What is a magical partner?
A magical partner is a term that I have not often heard used by anyone. It is a term that I feel very strongly about. To me a magical partner is a person male or female who not only assists a magician but also plays an intricate role in the shows and performances. They are able to discuss specific issues with each other, such as performing, financial, costuming and choreography, how to set up the show etc. without feeling like their ideas do not count or have meaning .These items are just the tip of the iceberg as to what you as a magical partner can take part in. A magical partner to me is much more than being just an assistant.

The terms I hear people use most often are assistant, box jumper and stage hand, however I rarely hear the term magical partner. If you want to take a more active role in magic, then maybe becoming a magical partner is for you. As a magical partner you are sharing the magic with each other and you feel like you are part of a team.

Along with assisting a magician a magical partner can help in many different ways both on stage and off. You are a very important part of who they are, what they do, and their role in the magic community. Some of the ways your role as a partner can help are, the creative process, the marketing, loading and unloading of props, setting up the show and more. Working along side my husband Kyle we both share equally in the responsibilities and tasks that make our show what it is. We do many of the things listed above together, and you as a magical partner can as well.

First, helping with the creative process can take on many forms. By helping with the creative process you can help each other with come up with ideas for an act, what works, what doesn’t work, and how to sequence certain acts or the best way to perform an illusion. It also gives a second set of eyes to a routine that may or may not be right. You can help each other creatively by watching videos, reading books or lecture notes, and even seeing live performances for ideas. For example, recently I was watching a video on stage movement and choreography, and I saw a move that I felt would be appropriate for our sword basket illusion. I called Kyle over and we watched it together, and then decided to work on the move together to see if it would work for us. This is just one example of how your role as a magical partner can help with the creative process of magic.

Another way the magical partner can help is with the marketing. By this I mean, both of you can help research where you might want to perform, take phone calls, send out press releases, mail the promotional packets, keep up the database, emails, book the shows and gather as much information as you can. Everyone knows that to run a successful magic business there is an awful lot that takes place off the stage. It is one reason why they call “show business”. Often people are not aware of just how much is involved in the running of a magic business when you are not performing. If you are involved in a magical partnership, the roles and responsibilities listed above are divided equally. You are both working together as a team to help things run smooth, and for the ultimate success of the business.

Finally, when you both arrive or leave the venue or event, while either of you may be busy meeting with the client, the other person can help get things moving by unloading or loading the items into/from your vehicle, and begin to either set them up or break down. This saves time especially if you are back to back with another entertainer or band, like at a big festival or fair. By doing this, it helps both of you feel less rushed. Sometimes, you or your partner may also need to run the sound. I do this for Kyle and even when he decides to change a routine mid show, I know what music to play because I know the show because I am an equal part in our show. If you know the show, you can also help by setting up the show along side the magician. Either of you should know what tricks, illusions and acts you both will be doing. If you are performing at a theater, either of you can also strike the stage, check out the lighting and do sound checks are just some of the things you can do. Knowing the show is a huge advantage to being a magical partner.

In conclusion, your role as a magical partner is much more than just being a magician’s assistant. By doing some or all of the above, you feel like you are an equal partner, and know that you help make the show and the business a success.

Kelly

Why not just say "partner" (as in the legal term) and let it go at that.
Bob

Is the point of this post to effect a title change or to emphasize the value that a strong assistant brings? Let me uderscore that I'm not trying to be flippant here.

I am very suspicious of title changes for sake of empowerment. (The cliché Sanitation Engineer comes to mind.)

However, I think that any working relationship needs to foster respect for all parties involved. And most successful businesses are run as a team, so the cultivation of teamwork is essential. If one party feels undervalued or one party does not value the other, then I would say the partnership is doomed.

Bob & Wildarr,

Thanks for replying much appreciated.

My point is that too many assistants are not equal in any regard on and off the stage. That a partner is a term I use to describe a different level of magical relationship and one in which the assistant is not just an assistant but a partner on and off the stage. Magical Partners have an equal say in the magic and what happens and work as a team to develop all routines and ideas. It is my goal of the article to point this out and describe what this new level is that often people are not aware of. An assistant just assists the magician in what he or she does. A partner does far more then this.

Kelly

Hi Kelly,

In the examples you give I would say that this person is a "partner".

However, on stage, does this "partner" play the role of "assistant, box jumper and stage hand" to the one performing the magic?
Does the "partner" perform magic along with the magician?
I'm looking at this from a audience perspective.

Being introduced off stage as a partner would be respectful if it appears that you are only a "box jumper" on stage.

If your putting in the efforts you describe then you should be getting a the pay that a full partner would.
What happens on and off stage are two different matters most times .

I doubt that your examples are not always the case and that many assistants are simply employees of the boss magician.

Hi Jaz

Thanks.

I am stating and want people to know that there are still assistants out there and that term should still apply to those who merely assist the magician in his or her show through illusions, bring stuff on and off etc. That term defines them perfectly and there is nothing wrong with that. A magical partner is one level up from this and yes a partner should get paid more then an assistant if it comes down to a payment issue. However, my point here is not so much into the legality of pricing and how much should an assistant get paid over a partner. The real thought behind the article is to express the idea that there exists a level far higher than that of just an assistant. There exists a level where a person on stage can be an equal.

