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funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
This a re-write of something written years ago about how an effect evolves with presentation and audience reaction. I have attempted to add thoughts gleaned from Whit's ideas on the "Dilemma." Like many stories, it is "sorta true" and the final effect is available for the asking -- something I can do even with crippled hands.
enjoy ... EVOLUTION of a ROUTINE The ultimate goal of any magic effect should be a story told to grandchildren in which magic is the hero. The child is then prepared to see something of awe and wonder as an adult and apply the word “magic.” Of course, life experience and training might also allow for the words ‘”science,” “skill,” “sorcery” or “divine intervention” as a cause for the seemingly impossible. The task of the performing magician is to “close the door” on these alternatives such that only Whit’s Dilemma remains: “it can’t be magic but there is no other explanation.” The resulting rush of emotion, amazement, surprise and confusion kindles the desire to tell the story. It is difficult for any single effect to create the “horns” essential to the power of the magical experience. In any later recreation of the effect in memory or telling it will be far too easy to explain away the magic as skill, mechanical trickery or even “didn’t really happen.” Thus, the effectiveness of The Dilemma is found in teaching the spectator what story to tell as much as performing the steps well and artistically. Magic happens in the mind of the spectator and is based on perceptions of what occurred more than any recoding of events. Creating an “illusion of dilemma” may be as important as the Dilemma itself – and is often easier to achieve. Let’s trace the development of a coin routine for illustration. PHASE 1 STORY: My Uncle Sal was entertaining my daughter with some magic tricks. For one of them he had a coin in his left hand, took it in his right fingers and placed it in his pocket. Then, suddenly it was back in his left hand. Pretty neat, but I think maybe he had two coins all along. SELF-APPRAISAL: I know I did the French Drop perfectly and everyone’s eyes followed my right hand. When I did the grabbing motion with my left hand not everyone looked there. Some watched my right hand coming out of my pocket. I guess I should pull it out and show it casually empty first. Then I didn’t know what to do so I just gave Lizzy the quarter. She’ll probably remember the coin more than the trick. ACTION: I did some reading on popular coin effects and noticed that Gadabout Coins is like an enhanced version of my trick. By using several coins and removing one it creates the idea that they will join back together, so everyone looks at the left hand with some expectation. By repeating the moves the spectators watch more closely and get satisfaction from having their expectations come true. The ending catches them in surprise again. I’ll work on that. PHASE 2 STORY: Sal was doing magic tricks for the kids again and seems more relaxed. He is using some larger coins and letting Liz play with them. Two coins in his left hand and he takes one away and puts it in his pocket. I’ll bet it is going to jump back into his left hand. Yup! I wonder … no, this time I see that he does have a coin in his right fingers and his hand is empty out of the pocket. No way it can jump back. Wow! Lizzy is really excited! Now he takes a coin away again and she watches carefully, then reaches out and grabs his closed left hand. Sal drops the coin into his pocket and shakes his finger at her. She pries open his left fingers to see how it has joined its brother. Gone! I guess Sal has learned some magic! Lizzy laughs and dives into his coat pocket. Surprise! Two candy Kisses and that’s all. Wait a minute. I saw him put the coin there. Weird! SELF-APPRAISAL: The reaction of Liz was more than anyone could ask, and John seemed to enjoy it too. Telling about the brothers that always played together made sense including their vanishing unexpectedly. I’m still not happy with all of the sleights, though, since my hands are closed at the wrong time to be natural. The silver halves are easier to see but don’t seem natural. Older spectators won’t reach out like Liz did and will have more time to question what is going on. I won’t be able to repeat this effect for the same people. There must be some alternatives to keep the surprise going. ACTION: People really like my Copper Silver effects. If I use a variety of coins it might add to the mystery. I keep sensing that people’s eyes go where I don’t want them since I can’t show my hands openly. I’ve got to find a more ways to eliminate suspicion and increase anticipation. Doing something in the spectator’s hand is a must, I think. It would also be great if I can change part of the effect if I have the same audience. Back to the books, I guess. PLANNING: Instead of progressing step-by-step to better routines, it should be possible to use the Dilemma Theory to envision the optimum routine as far as creating a memorable magic experience for the spectator. Drawing from effects that seem popular for other performers in addition to my own experience, I would project that this “ultimate effect” would require: · copper and silver coins for visual impact · the coins casually handled by spectators · coins shown on both sides frequently · left hand seen to hold only one coin after the take · right hand seen to hold only one coin · right hand shown empty after going to the pocket · final vanish of all coins done in spectator’s hand. Thus, my goal is a routine in which these things appear to occur though demonstration, implication, inference and tactile impression. PHASE 3 STORY: I wonder if Sal is going to do that coin trick of his again. Beth loved it as a kid. If he does I am going to watch his sneaky hands very closely. He can’t do real magic so there must be something I can catch. Yup, Beth has asked him to perform something special. What’s this? Sal has dumped a pile of coins on the table – all sizes and types. I see a silver dollar, some Chinese coins, brown ones, gold coins – wow! He asks Beth to select two coins the same size but different colors. She hands him a silver half dollar and an English Penny – one for each hand. The silver in his right hand is tossed into the left – nothing strange so far, just two coins in his left fist and nothing in his right. Now he takes the silver coin away in his right fingertips and places it in his pocket. That hand comes out empty. He asks Beth which coin is now in his left hand, then opens it to show she is correct as both coins are there! Now he takes the copper coin away leaving only the silver on his palm. The copper coin is flipped and placed in his pocket as the left hand closes. Again the left hand is opened to show a copper and silver coin. These are both tossed to the right hand and then placed back on the left palm. Once more the empty right fingers extract the silver coin and drop it into his pocket as the left hand slowly closes over the single copper coin. A simple wave of the right hand and the left opens to show both coins! No Way! He asks Beth for her hand and places both coins on her palm. He asks her which coin she thinks the most powerful as she makes a fist like he had done. He pulls out the other coin and places it in his pocket. It can’t be possible for him to get it to jump back into her hand. He waves his hand. She slowly opens her fist and … nothing! No coins at all! She is jumping up and down and throws her arms around his neck. This one I will remember!
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
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Dr_J_Ayala Inner circle In search of Vlad Dracul and his 2169 Posts |
Very nice funsway! This is a great read for coin workers of any level. The ideas here and the thought process are very well written, and I really enjoyed it. As a storyteller myself, I am taking quite a bit of good info away from this myself.
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