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MagicDaveNYC New user NYC 35 Posts |
I've been working on a bally to get people interested in watching my show... I've tried many methods - silk vanish, flip stick, coin to eye routine, just talking people as they walk by on and on...
Well I finally hit on a winner! I was inspired watching Mick Stone who always seems to quickly gather a crowd. I lay out my rope with a loop in the end - out where people are walking by - I place a large rat trap into the loop and hold onto the other end of rope in a manner that looks like I'm fishing to catch something with the trap. As people walk by they all look - because what I'm doing looks very strange. I starting telling people to watch the most dangerous magic trick blah blah... hype it up. When I got a few groups standing around I ask someone to help me... usually a child or a young lady. I ask them to put their finger on the trap - to test it... this leads to a lot of funny by-play. Finally when they put their finger on the trap I announce to the crowd that I have a caught a volunteer... this leads to a lot of chuckles... by now I have them standing in the magic loop - then I have them hold out their hands and I hand them two sponge balls. I then lay out the rope in a semi-circle and have the crowd come up and put their toes on the rope with the volunteer in the middle - I then go into my routines... works great! The next issues I have to tackle is the transitions and hatting. I usually lose more than half the crowd with my weak transitions... This is so challenging... but *** I love it! |
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JoeJoe Inner circle Myrtle Beach 1915 Posts |
Sounds like a great way to gather a crowd!
MY advice, don't transition ... just go right into the next trick ... a transition says "this trick is over" and people like to leave when the trick is over. So instead of ever saying "this trick is over", I just start doing the next trick. See my Crowd Goes Wild lecture video series to hear this explained in great detail with live video footage of the technique in action. -JoeJoe
Amazing JoeJoe on YouTube[url=https://www.youtube.com/user/AmazingJoeJoe]
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Nickoli Sharpe Regular user Worldwide 160 Posts |
Real good,
I try to use effect early that make people stay to see what is going to happen. Also if you can hand out the next effect while doing another. ( kinda like one ahead) Knowing that your serous while saying your money lines is important. Let them know your worth putting some money in the hat and that you gave them a quality show. Smile a lot Use lots of eye contact, great book 5 points of magic, talks about using imaginary strings with your audience. Lots of luck |
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TheRealMagicMike Regular user Las Vegas, NV 178 Posts |
I always had good success telling people upfront what was going to happen... "I'm going to do 3 tricks for you, each one better than the other and I'm going to end with the world's BEST card trick"... now people know what to expect, that it probably isn't going to be an extremely long show (commitment) and that the last trick is worth staying for. I'd repeat it if a lot of new people joined the crowd.
I had very little "peel" using that strategy. I'm sure there on many good methods... this one is mine. |
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Eric Evans Special user Rio Grande 668 Posts |
Quote:
On Jul 16, 2017, MagicDaveNYC wrote: It sounds like you were a little more than "inspired" by Mick. It sounds like you lifted his bally, almost verbatim. I do hope that you at least asked his permission before you started using HIS inspired opening. |
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MagicDaveNYC New user NYC 35 Posts |
Well actually Mick's kind of been like a mentor for me. He gives me his blessing. Dusty has also been helping me immensely.
Let me also say that... it's an honor for me that you even replied to this thread. I've never met you Mr. Evans but I greatly admire what I have seen of your work. I do hope to one day meet you in person. I would also love to meet Jimmy... his book is the reason I actually gave this a shot. Quote:
On Jul 18, 2017, Eric Evans wrote: |
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gallagher Inner circle 1168 Posts |
Hey Dave, welcome to the 'Sidewalk Shuffle' (!),
That's a nice effect, who-ever came up with it! It was a bit funny for me, because the word ''Bally', actually means 'Bloody'(!). ,..kinda fitting in this case. (i guess 'Ballyhoo' is the word we were looking for here.) Anyway. I would recommend NOT using it. It's a great bit, but it seems obvious, the rest of the Show isn't up to it yet. It's a bit like serving champagne at the reception, then passing around a bag of chips for the banquet. 🙃 I'd recommend working on material you like. It'll get stronger, as you go along. You'll always have those, like yourself, whom it amuses... it'll grow... you'll grow. The 'Ballyhoo' will grow out of it all. ,..the ending and 'hatting' will develope out of it all, as well. The 'core', however, is what will define you. I wish you well. I hope you stick around and tell your storys,.. ,...there are some good folks here, telling and sharing their's, as well!, ....pleanty of eager ears too! all the best, gallagher |
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Eric Evans Special user Rio Grande 668 Posts |
Hi gallagher, I hope this season is finding you well, but I mostly disagree with your advice in this matter.
