some new tricks and the years wrap up

Well as December closes to an end I have begun to think about my last year in magic. At the beginning of the year I knew OF some tricks and slights, i knew HOW they were performed but could do very little magic itself. Now 12 months later I can confidently perform 3 or 4 different 10 minute routines in close up magic and free style a few tricks. I've learnt how to captivate children with Guy Hollingworth's 'Once Upon a Time'. I have performed 3 gigs for 3 very different audiences and enjoyed many evenings in the local goth club honning my performances as well as magic geeking with some great freinds. So what made htis year different to toher years when I toyed with magic. As stupid as it sounds I think getting a pluck foam case was a great start. Being able to store my props and get at them easily made it possible for me to practise for just a few minutes a day if need be. The other factor was taking opportunity tp perform when it was thurstupon me. I could have bailed, I could have chickened out, but I didn't. I think having friends involved in magic and a very supportive girlfriend all contributed to this. So in short. Keep at it. stay involved have faith in yourself and the universe.

preachy bit over. now it's time to talk of my gig. The gig was with my great friend and partner Harvey. The clients were a support group for people with autism and aspergers and their families. I think Harvey was better prepared for our audience than myself, but I think we both did a great job. The main thing as to not have ambiguous instructions where they could do the wrong thing via a simple mis-understanding of language. The other was to not enter a competition with the participants. I think this is true with all magic to be honest, it's not about proving we're smarter than those around us. it's about entertaining people, and maybe making them think a little more about the world around them, certainly it's also about giving them that pleasant belly flip of surprise. Here then There went down well, as did Do as I do, Four sight, and aces High. Out of This World proved popular however some people found it too incredulous and insisted a trick deck was used even after examining the pack. I have experinced the strnage phenoma of being 'too good' before. When explaining how I made my own waistcoat to a lady in the fabric shop I work at she insisted I was lieing, she said it was too good to be home made. I explained that as a tailor if my work wasn't as good, if not better than the shops then I was in trouble she still left calling me a liar. This it was with this trick. It's a simple almost self working trick and i's all in the presentation, but the parent of one of the children insisted it 'looked like something from the telly' and thus was fake. it seems he would only be satisfied that something was a REAL MAGIC TRICK if he could work it out. I asked him if it was not a magic trick and if it was not a truly phsyicic event then what was it, he simply replied 'cheating' so there you ave it folks you can't please everyone, either you're not good enough, or two good and force someone onto a mental 'cul-de-sac'

Ambitious card was a lovely trick for someone who was shy and maybe needed a little coaxing to be involved. IT works well as a one on one trick and made the participant realise I could be there just for her. A new trick was 'The Wee Wee Mentalist' taken from 2wo Faced by David Forrest. This DVD centres on new uses for classic gaff cards such as double backed and blank backed. The effect is the spectator chooses a card and writes their name on it. A simple stick drawing of a mentalist reads her mind and is seen thinking of the card. It has a lovely reveal and uses only basic slights. The response was impressive. It's a departure from my normal choice of magic as it can't be dressed up as gambling skills or advanced psychology. By having a stick man thought bubble reveal the card it's obvious classic card manipulation is a foot. However no-one has worked out the method and they seem to enjoy the physical transformation of the card. Defiantly a keeper.

i'm not dead....

or worse, giveing up on magic. I've had a wonderfull magic filled month, just no time to blog it. Expect a big catch up up-date soon

Confessions of a Conjurer

After an ill advised attempt of dish washing I've thrown my back out. I had already booked today off work in an attempt to catch up on rest and then sort out one or two niggles in my life and maybe even a quick visit home to see the family. I'm now stuck flat on my back apart from brief moments of self imposed physio therapy (also known as tea making). This means I'll finally finish Derren Brown's latest work "Confessions of a Conjurer". This book is aimed at the laymen and doesn't''t reveal much in the way of magical method. Well maybe not physical method, but ethos and psychological handling is mentioned. IT is about 300 pages of rambling stream of consciousness. Initially it is set in the restaurant he first performed close up magic in, but takes a complete tangent every half a page. I'm currently on page 150 and he's JUST started performing a trick for a table. His description of his first approach to a table was perfect, and summed up my first ever approach to a pack of drinkers in a bar. Fortunately I still managed to get out and perform last Friday and Saturday morning at work. Oil and Water went down very well. I performed it for about 15 people in all, and only one noticed where something 'fishy' may have occurred. However much like Derren Brown himself says, the trick lacks reason, it lacks plot. it is purly showing off card manipulation there is no other explanation unlike other tricks where people can believe it was an example of mind twisting spiritual interference or just actual magic.

Gliding Away

I had meant to spend time this week working on the "Elmsley Count". However whilst reaching the slight in my now expanding Library I realised I was missing a wealth of effects by not working on "The Glide". This is one of the simplest slights, but it can be used to great effect it seams/ I am rapidly forming the opinion that you don't get points for being over complicated. Participants are impressed by smoothness and easy handling. That is not to say that complex slights are not to be ignores, merely that easier and more reliable slights can afford some wonderful reactions when you may not be up to performing something complex.

Oil and Water From Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic. Effect. The spectator is shown 6 cards, three black and three red, (ace, two and three in red, four five and six in black) they are shown alternating red black red black red and black but the numbers appear random. The magician shows the bottom card and draws it, placing the card on the top of the deck. this is repeated several times. The magician then hands the pack over to the spectator who then fans the deck to reveal the cards have separated into two halves, red and black, and are now in numeric order.

