In my posts I have been alluding that I am not a magician and would like to explain how I perform.

I have a contract with 3 people to provide magic at their events. They were told what I do and accepted my act.
Fact. I have no act.

What I offer is a magician in sheeps clothing. I mingle with guests and incite conversation. I bend the conversation to my need and then perform a feat or two for them. I might spend half an hour with a group of guests just getting to know them before I perform.

For all intents and purposes I am just an average guy mingling with people. When I perform it is out of the blue. I have the bar keep my decks so I can go to the bar and ask if they have a deck of cards, Seems much more fair to use the bars cards.
I provide a hook for my clients, the people that I perform for have a great evening and associate the venue with a good time. If I get the good guests to feel this then I give my client what they need.

I have like over a bazzillion tricks and perform freeform (jazz) magic. Whatever opportunity I see, I exploit. It works 100% and I am never touted as a magician.
The feedback I get (from my clients) is all about, "We met some amazing guy, he did this and this, he was awesome". Requests for my number and, "Who is he", by ladies was a big laughing point for me and one client.

I Never do stage tricks or entertain a whole room. My magic is subversive and is a bolt from the blue as I believe magic should be. If people know you are a magician and about to do a `trick` they will have expectations and burn you.

Well, that's what magic I do. I hope it has given you a look into a different way of presenting your skills in this day and age.


Ps. You may have been sitting next to me in a bar in London.

Undercover magic.
Sounds really good and I suppose it makes you less nervous because, as you say, they don't start to build expectations of you. Keep up the good work.

Gary, Sometimes I can just chat with people and if I see they will be trouble to perform for I can walk away with them none the wiser. I find sometimes, if there is 2-3 women and 2 men, one of the guys plays an alpha male role. I wont perform for them as the AM will get peeved that he is outperformed and generally try to trip me up.

Like it Partizan! I never leave the house without an effect or three, and maybe in a bar or some other social gathering, it's nice to do something impromptu!
I think this is the way your act is percieved. Keep up the good work. Kenny

What is the advantage to your client that makes them desire to pay you? If you spend as much as two hours per person doesn't that limit your number of people too much?

2 hours per person?

When I am booked I have a list (not a written one) of targets for the night. High profile guests or potential investors. It is my job to make their night unusual. 1 Client may want me to work on just 2 groups of people for the night. In a case like that I can spend a lot of time with a single group of people. I will go around and entertain other guests at my own leisure but the main focus is the targets for the night.

My clients have a VIP list. These people get in free with no waiting and get access to a VIP bar. These people are the ones I am targeted at most of the time. These may be influential people or potential investors or just the clients family.

One of my clients also hires a painter!!! This dude sets up his canvas and paints a scene of the evening! I ask myself what benefit that has for my client as I cant see one. so I can see the problem you have with my setup.

I like your way of doing magic. It's not pushy and you are doing just as the client asked. If you don't work on stage then this is a perfect way of benefitting you and your clients as well as meeting some great people and having fun. That's what magic is all about isn't it? Entertaining. I say why not be the mysterious stranger that did something amazing or as GaryD said a magician undercover. Pretty cool and as I see you are fellow Mark Twain lit keep it going. I like your thinking and may I ask how do you go about getting your clients if you don't mind? I'm just wondering as this sounds like a better and more exciting way of doing magic and also something else that I could offer to high end clientele. Thanks.

My main client is a old school friend. He started a high profile night for professional people. Many of his guests are affluent well educated people wanting to unwind. I saw an oppotunity and went for it.

My other gigs started out as non paying favours, one for a complete stranger and resulted in meeting the people that ran the whole gig, doing them a mind melting show at the after party and getting a barrage of phonecalls asking me to do this gig, then another gig and from there on.

When I'm working I don't feel like I am. I just have a good time.

Thanks for the response and I bet it does feel great to work and not feel like it. Have fun.

In which bars do you perform (because you said we might have seen you in a bar in London)?

Magixx

I think I have a knack for knowing which people to impress. I did some magic at a Café in Amsterdam, (I was drinking coffee, ok!) and found out that the owner/manager was sitting at the next table talking to a supplier and I was showing my friend some stuff.
The guy comes over to me and says, "That was great. Can you do more tricks". I went into a few examples for him and then he goes off to deal with this supplier. He comes back and offers me straight out 2 months at his Café, bed and board and €90 per night. To just sit there and do magic at a table 3 times a day for an hour at a time.

I had a full time job so had too refuse, but you see how a small coincidence can net you a good gig.

If I am ever on my own in a new place, I go to a bar and sit there doing tricks for myself. Some brave person will always come up and engauge me. I meet so many new friends this way.

In which bars do you perform (because you said we might have seen you in a bar in London)?
Ahhhh you never know
A good tip is to try the Slug and Lettuce, West End. This has some interesting clientele.

I am curious because such opportunty does not exist here as far as I know. Sounds like a great setup. Do your spectators know you have been hired to entertain them or is it total undercover?

The only people that know are my clients. For everyone else I am just a punter like them.

I'm interested in the 'hook' you mentioned that you provide for your clients. BTW I think avoiding saying your a magician is great. But once you've performed a few things, don't people say 'oh you're a magician!' ?? Especially if cards are involved.

The natural next question is what types of thing do you perform - but I understand if that's being too nosey.

Well done for changing the way this is approached. Very interesting indeed.

Also, do you have a spiel to explain how you do these things? Are they sleight of hand, mental power, some things you picked up while working in the carnival?

I sit with guests and talk with them, get their names and just make friends with them. I use any information for the mentalist side. I look for who smokes who is drinking from what who is chatty and who is moody. I always give the bar cards so if I need them they are there. I can get them, ask for them or get the guest to ask for them.
I have like millions of potential tricks without going to cards. Lots of TT and IT work. I can hold a group with the arm twist for about 15 minutes. It really depends on the characters I meet.
With cards there is sooooh much that you can use. I save card work for after parties in the main.

The people don't think I am a magician. They think that guy did some weird stuff, or he did some mad stuff with that deck (sort of comments my client gets). They just pass me off as another punter.

The hook is in the way these clients run their venues. One single customer can spend a lot of money. In a case like this I am asked to provide a covert routine for the night.
I cannot disclose what ruse I use but it is a well planned thing. I am given introductions and given a good cover by my client. It makes the job easy.

Ps. I can get away with just doing bar challenges for an hour. Any old bar challenge can be a good source of enjoyment. Also it can get a lot more in booze sales if you do it right.

If you don't mind, give me an example of a bar challenge.

Thanks Partizan.

Ok, Drink this pint in under 20 seconds

I'm gonna butt in here and suggest a book.

G. K. Chesterton's The Club of Queer Trades.

And with that, a tip of my hat to Partizan.

If I were a cynic I would suggest that all this 'performing for clients' that Partizan claims to do is in his/her mind and that we have one Master of Delusions here rather than a Master of Illusions.

But I'm not a cynic so 'well done!' on this great new brand of magic performing that you most definitely do and are not making up. (insert smiley face here)