This weekend I have my first magic show at my company's annual dinner. I have a problem. I want somebody help.

One of the tricks has to pick up someone for pick up a card. But this is my company. I want to invite a director rather than random staff.
My problem is my company has many directors and VIPs. It's around 20. Actually, I already selected one of the directors.
If I just name her, it may seem unfair with other directors or spectators think she is my assistant. Could anyone give me some suggestions? (Or, do I think too much???)

Many thanks,
DK

P.S. This is not a large illusions. But I didn't know which is the suitable area.

Begin the trick with a few lines about this routine or so, and while talking go through the audience. Interrupt your patter several times by shaking hands of 2-3 audience members and greeting them. Sounds weird but it looks so good and builds quite a confidence between you and audience members. It can be done either in a serious or a comedy manner. It should be something like this:

- And now ladies and gentlemen, I would like to show you one of the oldest (or whatever) trick.... blah blah (you go down into the audience)... blah blah... and every time the cowboy sneezed an image of a card held by his rival appeared in the glass... Good evening Sir! How are you? (shake hands with an audience member)... And so, the cowboy would use his skill every time he played a poker game... Hello nice to see you here tonight! (shake hands with another audience member)... Blah blah... Not only did he use his skill when he played cards - he used it when he wanted to attract the beautiful ladies... Oh, good evening Ma'am! It is such a pleasure having you here tonight! (it is THE lady, shake hands with her and gently pull her up, if she hesitates you don't have to be that gentle at all) Would you please stand up (followspot light on her), give her a big round of applause!!!! (Applause) Would you please pick a card!

Sorry for the stupid patter. It came to my mind as I was writing. You can have whatever speech you like. Going through the audience and greeting them while telling a story brings a lot of spontanity and looks cool. As you walk and greet several people before you'd greet her, the choice looks very spontaneous as well. I learned this method from a very old magician and it is often used by magicians who perform the pickpocketing routines on stage (this way they can quickly pick the pockets and steal watches and jewelery of almost everyone they greet). The method of pulling (or literally plucking) the chosen spectator while shaking hands and asking for a big round of applause at the same time is a very good method to fight the spectator's hesitation. Some spectators won't hesitate to assist you, and that's why a light "plucking" will do the job in most cases, but if you see a slightest hesitation in her/his eyes, pull them out by the hand strongly (not so strong that it would hurt). People are confused when there's a spotlight on them, and when the audience applauds at the same time. By the end of the trick, the chosen spectator won't even remember that you pulled him/her out strongly. The magician that taught me this has also shown me how to make a "lever" to pull out even the most hesitant spectator... Your foot goes next to his/hers foot while you shake hands, you slightly lean backwards and he/she is standing before he/she knows it and no one will notice. With the right timing it goes like Good evening! (Pull her up and at the same time say) Would you please stand up! Please put your hands together for Mrs. XY!

If you use the "lever" method correctly, no one will ever notice that you used a great deal of power to get the spectator up.

I worked a lot with Asian audiences. They have different mentallity, they are extremely shy (imagine 300 or so shy people in the audience) and they do not like to participate in the show. The lever method worked every time for over 500 shows!

Thank you so much Diamond. You help me a lot.

After I read your post, I got some idea for the patter.

And now ladies and gentlemen, I would like to show you one of the greatest tricks. I want someone to help on this magic……. blah blah...I prefer to invite VIP tables. (There should be 2-3 tables for directors and VIPs.)

Because they are our special guest. (Shake hands) And, the directors may promote me to manager. (Do you think this patter is not "lever" method?)

For the magic, a charming lady is the most suitable. (This moment I will go to the target and shake her hand and say:) Oh, good evening Ma'am! It is such a pleasure having you here tonight!
Would you please stand up? Please give her a big round of applause.

Is that ok? Is that a "lever" method?


Posted: Feb 6, 2006 5:48am
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One more thing. I think this is a great method for this show because my spectators are Asian.

DK,

It looks to me like you have a plan.

Good luck! And let us know how it works for you.

