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christhebard New user 3 Posts |
Hello all,
I am looking into production boxes and would like some suggestions. I have considered constructing a simple (small) tip-over trunk but often perform surrounded by kids and feel a standard model might not prove angle proof. Currently, I want to produce a large (10") stuffed animal from an apparently empty box. I have looked around on various magic dealer's sites and the best options I see all appear to be out of stock (e.g. tipover box V2 by 7 Magic; Turn Box by Mikame). I am open to producing my own but have limited time and want something very simple and would like this to be ready to go in the next ten days or so. Any suggestions are welcome! Thank you! |
Dr Dee New user 65 Posts |
Hi christhebard, a self-contained production box in this situation is definitely the way forward!
I started off with a ‘Paul Daniels Mystery Box’ which I gather are actually an old Tannen’s item. They wouldn’t take a ten inch plush unless the toy is very compressible. A large square circle setup or a large drawer box would certainly do the trick and there seem to be plenty of them out them either new or second-hand. Saying this, you could also consider producing the stuffed animal as a ‘load’ after you’ve produced silks/foulards/handkerchiefs/scarves. Literature on producing rabbits would help you consider this extra powerful finale. Eric Sharp had some great material. Good luck for the next ten days of development! |
funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
Long, long ago I had a ventriloquist friend who produced his large leprechaun dummy from an empty satchel
not much larger than the puppet. He carried it under his coat on his right side, and a couple of elf booties in his pocket. While showing the empty elf home, he would tell of how "Leppy" liked to wander to other magic realms and had to be called back. He got the audience to chant "Leppy, Leppy" as he stole the booties and produced them one-at-a-time from the satchel. Saying, "he usually comes back feet first,' he would toss a bootie far back into the audience. On the second toss and all-eyes seeing who would catch it, he would sneak the puppet into the satchel. A great example of "directed focus," followed by a slow extraction of a leg, then an arm, etc., until Leppy was full out and dangling larger than the satchel. That is, it did not a matter if the puppet fit all the way into the satchel after the 'load'. Such fun! Maybe there is some inspiration here for you ...
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
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Dr Dee New user 65 Posts |
That’s a super example of dramatic ‘direction’, funsway. And it must have been as much fun to execute as to witness. I love it when the method is as thrilling as the effect.
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61magic Special user Sacramento California 775 Posts |
Christhebard, take a look at "The Cabinet of Foo".
This is an older item which was available from Abbott's and others. This came in two configurations, one for the tabletop and the other on a stand similar to a Eureka table base. The box is lifted of the stand, several doors all around are lowered and inner doors are removed showing the inside to be empty. You can be twirl it around showing all sides so this is pretty much angle proof. The box is placed back on the stand, the top opened and a large load produced.
Professor J. P. Fawkes
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FrankFindley Inner circle 1028 Posts |
I specialized in mall magic for about a decade. This was oftentimes completely surrounded and even having people looking down from balconies. One of the productions I made for this might do very well for what you want. If you are familiar with the dove pan, think of the same method of operation but with a box. Now here is the important part. You make the inner box so that a bunch of sponge balls or spring balls can reside in them when they are nested together (including the load) but when the lid is off they completely fill the box. In performance, you lift the top off the box and show it is filled with balls. These are dumped into a suitable receptacle (an umbrella works great). Then you put the lid back on. When you take the lid off now, you can make a huge production including the teddy bear. Patter could be something like "when I was young, I had two favorite toys. The first were balls, of all types. [show in box and dump them out]. But my most favorite was my magic teddy bear. [reopen box showing teddy bear produced].
This idea of demonstrating a container empty by showing it filled and spilling it out is greatly underutilized. About the only thing you see it employed in these days is the "parabox" pocket trick: |
Dr Dee New user 65 Posts |
This is gold! There’s a great subtlety in first removing an artefact from a production box, ‘emptying’ it before the production. I’ve found that a compressed silk removed from a drawer box —with a surprised or curious look — strengthens the magic production. I hear there are drawer boxes that allow for a larger initial extraction, though a small folded silk expands sufficiently in a single-load box to provide a potential convincer.
Hats off to Frank and 61magic for adding The Cabinet of Foo and dove pan variations to the useful mix. I hope christhebard is currently deeply immersed in their workshop…. |
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