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Owen Mc Ginty Special user not a stupid user, a special user. 533 Posts |
Hello all,
incase this is of any benefit to those who are thinking about becoming stage hypnotists, here is a run down of my first paid gig, my impressions, responses to a few comments that Mind Pro made, and answers to a few questions I´ve been asked. Bar Gig (had to start somewhere)- Halloween. 2 weeks prior to the event there were posters up in the bar and the windows looking out into the street. I wanted to get more promotion done, flyers, posters, newspaper articles, everything I could, but it didn´t work out - I´ll be better prepared next time. I think the promotion made a massive difference to the quality of the audience – I tried an unpaid gig, with no previous promotion or advertising before which was a disaster due to the hypnosis being a surprise to the audience who had come for a comedy night. Halloween was a different story. The owner of the bar told me that there had been a lot of interest and that there were plenty of people who wanted to volunteer. I´d be liar if I said I wasn´t sh*tting bricks all day before the gig, but about 5 minutes into it the nerves subsided and I thoroughly enjoyed the show. I had arranged a friend with a HD camera to record the whole show on video, and another friend to get photographs of the whole thing. My cameraman let me down, so I don´t have video, and the photographs I got aren´t exactly great. This will be different for the next show. Mind Pro – you were 100% right, as I walked out of the bar after being paid I started re-running things in my head. Changes I´d make, things I´d tweak, things I´d leave out, things I would include etc etc. The show was probably crap if compared to a show done by Mind Pro, Danny, Mindpunisher, Mr. Jacquin etc etc but for my first show I was very pleased with the result. I had 6 chairs – due to the size of the stage area. I wanted to be able to walk completely around the chairs with ease. Sound was a bit dodgy and it took 5 minutes to get that sorted out. I had mentioned doing a sound check before hand but for reasons that I wont go into I couldn´t do a sound check. I will do a sound check before my next gig. As I introduced myself I said “in a moment volunteers will fill these chairs…..” and I started into my pretalk. I had people raising their hands in the air saying “Me! Me!” – enough to fill the chairs, so I condensed the pretalk a bit and got them up into the chairs. I asked each volunteer their name, and asked the audience for a round of applause for the real stars of the evening. I did the induction (kind of a modified Elman) and 3 opened their eyes when testing for eyelid catalepsy. I dismissed them and kept 3. (I later found out in the interval that at least 2 of the 3 I had dismissed had been smoking “funny cigarettes” prior to the show and had volunteered despite my indications not to if they had consumed drugs). With my 3 subjects I did run of the mill skits and got some great audience participation: Hot & Cold, Stuck to the person beside you. Farting skit Feet stuck to floor Hands stuck to knees Here´s € 50 for you if you can grab it (with your hands) I had loads more skits up my sleeve, but didn´t get around to using them. All together I estimate I did 90 minutes with 3 subjects. In the second half I actually reduced it to 2 subjects because one of the 3 “good” subjects got a bit lethargic and her responses were sluggish. I tried giving her the suggestion that she wouldn´t go “as deep” when I emerged her and re-induced her, but it didn´t really work. I made use of the interval to make sure she was alright (NOTE: I did not appear worried at any stage or ask “are you o.k.?” – but rather I said things to the effect of “wow, you have a real talent for entering trance, you must really be enjoying that feeling of relaxation eh?”). Her boyfriend admitted that initially he was a little worried about her when he saw her like that on stage. He wasn´t a believer in hypnosis, until he saw her slump over in her chair upon hearing the “sleep” command. After the show I again asked for applause for my subjects, shook their hands and thanked them for participating and told them they had been fantastic. Several of the audience members and even a volunteer talked to the bar owner telling him “he would have to bring me back some other night”. After the gig I thought of all sorts of things I´d change, namely: Good pre-gig promotion – I think this makes a MASSIVE difference – helps obtain better volunteers and a bigger audience. This makes for a better show meaning you can charge more and you´ll get more repeat bookings. Blocking – I paced up and down too much (not much, but still too much for my liking) and the sound set up meant there were certain stage areas I had to stay away from. I´m pretty sure I´ll gig in the same venue again, but I´ll space gigs out so people don´t get bored with it. I´m going prospecting for more gigs this weekend. Poster design is underway. Website is under construction. Business cards were printed a while back. I´ll get testimonials from the venues where I do shows. I got a real buzz from the whole thing. I entertained people with hypnosis – that´s something I love doing anyway. As a bonus I actually got paid. Can you imagine doing what you love for a living? I can
If you never fail, you're not trying hard enough.