Reaction Amazingly positive. There is a certain subtle misdirection involved, and I have tweaked the presentation from the book slightly. However all in all this is a very simple method of performing a classic of magic. I Have managed a very clumsy attempt of the Guy Hollingworth version of this trick. Once I can perform it smoothly I shall try each version against each other.

More Card Cheating from Daryl. Well Daryl showed how to control four cards with the "The Glide" I simply used 4 aces and turned it into another " Magicians cheat at cards" again. This time the spectator can say "Stop" when they want me to draw a card into my hand and I still show 4 aces.

Reaction Yet to be used in the wild.

new trick time methinks

Well we are rapidly approaching another night at the Goth club. The last time I was there I had no real new material. Instead I used this time to actually chat and socialize for once. However I need to build up the repertoire some more and more importantly hone what I have and tweak presentation. I've come up with a way of organising my act. On small card I write the name of the trick, what sort of effect the trick is if it uses slights or not and if the card is stacked. I then in one corner on the bottom write the starting stack and on the other corner the finished stack. This way I can group tricks in to theme (eg psychological, card sharp etc) and then work out the best order to work the effects. I already have a 'Starting Stack' that enables me to go through 'Here then there' and 'Do as I do' followed very quickly with 'Aces High'. Hopefully I'll have time today to work though Mark Wilson's course and find some other tricks that work well with this crowd. (there are MANY tricks very early on in the course HOWEVER some build on earlier tricks and so would feel slightly repative). I may see if I can laminate Paul Daniels 'Age Cards' effect and try it out with a few different presnetation.

That awkward stage

I'm at that awkward age. You know when your in your early teens and things a growing too fast and your clumsy. And you suddenly have knowledge of things such as women, but no idea on how to go about doing anything with them? Much like many other things I have studied I've reached a place where I can spot my mistakes very quickly, and I spot a lot of them. I've not gotten any worse as a card handler, I can just see what I'm doing wrong. Wrong is a rather big word for it really, I can see where I need improving. It's at this point many people give up but it's a useful tool in improving. This has happened before with regard to some slights (I may have mentioned it in the past) and each time I work through it I become a better magician. So the 'old school' approach is called for. This isn't a case of buying new books or props, nor is it some sort of self realisation meditation. it's, you guessed it practise.
On the subject of books. Is it so bad that I crave magic books to look just like that, MAGIC. Don't get me wrong, I KNOW what's inside is what's important. BUT I am a very large 5 year old, I like my things to be pretty and shiny. I recommended to a young lady who has just started contact juggling that she take the shiny pretty ball as she's more inclined to practise with it. It's the same with books and e, I love opening absolute magic, it looks like a magical tome, whilst Mark Wilson's course (The definitive magic book) looks like something form the kids department. I'm working through the Mark Wilson book and just dealing with the fact that the first bunch of tricks are just a little too simplistic for my audience. At least without giving major thought to presentation. So I'm not going to buy a new magic book for a few months BUT I am going to buy Derren Browns Confessions of a Conjurer. Apparently it's not so much an auto biography and more a stream of consciousness.

The strangest sort of vanity.

As a child I didn't like revising for exams. It wasn't because I found the task hard or boring. I just didn't like realising there may be something about a subject I didn't know. Maybe it was fear of failure that motivated this strange behaviour. it is possible I feared that if there was something I didn't know then I'd never know it. Silly, stupid and dangerous behaviour which i fought to control. I was the same with magic tricks as a kid. When given a magic set I'd try to make all the tricks work without reading the instructions because "I should be able to work it out!". Utter nonsense, at that point in my life I didn't know any fundamentals of magic to build on, but I still got angry with myself for not being able to work things out unaided. I am still guilty of this possibly indicator of mental illness at times. When reading a book I may skim some parts as if telling myself I'm not really reading it , thus necessitating a good hard slap from my super-ego. This is why I prefer to think of magic as a craft and not an art. To me an art is a pure expression in some form, which magic when performed with heart can be. But a craft is somethign you continually work at to improve. Thus you are allowed to be rubbish when you start, and even have days when you are not as fluent in your moves as you'd like. The point is to practise even when your messing up to remind yourself that this is all part of the process of getting better. All to often I may be feeling a little rough and so spend time reading books on the performance aspect instead of learning new tricks or more importantly, getting my current repertoire smooth and fluid. There's nothing wrong with this from time to time, showmanship IS important, but it's important to realise when you are studying for the the right reason and when you're just hiding from the practise because you've become afraid of it.

they problems with being masterless.

I sometimes wonder if my blog title makes me sound cocky. "I don't NEED a teacher" is what some people may assume. But it's more the case that like many people entering the world of magic I simply can't find one or afford one. So much like many magicians I have to learn from books, and now from DVD's. (on that note I must say that both are good ways of learning with their advantages and disadvantages). There are many problems with not having a teacher. For one case bad habits can creep in, and maybe we don't practise as much as we should because we don't get checked on once a week. This can be worked around by having friends also learning magic and demonstrate for them weekly. But there is one problem I have yet to find a way around. Confidence. I am awaiting a book on childrens' party magic. I love working with kids, they have the same amount as energy as me so I don't have to feel like I'm dragging my feet with them. But I also think children's magic is less scary to perform. I told my partner that once I get the book I may need a few simple, cheap prop before I can perform. She just looked at me for a few moments and said "You just need a plain pack of cards". She's seen me perform, for cash no less, with a simple plain deck of cards. For some reason I have just lost all my confidence for performing card magic and other close up magic for cynical grown ups. All this even though I got good reviews and received payment for doing it months a go and I have practised a lot since, and learnt more techniques both in tricks and handling people.
SO here's the plan. it's Christmas soon, there will be parties. It's time to work my socks off for a few weeks and get some gigs.

