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JoeJoe Inner circle Myrtle Beach 1915 Posts |
It's still slow here, but I've been gearing up for the upcoming summer season. I'm most excited this year, as for the first time my entire act will be effects that I've created - not one store bought effect at all! This has been a goal of mine for many many years, so I'll be very proud when it manifests.
Some effects like the Floating George Washington are not exactly new, but I'll be using my thread tube hook-up so I still count them as "mine". New tricks this year include my Sword-Through-Body and The Floating Hat, both of which are now in mature stages. And of course, I'll be doing my Disappearing JoeJoe which proved itself as a hat filler last summer. The most exciting part is my new "stage-in-a-box" ... it's still being built, but I wanted to post some pics and maybe get some input from Café members. Here's the box in it's closed position - when done, it will have a lid and be covered in brown paper to look like a packing crate (in other words, you won't see the tape lines): http://joejoeonline.com/BOX1.jpg The box itself is very lightweight, it can be lifted with one hand. It's made of cardboard and it trimmed with silver foil duct tape (this is South Carolina so I can get away with that hehe). The box opens up ... see the split in the center? When open, it looks like this: http://joejoeonline.com/BOX3.jpg If you haven't noticed, that's a waist high black art stage! Now that the stage-in-a-box is nearly complete, I can begin building some black art illusions for it ... I've already got two in mind, one being The Floating JoeJoe and another will be a human "odd ball" with two ropes going through the box ... after I pull the ropes through the box, I'll be able to open the box and lift my legs above my head (similar to David Copperfield's Lazer illusion, but probably not as impressive). If all goes well, I'll have a black-art street-show by the end of the summer, possibly the only black-art street-show anywhere! If anyone has black art ideas for my new stage, please let me know either by responding here or hitting me up with a PM. Thanks! JoeJoe
Amazing JoeJoe on YouTube[url=https://www.youtube.com/user/AmazingJoeJoe]
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Zack Special user 551 Posts |
That's pretty cool JoeJoe! Thanks for posting it! I'm a bit of a tinkerer myself and I love to see other peoples p-rojects. How big is it? It would be cool to see you standing next to it for scale.
Now, I hate to be a negative nancy, but I'm very skeptical about pulling off black art on the street...if you can pull it off it'll be great. |
Mario Morris Inner circle Mario Morris 2044 Posts |
JoeJoe
You got to try these things, 10 out of 10. Mario |
cstreet_1986 Loyal user 263 Posts |
Looks great, but you might find it bit of a nucance (is that spelt right?) to carry around, being so big. But hey, looking good.
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JoeJoe Inner circle Myrtle Beach 1915 Posts |
About 3.5" x 2" x 2" ... here is a pic of me standing in the box, I don't actually own any tan colored pants as of right now, I think having the right color pants will make a world of difference:
http://joejoeonline.com/FLOAT1.jpg And here is a video clip of me performing Andrew Mayne's Pocket Sawing in front of the box: http://joejoeonline.com/JoeJoe_DangersOfMagic.wmv I can understand skeptical ... the idea of a floating box is something I first started working on 10 years ago, I've tried dozens of box designs already. But none of them have ever made it this far - confidence is high. I'm pretty sure it will work, should have a better idea as I start experimenting with the float gimmick. With bright pants and a bright shirt, they will see me standing there and hardly notice the background behind me. The one thing that may keep it from working is the (wrong) assumption that I've built a stool to sit on inside the box. I will depend on presentation and build-up to (hopefully) dispell that thought before they can ever think of it. But if the float does fail, the human odd ball effect will still work ... with tan colored pants in front of the black art, they won't see a thing - it would be nearly impossible. The width of the gimmick would be wider than the black art panel itself! Think about it, the width of the legs spread is greater than the width of the legs together, there would be no visible seems at all - even without black art! The black art enhances the illusion by concealing how deep the box really is. The way it opens is very deceptive, you would need a top view and a side view to understand exactly what I mean ... but that is something I'm not willing to post on a public forum. I do worry that this would be too much like DC's Lazer ... but it is a differnt method, and something I would have come up with without ever seeing the Lazer - mine would be more of a traditional sawing-in-half than the "modern" illusions he is known for. I'm certainly not trying to copy him, it just seems like a natural and logical use for this box. The end result should be a "goofy illusion", the kind that fits me well and something my audience is already used to from me. That's the kewl thing about making your own tricks, they fit you perfectly. JoeJoe Quote:
On 2005-05-08 08:06, cstreet_1986 wrote: Yes, I'm already wondering where I am going to store it - it is lightweifht, but bulky when trying to carry it up the stairs to my apartment. I figure I'll just leave it in my van at nights, but I worry the sun will cause the tape to peel - I've already experienced this effect with other cardboard illusions I've built. The good thing is, I have a set pitch spot that it all mine - I can set it up and leave it there all day. Put up a sign "next show at ____ o'clock". Very exciting for a street performer to have his very own stage! JoeJoe
Amazing JoeJoe on YouTube[url=https://www.youtube.com/user/AmazingJoeJoe]
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Zack Special user 551 Posts |
Sounds exciting! I can't wait to see the video of the "floating joejoe!"
