Hello,
So this will be my 2nd paid gig. Im doing an aniversary. They couples son is my best friend, and they are all very relaxed about the gig. When I called them they just said:
Come 8:00, I can hang out with my friend, and then perform for 30 minutes - 2 hours just walking around, doing tricks. People will be roaming around, some at tables, some standing up.There will be some light backround music bongos and the sort.
The questions I have are:
#1: What happenes when I start to do a set of tricks for a group of 4-5 people. Then lets say I'm showing them invisible deck as an ending, and right then someone I'm showing the trick to says something like " oh my friend loves magi, yhe has to see this ... ETC"
And then more people will join. But the porblum is ive done my most powerfull trick. What should I do, go on with mor tricks, try to perform onl for the new people?
#2: also, if I have a set up deck trick (like changing color deck) or something, what if then someone says"show my friend that chaning one"
Any tips for that?

The problum with this type of gig for me, is theres no boundaries, people can come and go, come into different angles, ask for more time less time.. ETC..

#3 Thank you
-Ian

Hello Ian,
I have done several stroll around performances, and the one and most important thing I've learned so far is "audience management".

The best thing to do is to involve as many guests as possible, and try to stay away from routines that require a lot of preparation.

Do a set of three to five routines, and continue on to the next table/group.
Learn at least three different sets, and never repeat a trick to the same group.

Be sure to re-practice the Impromptu routines you know - they can come in handy if you get the feel that you're "pinned to the wall".

Be sure to leave a souvernir in form of a Business card (it's important to market yourself for more gigs in the future).

-e-

Ian,
Do routines that are quick and simple; that way, you can wrap up the one you're working on if someone leaves, and you can start another quickly if someone arrives.
Do only tricks that require no reset or automatically reset (on rare occasions, you might get away with something that can be reset "on the fly", but you probably shouldn't try that yet.)
If someone says, "show that XYZ thing to my friend here," reply politely by saying something like, "here, let me show you something even better", and then go into another routine.
If new people arrive, include them AND the ones that have been there a while, even if the latter have seen some of your stuff.
Keep moving.
And, most important of all, have fun!

I agree with both Erik and Peter on most of the points made, however I think I'd like to add something to it.

-Almost all of your effects in a restaurant or strolling situation should have little or no reset. This is true. My addition was the word almost.

This is an idea from, among many others, Tom Ogden that, along with his normal walk around effects, he'll have a couple of effects that CANT be repeated.
For me, one such effect is one I use with a 50' mouth coil being pulled from 4 produced silks. I then will give the paper to someone as a gift (note I didn't pull it FROM my mouth. For you, Peter. lol). This is an effect that really amazes an audience and, because I have no desire to use 20 coils in an evening, I will only do it ONCE for a bigger sized group.
Then, if someone comes up later to show it to a friend, I will then respond very simply:

"Not tonight. For some magic only comes and goes like the wind. Perhaps when next we meet."

And no matter how annoying the person gets, they will invariably back away through proper audience management. It really creates the concept that magic is not as controllable as we think. You may think I'm lying when I say this, but a majority of people flat out believe what I say when I say that phrase because of how it sounds. Also, it sets up the idea that you will meet again, and %50 of the time, the person will ask where I'm performing next. So its business-wise, as well.

-Daniel GreenWolf

Fast reset material with simple plots, should be your weapons of choice. If a person who has been overserved (read: drunk) cannot follow the material, dump it.

Fast paced, visual material that can play to lots of people, is reasonably angle-proof and has a good surprise to it should be at the top of your list.

Of course, you should also be able to do the material, forwards and backwards, in your sleep and have your cover lines ready for the times when you slip up (and you will - trust me, we ALL do, now and then).

Check the Magic Menu books for some really great comments on what actually happens in the real works - the In The Trenches column by Paul Green, who posts here on the Café, are worth their weight in platinum. Read them, read Al the Only, Chris Hurlburt, Simon Lovell, Jim Sisti and the articles on performing by the guest authors.

Look at the posts by the Special Guests to the Café as well. There's some real gold in those threads, too!

Tricks are everywhere. Advice like this, from the guys who do this stuff for a living, is priceless.

Hope this helps!

Lee Darrow, C.Ht.
http://www.leedarrow.com

Daniel Greenwolf writes: "Not tonight. For some magic only comes and goes like the wind. Perhaps when next we meet."

Great line; there's absolutely NO comeback, either. The spectator has to accept what you say.

(BTW, the non-mouth use of the mouth coil is much appeciated! LOL!)