been a while again

It's been a while again since my last update. Unlike other times this is also means I haven't been practising as much as I should have. This doesn't mean I've not been working on the craft however. The reason behind the lack of practise does sound like a rather lame excuse. My gf has asked me not to work with cards whilst we were watching television. That was my main double lift and false shuffle time! We've talked more and the ban has been lifted.
To prepare to become a party magician I've taken the following steps. I've been learning to juggle to begin with,. I'll never perform juggling in the act I think, at least not for a very long time anyway. HOWEVER juggling has improved my hand eye co-ordination as well as my ability to control my hands in separate tasks at the same time. I may well try to incorporate a little contact juggling however. I've also dabbled in Balloon Modelling. I tried a few years ago with no success but now -with a very cheap kit no less- I picked it up in a few minutes. I think this adds weight to my theory that when you practise magic you develop a 'knack' for picking up skills that use digital dexterity.

Following the Paul Daniels course I've looked into the actual performing part or magic. I've started the ball rolling with my CRB check and I've found an easy and cheap way to sort out insurance etc. (according to a friend who performs balloon modelling at childrens' parties says he's never really been asked for it)

One side note, after seeing some flourish displays from young magic students my confidence took a huge knock. BUT then I realised they didn't' know many actual tricks, and the tricks they knew were quite transparent. Confidence come with elegance and ease of handling, and vice versa. Both have their seed in practice practice practice.

hmm now what

I've been reading Paul Daniels "how to make money by magic". A really handy guide to going pro. I've decided I need a lot more 'throw away' tricks, simple quick things for when I'm cornered in the street or at festivals. It think it\'s time to really crack on with elastic band work. Other things I've worked on is the cup and balls again, as well as my daily practise with cards. I'm also Juggling (BADLY) The idea behind the juggling is partly for relaxation but also as a way to drum up a crowd at a festival before hitting the with the magic. My card magic has stalled slightly though. I think I need to set a goal of learning about 4 new 'Killer' tricks before the next Electr[o]cracy as well gaining fluidity with my current slights.

Wow long wait

I didn't realise it's been a month almost since my last post!. Even though I've not done much blogging I HAVE done a lot of magic. My basic card slights are improving daily and my Back-palm is now much smoother and quicker. I've been working more on new principles than complete tricks, the cup and balls offering a new way of learning some palming and other slights.
However I have been working on "Once Upon a Time" by Guy Hollingworth. This is a wonderful trick which involves a very special deck of cards. The cards are all pictures and form a 'book' when places in a slip cover. Other than the fact each card has a picture denoting a phase of a story they are not gimmicked in any way. Using the cards in a pre-arranged stack and a few very simple slights the magician begins to tell a fairy tale (be it Cinderella, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, or Jack and the Bean Stalk). Through the use of these slights the cards begin to transform. A pumpkin turns into a carriage, or little bear's chair breaks.

Reaction This trick has simple mechanics but a lot of memory work, however after two or three goes one gets a feel of the deck and working out the next slight gradually becomes second nature. I first performed this for my girlfriend who found the trick quit non-magical. However, in the wild this became a different matter. I performed at the Colchester Free Festival in a children's' story telling tent. For twenty five minutes or so I held a group of around 15 children aged between 3 and 10 in a state of captivation and excitement. My own story telling ability needs work but the combined effect of the magic and the story genuinely produced an element of wonder not only in the children but also their parents. I plan to sit down and watch "who killed Mrs De Ropp" a few times (a wonderful example of story telling) before recording my performance and seeing where I can improve.
More tricks from the festival will follow soon.

[Insert bad ball pun here]

Had a great evening of magic geekery with Harvey this week. It was nice knowing we both have the same aims and goals when it comes to magic. My re-jigged 'Four Sight' again went down well so I think I could work on a 'Gambling Expose' routine do go along side my more mentalist style set and the classic card manipulations for walk about magic.

After chatting for a while about party magic ideas we decided a cup and balls routine could be a nice touch. One man's classic trick is another's old a and boring routine, BUT if set in 'brief history of magic' routine I think it could go down well. Also much like my beloved 'Ambitious Card' I hope this set will teach me some nice slights and moves for other non-card based close up magic. I've found a set on-line that also comes with a 'Chop Cup' that come in a lovely copper colour for around twenty pounds so I hope to pick it up early next week.

The Accidental Magician

I didn't mean to do much magic today. I was at an event making bunting for the Colchester Free Festival and took my Invisible deck and a pre-stacked Vanilla deck just to try out a few tricks during tea breaks. However half way through the day I needed a break from sewing and sat on the floor propping the wall up. Suddenly I had 10 kids or so gathered around me so I pulled out the vanilla deck and started doing tricks. I was amazed how well the kids paid attention to everything as none of the tricks were really aimed at kids. They loved visual magic, snap changes, colour changes, ambitious card, card in hand and my Invisible Deck. Mind reading seemed to confuse them, at least in the 'Derren Brown-isque' way that I present it. I was amazed to discover even the youngest of the children (around 5 or so) did not believe in Magic, and I have to admit, a little disappointed. However the adults were amazed. Some of the ladies there worked in schools either as teachers or assistants and they commented that they had never seen a magician hold a crowd of kids interest so well and for so long. This adds weight to the theory that I could make a sizeable amount of cash doing grown up parties at the weekend and the odd kids show mid week. Just as importantly (and in the long run, more so) I thoroughly enjoyed having kids as an audience as I did with grown ups.

