Hi guys
i did my first gig as a mentalist and I face a lot of unexpected things
i can't believe how hard it is to keep everything move with the plane
thank god I had experience on stage as stund up comedy theatre clowning magic but I never had things move out of my plane
i had to change a lot of things during the performance and I even had to quit the final thing I prepared

did your first gig was that hard or its just my bad luck ??
i just want to give a simple advice to all the new magician and mentalist : join a theatre group that will help you improve your show a lot
this is a part of the gig I made
https://www.facebook.com/miliana2012/vid......8392546/

Especially for your first performances, you show up as prepared as you can be. Part of that preparation involves going into the performance with options. From the experience, you generate all the insight that you can. You write down what you learned; that is one reason serious performers keep notebooks.

George

Good for you for getting out there and doing it! I haven't had a chance to check your link yet, but I respect the fact that you are actually doing it.

First time is hard with almost anything. It should only get better from here.

-Patrick

thank you

i get there and did everything I can to keep the show going and I get other gig for today .... I didn't had time to prepare a show so am going with the same show is that a mistake ??

What effects have you performed as mentalist and what kind of unexpected things have you meet during the performance ?

Here's the thing:

Your first year as a performer, you're going to suck.

But don't worry, we all went through this phase.

(In fact, some of us are still going through it.)

Only through real-world experience, do we learn to suck less and less, until at some point, we get good.

Keep plugging away, getting as much "flight time" as you can (preferably doing free shows for charitable groups), constantly making refinements to your show and improving. There's nothing wrong with doing the same show, as that's what professionals tend to do. We do the same thing over and over again, and reflecting afterwards on how we can make it better next time.

Hang in there! You're on the right path.

Great job. Failing is ultimately the best thing for you as a performer long term. There's a lot of people on these forums that are either very young with no experience or very old with no performing experience giving advice that may be with good intentions, but they haven't tested in the real world as a performer. Performing is tough but every show you will improve and in my experience after the first year or two you will dramatically improve. Just keep in mind that as you fail, make mental notes. Revisit every show and think through what worked, what did not work and why. If you can, video tape as many shows as you can and watch yourself. You will be amazed at the things you do and say that you don't realize that you are doing that take away from the performance. It's one of the hardest things to do, watch yourself, especially when you are starting, but rest assured it will make you better. Lastly, make sure you celebrate the things that do work, the parts, lines, jokes, etc that you do well. Don't only look at the bad. Also, as you refine material, try introducing new material in between 2 other pieces you could do with your eyes closed. This will give you the security of knowing that while trying a new piece, if it fails or flops, you have done something just before and just after that are amazing and that you can depend on.

I cant explain here I will send you a PM

How old are you?

am part of a great association failing isn't an option I have to be prepared
that's why I spend lot of time practicing
am starting a mentalism career at an 23 that's hard I have to look pro or I will have no gig

I don't know you. I don't know your market or what kind of specific challenges you face. But your question sounds sincere...so here is a response -- offered with respect.

I made the decision to go pro in 1987. I spent three years performing for free -- every place I could find. I did old folk's homes. I did fundraisers. I worked at fairs. I busked. I did any and every venue that would have me. No exaggeration: I did hundreds of shows and I never charged a nickle. I had two goals. First: I told myself that I would learn "something" at every show. (And I did.) I also asked each client who was happy with what I'd done to give me a reference letter. (That way when I went pro I would have good marketing material and the beginning of a client base.)

By the time I did my first paid show on May 3rd of 1990 I was ready. I had a well thought out act with polished routines. I had no doubt that my self-designed "Performer University" course had prepared me to work as a pro and I haven't looked back.

In 2009 I decided to move away from magic and into full time mentalism. I had a list of clients by then and was making a good living. Still, I transitioned slowly and carefully between the two and didn't put the magic props away until well into 2011.

I think many people want instant success. They feel justified in expecting a client to pay them while they learn what they are already supposed to know. It's absurd -- and it's a notion that wouldn't be acceptable in any other career. Would you want a surgeon to practice on you? How about an accountant who is still studying his first text book? Why do performers think they are entitled to inflict their learning process on a paying audience?

Being a performer is a huge job and it calls for precision and planning. But being a pro performer? You need to apply yourself to learning your craft the same way any other professional does. It's never done in a few days. It takes years...and calls for hard work and dedication with an emphasis on hard work. People don't like that. But it's the only way I know of to create a product that is worth paying for.

Take time. You're young -- you have a pile of time yet. Learn your art. I respect that you are asking these questions now. Many never do.

Again: advice offered with respect because you asked.

