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omnibozo Regular user Boulder, CO 151 Posts |
Since no one else has taken your bait on the topic of mentalism for kids... I will!
If forced to condense your wisdom and experience with kids into three guidelines, what would you recommend? |
Mark Strivings V.I.P. 290 Posts |
Quote:
On 2002-04-05 01:05, omnibozo wrote: Three guidelines, huh? Okay here goes... #1 - make sure the kids have fun! #2 - make sure the parents have fun! #3 - make sure YOU have fun! Nobody on the face of the planet could care less about magic (except magicians). What magic really is, is a way to frame a fun time. Create fun, interesting, outrageous, silly, entertaining scenarios through your magic. THAT is what makes it entertaining. It's a framework to hang the fun on. Keep in mind that there are about 12 billion ways and means to have fun and create that experience through magic (or mentalism or whatever it is that you do). Some people find the experience of 'fun' to be getting the willies scared out of them by a scary movie. Personally I don't find that to be fun, but that's just me. Some people find 'fun' to be the experience of getting churned up emotionally over a sad story and crying their eyes out. Fun is different things to different people, and therefore, we have no end of ways to bring that experience to our audiences. Personally I prefer to help people smile and laugh and have a good time. When I work for kids, I want their sides to hurt from laughter. I want to allow them just barely enough time to catch their breath before they find themselves laughing again. I want them to think that my time with them is the funniest thing they have ever seen. I take a 'show no mercy' approach when it comes to working with kids. I want them laughing from the moment I appear before them until I disappear through the door (and even long afterwards...), non-stop if at all possible. Notice that I haven't said one word about magic tricks or effects of any kind. They couldn't matter less. It's been said before, but I'm going to say it again. If your audience likes you, you can do anything. The best way (I feel) to get your audience to like you is to help them, lead them to having fun, by whatever means that takes for you. Thrill them, make them laugh, make them cry, scare them, infuriate them... do something! But make it fun. Mark
Mark Strivings is the owner of the largest all-mentalism mail order supply business in the world, "Mental Connections", carrying materials not available anywhere else. For complete info, drop Mark a line at MarkyApril@aol.com
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Zodiac New user WA 27 Posts |
I've been asked to perform for my friends kids and since I just started doing mentalism
(and only mentalism.) this year I found it odd. From a seasoned professional, what could you tell me about what you want to avoid when performing Mentalism for kids? What you should use, and not so much trick wise but presentation oriented? Any pointers you can give would be great.
What's on your mind?
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Mark Strivings V.I.P. 290 Posts |
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On 2002-04-05 04:31, Zodiac wrote: My first question would be, how old are the kids? The average age of the kids involved would determine (for me) HOW I would present any mentalism I would do. Until kids reach the age of about 12 or so, I personally wouldn't do an entire program consisting strictly of mentalism. Prior to that age I would do a routine or so that is primarily mentalism and mix the rest with magic. That's just me. Tell me what you know about the group of kids you'll be performing for and we can take it from there. Mark
Mark Strivings is the owner of the largest all-mentalism mail order supply business in the world, "Mental Connections", carrying materials not available anywhere else. For complete info, drop Mark a line at MarkyApril@aol.com
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Rodan New user Sydney Australia 65 Posts |
I think what you said about getting kids to laugh till their sides hurt and then laugh some more is great.
So, What kind of persona might you invoke to have them laughing from the moment you appear? What kinds of kids mental effects might be included in this?
"To assert the impossibility of a fact comes to the same thing as saying that it has not as yet been observed; nothing authorises us to decide that it will never be observed." Joseph Maxwell 1858-1938
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Mark Strivings V.I.P. 290 Posts |
I have a couple of videos out where I do work for kids ("Mark Strivings Goes To Daycare" and "How To Get More Out Of Your Magic"). The audience is comprised almost entirely of 4-5 year olds. On those specific videos I don't do mentalism, but it's a good example of how I work for this age group.