Four Sight in the Wild

Yesterday I tried 'Four Sight' in the wild at work and at a party. The response was overwhelmingly positive. One spectator actually pointed out that he had free choice of a card, so my new version with a riffle force does appear to be a hit. I'm spending today at a charity event so I'll take my Invisible Deck and a vanilla deck stacked for 'Do as I do', 'Here then there', and 'Out of this World'. I'll also group some cards together so I can re-jig for 'Four Sight' quickly

I am a Magician

I've been working through more of Street Magic by Paul Zenon and have found a few new nice quick tricks.

Jack Sandwich from Street Magic by Paul Zenon This is a generic version of Harvey's most wonderful 'Stolen card'. A card is selected and returned to the pack. then the pack is spread t reveal the two jacks are now face up. The deck is cut again to reveal the jacks either side of chosen card.

Reaction A nice trick however one that will not make my repertoire. It's simply too similar to 'Stolen Card', and Harvey does that trick superbly well. That said the method is a good one to sit down and learn.

Dead Man's Hand from Street Magic by Paul Zenon Based on the legend of Wild Bill. A poker hand is shown a royal flush in spades. A spectator is asked to pick on of the cards and the magician shuffles the deck. He then starts pealing cards off one at a time. One card for each letter in the phrase "Wild Bill Man's hand" to reveal the chosen card. The Magician then deals out 5 hands of poker and it is revealed that the person with their back to the door has been given Wild Bill's royal flush.

Reaction The method here works much like that of 'big deal' with the initial card discovery as a cover for stacking the deck. As a rule I'm not overly fond of spelling out words to reveal a card. It's almost like a give away as to the fact the deck has been stacked. however with the extra touch of someone getting Wild Bill's hand make sme warm to this trick. I'll certainly be using it in the wild over the coming weeks.

Four Sight from Street Magic by Paul Zenon Another 'how magicians can cheat at cards' trick. The spectator selects a card (the example given is the 10 of diamonds). The magician cuts the deck to reveal that the pair of the card (the 10 of hearts) is now face up. The cards are hen shuffled and tossed from one had to the next and suddenly the remaining two 10's are in the magician's hand.

Reaction The initial force for this trick is the 'Henry Christ Force'. I found it vary clunky and disjointed. The card selection process simply didn't make sense to my muggle friends. it instantly aroused suspicion. However I re-jigged the stack and managed to make the trick work with a Riffle Force (from Penguin Magic). I am now MUCH happier with this trick and look forward to adding it to my 'Magicians can cheat at cards' pitch.

and he's back

I've finally started practising again. I've also down some research at Molly's on the Electr[o]cracy night. As well as working out a running order for a few effects I took he opportunity to practise some tag team magic with Harvey. A simple case of myself forcing a card and himself revealing it in his own rather unique and down right creepy manor. It was great fun being back in the magic saddle as well as good fun doing it with Harvey again.

New Stuff

Slights- The Classic Back Palm Picked up from the video demonstration of KAOS which in itself is a trick I'm working on. Kaos is a card through window effect which uses the classic back palm. The back palm is a system where a card in the hand (of the magician) can instantly vanish and be made to reappear.

Big Deal - from "Street Magic by Paul Zenon" A trick portrayed as a lesson in card cheating. The magician explains about the principles of 'Dealing from the bottom'. He places four kings on the bottom of the deck and proceeds to deal 5 hands of 5 card stud poker. He starts with the player to his left and deals from the top, when he gets to himself he deals slowly and deliberately from the bottom of the deck. He does this for four rounds of dealing, so everyone knows he has four kings in his had and on the fifth round does a very deliberate top deal (the four kings being already there) everyone then looks at their hands and judges what they have. The magician reveals his four kings, the cards are then placed back on the deck and the magician states the problem lays in bottom dealing fast enough that it goes unnoticed and yet making sure you grab the correct card. He then deals five cards each and this time people notice he has made a mistake because they have one of the kings in their hand. The magician reveals his hand to contain four aces.

Reaction This trick went down very well, possibly because it initially didn't present itself as a trick but more as a lesson and a challenge. "Can you spot the bottom deal the second time around?" I think the next time I perform this trick I'll ask people to look at their own hands the second time around and not to say anything. Then I'll ask the participants if they think I succeeding in my bottom dealing ways, before I reveal my cards. Maybe as if they would like to make a small wager on weather my hand obtained with my own magical powers could beat their hand obtained by chance. They may notice that they hold one of the kings, hence believing that I have failed in bottom dealing. This I feel could add a new element of fun to the finally reveal.
I am rather happy with my current introduction as well. I approach the group (ideally of four people) And start chatting about being a magician. When I first started card magic I used to say "And this is why you never want to play me at poker". I then make up a fictitious friend who told me that this was a rather bold statement, and could I REALLY use my skills to cheat without people spotting it. I then say that it made me sound like somone who has had 2 lessons in karte who the went on to proclaim they are the worklds hardest man/woman/chicken. And thus the challenge is set.

Aces High - from "Street Magic by Paul Zenon" Another aces trick. The spectator cuts the cards into four piles. Then they are invited to pick up each pile in turn and to mix things up a little. This is achieved by dealing 3 cards to the bottom of the pile and then one card onto the top of each other pile. When this is repeated for all four piles the top cards are revealed and show an ace on the top of each pile.