David

I agree, some great thoughts by David. I was going say something similar but figured some of the know it alls here would think they know better.

Thanks for providing your age as I wouldn't get into this if you were just a 14-year-old kid.

Sure, we all need to perform to get better, and we all need a place to be bad (to get better), but there is much more to it than some of the advice you may get here.

You have to remember, most here are NOT performers, they are hobbyists and enthusiasts, so their "opinions" can be far different from the advice actual performers will give you. One of the things you must be careful of as a newer performer is to realize not all advice is the same and you must be careful who you listen to.

Encouragement is great, but there is also the reality that may be even more important. Everything being said if you'll notice is from the "me" perspective of the performer or wannabe performer. However, the minute you start performing for others than just family and friends, and the minute you ask for or expect payment for your performing, the entire dynamic changes. It is no longer just about you. The minute you accept payment for your perfoming there is a completely new set of expectations and responsibilities that come with it.

Just because you are a beginner or newbie, in no way makes these expectations and responsibilities any less or different. You must keep this in mind as you begin trying to find opportunities to get your performing experience.

So you need to find places to perform where these expectations are not that of paid performances. Volunteering at some of the events and venues mentioned above by David are good advice. I have a couple of books out on this exact topic for this exact reason. You really should not be concerned with taking others money as you need to focus on your performing - not just doing yout tricks but as David said creating a show. You need to learn to walk and chew gum. Not just execute a few tricks strung together but bring them to life in a performace, set, or show. You need to know how to stand, look, use the mic, talk to and work an audience, and so much more.

The place to learn this is NOT at someone's special event on their dime.

I agree with David that all this needs to be done over probably 100 or more "learning" perfrmances BEFORE every accepting any payment or as paid performances.

Doing this at someone's special event can create problems for others including supervisors, co-workers, parents, other businesses or vendors, and so many other people. Especially at events of a lifetime like graduations, weddings, special anniversaries, retirement, religious events, and so on. There are many many less significant events you can find for these learning performances.

When you start performing for others, free or paid, it becomes about far more than just yourself. It becomes about their needs, interests, and expectations which as a performer you are expected to know and meet.

Take your time, figure it out, get some of the right types of bookings and learn, improve, tweak, grow, and get better.

Then if you are interested in starting to perform for pay you can PM me (for more information and details) as I will be conducting my Starting In Entertainment business program later this year, which covers both the performing side of things and the business operational side of things.

Most of all get a mentor or a coach to assist you. This is much easier than trying to learn it on your own. You'll be glad you did.

thank you very much
i said it before and I will do again the best thing that happen in my life after joining the association is joining this forum
i respect you all guys... I was only watch parts of your performances on youtube and try to do it myself and to day you are answering my questions
i know I should never charge people for letting me learning that is 100 % true and I agree with that
but I didn't just go there and train I practiced and when I see that am ready I get our acting team singing team clown team and their guides and did the rutin to them and ask them did you like that... any feed back--its acting after all-- would you pay me to do this ???
and the tell me that they would pay to see so did it again in a free gig I was invited to
then I get the booking to this gig they said "we heard that you do mentalism we wouold like to see that " I tell them am not fully ready yet but they ask if I can make a show and I said yes I can do that
i didn't charge them the price I want I get same what clown get
and I need that money to bay books and props

me and my friend are the only magicians on the area and most of the magicians I know only have self working trick on stage and I hate that the most
as for learning am thankful that I have ppls like you guys that helping me out I learned a lot from you
thank you

You asked for advice so I will gladly offer you some alongside of my opinion. There is a distinction between both. I watched about a minute of your video and I switched off. Reason being I don't speak your language and I haven't a clue what was been said. Frankly, if I did know what was been said I would of still switched off. Now please take this as constructive criticism; you clearly have no control over your audience. It sounds like kids and it also sounds like no one was listening or perhaps even watching you. What the hell is the guy with the top hat and cape doing shuffling up and down the stage area? I mean WTF? Now for some advice.... Was your show advertised beforehand? Did you do any promo for it? Did the audience come to see you? And more importantly, did you check out the venue previously? Believe me that question is something you should always answer before you perform anywhere.
I don't agree that for the first year you will suck. Nor do I agree that you'll have to perform 100 times before you should ask for payment. I do think that by the time you're ready to put on a paid show you should have a very clear idea what effects are in your show and WHY are they in your show. You should be very aware of what your persona is and you should remember never to get out of character until you leave the stage. You should be very well versed in the history of the art & alongside this you should have watched live or on DVD as many pro performers as you can.