Bob Sanders
Magic By Sander

It is obvious: but make sure that when using a VP from your company or higher make sure that she does not end up looking foolish, she needs to come out of the trick with "her face intact" especially in the Asian community that is the number one..... I would almost advise against using somebody high up in the hierachy just because if something goes wrong or makes them look foolish they will remember that for a long time..... and it could be non beneficial to your career.

This is the way, I get a spectator:

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I was invited here not only to perform alone on stage but also to involve you the audience with my magic. Before, I started this show, I heard that there are several magicians from the audience. Is there any (name of volunteer) in the audience? Please come on stage. How about a round of applause to (name of volunteer)."

I have always succeeded in this way of getting a volunteer on stage.

Hope it works for you!

Bob Sanders
Sure, I will let you know after the show.


WolfgangWollet
Thanks for your comment. Actually, I have a joking to foolish the spectator. I better change the patter now.


Lou Hilario
Before you say, I can't imagine when I say several magicians from the audience and name the volunteer. Then, he/she will come on the stage? She isn't a magician. If I am that audience, I may say "no, I am not a magician. How come call my name?"

Actually, now that I know the fact that you are working for the Asian audience, I would never recommend getting anyone of high rank on stage! Wolfgang is absolutely right! Not only that an Asian CEO would not like to come up on stage (they may try to "wrestle" with you if you use the lever method), but it might have some serious consequences on your career. Wolfgang is absolutely right.

I worked for a cruise line that caters to the Asian passengers and I have also worked in a big amusement park in Asia. Every time when there was someone important in the audience, that person was shown to me before the show so that I don't take that person on stage. Even if you do romantic and harmless routines like Floating Rose or so, they still do not want to be in the spotlight.

A magician from Europe that worked for the same Asian cruise line before me, accidentally took one of the Company's executives who came onboard (it happens often in cruise lines that the owners or different CEO's of a certain cruise line come onboard to see what's going on or so). The magician was not warned before the show, and he had no idea who the man was. The man didn't want to go on stage, he was just asked if he'd assist the magician. Nevertheless the magician almost got sent home for even trying to bring that CEO on stage.

Weatern head officers or CEO's are completely different. They usually love being in the spotlight and they enjoy helping the magician. Just for a comparison, the captain of the ship I performed on was Swedish, and he gladly assisted me whenever I brought him on stage.

The CEOs of the company you'll be performing for will probbably enjoy the show and they'd love to see people from the company on stage but it has to be someone of the lower rank.

Bad news.
If I use "lever" method, it should be over run. I have to use some simple method.


diamond
Thanks again. But routine already done. I should pick up someone from spectators. The show is on sat. I have no time to change the routine.


Posted: Feb 9, 2006 5:34am
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I think I just simply ask someone for help.

Cultural issues aside, when I want to use a specific spectator for an effect I just begin scanning over the crowd while saying something along the lines of, "for my next effect I need the assistance of someone from the audience..." timing it so that at this point I am looking at my chosen spectator. I then point directly at them saying, "ah, here's someone! Let's welcome him/her to the stage with a round of applause!" This method has never failed me. It's simple and direct.

I do think that a lot of it depends on who you are both as a person and a performer. There's a fair amount of trial and error in developing the most effective way to get what you need. My show is structured in such a way that allows me to scout out potential assistants for the remainder of the show during my first two effects. I am trying to get a read on how they respond, how they behave in general. For instance, for "Invisible Deck" I look for someone who has a fairly boisterous personality (without being rowdy), and for "Linking Rings" I look for a younger girl who will be fairly compliant. By choosing the right "type" for my routines ahead of time (as much as is possible) I increase the odds that the routine will go as smoothly and entertainingly as possible.

The one thing I never do is to force someone upon the stage if they don't want to be. You can bet that if they resist coming up in the first place, they will resist anything else you ask them to do. You can probably still get through the effect, but chances are the entertainment value will be diminished.

I think that the "lever principle" mentioned above is an excellent method and I'm sure extremely effective, but I don't think it would mesh especially well with my style of performance. Like everything in magic, you have to find out through experimentation what will work best for you!