Reaction I was pleasantly surprised by the strength of the reaction to this trick.I have seen it before with subtle variations and clocked a rough method after a demostration of it. Hwoever this trick builds on principles of other tricks I already know and thus I've been given a head start on working it out. Everyone else (both lay people AND fellow magicians) were left stumped. It has an intresting peice of misdirection in it, in the form that the specator cuts the cards as roughly as they like thus adding an element of randomness. This reaction really shows the method is hidden in my view.

Conclusion of the night and thoughts on where I'm going

Both of these tricks are self working and from the same book, "Street Magic by Paul Zenon". This same book also taught me "Out of this world" as well as a few hints for "Ambitious Card". I know it's common practise to recommend "Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic" to any budding Harry Potter want to be, and it does have a lot going for it. The book is HUGE and covers practically all arrears of the magical craft. However the first tricks in the book are very basic and don't pack much punch. Overall you should get a copy and read it for the ground work BUT I think the Paul Zenon book is great if you want people to have quick results to keep their interest alive. I'm continuing on my pledge to by no new magic for a while, but to go through what I have here. Some tricks which i thought too basic or clumsy are turning out in fact to be very powerful. Even if I eventually shed these tricks later on in my development as a magician I do believe they are giving me a good grounding knowledge of what gets people excited. So I shall continue to learn some of the tricks I discarded in the past just in case there is a great understanding to be had through them.

On a final note. I was practically overpowered by how good it felt double teaming some tricks with Harvey, I want to think about more tricks where we could apply our own specialities. Also a very nice lady was totally overcome by my abilities and insisted I was as good if not better than a magician hired by her family for a birthday. This magician charged £300 for 2 hours or close up work. Now it is dangerous to succumb to flattery on this level but on the other hand it does lend a certain encouragement to keep going with the practise.

Really have had an EPIC fail in regard to practise. Haven't picked up a deck since Monday! Today I will crack on with Dobson's Choice and find a workable routine in there for me (they are all good, but some require kit I simply haven't got yet)

International Magic

My practice has been a little disrupted this week after a slight cardiac incident. I thought having more time on my hands whilst recovering would mean more practise, however it seemed that sitting up with the cards was not actually rest. I did get an awful lot of magic reading down though. There is no getting around the fact I have quite by accident become a 'card guy'. I don't think this is necessary that bad, however as I hope it means I'll pick up other slights and moves easily (I got the paddle move in a few seconds). I will continue going through the card magic books I have as card magic is relatively cheap and easy to practise. My 'Ambitious Card' is becoming my sum total of all my card magic, every time I learn a new slight I try to find a way of working it in, and therefore practising the ambitious card becomes a way of practising all my slights as well as learning a set routine with many moves, or learning to freestyle and think quickly. I am thinking of learning 'Cups and balls' as well also as a way of learning other slights and just something to practise with and improve me skill set, even if I never perform with it. I will probably pick a set up next time i'm in London, as I've seen some lovly copper sets, perfect for hitting a seam punk convention with :)

I have finally got to 'International Magic' in London. An interesting little shop and reminded me of my childhood with it's large selection of jokes and tricks. However it is mainly a magic shop and whilst the effects they had were fewer in number than 'Davenports' they did have a large selection of books. I was tempted by 'Guy Hollingworth's Drawing Room Deceptions' . The very helpful store keeper did point out that it is a very advanced book (but it does look very pretty) he therefore recommended 'Dave Cambell's Legacy, incredible close up' . He showed me a letter from an American magician who bought the book singing it's praises. One can only hope he is an honourable man who did not write the letter himself. Ultimately I bought neither book but a DVD intended for Harvey. There is a series of DVDs called 'Worlds Greatest Magic by the World's Greatest Magicians'. They have a DVD for every effect you can imagine, eg 'Ambitious Card', 'Professor's Nightmare" etc. This volume involves 'The Secrets of Story Telling decks". It's no secret that Harvey's amazing tricks use story telling as a huge element and he does a superb job. This DVD should hopefully give him even more tricks that use his greatest skill, that of holding the attention of an audience and lifting them away from where they are.

Overall 'International Magic is slightly more hassle to get to (a 10 minute walk from Chancery Lane tube station ) than 'Davenports' (which is AT Charring Cross Station) and it lacks the solemn refined feel of Davenports, BUT the staff are VERY helpful and it is still worth visiting.

phobos and demos

For the last 2 weeks I've been working on my current repertoire and performance style. I'm working through Wayne Dobson's book(let) and am intreagied by a silk vanish and a new version of Do as I do. I've also learnt how to perfom the "Crushed and empty restorn can" effect. i hope to use it in the wild come Friday.

There is the opportunity to perfrom some young person magic at te colchester free festivale. TO this end I found an very nice effect by Guy Hollingworth known as "Once upon a time". I was initally going to wait untill a trip to London in a few weeks to pick this little gem up, however I've sinece learnt that whilst many magic shops list the produst, when questioned about the trick in envarable ends up being out of stock or no longer available. INdeed the trick is available on Davenports AND international Magic's site, but when I rung them neither caan get hold of it. With this in mind i was happy tosee a direct link from Guy Hollingworth's own site to another webshop with the effect in stock. I looked into the site and the company are not a magic shop they are an agency providing performers. I rung thewm up and they confirmed the product is there waiting to be dispatched. Even though the effect is rather old and here is no reason to believe they will be out of stock any time soon I suddenly found myself in the grip of Fear and terror and promptly ordered it. With luck it will be here tomorrow, intime to show Harvey.

