An interesting night

Just got back from a friends wedding.I was really too trashed to go after a day working in the shop, but I made the wedding dress and needed to see how it was received. (it was universally loved, and I'm actually happy with it). I didn't intend to take much magic as I new I was a lil shaky, so took a vanilla deck and Twilight Angels/ Wee Wee Mentalist.  I sat at a table with a guest I knew reasonably well and tried my 15 card I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E . He struggled with the instructions over the music. (so not one to use when a live band is on) but was impressed. I performed Twilight Angels and got my normal stunned response for a few moments. that felt good.

  On the way out of the venue (I was leaving early due to the aforementioned shakiness) I got asked to do a quick trick for a young lady. As I said I deliberately didn't have much on me, but did a quick "Wee Wee mentalist". a crowd  had gathered and wanted more, so Ambitious card followed, then Card in Hand, then  Direct mind reading, then finding a selected card that had been cut into the deck with muscle movements, and finally I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E. The crowd went wild, and some people kept making a point of the fact it was all done with ONE DECK.  A young boy wanted to learn magic and when I mentioned Mark Wilson's book  he went on line and bought it there and then with his phone (i didn't know 10 year olds could do that). It felt good, I felt energised by the crown even though my body was dying on me. I collapsed in a chair and just chatted. I explained about my work with the free festival and told them of my electric motor made out of a match box.  They seemed interested, and so I should them a video on my phone. The next thing I know I'm being told of a man who makes and sells electronics kits to schools, and how this person works in media and he thinks I could host a a show on using these kits, to be sold along the products. It's possible  nothing will come of this, how ever the mad science seemed to captivate everyone, so I think it's something worth pursuing.
So summing up
 I need less tricks than I think to captivate an audiance

People notice when I only use one deck and are impressed.

 Flourishes and random slights can be mixed in with effects to raise peoples opinion of me

Jazzing magic is fun

Mad science is a natural bed fellow of magic. It's something I should continue  to tinker with. IT's one of those things people seem to expect from a magician, or at least enhances their opinion of one.

My natural personality works well with my magic, i don't need a fake one or an exaggerated persona, I just need to find the right mood.

More impromptu magic (both card and non card) would be good

varied stuff in the wild

Just got back from a music mash up night. As ever for one of Colchester's alternative music nights there were magicians  a plenty. the whole of "Nothing up our sleeves" were there. we spoke f an up coming free gig we're doing for a local charity, our wedding fair event and the show, in particular, when the next one will be. We also spoke of the Magic Circle interview, and what we would do. I decided to try out some previously ignored material on a magic loving audience, who were also logically minded and sharp watchers.

Twilight Angels was my opener though, I'd admit. And it went down VERY well, freaking out a neuro scientist (the hardest audience in the world) . I also  spoke to some people I performed Twilight Angels on last week and they were still baffled and blown away by the effect. it's a strong bit of magic, if it works for the distances involved in the audition. I may use it.

I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E the 15 card impromptu card vanish and mind reading effect also got an outing. Blowing away old audience and the new mind manglers as well. I did it twice for the audience, normally a n no BUT I added time misdirection (by getting Darren to perform an effect in between showings.  The reveal on this is very strong, AND different people were impressed by different aspects. For some it's the fact I knew the chosen card, for others it's the way it disappears and reappears.  So much like "Wee Wee Mentalist" it can be used to work out which form of magic people enjoy.

Four Sight Totally blew away a poker player. I keep neglecting my gambling effects, this is a huge mistake, they are strong and relevant. I guess the message really is tailor the magic to the audience, and knowing a few extra tricks and being confident with your entire rutine lets you do this

One quick note, a girl spotted my Erdenase!, I quickly did the same effect with a Houdini change. she's now convinced that I let her see the method first time to through  off the track of how it's really done. So again knowing more than one method was a life saver.

A quick last word

A quick post before the new years eve beer  kicks in.  January should be stressful. I've got a lot to prepare and very little cash. However I have TIME. In the past money has had to compensate for not spending time preparing for gigs and shows. (quickly buying an expensive new effect or buying cards I didn't need because I hadn't had time to sort through what I had). I start the year with some stunning additions to my arcane library. Books mainly on performance, but I still have a few DVD's of effects I've not fully gone through. And so despite being broke I look forward to the next year with a joyful heart. I'm still entertaining my extended family for the next few days (a shame as New Years Day has typically been very productive for me, magically speaking).