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snm Special user 550 Posts |
I love this report man! Good for you and keep pup the good work! Be proud!
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JasonR New user 52 Posts |
That's fantastic. Well done.
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Dannydoyle Eternal Order 21219 Posts |
Understand this. The show might have been "crap" compared to a show I do today... but compared to my first show I bet it is right on par! Good for you.
Danny Doyle
<BR>Semper Occultus <BR>In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act....George Orwell |
Chris Meece Special user Somerset Kentucky 864 Posts |
Awesome Owen!! Man .. this was a huge leap of faith. Sounds like an awesome experience. Thanks for writing it up.
All small town magicians know what 793.8 signifies.
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mrkmarik Regular user New York 185 Posts |
Congrat Owen!!!
Marc. |
Owen Mc Ginty Special user not a stupid user, a special user. 533 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-11-03 12:33, Chris Meece wrote: Hey Chris - if you´re thinking about it, just do it! I stepped outside the comfort zone, and I learned a lot and had an awesome experience! Thanks to everyone for the kind words
If you never fail, you're not trying hard enough.
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TonyB2009 Inner circle 5006 Posts |
My first show was ropey but successful. Well done on taking that first step. All you need to do now is keep saying yes to the gigs. Best of luck.
Check out Tony's new thriller Dead or Alive http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alive-Varrick-Bo......n+carson
http://www.PartyMagic.ie |
bobser Inner circle 4178 Posts |
Well Done Owen. There are several hyps that I know would NOT wish to go ahead with only 3. As scared as youi were there is a kind of bravery in inexperience that allows you to go forward 'assumimng' it'll be fine. LOL.
I agree with Tony; look for reasons to always say YES to the gigs. Oh, and do try to move quickly to the next one, and the next one.
Bob Burns is the creator of The Swan.
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Owen Mc Ginty Special user not a stupid user, a special user. 533 Posts |
Afirmative Bob - I´m prospecting thisevening, tomorrow and sunday
I want to gather momentum, not lose it
If you never fail, you're not trying hard enough.
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RSD Special user Toronto, Ontario 534 Posts |
Bravo sir. Nice to hear you are doing well. May this be the first step for you on a long road of success.
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Anansi Regular user 195 Posts |
Fantastic news, weird in Seville.
And remember: 'When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro' Well Done OMG! (there we are- your new stage name!- not quite Luke Temple or Shrink, but not bad )
ars est celare artem
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Jesse Lewis Loyal user 227 Posts |
All I can say Owen is great job I'm glad to see your success
Jesse
Learn how to build a bigger business at www.showbizsuccesssecrets.com
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Anthony Jacquin Inner circle UK 2220 Posts |
Nice one Owen, congratulations.
Reflecting on your gig is wise, as nearly everything you flagged up as a problem is something that is potentially under your control. Get your checklist sorted. Happy to email my Health, Safety and Technical specification if this helps. It acts as my checklist before any gig. PM me. Anthony
Anthony Jacquin
Reality is Plastic! The Art of Impromptu Hypnosis Updated for 2016 Now on Kindle and Audible! |
PerryCarp Regular user 128 Posts |
Great stuff! Congratulations on a successful gig and a learning experience!
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Owen Mc Ginty Special user not a stupid user, a special user. 533 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-11-07 01:09, Jesse Lewis wrote: A big thankyou to Jesse, he knows why
If you never fail, you're not trying hard enough.
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