Been a while, new tricks and gig

It's been a while since I blogged magic, but trust me I've been doing plenty. I've worked through the second crash course as well as a few books and this is what I've picked up.

Weighted Aces - Nick Dakin. Nick is a mate from Nottingham who is an amazing magician. I can perform a few slights now but he is far far more fluid than I am (so I'll be practising for a long time before I'm in his league). Weighted Aces is a nice quick trick. performed with only 4 cards, the aces. The spectator believes an ace of spades is placed in his hand and an ace of clubs placed under it, a wave f the hand reveals the clubs have floated through the spade. Th trick is performed again, only this time, both aces have floated up into the magicians hand and been replaced with the red aces.

Reaction- Whilst a quick little trick this is a nice little head scratcher and a nice opener.

Cataclysm -Brian Caswell. Shown to me by Nick. A deck of cards is shown to the spectator. The magician shows on the back of each card that there is a number. These numbers are random and range from 1 to 52. The spectator is asked to name a card, then another then another. The cards are placed on the table and the magician revels a photograph of three cards, face down with the numbers on the back showing. The cards are each turned over to reveal they match the photograph perfectly.

Reaction- I built this trick up a little and talked about how I found the deck and am not sure what it means or how it works. I talk about combination locks and how one day we may find a combination that unlocks time itself. I show the photograph first and make sure that the table is set up JUST like my photo with my hat in it and my glasses, pill bx and the unused bit of the deck (with he right card on the top) in the top right corner. I'm very proud of that little addition because it can throw people off the scent of of the method. The reaction ranges from bafflement and applause right through to "this is scary, your messing with stuff you don't know about, you may end up losing your soul"

Ambitious card - Eluionist Crash Course 2. Not so much a trick unto it'self, more a series of slights used so that a signed card can be placed into the pack and bounce to the top in a variety of ways. Some of these slights can work in the spectators hand. You can either learn a whole routine OR free style using the techniques available to you

Reaction- I approached this trick with a view of zen. It's a way of combining what you know and then just going with what feels good at the time. In karate there is a kata which the head of the biggest federation of the art says if you perform daily then you are a karate master. Ambitious card is simuler, It incorporates so many different slights as well as readying the audience and adjusting what your doing on the fly so much if you do a solid routine every day then your a card magician. I lovely trick that lets the spectator keep the card as a souvenir and one that you can perform with different people in the same group using a series of different reveals (from colour changes to snap changes, simple double lifts to the pop off). Reactions were very positive to each bit of the trick and it was fun to perform, but you have to have your grove on and your wits about you.

Out of this world - Paul Zennon's Street magic. A quite long trick but highly effective. The magician places a red card and a black card on the table face up. He then places 8 cards face down in two piles one in front of each of the cards. He states the purpose of the exercise is to see if you can sort out the cards into red and black. He reveals his cards, often completely wrong. Then he shuffles the cards back into the deck hands it to the specator and invites them to try. The cards are placed face down in the two piles ans when finally revealed it is discovered they have sorted the pack perfectly.

Reaction- I tend to weave a little history lesson into this trick. famously this trick was performed for Winston Churchill during the war. HE insisted on seeing the trick again and again (normally we shouldn't do the same trick for the same audience twice, but come on, it's Winston Churchill, the man with an answer for the question "You and what army"). Reactions are again positive and range from "how do you do that' Right through to 'We did that, with the power of our minds, together, oh my god this is amazing, lets try levitating something". If you THINK someone is going to cause trouble, keep hold of the deck and just put them where they say. Also you can do the same witha group of people.

fun exercise

Do a trick with a gimmick deck of RED bicycles.
When the spectator asks too see the deck hand over some BLUE bicycles
watch as they fail to notice and realise you can get away with anything with the right mind set

Ambitious Card

Today I'll be working on the Ambitious Card. It's a lovly rutine which has the same effect performed in several ways, each way compounding the believe that what the magician is doing is impossible. I'll be useing the Crash Course in Card magic volume 2 from Eluionist

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU-60XXJ5m8&feature=watch_response

Other stuff. On Friday we had an open door policy at Electr[o]crasy which meant I had free time to try out some tricks on the crowd. As normal "Do as I do" had a good effect however card in hand and "Here then there" were a little stronger. The supirse was how strong 'direct mind reading' was.
A final thought is my beloved Invisable Deck. I stopped trying to perform with this deck because I kept screwing up the handling. I popped it in my pocket as an after thought and decided to be bold and have a go in public. It worked flawlessly time and time again. It seems a few weeks of practising shuffles and lifts had given me the level of dexterity i needed without even realsieing it. So the moral here is simpl. If something is too hard, take a break, do something else for a while and you may be learnign how to dso it without realasiing

Crash Course 2

I've been simply blown away with Crash Course in card magic 2 by the Ellusionist. I can't rave about this enough. The first hour is an in-depth look at the ambitious card routine. Whilst a simple sounding trick of a card transporting from the middle of a deck to the top the course offers much more. For instance it talks about new ways of double lifting as well as the transportation. You can do the effect 3 or 4 times each time doing it slightly different ways. all these ways combine to exclude any possible method conceivable to the spectator. Seriously take a look at it.

practising when you don't feel like it.