Those who only knew me from my straight mentalism videos were completely shocked when they saw these two videos. I adopt a very silly demeanor when I work for kids. I use low lever slapstick constantly. Not in a goofy way, but in a way that makes be fairly animated and makes lot's of goofy faces and noises. It's hard to describe, but it works well for me. It's a persona that has developed over 25 years and literally thousands of performances for kids that seems to work. When it comes to kids, if you get a small handfull giggling, the rest will fall in line. So that's what I try to do. I usually make faces ata a couple of them, call them 'a bunch of turkey lips' and the like to get them to start laughing. Once that starts, it never stops. My shows are always full of situations where funny stuff is going to be happening and I never give the kids a chance to get bored or distracted. There is always something happening and the instant one bit ends the next one starts, non-stop until the show is over. And even beyond the end of the show, until I'm completely out of the room. It's a good way to work for kids. I do have a couple of books on kids magic and general family entertainment. "Magic For Young-Un's" covers original routines and effects that I've used over the last 25 years and has some great stuff in it. There's an entire section on doing mentalism for kids and much more. "The Anatomy Of A Successful (and Virtually Bullet-Proof) Magic Show" is all about my 'all purpose' show. I have this set up constantly ready to go. With it, I can get a call and walk out the door instantly with no prepapration whatsoever except picking up this case, walk into virtually any venue for any makeup or size of audience, under virtually any conditions and do a great show. It's literally been 25+ years in the making and has been a life saver for me more times than I care to think about. But it sure helps me sleep well at night.... There are several good mentalism effects for kids that are on the market. I sell a few of my own. What you'll find in common with all of these is a very straight forward plot that is easy to understand and has plenty of room for bits of business. As Silly Billy says (and many before him), it's the journey, not the destination that is important when working with kids. Anybody else do mentalism for kids out there? Let's really push this, does the mentalism you do work for a roomful of 4 year olds? Mine does, it has too. I work for 3-5 year olds all the time. Let's hear from some others on this and compare notes. Mark
Mark Strivings is the owner of the largest all-mentalism mail order supply business in the world, "Mental Connections", carrying materials not available anywhere else. For complete info, drop Mark a line at MarkyApril@aol.com
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Mandrake New user Germany 66 Posts |
Hey Mark,
I just read your reply above and I have to say: it's great! Great for two reasons: I don't do kids shows (yet) and I don't do pure mentalism shows (maybe one day...) But, I learned something, that might help me with the main reason for not doing kids shows.... It is the journey, not the destination. Up to now I always racked my brain for suitable effects... (take this literally..) for kids, not about the show, the one thing they might remember: That was some funny guy. Taking this approach and projecting it towards mentalism for kids (honestly, to me an unthinkable thing.... til now) just opened my eyes. Recently I was attending kids-shows done by friends, to watch them do it, to watch the kids react. But your statement just delivered the somehow missing concept. Morale: sometimes an impulse comes from the least expected direction, (not least respected, though!!!) THANK YOU, MARK! Mandrake
the truth "lies" in the eye of the beholder
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DarryltheWizard Loyal user 238 Posts |
I forget what you call the effect, but it's the one that uses a spiral-bound book divided into three sections. You make a prediction in a large envelope and then proceed to flip through each of the sections of a book to choose a hat style, a nose and lips, etc.
The picture in the envelope matches the flipbook picture. This mentalism works well with kids, but it's not the actual effect that creates the magic for kids it's the journey of gags and fun and bits of business along the path that really creates the magic. Darryl the Wizard- that wild man of magic
DarryltheWizard
"Life without mystery is like a candle with a snuffed out flame." Albert Einstein |
John C Eternal Order I THINK therefore I wrote 12942 Posts |
Quote:
On 2002-04-07 19:04, DarryltheWizard wrote: That's called Sketch o Magic and it's put out by Sammy Smith. They produce a stage version and a walk around version. John |
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