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The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Tenyo of Japan » » I reach the stage of HATING all Tenyo-tricks (4 Likes) Printer Friendly Version

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teevtee
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I present the Wellington effect close up all the time. In fact they even make a mini version only for close up.
I'm not talking about a floating bulb effect. I'm talking about the one with four colored bulbs and matching switches.

Anyway... You say that people expect magic props in a stage show. Why should close up be any different?

My point is that it really is about how something is presented and performed, there are no rules. I have never been bothered by the plastic props. I'd prefer wood just because I am a collector and tgat would look cool but I don't think wood over plastic affects the ultimate effect too much if at all.

Also there is no one "right" way. Recently I was accused of not being able to perform a trick well simply because I do not like that particular effect.
I in fact can perform it flawlessly, I just don't like it! Point being that it is quite possible that you perform them well but simply don't respond to the Tenyo effects. Nothing wrong with that nor with you... Just personal preference.
saverle
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Quote:
On 2013-10-27 18:41, teevtee wrote:
I present the Wellington effect close up all the time. In fact they even make a mini version only for close up.
I'm not talking about a floating bulb effect. I'm talking about the one with four colored bulbs and matching switches.

Anyway... You say that people expect magic props in a stage show. Why should close up be any different?

My point is that it really is about how something is presented and performed, there are no rules. I have never been bothered by the plastic props. I'd prefer wood just because I am a collector and tgat would look cool but I don't think wood over plastic affects the ultimate effect too much if at all.

Also there is no one "right" way. Recently I was accused of not being able to perform a trick well simply because I do not like that particular effect.
I in fact can perform it flawlessly, I just don't like it! Point being that it is quite possible that you perform them well but simply don't respond to the Tenyo effects. Nothing wrong with that nor with you... Just personal preference.




OK Teevtee. I agree that there is no "right" way doing tricks or using the "right" props. Maybe you're right that the Tenyo tricks don't really respond to me. I remember having bought (when it came out) the Mystery China Box, and just didn't like it. For a strange reason I found this trick "dishonest" because of the hidden gimmick. I ha the impression I screwed people with this trick. Which I don't have with the deliciously ring and rope routines who are more "honest" because they depend on "honest" sleight of hand.
But of course, like you said, it's all personal preference.
saverle
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On 2013-10-27 18:27, Izzy Jay wrote:
Don't know about you, but there are many Tenyo effects that don't raise to much suspicion if any at all.

Here are just a few in my humble opinion.

T-254 Magic Memo Pad
T-238 Floating Card
T-195 Grand Derby Prediction
T-193 Magic Painting
T-181 Bird Watcher
T-127 Telesphere
T-123 Billscape

And like Richard said performance is the key. And some misdirection can't hurt.


Izzy Jay, the ones you mention belong to my favourites too. Although Billscape is missing in my collection. I really love the Magic Painting and the Bird Watcher, because they have a "classic" look. Pick the jewels and ignore the minor tricks. Thanks for mentioning these jewels!
saverle
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Maybe I just wanted to emphasize that SIMPLE principles which yet are a mystery for the audience become my style more and more. Examples: Ring and rope, cups and balls, okito box, linking rings, more specific: Samurai sword by Viking, Japanese Fortune Box by Mikame, Magicians Changing Chest by Mikame (very versatile!), Mystery Key Holder (again Mikame), Hua Hin Dice Mystery by Magic Wagon, to mention a few.
Izzy Jay
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Saverle, you should really try to get your hands on Tenyo's Billscape. You'll love it. But be warned, it'll cost you. It's quite rare and is in high demand. I think It's Tenyo's best effect ever.
Izzy Jay
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As for what you said, "Pick the jewels and ignore the minor tricks." My intention was not to mention jewels - though the tricks I mentioned may be that - rather just point out a few of the many Tenyo effects whose props raise little or no suspicion. There are many more. Check out Stereo's blog. You'll find many effects which look like something you happened to have around the house or classics.
teevtee
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I think it's clear that you are just not a fan of heavily gimmicked tricks.
Those favorites you mention for the most part either do not use gimmicks or the gimmicks are very subtle.

