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The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Ever so sleightly » » Favorite close-up act or show that you do and why? (0 Likes) Printer Friendly Version

bishthemagish
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I was wondering what is your favoret close up routine when you do a close up show and why do you routine it the way that you do?

My routine is...

Chop dice cup with two big dice loads.

(This gives the spectators something to look at and draws them in).

Two card selection and transprotation.

(This is a take a card effect with two spectators and a simple change in one of the spectators hands to draw them in).

Triumph, Ambitious card, the quad mystery in the LePaul book...

Matrix with cards and coins... Or coins to glass. (This is a bit for mystery and a change from card effects)... I put the bike deck away... Or Die-Namic Diamonds...

The shellgame, Chain of chance or three card monte... (and now I have added the thimble rig to this from the s of s... (This opens up my talk on card shark expo).

I take out with a bee deck...

Glenn Bishop cuts the aces... Poker stacking and second dealing demo... I sometims deal centers or do the Gem poker deal...

I do not like to work with the stacked deck and most of my routines I can take and use any deck. So you won't be seeing me do effects like Sam the Bellhop even though I like the effect and routine.

Then I close with cups and balls... With the big loads.

If I need an extra I follow with ring flight. But sometimes I don't need it.

Most of my routines are short and to the point because I the way I learned how to perform magic was to just do the highlights...

I can do 45 minutes to an hour and book this act into house parties and book it as a performance in a magic room. I sit at a table and do not move around. I have the clients put in folding chairs and I do a formal show.

That way I become a destination instead of an interuption...

Anyway it works for me... What do you do? In reastaurants and at shows?
Glenn Bishop Cardician

Producer of the DVD Punch Deal Pro

Publisher of Glenn Bishop's Ace Cutting And Block Transfer Triumphs
broothal
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Thankyou mr. Bishop for asking the "why" and not only the "what". I think there's way too many "what" questions in here and way too few "why".
I will go ahead and answer some "why's" on my own:

All my effects resets automatically. Why? Because I don't want to have to go somewhere private in between tables and reset - or the alternative - that after 20 tables my pockets are a mess. There are a lot of good effects that I don't do because of that, but the trade-off is worth it.

My effects always follow the rythm bang-bang-KABOOM. That is - effect, effect, unexpected climax. Like - chop cup with final load. Like ambitious card with card to forehead kicker. Why? Because I like leading the audience down the garden path so they *know* what is going to happen and then I do something different anyway. Maximum impact leaving a lasting impression.

I mostly let my magic speak for itself and have a minimum of story telling. Why? Because I'm a magician, not a comedian or a story teller. As Osterlind once said "a teacher cracking jokes all day isn't nessescarily a good teacher". Of course I have patter, but it's more like subtitles. The real center of attention is my magic, not the things I say. (Of course I use the language immensly with double-talk and what have we, but the spectator doesn't realize that).

There are plenty more "why's" to be asked and to be answered. I just picked the ones that most people have an opinion about so we can get the discussion rolling. Besides, the rest of the "why's" are suitable only for the professional magician, so I'll save them once I get access to the sooper seecret pro-room Smile
bishthemagish
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Thank you for posting... I think the way is interesting because we all have a different way of doing things. It is a chance to walk around in someone elses head and learn how someone else works everything out.

I don't like to have to set up as well. I like to throw the stuff back into my pockets and be ready to do the effect again. I also like ending clean.

When I got interested in magic I wanted to do load magic like Don Alan and card work like Jack Pyle...

As I mentioned I like to keep the routines short with impact and do just the highlights...

Thanks again for posting...
Glenn Bishop Cardician

Producer of the DVD Punch Deal Pro

Publisher of Glenn Bishop's Ace Cutting And Block Transfer Triumphs
Michael Bilkis
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My close up act has greatly evolved over the last 14 years. It is a 20-30 minute show in three acts. I don't always do all the card routines. I also have a seprate stage show and just card routine.

Act one
I open with an invisible deck routine. I love this opener.

A. The performance suits my personality.
B Killer mentalism trick, which assersts that I am no odinary trickster.
C. Helps establish a rapport with my audiance as no props initially enter the seen.
D. Easy Deck switch for later when I do a few card routines.

