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Lee Marelli Special user Aurora, Colorado 876 Posts |
Hi TC: Thanks for taking time out from your busy schedule to stop by the Cafe. My primary focus is mentalism. I am sure you have dabbled in this field. What are your thoughts on how comedy should play a part in a mentalist's act? Again, thanks for visiting.
"Mentalism is a state of mind." Marelli
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tctahoe V.I.P. Lakeland Fl. 731 Posts |
I guess some may call this semantics, but I don’t know about comedy in mentalism, humor yes. Comedy? I just don’t know.
If you are doing good strong comedy, I think it might be hard to get them to appreciate the full impact of the mentalism. On the other hand, a little humor never hurt anyone. In fact the stronger the mentalism, the more your audiences are apt to laugh. Not necessarily because it’s funny, but because you are messin’ with their reality. I might be alone on that but…. |
Lee Marelli Special user Aurora, Colorado 876 Posts |
Thanks for your response. Good point. There is a need to break the tension in a performance of mentalism. I do not think comedy club type jokes will do it; however, should scripted humor, extemporanious humor or both be used and why?
"Mentalism is a state of mind." Marelli
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tctahoe V.I.P. Lakeland Fl. 731 Posts |
I work with a script, mostly. I script out the show/act, even a lot of the ad-libs, to a degree.
To what degree depends on the type of show I am doing. I do not believe in ‘locking’ myself into script. My act depends so much on the audience’s energy, their reaction (sometimes their lack of these things). Each show is and should be very personal. I want the audience to feel a part of something special, something that doesn’t happen all the time. If you know exactly how each and every member of your audience is going to respond, every time, you are either doing something very wrong, or very right. You need to be flexible, so that you can respond to the way they respond. Especially in mentalism. Sure you want to come across like you know what you're doing, but you are dealing with forces of nature that nobody really understands, some things are bound to ‘get away from’ or ‘surprise’ you. Sometimes when I use humor in my mentalism, or bizarre shows, I am almost apologetic about it. Again, I like to stress, subtly, to the audience that this is fun/surprising for me also. Yes, humor in mentalism can be a very good thing, just understand why you are using it. |
Lee Marelli Special user Aurora, Colorado 876 Posts |
Thanks TC for your insights, they give me "food for thought" on a topic not heavily covered in mentalism literature.
"Mentalism is a state of mind." Marelli
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