I've never liked practising at something if I don't feel up to it. IN my days of ju-jitsu though I l;earnt going when I was achy was often very rewarding. Sometimes it helped loosen up muscles and nerves, other times I just felt better knowing I could pick someone up and throw them across a room even when I was limping bad and close to tears. Why drag up the past, because of Friday....

I'd gone into he shop to help out as we are short staffed at the moment. Afterwards I'd arranged to meet up with a good mate who's a far better magician than myself. I sat there on his floor and performed a few tricks and we both knew my double lift was bloody awful. I'd managed it perfectly when performing on Monday, and at practise every single day this week. At first I thought it was just nerves but I slowly realised just how physically wrecked I was feeling. My hands had been somewhat abused with all the lifting and I was generally feeling rubbish. When I had gotten home I had a bath, took my pain meds sat down and controlled a card through 45 minutes of constant shuffling and followed that up with half an hour of perfect double lifts. So there is a temptation to only practise when I feel well, do I don't get disheartened. However, provided I accept that I will suck royally when in pain I can continue to practise and hopefully learn to maintain fine finger control no matter what state I'm in.

Magic and Theatre

A quick thought I had this morning regarding the whole 'Is Magic theatre/art' argument. I performed "Here then There" for a friend at the Wiv fair. afterwards she just smiled and said she'd seen it before. That was it. not 'I know how that's done" she didn't but the fact she'd seen it once before, on television meant it was pointless to perform it for her. This same person loves theate. She's seen many different version of Hamllet before, and will happily go and see another/ So she's happy to sit through 3 hours of theatre where she knows the ending and even where she knows how it's done. However, sitting through 1 minute of rather good magic that still leaves her baffled is 'old hat' and nothing special because she saw the same trick done before, all be it by someone else, not as close up or even in the same style. This is sounding liek a rant, but I'm not cross with her at all. This is how she feels. This is how other people we meet in the world of magic will feel. We need to be prepared for this and maybe, for the top effects plan a twist, something new for them, or maybe an interesting follow on trick they might not have seen. In other words, pure artistry and perfect performance seems to be less important than shiny shiny.

With this in mind, time to hit the books and get some more tricks under my belt.

my current repertoire

A quick review of current tricks and where I got them from, and how well they go down. I intend to keep trying a review each week or so to make sure I don't stagnate. Also once a week I like to get all my kit out and double check everything is where I want it (are all the cards there etc). So today I've run through all my open decks of vanilla cards, and rethreaded my spider pen. Also made a quick note of things I need (new thread reels and batteries for the pen that come in replacement packs)

Do as I Do - From Penguin Magic - The participant cuts half the deck. Magician and participant each fan out their half of the deck and each removes a card from the others deck. The card is then reinserted and the participant's half of the deck is cut. One half of the cut is placed face up, followed by all of the magician's half face down on top, this then has the participants placed on top of it face up. The participant takes the whole deck in their hand shakes it a little and the deck is fanned out, face up. All the cards appear faced up apart from two, the participants chosen card and the magicians chosen card.

Reaction:- For a 'self working' trick the reaction from this is very strong. As of yet no spectator has noticed 'the move' nor worked out the mechanism. The orders given by the magician are clear and simple and avoid people doing things during the trick that might spoil the effect. The fact that the participant is involved from the start by cutting the deck and is always in possession of a lot of the cards make the end result a real puzzle for them. the fact there is a transformation taking place in their own hands at the end also delivers great impact.

Card in Hand From Ellusionist.com's Crash Course Participant is given free choice of a card. The card is placed back in the deck and the deck shuffled by the magician. The top card is shown to not be the participant's card and is placed in their participants hand face down. The magician riffles through the pack and the participant's is told to jab the card in and keep a hold of it. The participant's jabbing card has NOT revealed the chosen card, however the card in their hand has transformed into their chosen card.

Reaction:- A very powerful response. Though a little shaky the first few times I performed this as it was my first trick which wasn't 'safe'. There is no forcing or trick deck. there's card manipulation and control and so it's quite scary as there are many places to get yourself 'lost' in and you don't know if it's worked until the end. After a lot of practise my confidence grew and now I hit the mark every time. This trick has left many people genuinely stunned and confused as I walk away. (well limp away)

Here then There From Ellusionist.com's Crash Course The participant is shown the top card and it is places the palm of their hand. Their other hand is placed on top ensuring the card is safe and can't be moved. The magician then takes the next card and shows it to the participant before gently rubbing it, face down over the hands of the participant. When the cards are flipped over again they are shown to have swapped places.

Reaction:- Again a very powerful effect. Whilst needing a little prep to set up (a few moments) it feels safe in that atleast you know as you are perfoming the routine if it's working or not. Much like "Card in Hand" this has people genuinly stumped, and seemed to provide a massive emotional effect. This seems to be the strongest trick I have right now for finishing on.

Heat- Two Card Selection From Ellusionist.com's Crash Course A trick for to participants and a magician. Each participant chooses a card at random. Each card is shuffled into he deck in turn. The magician then claims to feel the heat on the cards that were just held and finds one of the cards quite quickly. He then spreads the pack, face down and uses the selected card, holding in his hand and the hand of the participants who's card still need to be found and runs it along the pack until the participant feels he should stop. the card held in his hand is turned over to reveal that card is the missing chosen card.

Reaction:- Only performed this twice. Once to a magician who recognised the method from "Card in Hand" and another time to a muggle who spotted what the card would be and turned it over half way through the trick. I think this is a good trick, one to perform INSTEAD of "Card in Hand" when you have two people who you want to involve in he magic, but not to be done in the same set as "card in Hand".