It's true that something like Chinese Mystery Box is all about the props and an audience likely looks at it more as a puzzle in how the box operates then anything else.
In other words they are not attributing the trick to the magicians skills or abilities as much as they are to a trick box. In this regard it is exactly like a stage illusion. Very little skill is required by the performer but the effect can still be baffling. This is where presentation comes in.

Be at mini magic or stage magic if it's presented poorly it will be received as a self working gimmick. If presented well it will fool and delight people.

If the same trick were to be made of wood I think the result would be exactly the same. An audience will not be more fooled because the prop is wood.

Lastly I happen to mostly agree with you. I enjoy most Tenyo tricks as fun puzzles and collectables for my own enjoyment. I rarely perform them for audiences. That's just because I tend to prefer mentalism and that sort of thing. But I love Tenyo for what they are.

And Billscape is a great trick that can fool most anyone.
Killertweety
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Thanks to Tenyo we also have great illusions like Koornwinder Car (I prefer the plastic toy like car over the original wooden one, it looks like an ordinary toy car!) or Scotty York's Ghost Lamp for reasonable prices.
And as mentioned before, there are a lot of Tenyo's not arousing suspision because of the 'gimmicky look' (see Izzy's post for a few examples).
You love Magic Wagon it seems (and so do I!) - well have you already performed Alpha Tunnel? Imho a lot better then Quantum Tunnel, but it's not made of wood of course.
You like sponge balls? Try Parabox and add some sleight of hand to it. Tenyo also has very nice looking Billiard Balls for sale, sleight of hand all the way Smile
Indeed Billscape is one of Tenyo's best. Also try to get a hold of a leather Wild Wallet. You'll have to pay for those two however!

And oh come on ... you prefer Ultimate Penetartion Frame above Winder Window, well I can live with that, but telling that wooden bulky frame and stand looks less suspicious compared to Wonder Window is open for discussion Smile Yes, WW has the two black plates on the side and the colors aren't very appealing, but Penetration Frame's glass surface compared to the thick frame size also arouses suspision Smile

But as said so many times, in the end it all comes down to presentation and routine. There's a post on my website where I show a few professional performers like Paul Daniels using Tenyo and other gimmicked micro magic. David Copperfield used Pencil Penetration and there are many more examples of professionals using heavily gimmicked props in their professional repertoire. And the audience couldn't care less ... they want to be fooled. And if you think it's being 'dishonest' to use heavily gimmicked props you should ask yourself if the spectators also feel this way, and I doubt that Smile
saverle
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Quote:
On 2013-10-27 20:23, Izzy Jay wrote:
Saverle, you should really try to get your hands on Tenyo's Billscape. You'll love it. But be warned, it'll cost you. It's quite rare and is in high demand. I think It's Tenyo's best effect ever.


Thanks for this tip Izzy. I have never seen Billscape in reality, will keep this one in mind!
saverle
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On 2013-10-28 04:45, Killertweety wrote:
Thanks to Tenyo we also have great illusions like Koornwinder Car (I prefer the plastic toy like car over the original wooden one, it looks like an ordinary toy car!) or Scotty York's Ghost Lamp for reasonable prices.
And as mentioned before, there are a lot of Tenyo's not arousing suspision because of the 'gimmicky look' (see Izzy's post for a few examples).
You love Magic Wagon it seems (and so do I!) - well have you already performed Alpha Tunnel? Imho a lot better then Quantum Tunnel, but it's not made of wood of course.
You like sponge balls? Try Parabox and add some sleight of hand to it. Tenyo also has very nice looking Billiard Balls for sale, sleight of hand all the way Smile
Indeed Billscape is one of Tenyo's best. Also try to get a hold of a leather Wild Wallet. You'll have to pay for those two however!

