|
|
JIMclubber64 Loyal user 269 Posts |
Hey everyone,
For about a year now, I've wanted to start doing a formal close-up show, and I finally have everything I need, except a few more hours/days/weeks of practice. Now my local magic shop has a close-up/parlor show room that they allow magicians to use. The only thing is that you have to audition before they will let you use it (think of it as a magic castle-type thing). I want to audition soon, but there are a few things I'm a bit worried about that I wanted to ask you all about. One, I can't really try out my whole show on any real people, which causes a few problems in and of itself. One is that I don't have any audience participation, and so transitions between tricks are a bit awkward. Also, I don't know if I'm flashing or not on a few tricks, and I also just simply can't see the audience reactions. And that leads to another concern of mine, which is whether or not my show has a high enough impact. All the magic I chose looks good when I see other people perform it, but when doing it alone it seems weak. Also, I can't tell if there is something with my patter, audience management, ect., that needs work, or if my show order makes strong effects weak because of what comes after them (which I think is a possibility with a few things). Just for the record, I do have some (but not alot) stage experience, so I do know what's important to an extent. I guess my question is, once I have all the sleights down, have my patter polished up a bit, ect., do I just go in and audition without any testing and hope I do well, or is there something I can do to help me see what needs work first? I might be able to record myself, so should I try and do that and send the video to a few magicians to see what they think? Though the quality will likely be pretty low, so there's still a few things they wouldn't be able to really tell me about, like flashing, ect. Any thoughts anyone has would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! JIMC64
"Magic should always have a purpose. [...] Find your purpose for performing. Only then will you be able to find the right trick!" -- Jay Noblezada
|
MagicB1S Inner circle Knoxville Tenn. 1039 Posts |
You could always record yourself and watch it back yourself. you know what you are looking for so see if you are flashing, also practice infront of a mirrror again see if you are flashing. As far as patter goes it takes time. the more you perform the better the patter will become. My advice would be to go to the magic shop and perform there for an employee or the owner they can give you some advice as to what is good and what needs work.
"There are Tricks To All Trades.... My Trade is all Tricks"
"An amature practices until he gets it right. A Professional Practices until he can't get it wrong" www.Themagicchest.webs.com bobswislosky@yahoo.com |
DWRackley Inner circle Chattanooga, TN 1909 Posts |
You MUST get this in front of live people.
Have you got four friends that you trust well enough to sit around a table and give you some help? They don't even have to be magicians, in fact at this point it may be better if some of them aren't. Tell them they're "sworn to secrecy", and if they ARE friends they'll respect that. Tell them not to spare your feelings. If they see something (or think they do), they should point it out. Make it an evening. Order some pizzas. They are working for you tonight, and their payment is dinner. This is gonna take a while! The first time through is just for impression. Pretend it’s real and they’re a bunch of strangers. (Not hard to do! Friends are often HARDER than strangers!) Don’t let them stop you, just run through the thing. They can take notes. How smooth is it? Does it look like something at least passably professional? Is it easy to understand your story-lines? Does anything look confusing? Take a break, then have them go over their notes with you. Now you can step through the act one effect at a time, until you’re satisfied or they’re sick and tired of it. Finally, at the end of the evening, do a couple “dress rehearsals”. Make it look exactly like you want it. By this time your friends will know their parts as well, and may even have become a team of coaches working for you. Say goodnight, and don’t talk to them for a couple days. Then call each one and ask if they have any other thoughts. Congratulations! You have just put together the beginnings of your own personal “Success Team”. BTW, when I said “This is gonna take a while”, I meant a couple hours or so. I wouldn‘t stress anybody more than three hours at a stretch. The mind just can’t focus that long. You’ll know when it’s time to call it a night. Best of Luck!
...what if I could read your mind?
Chattanooga's Premier Mentalist Donatelli and Company at ChattanoogaPerformers.com also on FaceBook |
dpe666 Inner circle 2895 Posts |
You don't audition with your whole show. Do a couple of things from your act that you feel are the best. Also, while I generally tell people not to perform for family and friends, this is an exception: family and friends will give you HONEST feedback. They will call you out on flashing etc. Also, family and friends know you personally. They will let you know when you are believeable and when you are full of sh*t. If you get strong reactions from family and friends chances are good that you will get stronger reactions from strangers.
|
JIMclubber64 Loyal user 269 Posts |
See, here's the problem. I can't try it out on my family, because they all have seen pretty much all of the effects at one point or another. Also my oldest brother (who is now 27-ish, I think) was the first one in magic, and then it passed down sibling to sibling until it got to me (I'm now 16), but I'm the only one who really took it seriously since my oldest brother. Meaning that all of my siblings have had just enough magical experience so that very little of what I do will fool them, and none of it will impress them. Also, I really have no friends I can try this on. I've been home schooled my entire life, and I relatively recently recently moved to the city I live in now.
However since I am home schooled, and there is a homeschooler's group in my city, I could probably arrange something with that, but this would still be on people I know either very little or not at all. Should I go ahead and try to do something with that? What are your thoughts?
"Magic should always have a purpose. [...] Find your purpose for performing. Only then will you be able to find the right trick!" -- Jay Noblezada
|
DWRackley Inner circle Chattanooga, TN 1909 Posts |
We home school also, so I have an understanding where you’re coming from. I’d ask if a sibling or two wanted to be included in the group, with the understanding that their job is to critique, not criticize. Every family has some differences in dynamics, but you should be able to work out something. Giving them a “position” as a temporary coach will often go a long way in the persuasion department.
For the HS group, I’d definitely go and meet some folks. You might run into someone else who likes magic, or just likes to be entertained. In my experience, there’s a HUGE pool of talent in groups like these. I wouldn’t exclude the parents either. Some of them may have experience in theatre at some level, or other skills that can help you. Tell them what you want to do, and what you’d like for them to do, then just follow your gut as to who will really be of benefit. You’re not looking for a long term commitment, just the respect of some honest responses. (And you might MAKE some new friends in the process!) Have fun! Posted: Mar 25, 2010 2:31am One more thought… If there is a HS theatre group in your area, you might ask if one of their directors or interns could watch your show and give you pointers.
...what if I could read your mind?
Chattanooga's Premier Mentalist Donatelli and Company at ChattanoogaPerformers.com also on FaceBook |
JIMclubber64 Loyal user 269 Posts |
You have some really good points, there. I agree that there usually is a lot of talent in groups like these, but that wasn't something I had thought of.
So just one last question, then: Should I still try to keep this as a relatively small group (4-8 people), or does it not really matter if I go bigger (10 or more)? If I did a bigger group, I would probably be able to just get a few out of that group to help with actual critiquing, and then there would be a bunch of others who are there just to enjoy the show, which I think could be helpful. Any more thoughts on this?
"Magic should always have a purpose. [...] Find your purpose for performing. Only then will you be able to find the right trick!" -- Jay Noblezada
|
MHamel New user New Hampshire 71 Posts |
The number of people in my opinion is solely up to you. How many are you confident performing in front of? I would recommend performing for as many as you could because it will build confidence and help in the long run.
I would also argue the performing for family... well not so much argue but give my opinion. I perform for my family and friends all the time. However I never ask to perform for them unless I am really unsure about something (flashing,patter, a move) because like dpe said they tend to be bluntly honest. As far as performing for family and friends you will have to make your own decisions. I do a lot of shows and my family and friends find it interesting so I'm always asked to perform here and there. I think dpe was approaching this with the idea that family will be more open to saying whats wrong with things. He's right about that... Just my opinion Best Wishes, - Marc Hamel |
DWRackley Inner circle Chattanooga, TN 1909 Posts |
I'd keep it to four or five the first time. Your main goal at this point isn't to provide entertainment as much as to sharpen your performance. You really need the feedback from people who are paying attention. By the time you’re done they will ALL know (or have an idea) how everything is accomplished.
Remember what your goals are and don’t get ahead of yourself. Once you have the manual skills, you need to work on transitioning and having enough confidence in your abilities that your winning personality comes into play. Too much “people” (especially when you’re asking to be critiqued) can easily begin to seem like a hostile crowd, and nobody needs that when they’re first starting out. Later on, if you want to add more people then yes, it is good to build your confidence. But by then I think it’s probably moving into the entertainment category, and regular “rules of magic” should apply (don’t reveal, don’t repeat, etc.) Also, at this point you’ll want to bring the magic shop into the discussion. Let them know what you want, and what you’re doing about it. They’ll probably have some ideas of their own that will take precedence over anything we say here. Most magic shop owners give great advice to people who are sincerely interested in performing better magic.
...what if I could read your mind?
Chattanooga's Premier Mentalist Donatelli and Company at ChattanoogaPerformers.com also on FaceBook |
JIMclubber64 Loyal user 269 Posts |
I agree that I shouldn't get ahead of myself, which is probably what I'm most likely to do. I guess that my idea with starting off with a larger crowd was that I could see who were the ones who would be most helpful, and which ones would just be the heckling ones, and just get a general idea of how those I want to help me will respond, interact, and react with me during the whole process of polishing my act. I will certainly think through everything you have said, DWRackly, as well as everyone else's advice.
All your help is truly appreciated, everyone. JIMC64
"Magic should always have a purpose. [...] Find your purpose for performing. Only then will you be able to find the right trick!" -- Jay Noblezada
|
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » New to magic? » » My Formal Close-up Show. (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.04 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |