We discuss how to build your magic tricks into magic sets that flow together. Constructing a magic act.

One of the most common questions our magicians get asked is how to order magic tricks into sets for performing to the public. Let’s look at the types of magic tricks that can be built into working magic sets, and how to order them into your act to get the best results.

Getting ready.

The first step is to understand what kind of magician you are. Do you enjoy comedy magic? Perhaps you prefer a more serious style, featuring hard hitting mentalism? Your magic style should dictate the shape and style the magic sets, and how you will be perceived by your audience. Take time to decide exactly which style of presentation would suit you best. Choose tricks that compliment and communicate the ‘style of magician’ you want to be.

Once you have a style, it’s time to build magic sets. We will build 3 magic sets, each containing 3 magic tricks. The three sets will each have a different pace, designed for specific parts of an event, and types of spectator.

Set one: The approach.

Magic Trick 1) The Impression.

The first magic trick will be your opener. This is the trick you will use when you join the first group of the evening. It needs to be quick, with a goal of capturing the attention. The magic trick must show that you are professional and skilled. When you join your first group, they may not know that a magician has been booked, so may not have anticipation of the magic they are going to see. Choose a magic trick that requires little initial attention. Think quick, fast, and impressive! A simple coin routine works well in this position, especially a 3 fly coins across. Perhaps a colour change card trick with a little flourish built in? If you use comedy, make sure you get a laugh with a strong line. The aim is to make everyone notice, and focus on the magic as quickly as possible.

Magic Trick 2) The Build.

After your opener magic trick, you will have the group engaged with your magic. This is the time to perform a longer trick that will stand up to focused attention. You are now interacting with the group. Start using spectators names, and get them involved. It’s this point that will most often have new spectators joining the group to see what is going on. Open up the circle if you can. Involve a few spectators, and look for magic that takes place in their hands. This could be a strong card routine, an expanded sponge balls set, chop cup routine. The aim is to relate to the group and expand it.

Magic Trick 3) The Shout Out.

Your final magic trick in this set should cause people to freak out. The aim is to have people getting noisy about what they have just seen. The goal is to capture the attention of other people in the room. Go for a magic trick that blows people away, and gets a round of applause, or some high fives. A bill in lemon, an omni deck, a bottle through table. This trick is a closer, so should end in an applause cue stance, with your arms open.

Keep it to three.

Each set should contain maybe 3 tricks. You want people to remain hungry for more. Explain that you need to visit everyone, but will show them more later.

Set Two : The group next door.

This set follows set 1 as you move to a group nearby. It may be the case that some of the first group will follow you as they want to see more. The new group may have watched a little of you magic from a distance as they heard the reactions form the first group. You now need a new set of magic tricks to perform for the new group.

Magic Trick 1) Moving house.

You are already warmed up, and the reactions you have been getting from your first set, will have been notices around the room. This first magic trick also needs to be quick and capture the attention. This magic set doesn't need to demonstrate your abilities as much as the first trick in set 1. A three card monte works well in this position, or an ambitious card routine. Short, punchy, and lots of climaxes and the secret to opener tricks. Your aim here is to move to the new group and get them engaged quickly to keep the buzz about you going from the first groups reactions.

Magic Trick 2) The Meat.

Now is the perfect position for a more meaty routine. Perhaps some mind reading, metal bending or a levitation routine. Play to the whole group and expand it. Card magic works well here as you could do a multiple selection routine such as the MRD deck by Liam Montier.

Magic Trick 3) The Big One.

To end the second set, we recommend that you hit them hard with a signature piece that will cause a stir. Ring flight, ring in walnut, bottle through body. Something that makes everyone applaud and freak out.

Set Three) The Circus.

You’re in the middle of the room and at a point where a large group is all around you. Most of the people have already seen your magic from sets 1 and 2. This set is almost like a theatre show.

Magic Trick 1) Helpers.

Use 2 or 3 helpers for a routine and bring them into the center of the group. In the hands chop cup routine, a rope routine like fiber optics extended, or a mind reading routine may be perfect here.

Magic Trick 2) Comedy.

Look for a magic trick that allows a few of the spectators to be comic if their personalities suit this. A street hypnosis routine, or an arm bend/twist routine would work well here.

Magic Trick 3) The Closer.

To end The circus set, you need your most dramatic closer. Something that gets 3-4 people joining you to help. Bring in some interaction from tables near you as well, and address the whole room. At the end, go for an applause stance. If you are performing to a single table, have the guests stand during the trick as this is a feature effect and should aim to be as visible as possible.

