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MagicalArtist Veteran user Hobart, Indiana 373 Posts 
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This quote is attributed to Michael Close:
Quote:
If you are not particularly interesting to be around when you are not performing, then you won’t be particularly interesting to watch when you do perform. Do you agree with this quote? This kind of excludes shy magicians from ever being entertaining, as well as those who think that, by taking up magic, they're going to become "the life of the party". What do you think? |
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Derek Rutt Creations Regular user thailand 172 Posts
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I certainly do not agree with this quote.
There are some very shy people in their private life and are not particularly interesting ......but.......when they get up on stage look out they are Brilliant. I have known many people like this in fact I would probably say that some of the finest entertainers are like this Derek
Hope this helps. Creation is life
www.derekrutt.com |
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KerryJK Special user Northampton UK 621 Posts
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I don't know, but I suspect this is one of those quotes that needs to be seen in context. Because it's said by a magician, possibly about walkaround magic and define "performing" as when you're actually doing a trick; if you show up to someone's table and immediately suck the life from the air the chances are that pulling out a card trick won't suddenly change the situation.
For general performance, no, it's not important. You don't need to be 'on' full time to be interesting on stage, I've known plenty of actors and performers who look like they wouldn't say boo to a goose when you meet them normally but who turn into completely different people when they step on stage. The stage does by it's nature attract misfits, extroverts and eccentrics and is one of the most welcoming places for such people to find their niche </candid_self_analysis>, but that's more or less co-incidental and not a pre-requisite by any means. Actually, the performer who is otherwise normal may even have an advantage, as they have more of a blank slate to work on in developing just the right persona for the stage without slipping into the trap of self indulgence. I do a lot of things for the hell of it, some hit, many miss, but keeping my ego and extroversion in check to put things onstage that the >audience< will find entertaining rather than just me is one of the most important things I've had to learn, and I'm still learning it. |
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Jaz Inner circle NJ, U.S. 6111 Posts
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Quote:
On 2005-10-10 00:16, MagicalArtist wrote: Shy people can be interesting outside of magic. Becoming the life of the party is another matter. I tend to agree with Close's statement. Being able to hold people's interest is a big plus. |
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Jonathan Townsend Eternal Order Ossining, NY 27256 Posts
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Quote:
On 2005-10-10 00:16, MagicalArtist wrote:...“If you are not particularly interesting to be around when you are not performing, then you won’t be particularly interesting to watch when you do perform.”... Thought about this and a counter example came to mind: Daryl I recall the guy as quiet and introspective when not performing. When he started to do magic, it was as if lights came on in the room. A few minutes after he was done, back to quiet.
...to all the coins I've dropped here
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Frank Tougas Inner circle Minneapolis, MN 1712 Posts
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Depends upon what he meant by interesting. People can be interesting without having to be the center of all things. I find people interesting when they are intrested in something. People who simply go around trying to be interesting can also be the biggest bores around. Kind of like the "look at me" facade that Penn & Teller make fun of.
Some of the best conversations I've had with magicians have nothing to do with magic at all. I have found them to be intensely interesting. As much as I hate to say this - in this case I agree, terms need to be defined a bit, to make this thread relevant (not to mention interesting). 
Frank Tougas
Frank Tougas The Twin Cities Most "Kid Experienced" Children's Performer :"Creating Positive Memories...One Smile at a Time"
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MagicalArtist Veteran user Hobart, Indiana 373 Posts
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Well, thinking back to high school, we all noticed that some people were very popular, always invited to the prom, always had a circle of friends around them, were members of the “best” cliques, etc. etc., and others, well—weren't. Weren't the ones who were most popular the ones who were considered the most “interesting" by their peers? Weren’t they the ones who people enjoyed being around, talking to and even just listening to? If this is the type of person that Michael Close was talking about, wouldn't they make the most entertaining magicians, all other things being equal?
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Jaz Inner circle NJ, U.S. 6111 Posts
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In my high school days there were different cliques,
jocks and cheerleaders, the greasers, honor students, fraternities, all with basically different interests and enjoyed being around each other for that reason. I've no idea who Close would consider as someone who's "not particularly interesting to be around ...." |
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24306 Posts
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Daryl can be very interesting in conversation, without getting into magic. I think this may have something to do with Michael's quote. Being interesting and being ebbullient are not necessarily the same thing.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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Marshall Thornside Inner circle chicago 2016 Posts
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Thinking...
you will remember my name
World's Youngest Illusionista 7th greatest pianist in the world Go Red For Women and Stroke Ambassador www.mai-ling.net |
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magicurt Loyal user alabama 222 Posts
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I'ld like to venture out and make a statement that I wouldn't say always applies but it has in every case I've seen.