Thursday the 4th will be a day of rest,Friday the 5th is when I'll try to hit the books. As well as improving my magic I'll be doing as everyone else does and try to improve diet and exercise. I have to start seeing my health as part of my magical business. The fitter I am the better I'll perform whilst gigging.
So to sum up the year, it's been stressful but productive, the future is pretty bright.  Hard work to come certainly, but hard work that I enjoy.

Happy New Year internet. 

Going back to my roots.

Well the show is over (and I'm still having people come up to me in the street raving about how good it was). My latest final weding dress is finished (i can quite making wedding dresses any time I want, honest, I'm not addicted or anything). Now I can concentrate on close up magic. I only have one gig booked so far for this year, but have a few leads and so am not too worried. In the coming months my only concerns are a wedding fare where myself, Darren and H will pimp ourselves as magicians for hire, and the Magic Circle audition. Whilst I loved doing the show I know that close up magic is where I'll be making the bulk of my living from. Preparing for the show helped my over all magical development and will certainly make me a better magician, but now I can focus on the magic that will become my livelihood.

  In the last month I've had a few opportunity to try out my repertoire. A bar in a far off town whilst waiting for Inge and at our local goth night. At the strange bar I was just organizing my magic case when the barmaid asked to see some tricks. A quick ambitouse card and wee wee mentalist later and she wanted a business card for her boss and 3 guys by the bar wanted cards for wedding etc.  I don't know if these leads will go anywhere but it was nice to wow people and a good confidence booster.

At Electr[o]crasy I ended up returning to my magical roots, I initially by chance but then by design. I went loaded with "Twilight Angels", "Wee Wee mentalist" and a deck prepped for gambling tricks.  Now when people asked how I got into magic the answer s a little muddled. Why is simpler. The how, well I started with a Svengali deck and a deck with a picture back so I could perform simple mentalism. I then  read "Absolute Magic" by Derren Brown. I was about 8 years away from a double lift but I learnt to use the tools I had and invoke genuine wonder using the philosophy in "Absolute Magic". I guess I've been concerned with the "how" of an effect latly instead of working on my presentation. I put Wee Wee away and just used Twilight Angels to begin with. Then the bar maid wanted to see some magic and even learn some. I was going to teach her a very simple  key card effect. I held her hand and run it over a spread out face up deck, pretending to divine her card by reading her muscle movements. She freaked out! this was too powerfull to give away.

So my plan is this. Rest at the end of the week, re-read absolute magic and look at the effects I know.  Then work on what I THINK makes a magician a magician the week after.

Basic vanishing abilities (look at  my impromptu magic DVDs)
Presentation  abilities (The Show Doctor, Absolute magic, Scripiting magic)
Impromptu card magic (Impromptu Card magic DVD)
Non card magic (sponge ball, cup and ball, rope).

After this time I hope to start forming a plan for  my magic circle audition.
watch this space :)

The Show!

Hard to imagine that I started this blog being able to JUST do a double lift, and now I'm preparing for the Magic Circle and have completed a stage show. However  I was more of a co-pilot in the stage show. Darren was the main drive behind it (I write this for my own records and not just because Darren reads this). As I blogged earlier in the year Darren suggested we do a stage show and I went along for the ride. We had 6 months. Now if we worked as hard in the 6 months as we did n the last two weeks we could have sold out Vegas. We'd also bee dead from exhaustion two weeks and one day in.

  The initial idea of the show was a steam punk re imagining of the Golden Age of Victorian Stage Illusion . Darren came up with the title of "Inventions of the Impossible". I think this title really did get across what we were aiming for. We started collecting ideas and even props, a zig zag cabinet was designed (by Darren), a levitation kit was purchased (mainly by Darren, a little from me) and we sat down to look at some ideas for scenes. We naturally formed two pairs of magicians, Darren and me, and S and H. Darren and I already had a good working stage effect with the laser pen reveal (something I'm very proud of). Darren used his script writing prowess and came up with scripts for the zig zag and the levitation. He discounted the levitation as it would be too long. During the 6 months we didn't manage to meet up with H and S much and so Darren and I were focusing on our own bits, but hit on the idea of making a Sphinx Cabinet illusion for H. (this is where a table has a disembodied head on it, but you can see through the table legs). As time marched on we were looking for illusions we could build that were quick, cheap but effective. Darren had the idea of "the Witches Broom" rope escape. I hit on the idea of using a hat stand for the illusion.