I'm very jealous of your dedicated playng area. Do you get to park your van there? There is a parking space near my pitch that is usually empty because it looks like a loading zone. One day I will get a van and park it there. Hang a banner from the van and perform in front of it. And have a carpeted green room to rest in inbetween shows. A van would also be great for travelling to festivals! Save on hotels. |
JoeJoe Inner circle Myrtle Beach 1915 Posts |
No, I don't get to park the van there ... last year, I arrived in the evenings and had to hike my show through the entire parking lot.
This year, I plan to do this full time so I'll get there early in the afternoon before the crowds and get good parking. I plan to give away free balloon animals during the slower day and pass the hat in the evenings when lighting is more acceptable for thread work - this way, I won't need a day job. I slept in the van in Georiga over Christmas to work a flea market, and at the SCAM convention ... I decked it out with a bed in the back, it's very nice for travel, and saves on hotels. JoeJoe
Amazing JoeJoe on YouTube[url=https://www.youtube.com/user/AmazingJoeJoe]
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Everything I've seen here so far, this is a very good idea.
~michael
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
BroDavid Inner circle America’s North Coast, Ohio 3176 Posts |
JoeJoe,
Looks good. I take it by your comments about being bulky that it does not fold down flat? Too bad. I built a silk perfroming table top unit out of cardboard box, and covered it in black materials and red tape for emphasis, and in my case, the box servers well as container to hold everthing. And the top/lid goes on to cover the whole thing and then is removed and turned sideway to allow a working surface on top of the box that also is secured in place by velcro. So you might consider using velcro and making it a takedown unit. But I had the same issue that you spoke of with the tape, and with the adhesive velcor I used. So I am look to find a way to secure the tape (and the velcro better) Very nice, and the pocker sawing effect is awesome. The black art really adds to it! BroDavid
If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything.
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JoeJoe Inner circle Myrtle Beach 1915 Posts |
No, the box doesn't fold flat - but since I have a van, I perfer the faster setup ... in the hot sun, you want to be setup as fast as possible. But velcro should work real nice for the latches on the doors, I'll try a glue gun - it should take a lot of heat to melt that.
I moved to a smaller pitch spot for the month of May, it's still slow and with the exception of the bikers there is not a lot of action until school lets out ... so I hope to have the box finished for the June shows at my regular pitch. I've got a nice effect worked out, a combination of Pocket Sawing and Bi-Section where I'll visually cut myself in half and lift my legs over my head! With the black art, this will look good a 3 feet away! The real impact will be me standing there doing a trick first, something simple to throw em off my legs. Anyways, I'll get more pics and videos soon ... I sure wish there were more hours in a day. JoeJoe
Amazing JoeJoe on YouTube[url=https://www.youtube.com/user/AmazingJoeJoe]
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plainman007 Special user 630 Posts |
This is a very nice idea. I saw the images and I think it should work. As long as you don't have direct light falling on the interior of the box. It would be better if you have some street lights etc falling on the spectators eyes. In other words you'll have to go by feel and pick an apt spot and orientation for your box. These will help as blinders. Good Luck in your endeavour.
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