I do children shows as a magician or as a clown. Sometimes I do the same old tricks. What are your favorite tricks for children. You don't have to go into alot but one or two will help. If I use it I'll ask you how you use it. I'm retired and I go out at any time of the day. I don't advertise I go by word of the mouth or by agents.

Welcome to our intellectual debating society Oscar. (It's never been called that before!) I wish you success so "word of mouth" will delete the necessity of Agents. There is so much information here - study the catalogues. I'd go for easy, colourful self-working props if I were you, just buy a few at a time and inject yourself into them. Good Luck.

Heres a few I do: Coloring Book is of course used by a lot of kids performers. I hate hippity hop rabbits like a few others on this board but that's another popular kids show effect, and trust me on this...kids love the mouth coils!!! I open with my little speech and then have the birthday kid come out...I put my hand up to their ear with the coil in it...I start to pull a little, then I have a brother or sister (or if they don't have one just someone else) and have the bro/sis pull 25 feet of ribbon "from the birthday childs" ear-Kids get amazed! I can't reccomend mouth coils enough! I also use Peanut Butter and Jelly as my final trick because honestly it ALWAYS leaves them on a good note...I get sooo many oo's and ahh's! Josh

Josh: Thanks for your help on the mouth coil, I think it will work out great. I do the coloring book and P&J. P&J I use real bread and end it with a P&J sandwich. I use jam because it spreads better and it doesn't show when I ask the child to look in the bag to see if the bread is still there after he puts it in. I use run rabbit run instead of hippity hop rabbit. Thanks again I love the mouth coil routine.

ACEPAARTIES: Thanks you for your help also. Will try more of self working tricks.

Hello,
It sounds like you have some props so I assume you have a change bag, there is so much you can do with it and it's easy to give your shows a theme when needed. I use Don Allen's Comedy Egg Can, Stratosphere, nesting wands, blooming bouquet, Kids love comedy wands! Balloon magic is fun too. The spotty bag is good for a young audience, Kids LOVE sponge balls, but tell them a story when you do them.
If they think you are going to try to trick them they will be on you, let them enjoy your story. Most any magic can be done with a comedy story line that a child will enjoy.

:clownjuggling:

Jewls -- I think you have great ideas and I'll use them. Thanks

I'm only an amateur performer (more accurately, "was"), but my most effective trick for kids was the zombie. I'm the only one I know who did it for kids.

My routine was a sort of mock-serious style. I presented the ball (named Kirby) as one I had gotten from a very poor magician who couldn't control it. I promised the kids that I, being a very very good magician, could control it quite well and they would be impressed with how long and quietly the ball sat on the cup. Of course, the ball then started to act up with me trying to get it to calm down but losing. Kids cheered Kirby on instead of me.

There were times when I needed nothing else but could have gotten away with 30 minutes of Kirby disobeying me.

I find kids like anything that is colourful. I also find they enjoy the proffessors nightmare, and chameleon silks, as well as a little trick i call glitter on hand. That always stuns them.

I use a mouth coil for a kind of torn and restored tissue papers with and unexpected twist. I do Jump Ropes by Sammy Smith. Coloring Book and a cut and restored rope routine. Kids love it.