I'm trying to put together a routine, but I'm completely stuck on how to go about it. I'm trying to aim for 10-15 minutes.

Any tips and advice would be appreciated.

I think we need more information !
What tricks do you perform now ?
Who is the act aimed for ?
More information about you !

And what kind of personna do you want to portray... humor, mystical, etc?

Will you be at a table, parlor or walk-around.

Do you have a preference for cards, coins, or other?

Ohhhhh so many questions to answer. But they all make a difference in what kind of suggestions you'll get.

Simple advise for anyone no matter what there favorite kind of magic is. Any magic trick can last 2 minutes or 30 its about how you go about it. First what I do is think about what the moral of my whole show is or if I where to do walk around what the kind of theme I want. Be it misterious or funny, romantic or crazzy, it dosen't matter. Then I go about find a good trick that fits my audeince and the mood I'm going for. After that I think about how it works. Like if it is horizantal card rise would it be it just dosn't like being in the box or am going to get a audeiance member to use the force of the earth to make it rise through the deck that they are holding (funny or mistical). Finaly wording; you don't want to make a sentence a novel. Get to the point and say it straght but you have to add a little seasoning tho make it work just right. I usualy have 10 drafts of a script before I'm ok with what I have and even then I have work out some Kinks.

Time may be Money
But money isn't anything
but a peice of paper
It's the what you git
out of what you love
That REALLY counts,
Ashley

The tricks I have at the moment are a mixture of Close-up and Stage effects.

I want to come up with a couple of routines (one for close-up and one for stage) so that I can start to practise performing something from beginning to end, complete with patter and presentation.


About Me: I don't perform magic to people at the moment, though I do practise every chance I get (classic closet magician I'm afraid).

I want to start performing magic for people but I just can't seem to bring myself to do it. I'm always being told to practise more and that when I feel confident with my tricks I will feel more confident performing in front of people, but the problem is I DO feel confident with my tricks, I just DON'T feel confident with my performance of them.

I come up with presentations for tricks and then , when I have a chance to show them to someone, I start to doubt what I've come up with and I back out of it.

I've found someone who is willing to help me with my presentation IF I can get a basic routine together, but I've been trying to do this for ages now and I just don't seem to be getting anywhere with it.

I haven't really decided what sort of magic I prefer yet, so what I have is generally a mixture of different types of tricks (cards, coins, silk etc).

Does that help?

There are many different ways to think about a routine. A routine uses a common thread or theme throughout. For example you might produce three coins, do a different effect with each coin, and then do a final effect with all of the coins.

You might open a bag and take out some items that have a common history or use and use each of them in a routine and then put them away in the bag.

You might even do an effect with something and use that something to link it to the next effect. For example, you might use a rope and do a rope effect and then use that rope in a ring and rope effect and then use the ring in another effect.

If you are an educational performer you theme would be the message you want to convey. The effects are selected to help deliver the message. There are really all kinds of ways to 'routine' an act or set. Really too many to enumerate here, but I gave you some suggestions to get you thinking and started.


Watch the pros and see how they "routine" things. Some of their ideas are pretty subtle. It takes work and a lot of thought to build a good routine. It also takes a lot of knowledge. You have to have the background to see the solution. You have to have the resources.

As in all things, this skill will develop over time with proper education and lots of practice.

And if you want to build confidence in your performance, I highly recommend the book "The Ostrich Factor" by Café member "Gerald". You can find the book at his website The Ostrich Factor.

Just a simple idea to get you started, and feeling more comfortable performing in front of people. Don't try to start with a whole show. Just get a few "surefire" pocket effects that are easy to perform. Carry one or more around and try them out on friends and family. You'll be amazed at how fast performing confidence can grow as you see the reactions you get.

I know you have effects you have been practicing, but here are a few very simple yet tremendously effective (and inexpensive) pocket effects: Color Vision, Odd Ball, Nickles to Dimes, Hot Rod or Color Changing Knives.

These (and others like them) are all time-tested effects. Practice them up and add a little story or routine (very little is needed with these).

A few beginning stage effects might include:
What's Next
Professor's Nightmare
Newspaper Tear (I prefer Mark Mason's "No Tear Newspaper")
Dove Pan

Good luck,
Rick

I agree with Rick. It sounds like you are just using the idea of putting together a routine in order to delay performing. I've never heard of anyone starting with a routine, nor would I advise it. Stick with a surefire effect and perform it to as many people as possible. Whenever I meet someone who hasn't seen me perform I do the same effect that I've been starting with for years. I've done it hundreds of times, but it's always the first time for them. Just perform, it's no big deal. I even tell them when I'm a little nervous. And let them know it may not work (even though it always does). It makes them start off on my side.

The only way to learn to perform for an audience is to perform for an audience. When you first start out work as much as you can, And be prepared to fail! But failure is an amazing learning experience. You will begin to build valuable experience for what works and what does not.

Write a script for your trick. The premise can be anything...the sky is the limit. Just try to get the script to fit the trick. If you are doing comedy learn some jokes and one liners. Aldo Colombini has some good books. If you are playing it serious then a script is all the more important.

When you work engage your audience, make them an active part of your performance. And be likable...if your audience likes you they will in turn be more apt tolike what you do.

Just my 2cents

Kevin

Thanks for the responses everyone.



