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fergie33 New user 90 Posts |
Every now and then a magician comes to my town and plays at the palace theater( pretty big). And makes a living off of it. These guys don't have big or famous names. How would you go about starting a show like that? Would I just get an agent and have him book shows all around the country? I understand this isn't easy I'm still young I'm just thinking about trying it once I get out of college.
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Fábio DeRose Inner circle San Paolo, Brasile 1477 Posts |
There is nothing worth in life whose description begins with "it's just...".
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sb Special user 567 Posts |
Get a degree in theater. Work as a talent buyer for the school. This will help you understand the ins and outs of what they are looking for. (A friend of mine went this route, and he is now making his living doing exactly what you are talking about - making his living touring for the past 10 years). Talk to those doing what you want to do, they are the ones who can give you actual advice on this.
As for getting an agent to book you, look at it from their prospective. They want someone who is easy to sell. What makes you easy to sell? Having a "name", or having been on TV (the buyer says: "he's been on TV, he must be good"), have a stellar list of clients (ie, cruise ships, huge companies, etc...), win some awards that sound great, actually- do all of the above...lol. Getting a great agent to book you into these types of deals is pretty tough. The key is getting an agent that is great! If they are great at what they do, they probably have more attractive (easier to sell) prospects (ie someone from American Idol, AGT, or wherever). You have to make yourself stand out to these agents. They want someone with a proven track record. How do you get a proven track record without the agent? It's a catch 22. The process of showcasing, booking, performing can be anywhere from 6-24 months, and to just go from showcasing to booking can be a 24 month trip in itself when you are starting. Your best bet is to become your own booking agent. Learn all you can about the process. Build up some successes on your own. That makes you more attractive (more sell-able) to a great agent. Now some good news. What I am talking about in the prior few paragraphs isn't the only way to go. Your question was specifically about how to get a booking agent to handle booking you theater shows. In the setup I was talking about you get booked, and they pay you a fee, the theater makes a profit off of excess ticket sales. These types of deals are tough to get, and take a lot of time, effort and money to make work. You certainly can go other routes. Self produce shows (be careful... "what's the easiest way to get a million dollars doing magic shows? Start with 2 million dollars and produce some shows.") Look into the courses by John Kaplan (fundraising magic)and Jim Snack (ice cream social). Both are similar, but at the same time very different. Scott |
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