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rhiro Regular user Southern California 182 Posts |
Hi Jheff,
I once saw you perform at the Magic Castle and you happened to have one of the worst hecklers I have ever seen at that venue. A man in the audience who was upset about something (clearly had nothing to do with you) kept making loud interruptions during your show. The audience was getting tense, and I'm sure I wasn't the only one who was worried that this was going to escalate into something really bad. But you handled the situation like a pro, and I was amazed at how you managed to diffuse the situation without giving up control, going soft, or being a jerk. While observing this exchange, part of me flashed back to high school, and I felt a bit like I was watching a seasoned educator expertly dealing with a classroom troublemaker. How has your teaching experience influenced your magic? Thanks, Ross |
Jheff V.I.P. 402 Posts |
Hi Ross,
Thanks for the kind words. In answer to your question, my experience dealing with students of all types have helped me deal with audience members of all types. Understanding students, especially teenagers, is not easy, but the more you teach, the more you get a sense of what's "eating" them, so to speak. Part of why I can handle them is because I can be a little sarcastic and act like a teacher controlling his students. For other performers, it may come off as rude, but, for me, it fits the character, because I present myself as a teacher who educates and motivates my students. A line that I often use is, "You're just like my students and making me feel right at home." The line gets a laugh but also is a signal to the person and the audience that I am in control of this show. A majority of the time that line is all I need. Another thing that's important to know is that people who interrupt the show are not always "hecklers." Many performers, especially inexperienced, will immediately launch into insults and wisecracks when someone says something unplanned. "I don't recall writing a line for you in my script," is a common retort. People "heckle" for a number of reasons. The true "hecklers" are simply malicious. They're outbursts are meant to deliberately disrupt the show. But even they must be handled delicately or you risk the crowd turning on you for handling the person too harshly. Some hecklers are just having so much fun in your act that they can't help making outbursts. Performers should not mind the occasional outburst and oftentimes what is said is quite funny. I love those times because, if the audience finds the line humorous, I may borrow it and include it into my script. Those who are drunk usually are not being malicious. They are just drunk. They can often be funny and add to the act. Or they can be so drunk they are just exhausted. If you spot someone who is excessively drunk, I do advise that you don't use them as a participant in your act. Kids get very excited and will blurt out all sorts of things. The younger the kids, the more they do it. It's because as kids age they mature. Well, most do, anyway. So if you perform for children, you must expect, welcome, and plan for their interaction. Use patter and presentations in which the kids can interact with you, but make sure that the interaction is controlled and planned by you. The trick is to read into the intention of the outburst and understand that you shouldn't treat every unplanned outburst as something from a disruptive "heckler." My advice is to actually assume let these outbursts be part of the show and laugh along with them if they are funny. You will know when these participants' outbursts are going a bit too far or going a bit too much and you will learn to politely but firmly stop it. Oftentimes, simply ignoring them will work. Getting back to the topic, besides an understanding of students, I do use my students as guinea pigs for new effects and routines. Teenagers can often be the most brutal when watching. They are still kids, which means the adult psychology we rely on in some tricks may or may not work. And they are young adults, so they are maturing and between the two. They also reflect the current generation, which is not literate by the standards of earlier generations and they are quite impatient, being part of the channel surf generation. So, if I get a good reaction from my students to an effect I'm performing, then I know it's got to be good. That's all that I can think of right now. Thanks for asking. - Jheff
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rhiro Regular user Southern California 182 Posts |
Hi Jheff,
Wow, what a fantastic response! Lots of great insight here! Thank you for writing such a detailed, thoughtful reply. I agree -- many disrupters are not really hecklers, and oftentimes one can find gold in those sidetracks. In the instance I cited earlier, though, the man in your audience was one of the few real hecklers I've seen at a magic performance. He was irritated, and his outbursts were threatening. Again, I was impressed with how well you handled this guy. Experienced educators, at least the good ones, really seem to know what makes people tick. Both of my parents were longtime educators (now retired), and it always impressed me how quickly they could disarm a tense situation, or figure out a problem kid (or parent!). Thanks again for the great reply! Ross |
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