Thanks for the suggestions Rick. Hot Rod and Professors Nightmare are two of my favourite tricks.



My friends and family aren't interested in magic, and I mean they REALLY aren't interested in it or, if they are, they've made it quite clear that they have absolutely no interest in watching ME do magic tricks (I've never been able to get them to watch even one trick).

You're probably right about that, I think it's mainly because I get really nervous whenever I try to perform for anyone, regardless of how well I know the tricks (that and I don't really have anyone to show anything to).

Hi Twilight,

Welcome to the café! You'll find some great people, support and information available here.

Sorry to hear that your family and friends don't show an interest in your hobbies. You can always get new friends, but your stuck with the family you have!

Seriously, don't let that discourage you. There are plenty of people out there that would love to see a magic trick.

As mentioned, just stick to a couple effects that you do extremely well and can perform in your sleep. That way, you can work on your presentation and not have to worry about the handling.

If you can find a magic shop in your area, or a good magic club, start there. You'll find people who are already interested in magic and you will be able to perform for them. Just make sure that the criticism that will surely follow is constructive. If you find people being offensive or rude at your attempts, well, just keep walking and don't pay any attention to them. Some people have to put others down to feel good about themselves.

You might carry around a couple of effects that you like and look for opportunities to perform. If you see a child in a store having a bad day (crying), stop for a moment, get down (kneel - get eye to eye) on their level and show them a trick. They're entire attitude will change and their parents will be grateful.

How about standing around in a long, boring line? Everyone is trying to find something to pass the time while waiting. How about sitting in an office waiting to be next? If you think about it, there are all kinds of opportunities to bring a smile to others during one's day.

Another idea might be to go to your local retirement home or children's hospital. They are always looking for people to come in and "entertain" the residents. It's also a great way to gain experience performing in front of others while giving back to your community.

Just give it some thought. Find a couple of things you like to do, and that you do well, and carry them with you. I'm sure you'll find plenty of people during the day that you can bring a smile to. Just remember, it's all in the presentation!

Good luck, Mark.

Dear Twilight,

I know exactly what you're saying about being nervous when you perform for people rather than just doing the trick in a mirror or by yourself. When you're practicing your tricks you can do it perfectly and with great skill and handling but when it comes to doing it for other people and having to actually interact with them, its a whole different story. As I'm sure most magicians will agree, being able to do the trick with skill and with no mistakes is only HALF of what being a magician is all about. The other half, and what might even be considered as being MORE important than doing the trick, is the PATTER and how the trick is presented to the audience. I've seen guys who were MASTERS at manipulation and skills but who could not come up with a good patter or who couldn't really present the trick well so the skill and perfect handling of the trick are wasted because the final product is incomplete.

I've been doing magic now for over 10 years and I have had most of the problems all magicians have as they climb up the ladder to being a great magician. One of the most important things in being a magician is being an actor or a "performer" and being able to work with an audience. There are a few ways of doing this and not all tricks have to be done to words. One thing that has not been mentioned yet, regarding to you question, is the SILENT routine or a series of tricks, performed back to back, choreographed to music. MOST famous magicians ALWAYS start their show with a SILENT ROUTINE. Perhaps this is what you mean when you say you're seeking a "good routine."

Here is how I would approach it:

Put together a list of 10 tricks that you want to do. Then find a good magic music piece (if you need help on this let me know). Then figure out which trick you want to start with and which one you want to finish with. Generally opening tricks and ending tricks (finale) are the most impacting. Now all you have to do is put the other 8 trick in the middle somewhere. Just listen to the music you've picked and picture in your head what trick would go good with the music and start putting all the tricks in order. Then when you have all that worked out you can start practicing it. Doing it to music makes it SO much easier to do in front of an audience! Knowing you don't have to talk to the for the first part of you show really takes a lot of the nervousness away. Then, after you've done the silent routine, and you get a good reaction, you will feel MUCH more confident in yourself to do some "interactive" type magic with your audience.

I hope this helps, I know it definitely does for me.

Oh, one last thing.. your "silent" routine, should you decide to do one, shouldn't be more than 8 to 10 minutes MAX. You'd be amazed how man tricks you can do in 8 minutes. My silent routine is about 9 minutes and I do like 13 tricks. PM me or Email me if you want some more detailed ideas on how to do this. Also, I would not mix close up with stage/parlor tricks unless you're SURE they go well together. Remember, the different categories of magic have to do with distance between the magician and their audience.... That is why the're different categories. If you do close up stuff for an audience too far away they will not really get the full impact of the trick. The same applies for Stage/parlor stuff. If you do stage/parlor stuff for people TOO close they will surely discover some of your secrets...

Lastly, REMEMBER what I said about being a "performer" or "actor" when you're doing your silent routine. You're movements, facial expressions, and gestures are all VERY important especially since you're not talking while doing your tricks. You can't just do your tricks mechanically and with no "flare." Do a search on the Internet for well know magicians, maybe some that you like and inspire you, and see if you can watch some video clips of their silent routines. You can also buy many videos that not only show you the performance of the magician but instructions on how to do the tricks etc... Some of my favorites are Lance Burton, Tony Clark, Shimada, Dan Sperry, and Greg Freuin just to name a few.

Sincerely,

Paul Austin

13 tricks in 9 minutes!?

That seems a little much (I'd have a hard job fitting 3 tricks in that amount of time).

.