that much material for that small of an audience. The only exception was when there are a lot of lurkers watching when performing for people standing in line at an event.

I also break up the card effects with non-card effects, so that I can ring in setup decks, gaffed deck and stacks.

Here are some of the card effects that I really like:

Think-A-Card (Joe Riding method, from Mark Mason's "Real World Magic" video.)
Psychic Sense (From Eugene Burger's "Rediscoveries" booklet. It was later republished in a compilation of his booklets.)
Card to Forehead
Card To Wallet
Long Card, 52 on 1 (with revelation on the reverse side), Martin Lewis' Switch card and a few other revelations using special prediction cards.

All good choices. Now, what would you do for the last 46 minutes?

TW

Thomas I believe if your show has some presentation to it....it would take up most of the show.Just a thought..no offence at all.

How much time until the party?

I mean...if its soon really work with stuff you already have mastered.

If its a while from now.....

listen to these guys and get effects you feel you can make more than a "card trick".

If you make it magical they will love you far more.

The point I was trying to make earlier was simple: this is purely an in-the-head exercise. The combination of constraints that were placed on this show would never happen in the real world. Let's take them, one at a time.

1. 10-15 people in the audience - this is not the problem; it's reasonable that at someone's home a magician might do a close-up or parlor show for a small audience.

2. One hour long with no repeats - the first sign of trouble. For a small audience, it's unusual to do a show that's this long. Not impossible, of course, but fairly unusual.

3. No table or other surface - now it gets stranger. If I were to be doing a parlor show in someone's home, I'd bring a table as one of my accessories. If it's a close-up show, a table might be appropriate. But at this show there are no surfaces of any kind. I'm with 10-15 people in a room, and there's no furniture. Weird.

4. Card magic only - here's the one that confirms that this is a fantasy situation. Based on years of experience performing for audiences and watching other performers perform for audiences, I'll venture to say that I don't know of anyone who does a 60 minute, pure card magic show. Even in the case of Ricky Jay and his 52 Assistants, there were other items, including the cups and balls. (And Jay's show has a set - with a bookcase, a table, etc.) Nope, this confirms it; someone's playing a head game.

5. Shuffled deck only - and finally, here's the icing on the cake. I'm surprised that this constraint wasn't made stronger. Why not require a shuffled, borrowed deck while you're at it? When I'm doing my show, I want the audience to believe that a regular deck is being used, and that it has been shuffled, but I don't have a problem using deck switches and ringing in gaffs if that's required to create the magic. The point is simple; the audience shouldn't be able to know if I've made a deck switch or not.

To the original poster (SIX - your given name, no doubt), I have a simple question: why did you create this fictional situation? Why didn't you simply ask the group the following quesition:

What are the best card tricks that that don't require a table and can be performed for a small group of people with a shuffled deck that's been in use?

I'll bet you would have received a more useful set of responses. (In a way, the question answers itself. See http://www.fasdiu.com/ for some practical answers to the question.)

I'd say just stretch your routines and make them long as possible. The only thing is that be sure you don't bore them. Get creative!

Just do the 21 card trick (this lasts for 30 minutes or so), then close with out of this world (Long version). You should be able to fill an hour easy.

J/K,

Jered

I have done a few shows like this, but not to the specific conditions you have set. I was invited to a persons home just after they finished dinner. There was approx. 15 to 20 people including the three children. Everyone sat comforably in the living room and had cake and I then proceeded to do my show. It consisted of card tricks, coins, and a cig trick.

For cards effects( Not in order)

Cards Across
Card on ceiling
Deck to pocket ( David Williamson )
Multiple Selection - 10 to 12 selections ( Ending with a signed card to locked box - Destination Box )
Ambitous card - Card to wallet
Triumph

Coins
Production
Flurry + Jumbo Production
Coins across in the spectators hand
Coin to watch + Watch steal

Ring Flight

Cigarette Vanish in Jacket


There you have it. After I had finished I learned a few things. Less is more. My stand up show lasted about 45 min. I stayed around afterward to mix and mingle and do a few more effects in a casual fashion. Which lasted another 20 min or so. It would have been best to do just 30 min. I could have cut out some of the material(coins) and put more focus into my presentation of the stronger effects. I wouldn't of had so much pressure to fill the whole hour. Which is tough with just card tricks. I have done shows like this since then I have always done about 30 mins which is no problem. I think the material I use is quite strong but I've learned that its all in the way you connect with your audience. You constantly learn what not say, or good lines to keep or throw, new ideas come to me all the time while I'm working. *** good thing to keep notes too.

Good luck.

Okay, so the poster I responded to listed a total of SEVEN effects; One hour divided by seven equals a little more than 8 1/2 minutes per trick!

Hats off to you, Unilogo, you must have INCREDIBLE presentation skills to get 8 1/2 minutes out of "Twisting the Aces"...

AND,


[WARNING: Sarcasm Alert]---------> Yes, and after that you can go swimming - just make sure you don't get wet.

Regards,
Thomas Wayne

How about 58 minutes of the 6-card repeat, then close with Twisting?

I was not listing an hour show, just some effects that are OK to do for that many people without a table. I would never take a gig with those types of restrictions, and would bring my own table and cups and balls at least.

(I could get at least 20 from that group, though.)

Barry - thanks for the link! Very useful!

Isn't the "no repeats" constraint sort of ridiculous. I mean, if I was doing a walk-around performance at a party, I'm sure I'd repeat tricks for different groups. Maybe after I'd established myself during the walkaround, I'd get everyone together for a multiple selection routine or something like that. At any rate, I don't think in most circumstances you'd need a solid hour of non-repeating material.

I'd also highly recommend FASDIU I & II as well as Fusillade for the multiple selection routine. Paul's work is great.

Paul

Just a ten card poker deal about 15 or so times and then a long version and suffled version of out of this world.

Inversion is always a nice effect. There are tons of methods. It all takes place in the hands and is very visual!

Yeah 10cards inversion/fidgetty card by Bill Kalush is so much fun and it can go on forever.

I would try to come up with some kind of card game/ magic effect where everyone gets a card, some kind of one-card poker is played with perhaps faux-betting, and at the end of what seems to be an amusing group poker game there is a surprise effect. I imagine that with 10-15 people all involved in a game, there is much by-play and banter. Perhaps everyone has to put their card on their forehead so everyone but them can see it (blind-man's bluff?), and everyone can see that the mage has a losing card, but at the end of all kinds of creative betting ("I'll wager my first born," "I'll wager my underwear"), it seems that there is a winner, but then the mage transforms his low card into an ace of spades (or a Royal Flush!).

What is this Inversion effect? It sounds interesting.

I have done gigs like this on more than one occasion, and it is very exhausting. I now try to limit a set like this to 30 minutes, and also charge a higher feel than my normal walk-around rate. Not that is it is difficult to do that many effects, but it just drains me, I am sure you know the feeling. I usually do all card routines as well, though sometimes with ringflight or coins across routine thrown in.

Like magical mr Sean Macfarlane said, less is more. And stronger routines will have a greater impact than rapid-fire trick after trick.

Look at the Bill Malone's DVDs, for example. The card material alone could cover over an hour. Not all is stand up of course, but most can be adapted to stand up conditions.