To answer your question about performing, in my case, yes I do sometimes. A magical partner can have that choice whether they want to perform or not. It is entirely up to them.

Kelly

It's not just an idea. The apparently humble assistant the audience may see is an extremely important player in the making of and the quality show.

Most of the duties you mention are done behind the scenes and what a partner does on stage is likely much subtle and often not the main focus so to speak. This is not a bad thing at all.

In many cases where two people are working on stage one of them will tend to stand out more. I'm thinking George Burns and Gracie Allen, The Pendragons, Abbott and Costello, Cheech and Chong, Penn and Teller. Old but effective formula. Equal billing but for me there's always one that my main focus seems drawn to. Usually the most dramatic one.

Hi all. I thought I would chime in here as I see my wife Kelly has posted an interesting topic for discussion and one in which I think is deserving of thought and ideas. I do want to first thank you all for your ideas and opinions on the subject. I know I greatly appreciate all your thoughts and I am sure my wife does as well.

Let me chime in with how I see this and also answer some really interesting points Jaz brings up that I think is deserving of more discussion.

First off, I will and have always referred to my wife as a magical partner when asked by anyone including prospects, clients or friends who ask. It is not so much because we are married as it is the fact they Kelly plays an intrical role in the success of our show both on stage and off stage. For me to call her just an assistant would not be giving her justice because she does far more then an assistant would.

In our show and what we do, Kelly is my partner on stage. If I took her out of the show, the show would lack so much. She means that much to how the show runs and flows. She also has a say in everything that we do. When we work on routines, it is not just me developing them and telling her what will be performed. We are coming up with ideas for routines together. Sometimes the ideas come from me and sometimes the ideas stem from her own thoughts and ideas. In either way we are both open to working with the ideas and coming up with not only what works for me, but what works for the both of us. We both listen to each others ideas and we use these ideas to develop routines that utilize us both to the best possible way.

Off the stage, she is still a magical partner in that she is deeply involved in every aspect of our magical business just as much as I am. If I make calls to prospects, sometimes she will make the calls as well. She knows just as much as I do in regards to how to promote and sell the show to our prospects. In every form of our magic business, she is there working hand in hand with me to see the success we are after and to maintain our brand reputation and image.

In this light I feel calling her an assistant does not do any justice for what she does. This is not to say that an assistant does not exist. The word should be used and asisstants are there and they do serve a purpose. In my own way though, I am saying that there is a level that exists that goes beyond what just an assistant will do. This level is what I think my wife is referring to as magical partner or partnership. It is one step up from an assistant.

With that in mind, I would like to talk a bit about something Jaz brought up which I thought was a great point and very intersting indeed. I thank you Jaz for bring this up because it is a great topic.

Jaz talked about partners on stage and one "standing out" more then the other. I aboslutely agree. With magical partnerships, their exists a much more intrical role that each person plays on stage. In many ways we are talking about focus and where is the focus when you have magical partners on stage. This is great point and I would like to try and talk about it as I see it.

When you have a magical partnership, then you both are playing equal roles in the success of the show. You are also probably playing a much greater role when on stage being involved with the routines or acts being presented. When this happens, it is important that the focus is there at the right times on the right person.

If you both are screaming for focus at the same time, then it just does not work because the audience has no idea where to place focus on at any given time. In this case, even though you play intrical and equal roles in the success of that routine, one person must be a more focus at any given time while the other plays a sort of out of focus position.

The perfect example of this is indeed Penn and Teller. Penn is clearly seen as the focual point of all routines and by having Teller not speak, this is even brought to the forefront even better. But even though Teller is not the main and central focus, he is indeed a magical partner in that if you take him out of the act or show, it just does not play.

Great point there Jaz to add to this discussion and I thank you for it. I think we can say that there does exist a level above that of an assistant and this level can be called many things, but my wife and I like to refer to it as a partner or partnership if you will. This partnership is one where both players have an equal say in what goes on in the show, the development of what is performed and every aspect of the show both on and off the stage.

I hope this clarifies at leats my thoughts on the topic my wife brought up. I hope others will chime in here as I think it is a great topic for discussion and food for thought.

Kyle

Usually both the magician and the partner are essential to the act although the magician seems to be the act - like when you watch a comic and the straightman - the comic gets the laughs and applause but couldn't do it without the straightman. And even assistants can be integral to a magicians success - I remember an old fellow I saw over a 10 year period until about 15 years ago who was a shockingly bad magician and had the nastiest personality on and off stage but a talent for picking great assistants who basically carried him on the basis of their personality and panache - the man had a great show - despite himself. It can't have been luck - he went through too many assistants so there must have been an element of self awsareness there somewhere.

I'm my dad's assistent and partner on stage I know his show inside and out and could preform the whole show myself almost perfictly. The biggest reason is so I can identify what he is doing wrong before he needs to be perfict. the biggest thing that I think that we have is TRUST!. when it comes to magic if cant trust someone you cant proforme with them.
Ashley

My son is my magic partner. We have a father and son act that we do. He is always there for me, and has never let me down, and we think alike. I couldn't ask for any better.

Scott