We started losing time fast. The zig zag was left in order for the Sphinx to be finished. I helped where I could, driving around and generally holding bits of wood, but Darren was left doing most of the actual work.  All this time We were working on ideas for the scripting of our bits. I'd spit ball ideas out with Darren, both feeding off each other's energy, then Darren would go away and turn  the babel into a script. I REALLY need to learn more about scripting. I think I'll be settling down with "Scripting Magic" by Pete McCabe this month.

S and H had a script but had no way to perform the illusion they wanted to do. We found this out with a few days before the show. Luckily we managed to work out the mechanics of it in a few minutes. With all this going on we barely got a few posters out, we had to rely on word of mouth and the internet to get the word out. I explained on-line that the show was a homage to the Victorian Illusions where each routine consisted of a few minutes of comedy or dram and ended in a magical effect.

Darren also produced a short film to be shown before act one and at the end of act one.  This meant we had a LOT of time filled, over two and a half hours of material it seemed.Show day came and we were making final adjustments to some of the illusions (it was the first time they'd been moved so we were expecting a little tightening and loosening to be required). Right before the show we found it was a sell out! We headed into the audience to  do some close up, I found out that many people were expecting a modern magic show with trick after trick! I hoped we could sway them over.

The first half of the film got many many laughs and seem to get everyone into the mood. Then our introduction, a 5 minute comedy routine. Again the comedy was going down very well. Then it was my solo act, a simple speech about why I got into magic followed by a routine of my children's magic retold for grown ups. I noticed sometimes that what makes me want to buy a magic effect is the feeling of enchantment the promotional video gave. This had as much to do with the backing music as the effect itself. So I got H to sort me out with some Harp Music. I stuck to the script for my magical journey at the beginning, but went off piste. Some people seemed to well with emotion, so I think I got the tonne right. I broke into my comedy children's magic, which again spell bound a lot of people. I did add two effects at the last second (I literally found them in my pocket) I shouldn't have added them without telling Darren as I over ran, badly. He forgave me but he did warn me another director who didn't know me would be VERY put out. I just wanted to add a few extra quick effects in for the people who came to us expecting lots more effects.

They were all received very well which shocked me. The "milk Auto go" isn't a bad effect but I felt it lacked something, but it got a massive reaction.

The Silk Tube also was revived very well and the Vanishing Coke bottle got a very strong reaction.
I finished on "Diminishing Milk". which seemed a natural way to finish a routine all about three magical fluids (hard work, concentration and imagination)

The rest of the night was hectic but flowed well. The laser reveal had it's best reaction EVER. Darren's speech as did H's had the audience hanging onto their every word (Darren's even got quoted on twitter). We didn't have time to block and go through the big finish, which was only the second time all four of us were on stage. The  illusion worked, and it worked very well, and all the lines went well, it was more moving the props, but we covered it with comedy so well that many people thought it was all planned.

The only criticisms really were to do with projection. Darren was fine, some people struggled to hear me at times at the back, and S and H suffered from the same problem. I think it's time to look at radio mikes. A week before the show if you asked me if I'd do it again I'd had said no chance, but seeing how well it worked together on the night has made me realize the pain was worth it.

Magic Circle Interview

Last Monday I took a day off from getting ready for the show and headed into London. IT was time for my interview to join The Magic Circle.  Having the show to worry about meant I was pretty calm about the interview (I had bigger concerns in my head) but I was still determined to  do a good job. Normally when I take a trip to London I spend all day wondering Camden or the museums. However I didn't want to risk thrashing my body so close to show day soi I opted to just head straight to The Circle. I arrived 2 hours early and settled in to a pub around the corner. I spent some of the time going over lines for the show and some of the time running through the tricks I would show at my interview.

I popped along to MCHQ (magic Circle Head Quarters) a little early and was surprised to find the door open. I assumed that because the public events started at 7.30 that the club nights also started at 7.30. But no, it's open from before five with free tea and coffee until 5.30. Just as I got myself a cup of tea and started to gather my thought Chris Woods came in. Chris has been at the Circle every time we've been to a show. He's always friendly and always helpful. He sat down and just said "well young man, lets session". I find it hard to explain the feelings I had of being so readily accepted . I sat down and showed him "Wee Wee Mentalist".  Now I'm rather proud of my take on this effect and was surprised that Michael Vincent thought it was merely "good" when he saw it. Chris seamed to have the same verdict. I followed up with "twilight Angels" and this is where I was surprised. He seemed blown away by it!. I like Twilight Angels but  didn't think it was THAT powerful, at least when I did it. however Chris seamed to think quite the reverse, he saw the effect on you tube and didn't think much of it, but found it very powerful in my hands. Which I suppose just goes to show we don't know our own strengths and weaknesses.