Dave (thanks for the kind words btw), who is in the hands of two very talented and accomplished street magicians, has borrowed a tack regarding the most difficult aspect of building a crowd. And really, what is building a crowd? Stopping two people. Once you have them, you can build from there. Depending upon your ability and/or aspirations, the size of the crowd depends upon how good you know the venue/people, and how big the pitch/space. I understand and sympathize with your approach, but stage time, ultimately, is a bit more important than learning the specifics of an opening; a stopper. That eventually comes with the territory. |
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Dick Oslund Inner circle 8357 Posts |
When I was a teenager, in the'40s, I "broke in" the business, in carnie sideshows. The bally was the way to grab a tip, give them a "sample", and pitch the show.
I think "ballyHOO" came from the Victorian Age!!! I NEVER heard that word, then. In the mid '80s, I managed a "Girl to Gorilla" for my friend, the late Tim Deremer. We did a bally for every "performance". Sideshows, when I was "with it" were a continuous performance ("never out and never over") The front of the top behind the banner line, was "open". (A "teaser curtain" allowed someone on the midway to see peoples' feet, as they watched the show inside, but a "mark" on the midway could not see the actual performance). The outside talker would do a bally at regular intervals to keep the the top "full", which encouraged "walk ins". When I managed the Ape show, we ballied after each show, because, at the blow off, when that "gorilla" broke out of the cage, the tip inside, LEFT! I was managing a phone room in Davis CA, for the late Stanley Kramien, in the mid '80s, and had weekends open, so I would drive down to San Francisco, to visit with Buma Burger. For fun, I did a bit of busking on "the wharf". It was fun. I did OK, but, I decided that phoning the Kramien show, was easier, and financially, more appealing. Fishermen's Wharf, is full of tourists, so it wasn't too hard to grab a tip!
SNEAKY, UNDERHANDED, DEVIOUS,& SURREPTITIOUS ITINERANT MOUNTEBANK
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Stperformer Loyal user 291 Posts |
With regards to crowd building....
It's like rolling a snowball....you start by stopping a 2 or three people (as Eric mentioned) and build from there...like rolling a snowball, gettng larger and larger. A crowd builds a crowd. IMHO, this is superior than trying to build a quick fast crowd by turning on loud music, lighting a fire and yelling "Showtime". This works somewhat for large juggling, fire shows....but as a magician you should learn the slow build. More crowd connection = more $$$$$ It's a skill....that has to be learned and modified at various pitches. |
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gallagher Inner circle 1168 Posts |
I think we lost Dave somewhere!
Ahhhh!, But Dick Oslund is back!,..! ,..now that was a fair trade. 😊 "...from the Victorian Age." ,..am I showing my age?,..! I know this is Dave's thread,.. Dave's,.. or Mick's, or Dusty's opening; ..still, it's a great subject to talk about. What's a Show without an Audience? ....like french-kissing your mother. I realize and admitt, there are different approachs, ..different 'needs', ...different expectations, for openings,... crowd gatherings. Even Audiences have THEIR expectations! Again, like all good things, ...nothing's definate. Our approach is,.. ignoring potential audience members. Totally. I sometime pretend,.. they're in the way(!). We set up, big and deliberate. 'Visually' loud. Then go right into our Show. Our first number is our strongest,. most solid. if they don't come, watch, applaud, and pay,... it's their OWN fault. That's our attitude. Somestimes,... it don't work,... we give them 3 chances. Then we stop,.. crawl in a little hole,.. or yell and scream and talk about how stupid the peoples in the area are. ,...then crawl in a little hole. (it happens.) have a nice day everyone. gallagher p.s.: Dick, did you know Milo and Roger, when you were out in San Fransisco? I'd love hearing ANY storys about the two. |
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Eric Evans Special user Rio Grande 668 Posts |
Building a crowd for a magic show is different than building one for a juggling or musical performance with perhaps a dash of magic thrown into the mix. In fact, building a crowd for a magic show is more difficult than any other type of performance I've ever seen.
And until you've tried to do it, you don't have a clue what I'm talking about. |
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gallagher Inner circle 1168 Posts |
Argue for our limitations
and they are ours. Learning 'what and why' works for 'what and whatever', from 'who or whomever'; can help us understand our possiblity. The differences between brain surgery and shining shoes are less then we may think. ,...i believe. Things become 'difficult', when we lose our curiosity, courage to try new or different aproaches. gallagher p.s.: As important as an Audience IS, I believe, the mosr important aspect of our Performance, or anyone's performance; is WHAT I or they want to say, show, or feeling we want to create and express. In doing so, WE set the table. Serving fish, pizza, chain-saws, sponge balls, or violins; nö matter. OUR interest in the moment, is the 'attraction'. I've tried it. And continue to do so. p.p.s.: It's still as scarey as the first day,..most of the time. (It's still as GOOD as the first day,..most of the time.) |
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Eric Evans Special user Rio Grande 668 Posts |
Wow. I have no idea what you're talking about.
