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keeblem Inner circle Essex, UK 1167 Posts |
If you've been doing children's parties long enough - you end up doing some unusual shows. Here are a couple of my more unusual engagements:
1. The booker had booked 2 entertainers by mistake. It was organized by the grandmother and she'd obviously got a bit confused. I was a happy to step down as it was in a bit of a dodgy area and I accepted travelling expenses and a bit extra. 2. No one turned up! This was an event being organised by some extra education outfit. No one turned up. And I mean NO ONE! I showed the booker and card trick and left! Possible the most expensive card trick ever! 3. The birthday boy wasn't there! This was an odd one. The party went ahead without the birthday boy. There was obviously something going on here but I didn't ask any questions. 4. Birthday boy "forgot" to hand out invitations. Just a few family members there. That one really dragged! 5. Party cancelled - didn't bother telling me! Nothing more to say about that one. I was pretty annoyed. |
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pbj100 Special user 516 Posts |
Magic show for children at a funeral!
Actualy the show was well recieved but when booked I had reservtions but the booker said " we have seen you many times don't play it down just do your normal show " Phil |
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thekidsmagician Regular user Bristol 118 Posts |
Probably the most unusual gig I've done was entertaining at the 3rd birthday party of the son of a Russian oligarch. It was a rather impressive affair with a petting zoo, pony rides, a separate balloon modeller and the biggest bouncy castle I've ever seen (sadly I wasn't able to have a go on it!)
I don't do many gigs like it but it was an interesting - and unusual - experience. - Mike
Children's entertainer in Bristol - making children look AMAZING! - www.thekidsmagician.com
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harris Inner circle Harris Deutsch 8812 Posts |
Singing telegram at a funeral parlor.
For a staff persons birthday. Ren. Festival gig at a castle. At least the house sure looked like one. Juneteenth celebration. The event wasn't unusual. It was when I realized my harmonica playing was getting good. Feedback from some included drop the puppet keep the harp. I'm glad he did both, said Nigel. 18th and Vine district in Kansas City and wailing on the song. .... You got it going to Kansas City. Playing (for the first time) harmonica at a celebration of life service/funeral. Library show during a really bad thunder storm. No weather alert warnings but we only had 6 people show. Librarian was pleased that I still gave them a high energy show. Nice thread suggestion. Harris
Harris Deutsch aka dr laugh
drlaugh4u@gmail.com music, magic and marvelous toys http://magician.org/member/drlaugh4u |
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MRSharpe Special user Never a dull moment with 940 Posts |
Birthday party for a one year old and his two cousins. The booker was a foreign doctor and I couldn't convince him that I would be wasting my time and that I could do walk around for the adults--there were about 50 adults in attendance--but he said they wouldn't care for it. When I got there a DJ was playing sitar/tabla musics at 11 and I had to shot all the way through the show. I never found out it the kids even understood English as they didn't say a thing. After packing up my kids's show--I did the whole 35 minute show in about twenty and that took work--I broke out a deck and did a few card effects for some of the ladies with the booker looking on. They loved it and he tried to talk me into staying until the end and doing walk around for no additional fee. I said I would, but he would have to double my fee. He wouldn't budge, so I took my fee and left. Definitely a strange and frustrating situation.
Custom Props Designer and Fabricator as well as Performer from Indiana, USA
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
1) A show for a couple hundred Russians dignitaries and businessmen, 99% of whom spoke no English. I was offered a translator, but figuring that would bomb, we took a 1 1/2 hour show and whittled it down to 40 minutes of magic all done to music.
2) Theater show in a mental institution. Curtains opened and we saw about 20 silhouette heads in the back row and one guy in the front row with his arms crossed and a very mean scowl on his face. Nobody else. 3) Once hired to do a large show using doves and a large duck. It was supposed to be in a banquet room at a restaurant that I was already familiar with. When we got there, they had moved this party to another room, an 85' train car! We had to perform at the far end naturally, so that meant carrying everything for the show, including sound system, livestock, etc. over the heads of the audience to get to the other end. 4) Christmas party in the locker room of a bowling alley. All the benches were bolted to the floor, so that took some very creative blocking. 5) Outdoor show for the local park district. They told me they had a stage. When I got there, I discovered it was a wooden crate not big enough for both me and my table. Couldn't stand on the grass because their microphone would shock you on the lips if you tried. 6) Arrived for my usual gig at a restaurant and was told that there was a private party in the banquet room. I walked in and found myself surrounded by about 75 little people... and by that I don't mean kids. Very surreal feeling when you aren't expecting it. There are plenty more, but this is enough for now...