My interview was more of a questionnaire than an interview.  Interesting questions included who my idols were, why I wanted to join the magic circle and where do I see myself in magic in a few years time. A little disappointed that I was asked HOW i got into magic and not WHY (I did ask for clarification saying the WHY was better-I did have a little speech on that subject for the show-)

I was deemed "Competent"  and given a date for my exam/audition. Now the work begins. I need magic that will impress magicians. My original idea of using the stick man motive was given a warm reception, but the idea of a card trick being a 2 dimensional cabinet illusion was a little too complicated for the magicians I spoke to. The evening was rounded off with a lecture by David Roth, a master coin Magician. Decided his work is worth exploring as he has some very good non gaff methods (gaff coins being expensive and hard to find in UK denominations) or and cake from Fae Presto!

One hectic month

I've not blogged in the last month. I've been too busy doing magic!
The magical month can be broken down into five parts;
2 kids shows
THE stage show
The magic circle.
Dickensian call
Burlesque evening

The 2 kids shows were food for thought. I've made some improvments to my show after the last kids show.
1) A water proof mat under where I perform so I don't need to worry about spillage
2) a second table for storing props untill needed
3) a bowl to just quickly throw wet props into

The first gig was for 20 kids at a naming ceremony (like a christening). I was booked to do a show and some close up. I set up, made my table look all magicy with the pros that it'#s safe to examine on display and kept everything else out of reach of little hands. I performed close up as the kids came in for their food, then gathered them around and

The kids seamed very quiet during the show. The parents later d said they thought it was wonderful that they were so well behaved but I was worried about the lack of energy. The kids later though told me they really liked it. one huge snag though. I've designed my vanishing coke bottle routine  so I shrink a  coke bottle, vanish it and the kids find it's been replaced with loads of coke  bottle sweets. As I prepared for the grand finale I was shocked that I revealed NO coke bottles. I improvised  a finale finish and moved onto balloons.   It turned out whilst I kept the kids away from the props when my back was turned some grown ups decided to take them apart, and steal the sweets. I was VERY angry as they seemed  unbothered that they had spoilt the kids fun. I explained to the person who hired me what had happened and explained just how much time was cut short by thier actions. SHe was rightly annoyed.
I left slightly bummed out. The theft bothered me but I was worried by the lack of energy.  I realised my balloon animal work, whilst improving needs more practice and more variety and speed, Time to look into an electric pump.

The second kids gig wasn't much better. I set up as before, adding plasma balls because I knew these kids and I knew they liked them., it was a joint birthday party and one of the girls was a repeat customer.  The second birthday girl was a problem, as one one boy. ALL The kids LOVED the close up. how I WISHED I kept it to close up! with the close up i was as cool as Dynamo (their words not mine). The plasma balls MAY have been a mistake, they got the kids too wound up. Most kids seemed to be patient and enjoy the show except the problem birthday girl and the boy. They kept  saying BORING, and I KNOW THIS ONE and then ACTUALLY say EXACTLY how it was done, apparently they saw it all on youtube.  Then the inevitable happened, they saw a trick they could not explain (diminishing milk) then she just started screaming out total nonsense and complaining, they didn't think it was fair. After the show I went back to close up, but hen my back was turned the boy went into my magic stuff (I've lost my lazer pointer, and a load of blank cards)

Good points though, the close up after the platform show was loved again. One kid interrupted my  4 card trick by yelling "he's using the Elsmly count" My first reaction was to panic, but I released he didn't say what the Elmsly count was. This kid was 10 and knew of it though.  I asked him if he saw the count or if he just knew the trick, He told everyone he knew the trick, that the move I MUST be using was so good he couldn't actually see it, he also told everyone he wouldn't tell them how it was done. So basically a good kid after all :)

So summing up. Tweo kids shows that did not go as planned. I think my show workls great from ages 3-8, but after that I need to change things. I have no kids shows booked for a while now so I have time to take the show apart and rebuilt it, better stronger (but not faster). So some thoughts for the futre, what was different THIS time around

In both gigs;
No once upon a time
Ballons came out last in first gig, no balloons in second
kids had less energy

Maybe i need to do ballons first after all, or somthing that gets the kids excited AS A GROUP as opposed to small close up groups

I'll blog about the show, the burlesque and the magic circle later in the week