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TheAmbitiousCard Eternal Order Northern California 13425 Posts |
I do sleight-of-hand throughout my act because I NEED TO for it to interest me.
Period. I would have little to no interest performing otherwise. It's not right or wrong or the best way or the worst way. It's just what I have to do. Even my chang-bag routine involves skills. Why? Because I need it to. And what Kyle wrote goes for me too. I do my stuff in my way. Quote: Everything I do in my show is an extension of me. I just refuse to do anything that is not my own routine and a part of who I am as a performer. besides, I love the creative process.
www.theambitiouscard.com Hand Crafted Magic
Trophy Husband, Father of the Year Candidate, Chippendale's Dancer applicant, Unofficial World Record Holder. |
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TheGreatNancini Veteran user Ohio 373 Posts |
Matthew and I actually upset a magic creator / dealer when we told him the first thing we do when we buy a prop is to throw out the routine that comes with it and proceed to create a routine that fits us.
We both are very creative and love to constantly design new acts for our shows. Our shows are unique in that every act is pretty much designed as a two person act that fits us. Our routines pretty much define who we are, which makes our show much more interesting and entertaining. I cannot think of any prop or slight of hand in our shows that even remotely resemble that of any other performer. Gotta agree with Tony, Al, Kyle and Frank on this one. ~Nanci |
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magicgeorge Inner circle Belfast 4299 Posts |
Quote:
On 2012-03-25 14:10, TheGreatNancini wrote: |
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harris Inner circle Harris Deutsch 8812 Posts |
My work (and classes) in theatre, improvisation and music are as important as my props and magical skills. All of them along with my personal life experiences come together for my programs. One other important ingredient is to add the audience to your/my recipe for a good show.
Though I can do routines that say start with five coins c/p in the right hand..one up the left sleeve...a shot put in a hold out and a lemon pie in my shoe...I also can get great reactions with a mosquito whistle (or 3) in my mouth along with a giant fly swatter. Harris still 2 old to know it all staying green..like my lawn..(at least as of yesterday)
Harris Deutsch aka dr laugh
drlaugh4u@gmail.com music, magic and marvelous toys http://magician.org/member/drlaugh4u |
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MrMagi Regular user 114 Posts |
Magicgeorge
:D |
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TheAmbitiousCard Eternal Order Northern California 13425 Posts |
Quote:
On 2012-03-26 10:49, Harris wrote: You are a stud!!!
www.theambitiouscard.com Hand Crafted Magic
Trophy Husband, Father of the Year Candidate, Chippendale's Dancer applicant, Unofficial World Record Holder. |
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John Breeds Veteran user England 336 Posts |
Thanks guys for some very worthwhile points.
Particularly, I have to agree with Kyle’s three very discerning points, viz. 1) You can not allow your own love for a move or obsession of sleights to get the better of you. 2) The moves and tools we use (sleights etc.) should be invisible to our audiences. They are a means in which to get the job done. 3) Do not utilize sleights to simply "show off" to kids. Most of the time they will simply not enjoy it as much. Kyle, I apologize if I have chopped your perceptive analysis too severely here, but in your post you make your points well. Personally, I think it helps to have knowledge and skill of sleights. But I always err on the side of simplicity, involvement and range of effect - even if it mean self working stuff. Mind you, I have seen a performer use a change bag for at least five tricks in the same show. Eg. i) blendo silks; magic welding of beads; cards across; cut and restored rope and forcing a color. All five effects could have been improved using sleight of hand. I have seen another performer use all self-working tricks but he included some amazing flourishes and stagecraft (without showing off). These included producing a silk (before he went into the main effect); fabulous wand spins; skilled dance steps; positioning helpers correctly so that no one was upstaged. All this added to the overall professional look of his show. Good routining and presentation are key skills that does not require sleight of hand. John |
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
No problems at all. John. You stated my concepts and points very well. Nice to know someone else agrees to my theory on how I approach things in my own show.
It really comes down to developing your skills and constantly learning new skills so that you can CHOOSE which to use in any given routine or situation. Which ones you choose to pick depends upon which makes the routine more “entertaining” to the audience you are performing for. In my own opinion, if the end reaction is exactly the same regardless of if I do a crazy sleight or work more simplistic, I will usually work simplistic. The audience has no idea because it is invisible to them. This allows me to better concentrate on the entertainment value I am presenting to them instead of worrying so much on a show of skill alone or mechanics. Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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harris Inner circle Harris Deutsch 8812 Posts |
For those of you into the mechanics of grammar, the giant fly swatter was not really in my mouth...only the 3 mosquito whistles.(which I believe were purchased from a great Café member)
and as someone once said...effect...effect effect.... which could mean the magical effect ...or the effect our program has on our audience(s). Harris zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... grateful that he works with lots and lots of teachers who can help him create things without spillin arrors.
Harris Deutsch aka dr laugh
drlaugh4u@gmail.com music, magic and marvelous toys http://magician.org/member/drlaugh4u |
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magicgeorge Inner circle Belfast 4299 Posts |
Heh. Shurrup Wonka, twas funny.
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kimmo Inner circle Sheffield 1193 Posts |
Quote:
On 2012-03-27 09:54, magicgeorge wrote: It was possibly the funniest thing I've seen this year.
VISIT MY ONLINE STORE!: www.kimmomagicshop.com
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magicgeorge Inner circle Belfast 4299 Posts |
I knew you'd appreciate it, John.