It's about pace.

So there you have three sets of magic tricks. Each set designed to be used at a different point in an event. You repeat sets 1 and 2 around the room, working towards the middle of the room, stage, or towards a top table. If you have the whole rooms attention, set 3 brings everything to a climax.

The pace for each set is different. Building from fast and flashy, to engaged and interactive.

Once you understand the flow and goal of your magic sets, it becomes much easier to choose new magic tricks to include, and to be able to order the magic tricks you already know, to be positioned within your sets to get the most out of them.

Shaking Hands – How Magicians Can Use a Good Handshake

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By Dominic Reyes

A handshake is the recognised and official physical contact that magicians can use when they meet a new spectator or client.

Like it or not, people WILL judge you on the quality of your handshake. Performing magic for the public is business. Everyone involved in business should be able to shake hands with confidence. Here's a quick guide to giving a good handshake.

The perfect handshake for magicians.

Make sure your fingers are kept together with your thumb up and open.
Place your hand into the other persons so that the other person's web of skin between thumb and first finger touches yours.
Squeeze firmly, but not in a vice grip. The aim is not to hurt the other person, just to have a firm stable grip.
Make eye contact and smile as you shake hands.
The handshake should last for approximatly 3 seconds.
Movement should come from the elbow rather than the wrist.
Released after one or two shakes, even if the introduction conversation is still happening.

When magicians should shake hands.

Meeting a spectator for the first time.
Meeting a person that you haven't seen for a while.
Meeting a client to discuss a show.
Saying good-bye to people after a show.
If someone else reaches out to shake your hand.

Avoid this when shaking hands.

Make sure your hands are not clammy, spray them with antiperspirant before a gig if you often have sweaty hands.

Make sure your hand is not cold and wet. If you hold a drink, make sure it is with your left hand, if you know you will be shaking hands often.

Sometimes you will get a bad handshake that is lose, limp, or only holding your fingers. Resist the temptation to comment on it. Just smile and shake hands with the person. Meeting a client or spectator is NOT a game of wills, or the time to try to assert your alpha status over the person, that's just ego. Your job as a magician is to entertain them and make them feel good. Commenting publicly that their handshake was not great, or that you would like to attempt the handshake again is bad form and insulting to the person meeting you. Forcing someone to shake your hand again becase you didn't like their handshake, justs puts their 'back up'. It communicates that you are not submissive and are there to challage their alpha role in the group or interaction. Your cleint IS the alpha participant in the communication most of the time, and challenging then on this is not a great way to start your relationship as their entertainer.

Your One Year Magic Practice Goal – How to Make it Happen.

by Dominic Reyes 2 Comments

By Dominic Reyes

At the bottom of this page, you will find a form to complete. I'm going to ask you to set a goal for your magic practice for the year ahead. If you complete the form, the team at the Merchant of Magic will try to provide you with free help and support to achieve your goal.

There is a common reason that many beginners lose interest in practicing to become a magician. They become disappointed in their progress, which makes them feel like a failure.

Through the tuition that my team provides at the magic shop, I noticed that the best way to push magicians past the ‘quitting point’, is to teach them about setting practice goals for their magic.

First, I want to explain why setting a goal is so important to your development as a magician. Let's start with a question:

Do you do it?

Do you set yourself defined goals for your development as a magician? Most people don’t plan the future, preferring to work on their existing material, and building up their magic knowledge over time in a random undirected fashion. Most magicians start training with a distant, undefined aim of becoming a skilled magician some time in the future. That’s fine if you simply want to dabble at magic training, but if you want to get the most out of your practice time, then setting a goal can be a very powerful aid to your development. A goal gives you an aim, and a direction of focus.

It is an expression of your WILL to make something you want really happen.

Goals provide direction. Without choosing a goal, you run the risk of never setting your sights on what you actually want from your magic practice. A goal is a conscious decision to make something YOU want happen. Without goals, it’s easy to work hard, yet end up making nothing happen at all. Lack of direction may lead you to be forever jumping from one unfinished magic trick to the next, endlessly failing to commit to true mastery of any magic skills until all you experience is a sense of disappointment, failure, and loss of interest in the practice.

The good news is that it is easy to avoid this situation. To avoid feeling like you are not making the progress you deserve, let's look at some easy steps for setting — and most importantly achieving your goals as a magician.

Just little steps at first.