Good luck, and let us know how it goes!

Nicely said Frank. Nice way is always the greatest way to get the audience on stage. But cultural issues do play a very big part when it comes to performing in Asia. If you just said you needed help from someone from the audience chose a spectator visually and brought him on stage in Asia, that would literally be a fiasco. Believe me, I work a lot on all 5 continents, but Asia is something totally different. 99% of the audience there does not want to be on stage (even for the most harmless tricks, or when you simply call them out to inspect an illusion). Believe me, you would lose nerves, no matter how nicely you try. This is not only my point of view, but also a point of view of many performers performing there. Even shaking hands with people there (does not have to be for the lever method) or simply letting them choose a card (without having them come to the stage) can be a very tough job there.

You can't imagine, what kind of problems I and several other performers I saw there had. For instance one guy I know came to a spectator asking him politely if he would assist him for the next trick and the spectator jumps up and runs out of the theatre (and he was soooooooo fast). It happened to me sometimes that audience members did not want to shake hands with me at all! I saw David Copperfield in Taiwan twice and believe it or not a very few people wanted to catch his frisbees and silver balls (they also crossed their hands and when the ball or frisbee fell on the floor near them they would just kick it to another spectator). Unbelievable!

When performing elsewhere, I also have several very nice ways to get someone on stage, and they work every time, but not in Asia. Even with kids (kids in the audience in other parts of the world would want to come on stage so badly, they raise their hands, they even fight to get my attention, but in Asia the kids mostly don't like being on stage as well and they run away as I approach them).

With such an audience it is really hard to work. I always tend to kick the routines involving the audience out of my shows when I perform in Asia, but the managements of the venues I perform at always ask me to leave them in the show. They love seeing someone on stage, and they kick their butts laughing when someone is there, but they never want to be chosen. Also the audience members on stage are often very unrelaxed, they often try to spoil something in the trick and they do like being hecklers, but they don't like to cooperate and it is very hard to work with them. Things like I say to a gentleman "Would you please show both sides of this paper to the audience" (everything is translated to him) and he tears away the paper and tosses the pieces on stage laughing at me saying something in Chinese to the rest of the audience (and they start laughing as crazy). Or I had a woman who was on stage and in the middle of the routine I go to the front to show something to the audience, and when I come back, she's not there - she's half the way back to her seat. When you add to that the fact that you are not allowed to touch the spectator (except for shaking hands, people in many countries in Asia considder it very rude if you put a hand on their back or shoulders to simply direct them on stage) and that they often don't speak English (so I have to rely on a translator standing on stage with me, and usually the translator doesn't care if the spectator is misbehaving so they let him do whatever he wants), it is very hard to control the Asian audience.

That is why the conventional methods of chosing a spectator won't work there. On the other hand side, it is interesting - the fact that audience does enjoy every minute of the show and the show got very positive ratings. Another interesting fact is the thing that they love cooperating and they behave nicely if they are shown some close up routines. As long as there are no people watching them, they would cooperate gladly.

Wow! Really the main reason I said "cultural issues aside" was just because I have no personal experience dealing with such things! (I can get culture-shock just driving abour 8 hours from home!)

But when dealing with performing in another culture, you are completely at the mercy of their rules. Something as simple as color can have a huge impact. Some friends I know took a show overseas, and to help with the language barrier, did the whole presentation in mime set to music. People really enjoyed the presentation, but could not understand why on earth the good guy wore white! It certainly pays to investigate the culture before you go!

I wonder if a possible solution to this particular problem might be to prearrange with the chosen volunteer well before the show to see if they would be comfortable with being on stage. They needn't be coached on the actual trick, but you might be able to explain fundamentally what their involvement would be. If they're comfortable enough with the concept you could still play it as being a "random selection" but at least the volunteer wouldn't be taken by surprise. I guess it might be considered a "half-stooge" concept... they know they'll be chosen, but they won't know the exact effect.

Just a thought anyway. I have no idea if it would actually work or not, but it's an idea.

It was also my idea to have a prearranged spectator (not a stooge but someone who would be asked before the show to assist me). It was a nice plan, but it didn'r work well... People were asked to help me on stage before the show and a lot of times no one wanted to accept. I have a routine in which I had to do that (Jacket Illusion - a simplified comedy variation of a Spirit Cabinet) in which the spectator had to have a jacket. Boy, was it tough, when I discovered that the men in the audience basically don't wear a jacket (well, at least there was always 1 or 2 out of 300-400 spectators). Boy, was it a panic to have those spectators on stage! Cruise staff would ask them before the show and sometimes we were lucky, but many times we weren't. We even had a "universal jacket" the one that I kept in the dressing room and the cruise staff would go from person to person before the show asking them to wear a jacket and to assist me on stage. Ugh, it was sooooooooo tough. Anyway, after several months and many show I became an expert in Asian audience, and I now I always have my ways in and out...

Some other time I'll tell you about my experience from Africa and Dubai. The cultural differences are something that a magician performing in other countries must always face. Not only that, but also the fact that audience in different parts of the world likes different tricks and illusions. Something that would bring you a standing ovation (show after show) in one country, will leave them flat dead in another (show after show). It is only a matter of patience and determination to include the cultural differences as a starting point and being ready to change the show completely every time.

Diamond-

It seems like you've got enough material that you could write a whole book on perfroming magic for various cultures.

I imagine that for most folks the only way they'll find out this info is the way you did it...the hard way! But I'm sure it's made you a much stronger performer in the long run!

I agree with Diamond on some points. It really depends on what type of audience you have. There is no general way of getting a volunteer. It takes a lot of experience and the right personality to do so. Culture also plays a very important part. In my case, I often don't have a hard time picking the right volunteers. That's 25 years of experience.

Thanks a lot to diamond, Bob Sanders, WolfgangWollet, Lou Hilario, Frank Simpson. It's very sucessful
For the pick up audiences problem. Finally, my colleague go to the VIP tables and ask who wanna come when I start the performance.
Diamond, you're right. She is very shy. But not that bad like your experience.

I want to say thank you again to everyone who help me.

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It's my time to share my experience.
I come from Hong Kong. I am a hobbyist in close-up magic. So, I usually perform to my friend. Here is some of my experience:
Asian always afraid something they don't know. Sometime, magic is do something they don't know. Frist of all, you must give them a good confidence.
e.g. Say something like "I am not going to sawing you in half" or "You only need pick up a card. Please come and help"

The shy Asian. You have to give them a very clear instructions.
e.g. "When I riffle down the card, anytime anywhere you can say stop. Do you got me?" (if no clear instructions. You will riffle down until you touch the floor.)

The one not co-operation. They always like to see someone doing wrong or accidentally drop. You can:
1. Let' them know you're a very professional magician
e.g. As diamond case, the audiences tear away the paper and drop on the floor. They you take those picses of paper and restore it. Then ask the audiences please don't tear and do it again.

2. Comedy magic
They will enjoy the show and also think you're a professional magician.

3. Complete their challenge.
e.g. In ACR, after the watch few times the card back on top. They may ask you" can you do with face up card?" your can reply "It's very hard. But I try my best."
They will silcent and also think you're a professional magician.
But this point have a risk. They may keep challenge you.

Hope this help.
DK

Wow you come from Hong Kong! I've been there last year performing onboard Star Pisces for 6 months (I suppose you know that big ship). I wish I had known you then, we could have spent some time having fun in HK (by the way, of many of the cities around the world that I've been to, HK is one of my favorites). I went very often to the magic shops in Mong Kok and in Oriental Plaza and got to know several magicians there.

Yeah, some of the cases with spectators I described did happen with the HK people, but the biggest trouble was when the people from the Mainland came onboard sometimes (they have a completely different mentality). I agree with you on the issue of clear instructions. Fortunately all I had a translator and spoken parts of my show were translated to both Cantonese and Mandarin and by the time I learned some of the basic phrases, and the audience always loved it. My favorite lines were "Ting ling ling Tey leng leng" and "Mali mali ho" (chinese magic words), "Ten" (stop and I did it exactly when I rifled the cards), "Ta hoy" (open - and I obviously spoke it in a very funny accent, they would fall down from their chairs evey time I would do it) and "Tsiiiiiiiiiinaaaaa" ("Money!!!!!" as I found the bill inside the lemon - they loved it and repeated it after me every time).

Hong Kong people basically love big and spectacular things - they loved my illusions. They love things like cutting a woman in half or levitating it because they really think that one must posses some sort of magic powers to do something like that. But they also love the close up. I'm not much of a close up performer, but I was requested to put together a close up show and the reactions and the ratings were great.

In my stage show (I have no idea why) but they hated the Zombie routine - they were flat to that. In other parts of the world I always have great reactions with the Zombie and that is a piece that I have in my show for 15 years now. When I am to appear somewhere in some country where I have worked before, the agents and venue owners from various parts of the world (people that I have worked with already that know my show), always call me to make sure I will carry my Zombie routine with me, in Dubai they used to call me "the floating ball man". In HK, they were just flat to it so I took it out of the show. Also the levitation of my assistant didn't play as well as in the rest of the world. To the day today I have no idea why. These are the regular pieces that we perform for many years. On the other hand side my comedy card act (an act that I literally used to hate - I had it always ready in case someone would ask me to perform 10 minutes more, but I sort of don't like cards and I'm not too much of a manipulator - these are all special cards) went extremely well.

Just go and grab yourself a fine looking lady

I hope I can meet you next time when you come to HK.

Star Pisces…… Yes, this ship is very famous. But I never go. I planing go to there sometime later. Hope you will perform there later.
In that ship, I suggest do a gambler routine. (You know why.HEHE)

"Ting ling ling Tey leng leng" and "Mali mali ho" are classic magic words. We really like any foreigner talk in Cantonese. I am laughing even read you massage. Next time, ask the translator teach you "My name is diamond" (Your name has a translated term in Cantonese). Let's try when you start the show.

Sawing lady in half = Magician. And also, you can do take a rabbit in a hat or dove production.
Here is some idea from a magican in HK. First, take a rabbit in a hat. Second, tell the spectators I going to repeat the trick. Third, take something not relate to animal. Let's say a paper cup. It would be a good reaction. If you want a big finish. You can take doll rabbit in the paper cup.

They like close up because they always think magic is perform on the stage only. They don't believe magic can do it very close. Try to invite a spectator and perform some simple close up routine. E.g. coin arcoss w/ CS, ACR or out of this world. It should be a good reaction.

I don't know why they don't like Zombie. But doing "Sawing lady in half", "Take a rabbit in the hat", "dove production", Linking ring" or "levitation" in better. And also, please don't do the escape magic. The think this is a skill rather than magic.

As for the escape magic, we actually did the sub trunk (it is escape magic after all) and it was very popular. We also did the Jacket illusion (the mini version of the Spirit Cabinet in which my assistant is all tied up with a length of rope, a spectator is invited to step inside a hoop with curtain together with my assistants and a couple of seconds later he would be jacketless and my assistant would wear a jacket beneathe all the ropes still tied up tightly). We do it a s acomedy piuece and it went extremely well as well. Chosing a spectator for that piece was a piece of art (due to the fact that not too many people wore jackets), but we managed to do it somehow. We even had a case once of a spectator who saw the show many times (a repeating passenger) and he wanted to make her look foolish and held to his jacket with all the strength he had). Boy, did he feel her 2 inch fingernails on his arms behind that curtain (and she's still tied up) ;-) . Of course the change went well, maybe 1 sec longer than usual.

I have learned something from a guy who learned how to perform the Spiti Cabinet (original big version) from a performer who is very famous for his Spirit Cabinet (this famous guy whose name I can't recall now was one of consultants for DC's Barclay house). For routines like this he recommends being on the border of aggressiveness toward the spectator because the spectator literally has seconds to do a very unexpected thing. Indeed, 2 friends of mine were on stage with DC (for some other illusions) and they told me that he and his crew are quite harsh when giving the tasks - actually orders (and the orders are clear to the extreme) to the audience members.