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KC Cameron Inner circle Raleigh, North Carolina 1944 Posts |
As for slight or lever..... fooey! As for audience perspeactive... hog wash! I do what makes me happy. If flaring with cards makes me happy, so be it. If pulling a lever on some magnificent Wolf's magic does the trick, then that's what I do.
Now it is true that the lay-audence doesn't give a flip on how a trick is done, but they do care how it is presented. So, IF (and that is a BIG "IF") you care how much they are enjoying themselves, you will worry about presentation. Sure, finger flickin' takes the practice of someone with WAY too much time on their hands, but it is easy once it is practiced enough - and can provide happiness. Yes, pullin' levers takes the intelligence of a real dumb nat...but so what if it makes me happy? Once again, if making an audience happy makes me happy, then I will do that and not give a rat's donkey weither it comes straight off the shelf or out of my twisted head. Since I like twisting my head, and only because I like it, I make most of my props, and I enjoy slights. This makes them superior in the way of making me happy, the audience doesn't care. I can also feel superior to those who waste their money on expensive props. Ha ha! I am also an old man, and lugging bulky, heavy props most certainly does NOT make me happy. All in all, if you want to impress fellow magicians with your knuckle busting skills, go for it! If you want to impress fellow magicians with your "Spared no Expense " lever pullin' props - go enjoy yerself! If you care about what the audience likes, ignore what others say (And just listen to me!) and follow yer gut. If you see a photo of me, you'll see my gut sticks out so it its easy to follow. MY audience likes fart jokes. |
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Alan Munro Inner circle Kentwood, Michigan, USA 5952 Posts |
I prefer to use sleights, but if there's something I can appreciate about the method, I may use it. The audience has to like the material or else it's gone. One of the things that I challenge myself with is to get huge impact using simple props. For the most part, box magic doesn't suit me. Who knows? I might even develop a kidshow that fits in a cigar box, just to challenge myself a little.
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Howie Diddot Inner circle San Francisco & Los Angeles California 3288 Posts |
Quote:
On 2012-04-02 09:32, KC Cameron wrote: Written like a true professional; some magicians don’t care what the audience thinks as long as you impress your fellow magicians; this is what a magician wrote to me in a PM and I could not believe my eyes when I read it. KC Cameron, I can learn from you… |
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vincentmusician Loyal user Toronto 265 Posts |
I use the routines that I enjoy performing and what engages the audience the most. I perform for adults and kids. I use both sleight of hand and Self working Magic for both. What ever works the best. The same goes for my Strolling Close-Up Magic too! Cheers!
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The Mighty Fool Inner circle I feel like a big-top tent having 2140 Posts |
Let's see . . . the spongeballs and Miser's dream are the only surviving sleights in my kidzshow. As I was able to afford bigger effects, the smaller ones (Read: sleight-of-hand) just got gradually replaced. Axtel's "clapometer" replaced the elmsley-count, WolfMagic's "Chicken-sword" replaced the Sylvester-pitch, etc. I do shows almost exclusively for the 3-7 daycare / birthday crowd these days, but if I was ever hired to perform for the 10-up crowd, believe me I'd bring the sleights back!
Everybody wants to beleive.....we just help them along.
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wwhokie1 Special user 512 Posts |
You can do great slight of hand and bore the children to death. You can do a great job with levers and other such self working efforts and bore children to death. A good magical performance will entertain if it is entertaining, not because of the tools you use or your technical ability level, they help, but are not an end in themselves. Self working and slight of hand can be very magical or very boring depending on the presentation. Use whatever tool is necessary to make the routine create an incredible magical experience. I personally don't care which I use and often use a combination. Build the routine and use whatever inspires you to create something special and magical. The real pitfall is performing a boring uninspired routine. Let the creative juices flow and have fun entertaining yourself as you create the routine, then you can entertain others. If you don't find performing the routine over and over enjoyable, then the audience will be bored as well. If self working props bore you, don't use them. If slight of hand distracts you from engaging the audience, be careful where you include it and practice until it doesn't distract. But most of all, don't worry about impressing people, instead fear boring them, fear not entertaining them, fear not creating a magical experience. I find people don't care if you are doing the manipulation or if some mechanism is, they just want the magical experience, they want to be entertained. Jack Benny, one of the all time great comedians, never cared who got the laughs on his show as long as the audience laughed. He said they would not remember the next day who said what, only whether the show was funny. Yes people are more impressed when it is slight of hand. But are we seeking to impress and wow them with our abilities, or are we seeking to entertain them with an incredible, magical experience. Certainly, you can do both. But we must remember all the incredibly talented and yet boring people out there. I remember being bored to death at a concert with one of the most incredible voices I have ever heard in person, and at other times being swept away by the experience created by an average professional voice that engaged the audience and pulled us into the experience. One impressed me, wow what a voice. The other I would see again, what an entertaining performance. Also, don't underestimate the skill required to manipulate self working tricks properly. I will never forget the first time I saw the coloring book routine performed. Absolutely horrible. It doesn't take much effort, and I cringe when I see it being pulled out, but put forth some effort to perform it well if you are going to use it. Don't slide your hand up and down the edge looking for the correct place to open it, practice so you can do it smoothly, and be creative. Remember that even something simple and overused can be magical. Simple, unmagical props can be turned into something special. Years ago I built a routine for my son to use in a cub scout talent show, actually two routines. One of the two involved the dreaded coloring books, he actually used four. It amazed an audience of about a hundred scouts and their parents. Got a standing ovation.
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