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Chris Becker Veteran user New York, NY 371 Posts |
Don’t we all agree that the "Routined Manipulation" parts 1-3 are out of place today? Those hand-washing moves where thoughts like "Haha, the card was there all the time, you just didn’t realize!" were predominant, and should at all costs, be replaced by more natural moves, right?
So, if we unanimously condemn these old techniques, what about the style of magic at that time? Are tuxedos and dancing canes still up to date? Will this type of elegant and charming magician continue to play an important role in magician’s minds? Laymen, of course (of course?), tend to prefer rockstar-magicians, but what about competitions? Is there a trend towards modernization in the jurors’ minds, too? Happy Magic, Chris
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<BR>Cards don't cheat people. People cheat people. |
Peter Marucci Inner circle 5389 Posts |
Christof writes: "Are tuxedos and dancing canes still up to date?"
Tuxedos, yes; dancing canes, definitely no. Or, to put it another way, you still see people today in tuxedos, for special occasions. But when did you ever see anyone recently who carried a walking stick? Especially a person as young as most of those magi who do it? Rather than look at modernization as being the trend, I suggest that diversification is the trend. Once, everyone dressed the same (and, very often, did the same acts). At a recent convention where I was a judge, the competitors wore everything from white tie and tails to zany outfits to cocktail gowns (at long last, women are making a major breakthrough in magic competitions, so watch out, guys, they are GOOD.) There is, and probably always will be, a place for the elegant and ultra-elegant performer; it’s just that room has been made for the contemporary dresser, too (thanks in a large part to the late Doug Henning). Look at some of the old pictures in magic magazines, etc; can you imagine today anything as unlikely as a bunch of guys dressed like bank presidents, pulling silks and feather flowers out of foulards! cheers, Peter Marucci |
Scott F. Guinn Inner circle "Great Scott!" aka "Palms of Putty" & "Poof Daddy G" 6586 Posts |
Actually, a lot of the kids are wearing top hats and taking walking sticks to proms now, and I've seen quite a few weddings where the groom and groomsmen do the same. Perhaps they are making a comeback.
And I don't agree that the RM books are obsolete. There's a lot of great magic in them that is so old, it's new. If someone were to adapt them to his personality and do them well, he would most likely be a prize-winner, and certainly have an act that was marketable in the real world, where it isn't jaded, biased magicians who decide who is successful (and is, coincidentally, a much better measure of one's talent and skill!).
"Love God, laugh more, spend more time with the ones you love, play with children, do good to those in need, and eat more ice cream. There is more to life than magic tricks." - Scott F. Guinn
My Lybrary Page |
J R Thomas Regular user Champaign Illinois 138 Posts |
Those old books are full of treasures just waiting to be discovered. Will you perform the material rote? Probably not. There are some people who perform those moves and it looks great. There are others who perform them and they look stiff and contrived. I think it rests solely with the performer.
Your assessment of RM points to another question. Would the magician’s of those times or further back, say Houdini or Robert-Houdin, would they fare well with today’s MTV deadened audiences? Who knows? I think it comes down to the type of performer you are. I had a friend, who is sadly no longer with us, who performed into his late 80’s. He learned magic from the Tarbell mail order course. He made sponge balls out of Ocello Sponges! You put him on stage and he killed ’em. He had whatever "it" is. I think routined manipulation should be in any serious performers library. By diligently working through it a performer will draw nearer to finding their own voice. Maybe that voice comes from a tuxedo clad cane carrier. It is up to the performer to decide how to package the voice. I better get back to work or someone will hit me with my cane. JR _________________ Those who hear not the music Think the dancers mad
Those who hear not the music
Think the dancers mad |
Kendrix Loyal user 229 Posts |
I still like "Dancing Cane" as well. I recently saw one where the cane flouresced and the magi had a "Black Light" on. It was a very nice act. You can never beat the "Classics"
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Dr. TORA Inner circle TURKEY 1439 Posts |
First of all, I may not be in unison about the books to be out of fashion. They have only became classics, that is all.
It is the magician's work to adapt all those movements to his syle, not the author's. About a tuxedo, I do not use that, but there are people who use them excellently. Nevertheless, the dancing cane is one of my pet routines and I challenge anybody who says it is out of date. I'll perform it at the place you show me and watch if I still get the attraction with it or not!!! My successor, Dr. NO, had won the fourth prize in the Balkanian contest last month with the routine I have shown him. It is not the trick which gets the bows it is the magician. I have difficulties in understanding about the effort for putting the blame on the materials instead of the artist himself. And, of course, it is only my idea on the subject...
Magically Yours,
OZLEN TUNCER /Dr.TORA Have you visited my new Website in English, yet? www.magictora.com or www.torasmagic.com |
RiserMagic Veteran user 361 Posts |
I feel that many of the individual moves and several of the move sequences from the RM books would still work well in a modern act. Sometimes the performer working on a new routine needs a "move" - it could well be hiding in these books. The sleights learned from such books are never a total waste of time. They can come in very handy years after learning them.
If your costume or persona do not go with a dancing cane, you can always do a dancing broom, feather duster, candy cane, etc. The idea behind the dancing cane will work for other items which might well go with your act. Jim |
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