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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jay leslie V.I.P. Southern California 9498 Posts |
Here's a few I hadn't mentioned before.These are very tame in comparisson to the ones I've posted in the past
I was told we were going to be on a yauct. The yachy was a 35 foot cabin cruiser. I did the show on the #3 deck (The top deck). There was room for my table, myself and two assistants. 24 people were hanging off the railings, half way up the vadder. With all those people, the vessel was top heavy and every time a small wave splased on the starbord side, the entire boat swayed at a good 20 degrees - each way. All I could do was bring one prop out from the bottom of the table and put it away when done & I had to keep a hand on the table so it wouldn't roll over the railing. - - - - When I was 14 I did a show in an apartment. The tempurature was over 110. Every balloon broke as they were inflated. The balloons were only 10 minutes out of 45 but the lady insisted on only paying me half my fee. - - - - had a show in a backyard. They insisted on putting me on the far side of the pool about 2 feet awy from the edge. There was a fence right behind me. I told them that people couldn't see or assist if I was that far away. They didn't care. - - - The school show family night is over. It's 9:30 and we are still packing the illusions. The janitor announces that he is union and is leaving. He turned off all the lights at the breaker in a locked box outside the building. Then he locked the gate behind him as he left.
Jay Leslie
www.TheHouseOfEnchantment.com |
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Bazinga Loyal user 277 Posts |
In 1975 I was in a rock band. We played some originals and covers of Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Led Zepplin, etc. The body of my bass guitar was shaped and painted as the torso and head of a well-endowed topless woman. Our singer was known for his T-shirts with a goat's head in a pentagram, painted in blacklight paint. We got booked for a teen dance. We got to the address, and the dance was in...
the basement of a Lutheran church. We played the gig. The kids danced. And no one said a negative thing about our look or music. I have pictures of the gig and cringe when I see them now. |
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rossmacrae Inner circle Arlington, Virginia 2477 Posts |
Many of the above examples happened to me during my 26 years, including all but 1 of the OP's 5 examples ... they explain my gray hair.
I think especially of: The birthday kid is turning 2. He and 1 friend are there. That's all. I am booked for 6pm. The party turns out to be a gigantic affair from 6pm to at least midnight, with dinner and more. Therefore, the guests filter in starting at 7pm, leaving me (again) to perform for 2 kids. At least several like this were my first happy memory of the way families from India dress their little girls up like real jeweled princesses. Poolside party. "OK, is everybody ready for a magic show?" they all respond repeatedly "No! We wanna swim!" Bowling alley. Loud rock music. Completely unrelated customers either wandering through my best-as-I-can-make-it performing area, or else flocking over to watch ... "No, only give balloons to the kids in the party!" (Whichever ones they might be). Family party of another culture. Every ten minutes another flock of relatives arrive, and they all have to kiss the birthday kid and give him their presents, which they insist that he unwrap immediately. |
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magicden Regular user scotland 103 Posts |
Some great posts, my only really strange show was when I turned up and the lady said can you do it in the bedroom... thought she was kidding at first, but had to do the show stood between the bed and the wall about 2 feet of space with 5 kids sitting on the bed and a couple of adults at the sides.
Den |
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magicden Regular user scotland 103 Posts |
Some great posts, my only really strange show was when I turned up and the lady said can you do it in the bedroom... thought she was kidding at first, but had to do the show stood between the bed and the wall about 2 feet of space with 5 kids sitting on the bed and a couple of adults at the sides.
Den |
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cwbny Loyal user 211 Posts |
On the cute side of unusual, I'll be performing a small show tomorrow in a kindergarten classroom. The students are doing show-and-tell with items that begin with the letter 'm.' A mother hired me, so her son can bring in a Magician. I'm excited to help him "win" show-and-tell.
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magicden Regular user scotland 103 Posts |
That's really cool. cwbny
Den |
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Greensboro New user 73 Posts |
Got a message on my answering machine from a woman inquiring about a birthday party. Called back and a man answered. When I asked for the woman by name, he became very aggressive. "Who is this?" he fairly shouted in my ear. I explained the nature of my call, then spoke to the lady and booked the show. When I arrived, I found the hostess to be a very (very) attractive lady. Her male companion eyed me with great suspicion and hostility the entire time I was there. I could hardly blame him since the woman was, by my estimation, way out of his league. Still, when you feel your relationship is threatened by the birthday clown, perhaps it's time to pack it in.
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A Show By Joe Elite user Long Island 408 Posts |
Once, I was hired to perform at a local towns "Movie Night/ Car Show". I was told the date by the organizer. When I got there, there was only me, a clown, an ice cream truck and 3 vintage cars. The print shop printed the wrong date, and no one figured it out! I winded up doing my show for 5 people.