Like I said, you haven't a clue. OK, I'm being a bit harsh here, but really, I see your initial thrust, but the rest is gobbledegook as far as I can tell. I mean, "french kissing your mother"? What does that have to do with anything at all? You brush aside the creator of a beautiful stopper, and...crap. What a waste of time this is. I differ to my initial statement. |
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TheRealMagicMike Regular user Las Vegas, NV 178 Posts |
Quote:
On Jul 28, 2017, Eric Evans wrote: Let me do my best to interpret (mind you, I'm not an authorized "gallagher interpreter", but, I think I understood most of it... ***My Interpretation in parenthesis (). Argue for our limitations and they are ours. (What we say can be a self fulfilling prophecy... if we say something is difficult, it probably will be... we own it) Learning 'what and why' works for 'what and whatever', from 'who or whomever'; can help us understand our possiblity. (It helps to think about/analyze what we do and who we do it for... what "bits" work for whom and why as opposed to when and who they don't work for. Looking at what we're doing opens up creativity and new ways of thinking and doing things). The differences between brain surgery and shining shoes are less then we may think. ,...i believe. (The leap between mediocrity and greatness is not as big or impossible as many people believe it is). Things become 'difficult', when we lose our curiosity, courage to try new or different aproaches. (When we start to "play it safe" or get bored with what we're doing... when we continue to do the same old thing... those things can lead to the feeling that everything is hard or mundane rather than looking for ways to improve and do new and better things). gallagher (his name) p.s.: As important as an Audience IS, I believe, the mosr important aspect of our Performance, or anyone's performance; is WHAT I or they want to say, show, or feeling we want to create and express. (We certainly need and want a crowd, but, it starts with us, the performer, knowing what they want to do and why... a reason behind their performance that is meaningful to them, not just a bunch of tricks to an audience. In doing so, WE set the table. Serving fish, pizza, chain-saws, sponge balls, or violins; nö matter. (As performers, we "create scenes" for our audience, they don't know what to expect and we serve them an "experience". OUR interest in the moment, is the 'attraction'. (It's not just the "tricks", its us that is the "show". They can see and feel our enthusiasm and respond to it or they can sense our boredom and leave.) I've tried it. And continue to do so. (he's done it and still does it). I personally thought is was an interesting post (as are yours) and thought I'd see how close I came to gallagher's intended meaning... |
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gallagher Inner circle 1168 Posts |
Sharing thoughts is never a waste of time.
Even when we disagree, or do not understand one another. It's the only way the come forwards,...together. . . . . *. . . . . . . ä. . . . . . ö. . . . . . I've never heard of the concept "the beautifull stopper". I'd like to hear more. The concept I work with, is, "the big chance." We, without cuddle, promise, focus, or hype; present our best piece,.. as an openner,... to satisfy and settle an Audience, into watching our Show. Nö labber, blabber, wasted time or words. Then again, we play Pitches where folks aren't wandering about with time and money on their hands, hoping to watch 'the romantics of Busking.' Our potential Audiences are speaking maybe five DIFFERENT languages(!). Few in common. 75% of our potential Audience does not have an extra Rubel to roll. I may not have a clue about what YOU are doing,.. What I am doing,.. I've been studying for over 40 years now,... still don't understand it(!),.. but we're on a 'first name basis'. 😊 gallagher p.s.: Sorry bringing confusion into this. 🤔 I admitt, I NEVER french-kissed YOUR mother. 😇 |
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MagicDaveNYC New user NYC 35 Posts |
Gosh... this is... ummmm.... gotten interesting. I'm just a noob (maybe even a boob) trying to figure this out... watching some great performers on a daily basis. Trying to find my own way and not copy theirs... even when theirs is so good. And they make it look so easy! (I think Dusty is actually a creative genius)
It's challenging... but it's feeding my soul. After a few hours on the pitch and I haven't made a whole lot of money. I still feel awesome like I really accomplished something. And that striving to keep getting better feels so good. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read this and add their two pennies. |
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RiffRaff Special user 671 Posts |
Drawing a crowd with a 6ft uni, a stage illusion or a piano is not the same as drawing a crowd without.
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gallagher Inner circle 1168 Posts |
Hee hee hee.
Sö, what's the difference between drawing a crowd with a 6ft uni, a large stage illusion, a piano, or without? Where you park! (the guy next to me says, "The size of your girl friend's biceps.") {Monika says, "The number of friends who are willing to play Twister with you."} hmmm,...? Hey Mike, thanks for working thru my mumble and translating it. ,...i often wonder, myself(!), what I've written. Dave, I wish you well with your endevours. ,...altho I probably spelt that wrong. 🙃 I just wanted to say, that "feeling of awesome", you mention. That feeling of "accomplishment"... THAT'S what it's ALL about. You're obviously doing something right. Keep at it. Keep the 'feeling'. [keep posting!,..!] a friend on another corner, gallagher p.s.: somehow, somewhere, a Poem came out of this,. ,...or at least,.. it's working it's way thru.... Words were dangled, with thoughts intangled. Emotions were jangled. Feelings were rangled. Discribing the vision, ...from different angled. (the conclusion is still swirling.. 🙃 ...i'll let cha know.) |
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SugarRayRick Regular user 184 Posts |
Hi MagicDave,
Sent you a PM |
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