So there's the main repertoire with a vanilla deck. I'll post other tricks I know later in the week but these are the ones i"m concentrating on at the moment, and aim to build on a trick or two a week.

Back from Germany

Mad it back in one piece. Had a great time at Wave Gotick Treffen. Took a Vanilla deck with me ad did some close up work on the unsuspecting public. As I had hopes 'Card in Hand' got the best reaction, it should do , it's the hardest trick I know!. Mind you, "Do as I do" (the almost self working trick) also got a VERY positive responce, so it's defiantly one to through into the mix. As I have said before, tricks that take place in the muggles 'world' eg. a card transformation that takes place in THEIR hand etc is very powerful, but a trick where we APPEAR to relinquish some control over to them (such as Do as I do) also give the trick an air of actual reall magic, as opposed to displaying an effect as an act of mental skill.

I\'m totally trashed from this trip so tomorw I intend to run through my false shuffles and cutas and learn a new trick or two with a vanilla dec

hectic day

Been busy finishing off an outfit yesterday and this morning. So only squeesed in a few mintues of card handling. If you want to know how good your dribbling is, try dribbling a rough smooth.

Double Trouble

Had another night magic geeking, this time with Martin and Kat. Saw some amazing work from Martian, again not all of it card based so I will defiantly try to expand my own knowledge base of tricks when I get back from Germany. Decided to try and get a copy of "Elastrix" once I'm back and settled. And some magic loops


ok I KNOW there's no such thing as perfect, and 'good enough' isn't good enough but I think my overhand shuffle control and deck cutting control is improving very well. I think the weak point in tricks like 'Card in Hand' for me is the double lift. Not the showing of it, just the loading of it. Maybe I feel self conscious and fear people can tell I'm up to something. Maybe I stress to much about doing it right. Maybe I'm just too slow. Anyway as well as my regular half an hour or so of shuffling a day I'm going to try half an hour of double lifting as well as going over three basic tricks. 'Do as I Do', 'Card in Hand', 'Here then There'.
These are the first 2 tricks on the "Ellusionist Crash Course" disk one and a simple trick from the penguin series. I'm trying to get the mechanism and order of things for these tricks completely natural so I can concentrate on the performance itself (eg angles etc)

too much card Magic?

I was visiting a good friend last night and we spent a few minutes magic geeking. I pulled out my nice organised case with trick decks, regular decks and a spider ITR, and he pulled out his boxes of packet tricks and other effects. As I've said before the trick decks give a nice amount of 'filler' effects,. Nice effects that are sometimes quite artful, but the one off effects my friend have are truly mind blowing. Difference is his tricks produce ONE effect, whilst a trick deck has many uses. So trick decks for a lot of a routine but these effects make fantastic grand finale's.
All this got me thinking though. All I have really is a ITR, cards and a thumb tip that's too tight. I need to spread out more and try other close up effects, and maybe even something more suitable for a small stage. Coin magic has a huge appeal as if you pull out a pack of cards at a party you instantly look a little suspicious, but people always have coins to play with. I've been put off coin work in the past because my hands are too large for it, but it may be time to revisit it, along with other classic close up effects involving rope, silks and small trinkets.

Interesting Exercise

I've decided that if I am going to whittle away at my life watching telly at night the least I can do is have a deck of cards in my hand and practise some slights. A friend of mine once said that 10,000 hours is the golden number for hours of practise to be truly professional. That's a LOT of practise if you're unable to work at something full time (ie, 9-5). However an hour or two at night has o help a little right? I've been struggling with my double lift for a while now and thought I'd try it with a fresh clean deck. Managed it smoothly first time and continued to perform it well for a full hour. Afterwards I got out two other decks, one over a year old another around 6 months, but all Bicycle Poker decks (blue if it matters).
It is tempting to practice on my ancient deck with he belief that if I can perform the slight smoothly on that deck I should be performing it amazingly well on a fresh deck. My concern is that maybe I'd find a new deck too smooth and may, for example, perform a triple lift by accident, or spray cards when attempting a dribble because the deck is so much smoother than I'd become used to. Therefore I've decided to try each slight and effect with all thee decks. If I find this doesn't cause any confusion with my performing a slight I'll keep this up, if however I find I get confused and unable to perform on all decks I'll stick to the new decks. After all finding a deck that's the exact age and condition of an old deck is much harder than mail ordering a case of new decks. It could be a nice touch to open a deck at a gig, perform a few tricks and then give the deck to someone to keep. (if you by a 'brick' of cards they work out at less than two quid a deck).

this last week...

This last week I've begun learning:-
Card in Hand
Do as I do

Card in hand has a quite a powerful effect on people. THe effect is that a card picked at random (free choice) is lost in the deck. a card other than the selected card is placed in the participant's hand. the card is placed in the pack at random with the aim of it being placed next to the selected card. however it is revealed the card IN the participants hand has changed INTO the selected card. This has quite a powerful effect and if the participant belives in real magic then all is well. however because it is 'Magic' then most adults feel that whilst an impressive trick it is just that, a trick. Ergo there's no imediate way I can see for dressing this up to be a feat of super human ability on behalf of the magicican.

Do as I do is a self working trick that also had a great effect. Infact even though it requires less skill than Card in Hand' it seems to achieve the same level of reaction.
I shall resist going into further detail until i have the blog 'locked down'.

Welcome to the first blog. I aim to update every few days with a list of what I have practised and of any new effects and manoeuvres I have picked up