Another time, I was booked for a one year old birthday party buy someone who was coming into town for the weekend to be with her family. When I got there, it looked like a funeral. Apparently there was a fight between the women's family that hired me, and her boyfriend's family, because everyone was sitting just starring at each other. And the kicker was that there was 3 kids under 3, and no one spoke English! I think I sweated out 5 pounds that party. |
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danfreed Inner circle West Chester PA 1354 Posts |
I did caricatures for an open house for funural directors at a casket warehouse, sourounded by thousands of caskets.
At a fair, the second day when I showed up, there was a big hunk of cow poop on the stage, and the stage had sunk in the mud overnight and was very unlevel. I had a hard time finding someone to clean up the poop - that wasn't in the contract! I used to do surprise telegrams, dressed as a cop and other charactors. I would arrest people on silly charges the client thought up. One time I arrested and cuffed (real cuffs - real cop outfit except for the badge) a guy for crack abuse (his but crack always shows) and he didn't realize it was a joke even after I went back to the car and gave him helium balloons. I felt bad on that one.
Dan Freed
AKA The Amazing Spaghetti https://www.magiciandanfreed.com/birthday-party-magician-for-kids http://thecaricatureartist.com http://danieljayfreed.com |
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jay leslie V.I.P. Southern California 9498 Posts |
Greensboro
I used to get 3 or 4 angry phone calls a season, from men who found my business card in their wives purses. They would interrogate me until they discovered I was offering a show for their PTA. Sherlock Holmes, these guys aint. ! A few threatened me with broken bones as soon as I said Hello. I changed my business card photo to more of a characterisation and me looking less like a man. I haven't had any angry calls since then. Once I had a detective call and threaten to arrest me and make sure I was thrown-in with the "lifers" because he didn't like his wife talking to me. After he figured out what I did (IT"S RIGHT ON THE CARD) he apologised, and apologised and apologised. I called his department and suggested they give him a psychological or I would file a complaint. Never heard back from him - and the PTA booked me so he had his chance. - - - My friend Donald did a show for some people who lived on top of a hill at the end of a road. They had high walls around the house and big men, who didn't belong there, just hanging out. When the show was over they offered to help him get his stuff packed and practically shoved it out the door. As soon as they cleared the front gate, they slammed it shut. He asked for his money and they said "We aint goin a pay ... We don't like you".
Jay Leslie
www.TheHouseOfEnchantment.com |
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TonyB2009 Inner circle 5006 Posts |
Some great stories here.
I remember doing the fiftieth birthday of an internet gambling billionaire. He spent €300,000 on the party, which included sixty zombies, and thirty lap dancers flown in from the UK. I have performed on planes and trains, and once in a bedroom. Several times in a medieval castle, once in a toy shop, once in a village at 18,000 feet in the Himalaya, and once on a ferry when the entire audience spoke French, and I didn't. Not much, anyway. One memorable show was for a group of Eastern European Muslims. I was told that I was performing only for the boys, and asked to wait while the girls were removed. They were wrong; I was performing for everyone. It took a few minutes before they saw things my way, but the girls were brought back to the room, and loved the show.
Check out Tony's new thriller Dead or Alive http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alive-Varrick-Bo......n+carson
http://www.PartyMagic.ie |
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TonyB2009 Inner circle 5006 Posts |
Some great stories here.
I remember doing the fiftieth birthday of an internet gambling billionaire. He spent €300,000 on the party, which included sixty zombies, and thirty lap dancers flown in from the UK. I have performed on planes and trains, and once in a bedroom. Several times in a medieval castle, once in a toy shop, once in a village at 18,000 feet in the Himalaya, and once on a ferry when the entire audience spoke French, and I didn't. Not much, anyway. One memorable show was for a group of Eastern European Muslims. I was told that I was performing only for the boys, and asked to wait while the girls were removed. They were wrong; I was performing for everyone. It took a few minutes before they saw things my way, but the girls were brought back to the room, and loved the show.
Check out Tony's new thriller Dead or Alive http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alive-Varrick-Bo......n+carson
http://www.PartyMagic.ie |
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Starrpower Inner circle 4070 Posts |
My most unusual one: the booker as a hooker! I may have told this story here before, but there was a woman who frequented the bar of the restaurant where I worked for 13+ years. I had spoken with her many times, and she told me she sold coral mineral supplements or some such thing. One day she asked me to perform at her daughter's party, and wanted to take it out in trade. It took a bit for me to realize exactly what she had in mind, and she seemed surprised that I did not know her occupation.
For the record, I did not take her up on it. |
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