If you are annoying or abrasive outside of magic you will be annoying or abrassive in your magic. Most of the time your stage persona is an extention of who you really are. If you don't fit in with the people around you magic won't change that. If people don't like your personallity it is bound to show through in your performance. That being said, Earl Ray Wilcox was a completely different person on stage that he was off stage. It was a persona he worked on and refined with lots of hours of works. But he was a very likeable guy off stage and he was a very likeable guy on stage. Someone can be quite and introverted but put out a great silent program or even a great stage persona driven program, but I believe it will take more work than normal. I do not think that a person who can't make or keep friends can learn some magic tricks and then attract friends. I have seen many people who were in some manner misfits to their enviroment get into magic. I have often wondered if it was their way of trying to find a way to fit in. Bottom line is it doesn't matter what you are like off stage--are you entertaining? That is what it is all about, entertainment. Just my opinion through observation, Curt |
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Reis O'Brien Inner circle Seattle, WA 2467 Posts
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Perhaps Close's quote would be better restated as; "The more interesting of a person you strive to be in your normal life, the more interesting you will be in your performances."
Meaning that if you read books, study culture, feed your brain, then you are developing a deeper character within yourself that you can share with others. You may not even deliberately share this, but rather it will filter out through you, through your demeanor, your confidence and possibly be honed into a sharper wit or a more graceful charm. Anyway, that's one way of looking at it. |
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Bill Nuvo Inner circle 3094 Posts or 2747 Posts
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I am not a terribly interesting person when not performing. I mostly sit at home with my family. Nothing exciting.
On stage I have a totally different personality. |
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magicurt Loyal user alabama 222 Posts
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O'Brein I think that is generally true as well but not always. I am pretty sure Glen did not mean his statement to be a blanket statement and may not have even meant it exactly like he was quoted.
Curt |
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Jaz Inner circle NJ, U.S. 6111 Posts
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Glen(?) Close? Oops? heheh
I've read Michael Close's Workers series a have a some idea on his thinking. It could very well be that it was a blanket statement. I think Reis may have got it right. Only Michael Close really knows. |
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24306 Posts
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Quote:
On 2005-10-10 14:01, MagicalArtist wrote: Not necessarily. In many places these "cliques" are determined by who your father works for, what church you go to, what summer camp you went to last year, what outside social clubs you belong to, and whether your parents were members of the country club. Sometimes money is a factor. Quote:
Weren’t they the ones who people enjoyed being around, talking to and even just listening to? If this is the type of person that Michael Close was talking about, wouldn't they make the most entertaining magicians, all other things being equal? The ones in the "best" cliques when I was in school were the ones who had the most money. With few exceptions, they were "cookie cutter" people. You could have swapped one for another and nobody would have known the difference.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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magicurt Loyal user alabama 222 Posts
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OOPS!!!!! Didn't mean to drag glen close into this appologize for me next time you see her. I don't need her chasing me around with a knife.
Curt |
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MagicalArtist Veteran user Hobart, Indiana 373 Posts
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Okay, people are picking up on the word "cliques." Forget I said that, as that's a value-loaded term, and it means different things to different people. What I really mean is "popular" people...the ones who always seem to attract others to them, who always seem to have a large circle of friends, as opposed to the shy introverts who...how shall we say?...have less magnetic personalities! LOL
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24306 Posts
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Still the same thing, really. The most popular girl in our class in High School was the mayor's daughter? Coincidence? I think not. Her father also built Astroworld. I will say this, though. Dene always remembered who I was, even 20 years after we graduated. And I was not part of that clique. She was one of those exceptionally nice people who remembered all of us.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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tommy Eternal Order Devil’s Island 16379 Posts
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The most interesting guys I know are the quiet ones. I do not think "interesting" excludes quiet, but shy, as in self conscious, is a great disadvantage to a magician for sure.
If there is a single truth about Magic, it is that nothing on earth so efficiently evades it.
Tommy |
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Posted: Oct 10, 2005 04:16 am 
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