Magic Tricks That Need No Explanation

Have a quick look at this, it is a great street magic video, featuring very good magic tricks, well produced, and Hezi Dean clearly is a great, confident magician. Click on the video below, but turn the sound off. Then come back to us for a chat:

If you haven’t watched the video and are still reading, STOP! Go back and watch it, it is definitely worth a watch.

So… I take it you have watched it now. If not don’t worry, this blog post still puts the point across just not as nicely!

The whole point of this blog post is not to show you magic tricks that are so obvious they do not need explaining. It is more on the topic of how good magic tricks transcend the language barrier and need no explaining. I bet you watched the video and sank into his presentation watching every move, If you turned the sound off, the point will be very clear, even if you didn't, Hezi was speaking in Israeli but it did not confuse the issue if you didn't understand him. Hezi's presentation speaks for itself. This video is a great example of how good magic tricks need no words to be appreciated. Thank you, Hezi Dean!

Does this sort of universal communication come across in the magic tricks you perform?

Could you perform your close up act in conditions where your spectators can't hear you?

What small tweaks to your presentation would make each of your magic tricks easier to understand without patter?

This is More Important Than Magic Tricks

by Dominic Reyes Leave a Comment

There's a skill that magicians should master that can be more important than their magic tricks.

As magicians, we all want to find the perfect magic tricks that will impress our spectators, but is that all there is to it? Does our success as a performer depend on the magic tricks we perform?

Dominic Reyes took a bit of time out at a gig, to record this video on the subject:

Why people book YOU as their magician

People tend to book magicians from two main sources:

1) They have found out about you from advertising.

2) They have heard about you from other people.

The first source depends on your marketing skills and the amount of effort/money you are prepared to invest in promotion. It has very little to do with your skills as a magician or the quality of the services you will actually offer. Anyone can pitch themselves as a brilliant entertainer and 'sell their services'. The second source (what people think about you) is far more important for your long term career in magic, because it brings in many times more work. If you give great service and people spread the word about you, you get new gigs through their advertising, but you also get REPEAT BOOKINGS.

You can't advertise your way out of bad past experiences.

It doesn't matter how great your website is, or how big your advertising spend can be, if you didn't impress a client when they hired you, they won't book you again. If you didn't stand out amongst the other entertainers, they have used in the past, you won't be their instant choice of the magician to hire.

Average doesn't cut it

So how do you make sure you stand out in the minds of your clients? I'll let you into a secret:

IT'S NOT THE MAGIC TRICKS YOU PERFORM

Most working magicians tend to do very similar tricks. They all have their own presentations and styles, but on the whole there is often little to tell one magician from another with the average material being performed nightly by close up workers. Tricks come into fashion and become the 'latest craze'. Classic magic tricks continue to be used because they are, well, classics. So what's the difference that sets one magician apart from the others and makes some a success, whilst others continue to plod along? I think the secret extra 'something' is this:

HOW THE MAGICIAN MAKES PEOPLE FEEL

It's not the magic tricks that take a magician above the average, it's the performer's personality. It's how they talk to the spectators, how they communicate. Most importantly, it's about making spectators feel good about themselves and performer. When a skilled magician leaves the event, the people are sad to see him or her leave. They then look forward to seeing the magician again, because they felt good when he or she was there.

Learning to make people like you

Some people are naturally great at talking to people, whilst others find it a challenge or even a complete mystery. Are you a likeable, social person? You need to ask yourself that, even if it's uncomfortable to do so. If you think you are not very good at this sort of thing, not all is lost. It's a skill that some people have, naturally, but it's also a skill that can be learned over time.

The first step is to stop and actually look at how you come across. Should you spend a little less time learning moves and magic tricks, and instead work on your character and conversation skills?

If you want to develop in this area, invest in a few good books on communication. There's loads of them out there, mainly aimed at sales and business.

The traditional classic is: How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. It's a bit dated now, but the lessons it will give you are timeless. A modern book that will give you a LOAD of practical advice to put into practice is: How to Talk to Anyone by Leil Lowndes

Which People Should Magicians Approach First?

by Dominic Reyes 1 Comment

By Dominic Reyes

One of the hardest parts of any event is when magicians approach the first few guests to arrive. Here's how I handle this situation.

It's 7pm and the event has just started. Only a few guests have arrived and are hanging around the bar area greeting each other. Your client has booked you to start at the same time, so you are walking around wondering who to approach first…

A magician's approach that takes too long.

When you enter the room and start walking around looking at people to decide who to approach first, don't take too long in choosing. Make a decision as quickly as possible and get stuck in, otherwise you walk round and round the room and it will become harder and harder to make that first magician's approach.

I have 2 main types of people I look for when deciding my first group:

1) The most friendly group

Look for a group of lively people that are having fun and seem friendly. That's always a good place to start and will set the pace for the rest of the evening. As more guests arrive, they will see you entertaining a group of people that are full of energy, and it will look like it's all coming from you. Being in the centre of a crowd that is having a good time is a great first impression to make.

2) A couples on their own

This is really the opposite of the friendly group, but it's still a great way to start your gig. Check that the couple isn't in deep conversation. If they appear to be having a discussion it's probably best not to interrupt them. However, if they are both standing together with drinks in hand, and simply don't look like they know any of the other groups, they are a perfect target. You can spend quite a bit of time with them, and if possible, build a group around them.

Sometimes you may see a couple sitting at a table waiting for the rest of their party to arrive. Go and introduce yourself. Ask if you can join them for a moment, and sit down with them. That's a great opportunity to show them a couple of tricks, and with luck you can perform to the larger group that will arrive to join them.

Performing for a few independent couples can get you warmed up, whilst performing some tricks you would not normally perform with a main group. You can spend more time with a couple who will be glad for the entertainment while they wait for their friends to arrive. By the time you have performed for a few couples, most of the guests will have arrived and the event will be in full swing.

3 people I avoid at the beginning of an event.

1) I try to avoid performing magic to the client right at the beginning of an event. I've been hired to entertain their guests, and they want to focus on greeting people. I will perform for the client, But prefer to do it once the event is in full swing, the client is more relaxed, and they've already had some great feedback about me from their guests. At the beginning of an event the client will have a million things to do, They may be tense or even a little stressed

2) I won't to do magic for the events staff at the beginning of the night. Just like the client, they should be focusing on looking after their guests. I always save a little bit of magic at the end of the night of the waiting staff and events manager. However, it is vital that you don't stop them from doing their job.

3) People standing on their own are usually waiting for someone else to arrive, or to return from the bar. It's best to wait until at least another person has joined them before you begin showing them magic otherwise you're bound to be interrupted and have to start from the beginning again. If you are performing to a group and you see somebody standing on their own at the side, try to bring them into the group. Ask the person to come and join in.

The real secret to a good magicians approach

Start as quickly as possible. Don't worry that there are only a few guests at the event. Plenty of people will be arriving soon and you will have all the spectators you need. If you see an animated and friendly group go there first. If there are only a few guests take a couple that is settled with a drink in hand. Jump right into the magic and start performing.

I hope this helps you.

Best wishes

Dominic Reyes

Twitter: @dominicreyes

If you would like to find out more tips about how to approach people to show them magic, download this free ebook: