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Mr. Woolery Inner circle Fairbanks, AK 2149 Posts |
I'm not a collector of all kids magic DVDs, but I do have Terry Herbert and Bill Abbott. Most of my DVDs are adult magic, though it is fairly easy to make the same tricks (other than cards) play well for kids.
If you had to pick one of the two I have, I'd say go for Bill Abbott Performs Magic for Kids. It is a 2 DVD set with close up and stand up routines. The close up is great for some card tricks that actually do work with kids. The Ninja Card Trick is a card stab, which might be too much for some parents. In that case, use a set of chopsticks and call them Ninja Magic Wands. He does one trick with flash paper that may be too much for a kid crowd, just because it is a sudden flame. I have decided I can't see myself using it, though Abbott gets a great effect from it. The stand up DVD has three routines on it and all three are fantastic. The sponge snack is a perpetual spongeballs from mouth routine that is well structured and has a real ending, not just petering off with "I guess that's all I've got." The Thing is a sort of Zombie effect and can be done surrounded. Tells how to make the gimmick and use it, as well as some very good pointers on how to perform. I don't think I'm giving too much away when I say he's bang-on with saying that any levitation trick can be overdone, so don't spend too much time on it. I've watched YouTube videos of 5 minute zombie ball routines and they are done superbly, but I get bored with them. Yeah, it is a floating ball. I get it. Finally, there's Chico the Mind Reader, a puppet routine. This is what convinced me I needed a puppet. I'm going a different direction from Abbott and don't have mine worked out fully, but the whole interaction and routine with the puppet was just too cool to not learn from. There are some bonus extras on the disks, too. A very nice C&R rope routine, a presentation of the Professor's Nightmare with a mangled Goldilocks story, and a performance of Chico for adults. Best money I have spent on a DVD so far. Terry Herbert is fun to watch, also uses a puppet, and has a lot of dealer tricks. He does them well, but does not really teach you to use them. Instead, he offers a performance for a group of kids and lets you decide what you like and what you don't. I really did not care for his Wishing Box routine. Worth owning for his perspective and his performance, but I like Bill Abbott better. I have the book Seriously Silly. It does a fantastic job of explaining how a basic trick can be made into a great routine for kids. He breaks down three different sorts of kid reactions by age group, and he has advice for problems you are likely to wind up in. The routines he has for some basic tricks are worth the cost of the book. The thing that I feel is missing from the book is how to structure a full act. Individual routines are covered very well, putting together a full act is not really covered at all. I'm still looking for good information on that. What I would love to see is a set of maybe ten different magicians doing kid shows for live audiences. Not so much how to do the tricks, but just seeing them from the time they walk on until the end. I have used canned patter a bit, but I find that I enjoy a trick a lot more when I work up my own lines, my own stories, my own presentations. What I want to see is how different guys put together an act, how they make it play for a group of kids, and perhaps a discussion at the end of what they consider to be the elements that make their performances strong. And I'd rather not pay $30 for each show. -Patrick |
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keeblem Inner circle Essex, UK 1167 Posts |
Quote:
On 2009-09-11 15:51, seadog93 wrote: I'm going to try and watch this again. I bought it a while back and soon lost interest. I also felt he didn't have a very good rapport with the children. But I will watch it again and try to get around to posting a fair review. Mark |
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