I suppose anything I write now will come across as bragging but I can only tell you my experience. I can't write all of the above without having evidence to the contrary. My first show was a charity show in a hotel. I was on for 25 minutes. It was nerve racking but it was also a tremendous thrill. I got x3 bookings post show from audience members. In my 1st year as a performer 90% of my shows were stage shows. That same year I was on TV and radio, the latter five times that year. Let's not forget, if you have talent, if you've studied your craft and you have the confidence that's needed, you can easily do what I done only you can do even more. I wish you the very best and I sincerely hope you got something from my post and that you'll have many many good shows to come.
Good luck to you.
Robert.

My first gig was going to be a stage show for a 30 year old birthday party. When I got there, the host said, “Yeah so just walk around and do card tricks like David Blaine.” At first I reminded him what we agreed on, and then he really wanted me to just do walk around card magic. So I adapted to the situation, and did an hour of walk around card magic at a gig I was expecting to do stage mentalism at.

Hence the importance of having a good contract. I have everything put into writing, agreed upon, and signed, with a non-refundable 50% deposit. If the client cancels, changes their mind, or try to break anything in the contract, I just walk away and keep the deposit for my troubles. One of the things I quickly learned to do is make sure that the rest of the payment is handed over when I arrive at the gig. I don't want to get burned by a client who "forgot their checkbook" or is "too busy at the moment," and then I have to wait weeks to finish getting paid (often involving repeated reminders). There's one local booking agency that I will never do business again, simply because they proved to be completely unreliable.

There is so much wrong in this post that many could really learn from.

First and foremost, any time you a gig for others or accept pay for performing (I don't care of it's your sister) it becomes far more than just about you, and becomes about the person hiring you and the new set of expectations and dynamics that comes into play.

First, you were never seen as a mentalist, sorry - you were seen as a magician which is why you were asked to do WALK AROUND CARD TRICKS by the person who hired you. This is important for you to understand. It takes much more to being a mentalist as I always state here than just a self-proclamation that you are a mentalist, and doing some mental magic tricks.

Any time you accept a booking there are multiple steps you must go through. One is presenting or selling yourself properly to make you both parties know exactly what they are getting and that the expectations are being met. If this is not done or firmly in place you can bet everything will go downhill from here. I would question how well you presented yourself and your needs in this arrangement. Next, as Philemon mentioned, you should have had even just a one-page agreement outlining the agreed to arrangements, clearly expressing your needs and requirements, starting times, length of performance, type of performance, and any other pertinent details around the booking and venue itself.

There is much more to this but I am betting you clearly dropped the ball on these things that alone that could've made a huge difference. Remember, the minute you start accepting payment or accepting gigs to other's special events (whether formal like a wedding or just a casual home party) it no longer is just about yourself, but living up to and meeting (and eventually exceeding) the client's needs and expectations.

Also saying "I am new at this" or "I am just a beginner" or "this is my first gig" doesn't matter, that only is something in your head (these are self-cop outs, excuses, and justifications that don't matter to them or come into play), anytime anyone trusts their special event to you (whether paid or not), you have expectations and responsibilities far beyond yourself that come into play and are more important than just you.

This is why performing is faaar more than just about you and the tricks you put together.

How clear was it that you were a stage performer? Who was to provide the sound system? What was the description of your performance?

Whilst I agree in the main with all that you've written, Mindpro, I think this comment is slightly skewed."This is why performing is faaar more than just about you and the tricks you put together." Performing in my opinion and experience is ALL about you - i.e. the performer. The red flags were well and truly raised when the booker said to go and do card tricks like David Blaine. Eh hello - there is only one David Blaine and I am not him. Mentalism among other aspects is about entertaining your audience, that part is the main part. Your tricks will never entertain your audience, YOU will and you must, otherwise you have indeed let yourself but more importantly the person paying you, down.

Hey Mindpro,

I talked on the phone with them and told them about my show, told them that there should be a stage area and seats for an audience to watch a stage show. Everything was very clear. I think the client changed his mind last minute. I didn’t have a contract because at the time I was just starting, and it was a hire on thumbtack. Truthfully, that gig gave me the confidence to be adaptable enough to be able to do walk around card gigs and stage mentalism, so now I accept both types of gigs. I think the story of my first gig is great. Gigs are like masterclasses for how to figure out what you’re all about. Honestly right now at this point I’m starting to want corporate mentalism shows, or the opportunity to do one big theater show through my college or something. If anyone out there wants to mentor me let me know. Haha! But honestly I don’t think making mistakes is a problem Mindpro, I think it’s a great first step. I was just sharing it because I thought it was funny and I agree that some of the lessons you took from it are just implied in the story. Thanks!