2. Nuts and bolts opener from Doc Eason. Classic 2 in the hand; one in the pocket routine with a double kicker.

3. Ball in tube -- regular stainless basic model. I think when properly done this trick is the best value in magic. i.e impact vs the cost of the prop.

4. Charlie Miller wooden Finger penetration. Good comedic interlude

5. Simple okito box routine folowed by a coins across. I also finish the coins across with the last sequence in a volunter's hand. If I have a close up pad then may do a matrix with a jumbo coin kicker.

Act two
6. Out comes the cards
----- Color changing Deck

----- Triumph

----- Dai Vernon's finger print card trick. Good sucker trick from the first volume of the secret chronicles series.

----- Ambitous Card and finish with David Williamson's 51 cards to pocket.

----- synchonicity 3 (Tannen's Stars of magic series)
I like this trick. a prediction of three truly freely chosen cards.

----- The "Twins Routine" From the secrets of Brother John Hamman. This is one of my signature card routines. I think its a perfect card routine beause it has a story line. The actions fits the story. every sequence blows away the audience and it has a suprise kicker. Finaly, only two slights and four cards are used.

Act Three

----- The Pot Hole Trick (Michael Close). This is a powerfull moving hole trick where the spectator gets to keep your business card, hole and all.

----- Chop Cup. I use flourescent green tennis balls. I think That the color makes the loads look bigger and more impressive. I never got the same response whe I used fruit. Plus fruit spoils and I've used the same tennis balls for over 10 years.

----- SPONGE BALLS. I do an 8? phase routin with a final load of 10-15 mini sponge balls. The look on the volunteers face is always priceless. Still the strongest impact trick that I do.


The theme if you can describe one is having fun.
abc
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Quote:
On 2004-06-12 03:37, broothal wrote:
Thankyou mr. Bishop for asking the "why" and not only the "what". I think there's way too many "what" questions in here and way too few "why".
I will go ahead and answer some "why's" on my own:

All my effects resets automatically. Why? Because I don't want to have to go somewhere private in between tables and reset - or the alternative - that after 20 tables my pockets are a mess. There are a lot of good effects that I don't do because of that, but the trade-off is worth it.



The amount of tables you can cover in a close up or table hopping gig depends on the magician. I use table hopping for two reasons.
1 Cash flow
2 To meet new contacts and network with people that can supply high paying gigs

I agree 100% with the post I quoted because not only is resets messy but it is time consuming.
Routining is also key for me so if I cannot find a reason for an effect (even if it is brilliant) I wait until I can slip it into the routine without it standing out like a sore thumb.
My favorite effect is an effect I learned and adapted from an older magician (now deceased) named Graham Kirk where a spec selects a card and returns it, randomly removes five cards (one is the selected card) the card dissappears from the pile of five cards and ends up faced up in the deck that he is holding. I offer to do it again with the same card but he signs it and then the back changes from Blue to red and back to blue and then disappears again into the deck that he is holding again.
Takes about 90 seconds and is pretty effective.
It is just a combination of some other effects nothing original but it is my favorite because it moves quickly, has a lot of surprises in it and the set up requires a cut. Not 100% clean unless you can palm well, then it is.
Bill Thomas
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Some excellent advice here. Thanks for the posts.

Bill
bishthemagish
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When I used to work restaurants... I had three loads for the cups and balls in my left jacket pocket. The dice chop cup and dice in my right coat pocket.

In the jacket pocket of my sport coat was a deck of cards on one side and the lePaul wallet on the other.

Ring flight was in my right side hip pocket...

Matrix coins in my right side pants pocket along with the paddle trick Die Namic diamonds. A paddle trick the replaced the color changing knives because I got sick of the OJ jokes...

And that was it. I could just toss everything back into the pockets and I was set to do another tabvle right away. No set up between tables.

Others may have their own way of working things out when performing but I have felt that I was more value to a restaurant if I could hit a lot of tables... With no down time between tables to set up...

Now I don't do that many restaurants but I do do formal close up shows and I have added saddle bags for my extra loads...
Glenn Bishop Cardician

Producer of the DVD Punch Deal Pro

Publisher of Glenn Bishop's Ace Cutting And Block Transfer Triumphs
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