I highly recommend that you start off with a small goal. Choosing something too big can make it seem impossible and unrealistic. Feeling that you have set an impossible goal for yourself can lead to you giving up way before you reach it. Even a journey of a thousands miles starts with just a single step. I know it’s tempting to say something like “I’m going to master sleight of hand with cards!” Just remember that a card expert is made one trick at a time. Instead, why not start with a smaller goal, like mastering the Elmsley count, or building a working three shells and a pea routine, and then add to it once you have achieved it?

Don’t over complicate the issue.

Be careful you don’t confuse the issue by only looking at the distant future. There are actually two main kinds of goals: short term and long term.

Long term goals are the bigger picture. It may be something that you want to achieve in a few years time. Long term goals can often be broken down into a series of short term goals that eventually complete the long term goal. The secret of success is to define a long term goal, then break it into a series of short term goals that will lead you to the long term win. That way, you don’t over complicate the path to achieving what you want. For example, a long term goal might be : Master sleight of hand with playing cards. That’s a very complex goal as it has so many parts needed to achieve it. Keep your magic practice simple, and take things in stages. "My first goal is to master a convincing double lift technique" As soon as that goal has been done, move on to the next short term goal: "I will learn to classic palm playing cards"

Choose a long term goal, and write it on a piece of paper. Now start listing the short term goals that are needed to complete the long term goal.

Be Realistic.

Pay attention to your own strengths as a magician, and face your limitations at the same time. If you are a very serious person, a long term goal of becoming a comedy magician, may not be realistic. You may find it much easier to be successful as a serious mentalist or card cheating expert. It’s great to dream, but be realistic in the dreams that you decide to put into practice. Understanding your own natural abilities, and finding goals that compliment them is an important part of the development process.

Don’t be a dog that chases parked cars.

Are you picking goals based upon what you want, or what other people think you should do? Make sure that the goal you decide to work towards is really what you want to make happen. I studied to become a Clinical Psychologist. Everyone told me I would be great at it. I went to university and began working towards that goal. It was only after several years training that I came to realize that it wasn’t MY choice of the future I wanted. I loved magic, and wanted that to be my life. I made the commitment to find work as a magician and build a magic business. By selecting my dreams — and not those of my friends and family — I achieved that goal, and feel so lucky to wake up each day to do something I love.

Remind yourself regularly.

Setting a goal is just the beginning. It’s easy to spend an evening making lists of your short term goals, then putting that list away forever. Once you have defined and set a goal, make sure that you find ways to remind yourself regularly about it. Carry a list of your short term goals in your wallet or bag, make it your screen saver, the home screen of your smartphone, even write it on your bedroom wall! Make sure you are reminded of your goal every single day. Some magicians write their goals on a playing card and keep that in their pocket wherever they go. Each evening and morning when they unload their pockets, they find the playing card and get reminded of their goals.

Keep the list moving.

Short term goals often come together to form a long term goal. Make a list of your goals, and group them together. Break your long term goals into achievable short term goals and place them in order that you can work on them to complete the larger objective. The long term goal may be to learn the cups and balls to a performance standard. The short term goals would be the individual steps needed to make that happen, including buying a cups and balls set, mastering loading and stealing, mastering the misdirection, perfecting an interesting presentation, developing the timing etc etc.

Make it happen when it needs to do so.

It doesn’t matter how many goals you set, where you write them down, or how often you think about them. Unless you pick ONE short term goal and start working on it, it’s all for nothing. Look at your list of goals and decide which is the most important to you. Remember that the longer a goal stays unactioned on your list, the more time it will take to achieve it.

Setting a goal is really about setting a deadline. Without a time limit, there is no motivation to work on the steps needed to achieve your goal.

Get Help by asking the right questions.

Nobody can do everything themselves. Find help from people that can move you closer to your goals. By defining each step as a goal, it becomes easy to know exactly which questions to get answered, or what form of help you need. I often get asked “Which magic trick should I learn next?” That question is not very useful because it has no goal attached to it. Asking “I want to be known as a mind reader, which trick should I work on next?” allows me to understand the goal behind the question, and the advice I give is much more valuable because it has a direction towards the goal behind it.

One year from now.

I maintain that taking the time to sit down and list your goals, is one of the most positive steps you can make to becoming a successful magician. It applies to all aspects of magic, from learning new tricks, right through to marketing your services. As you put this into practice, and see the result is having on your focus, and the speed of your progress, you will never look back!

Which magic goal would you like to set for your magic? What would you like to have achieved in magic one year from now?