And oh come on ... you prefer Ultimate Penetartion Frame above Winder Window, well I can live with that, but telling that wooden bulky frame and stand looks less suspicious compared to Wonder Window is open for discussion Smile Yes, WW has the two black plates on the side and the colors aren't very appealing, but Penetration Frame's glass surface compared to the thick frame size also arouses suspision Smile

But as said so many times, in the end it all comes down to presentation and routine. There's a post on my website where I show a few professional performers like Paul Daniels using Tenyo and other gimmicked micro magic. David Copperfield used Pencil Penetration and there are many more examples of professionals using heavily gimmicked props in their professional repertoire. And the audience couldn't care less ... they want to be fooled. And if you think it's being 'dishonest' to use heavily gimmicked props you should ask yourself if the spectators also feel this way, and I doubt that Smile


Well Killertweety, thanks for your elaborated reaction. Still I stick to my opinion that UPF is far more impressive than the Wonder Window (I don't own wonder window), but that seems to become an endless discussion.

BTW I never knew that even Paul Daniels performed with Tenyo tricks???? That's a real surprise to me Smile

Of course I'm aware of the fact that heavilyt gimmicked props have been developed for centuries, bur more for stage illusions. Maybe I must admit that my style of performing suits ' simple' props better Smile
saverle
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By the way, I own the good old wooden Billiard Balls of Tenyo (bought when they came out), and the Koornwinder Kar, and both are lovely to play with/perofrom. The Alpha tunnel however, althouth the mechanism is very very clever, I would prefer to have a bigger version of it, a wooden one. Maybe I can make one myself Smile
pkessler
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Saverle,

I've often wondered what Tenyo tricks would be like if they were much larger. But so much of the charm for me is rooted in their scale. I'm not so sure how well my favorites would succeed if they were suddenly inflated.
maousus
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I have been fascinated by the elegant scale of these Tenyo productions, to me it's part of the charm of these mini miracles.
MaxfieldsMagic
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Never occured to me to perform one of the plastic marvels for anyone other than friends, family, and maybe some neighborhood kids. But if that's all you do with them, they're still pretty neat.

That Tenyo Elite Zig-Zag Cigarette, on the other hand - I'll show that to anyone who will watch. Sure, it's a puzzle in some ways, but so are most big box stage illusions. The thing is that once the puzzle becomes sufficiently impossible, mystifying and convincing, it becomes magical. Really, the wooden Tenyo Elite version isn't mechanically any different in terms of effect than the plastic one, but sometimes the packaging and appearance count for a lot. Plus, wood just seems more innocent, professional and harder to gimmick than plastic.
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Angelo Carbone
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I think a very good way of justifying performing Tenyo tricks to the general public in a paid gig, is to say...

"I would like to show you the first trick I ever learnt as a kid..."

This covers the "toy" like nature of the prop.

Angelo
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Houdini103126
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You can also 'Cloak' or 'Veil' a Tenyo prop for presentation. This IS NOT illegal so long as you're not claiming an affect to be your own, is unique, or Tenyo's.

There are many creative methods for making something look different. For the stage and stage only, I wouldn't walk up to perform as a paid performer with a plastic magic trick, that's ridiculous. This is because a stage audience is paying to see stage magic. The stakes change when its street magic or magic for kids.

Tenyo magic was never meant to be demonstrated on a stage. The dilemma is the magic is so good, it's stage quality!
ixnay66
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Quote:
On Oct 27, 2013, Wizard of Oz wrote:
For me it's the diabolical engineering that goes into creating these little plastic jewels that makes me an avid collector. I don't need to show them to anyone except myself, and I'd be perfectly happy. A nerd maybe. But a happy nerd.


this is an old post but when I show Tenyo I explain they're like miniature illusions. I then say "If you were at a magic show and the magician cut a woman in half, do you think you could figure it out if you could walk on the stage and start looking at the props? Sure you could. Same thing here. So you can't inspect this or else you'll figure it out so just watch this and enjoy the effect."

I explain they're magic "toys" made for the general public but some of them are very clever and interesting.

Once I say this, it's not a problem and they enjoy them for what they are.
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