Magicians Archives

Useless Sleight of Hand – Sleight of Hand Vs Magicians

Is the sleight of hand you are learning leading anywhere?

What do we mean by useless sleight of hand? Useless sleight of hand is anything you don’t have an actual use for right at that moment. It’s sleight of hand that has been studied and practiced just for the sake of it.

‘These individuals have riches just as we say we have a fever, when really the fever has us.‘ – Seneca 4BC-65AD

Don’t collect moves without tricks. The moves will begin to control you.

Do you hang out with other magicians? If you do, you will have met a LOT of very skilled magicians who know just about every sleight or flourish going. They somehow seem to be overnight experts on THE current fashionable move being promoted in a just released magic DVD. They delight in showing you 5 different colour changes, an undetectable pass, their one handed farrow shuffle, and a La Paul spread that turns you green. It’s very easy to be disheartened by their skills.

Why aren’t I that good at sleight of hand? I practice as much as possible. What have they got, that I haven’t?

Knowing a huge range of useless sleight of hand moves, doesn’t make you a magician:

‘John? Oh yes, he’s an author you know! Yes, yes, well.. he hasn’t actually written anything yet, but he can type 70 words per minute! He’s a total master of the keyboard. Did you know, he even knows all the keyboard shortcut keys! I hear at the moment he is working on several advanced ways to cut and paste some text!‘

Before you envy them too much, ask them to show you their best magic trick. Judge them on THAT, not the individual sleight of hand moves they can perform. If they are magicians, their primary goal should be learning and performing magic. If they are collecting and mastering useless sleight of hand techniques, that’s something else instead. It could be flourishing, it may be juggling, it could even be wasting time, but it’s not working towards a goal of performing magic.

There’s nothing wrong with the past-time of learning card magic technique. After all, it could be possible to create an act which featured a demonstration of unassociated card moves and techniques. Flourishing can work really well build into an act. However, if YOUR goal is to become a master magician, then your efforts should be different to those of someone wanting to learn new variations of sleights.

What impresses the magic shop team magicians?

Like most magicians, we like watching good sleight of hand. A perfected one handed colour change is a thing of beauty. However, when a magician shows us a move built into a magic trick or routine, in a way that complements and enhances the routine, we get excited and have more respect for the magician.

Do This: Look for the best magic tricks that suit you, then master the moves and sleight of hand for THOSE tricks. If you don’t have an application for a sleight of hand technique, make note of it, but put it aside until you do.

Disassociated moves and random flourishes distract you and eat up time you could be using to become a better magician.

Ditch your useless sleight of hand and focus on what interests you and what you will actually use.

Magic Tricks as a Puzzle or a Story? – How People View Magicians

by Merchant of Magic 3 Comments

There are two types of spectators that magicians encounter: those that see magic tricks as a puzzle, and those that see magic as a story.

Magic Tricks as puzzles

Spectators that see your magic tricks as a puzzle or challenge spend their time desperately trying to catch you out. They burn your every move with their eyes. They can’t wait to be able to point a finger at you and shout ‘Aha! I caught you!’

These are the spectators that are most likely to ask to check a magicians playing cards and demand that the magicians ‘do that trick again’. Some enjoy the challenge, and some are driven crazy by it. It’s people like this that most often comment that they don’t like magic, when you first approach them. They can be worried that you will be making a fool of them, or that you will simply annoy them with a puzzle that they can’t solve.

Magic tricks as stories.

Spectators that see your magic tricks as a performance can be the most fun audience for magicians. They look forward to being entertained, find magic a mystery and are most likely to have an emotional reaction to one of your magic tricks. If your magic is good, you can almost see them regressing back to being a kid again. They know that it’s close-up theatre, but with each new magic trick you make them want to believe in the magic they see.

That’s not to say that the spectators are easy to fool. They have the same sharp eyes that the ‘puzzlers’ have. The difference is that they are on the magicians side. Their job is to find you out and at the same time fail. The final monologue from the movie “The prestige” describes it exceptionally well:

“Now you’re looking for the secret. But you won’t find it because of course, you’re not really looking. You don’t really want to work it out. You want to be fooled.”

Which type of spectator is better?

That really depends on the style of magic you present and your magicians performing persona. You may have a challenge or bunco booth, characterisation, and perform magic tricks that have a betting theme. You could perform magic with a ‘catch me if you can’ attitude. Maybe you perform like Slydini did, and tell your audience ‘I’m a gonna fool yah!’.

Instead of pitting yourself against the spectators, the alternative is to weave magic stories, create an atmosphere of wonder and fantasy. Your goal would be to present magic that doesn’t tease the audience into working out the method. They are entertained by the ‘show’ of the magic trick. A good movie causes the audience to suspend their disbelief. They stop judging the special effects and the sets, they are pulled into the ‘effect’ rather than the method’.

However you decide to present your magic tricks, bear in mind that you communicate how you expect your audience to react to your magic, through your presentation. If everyone seems to be reacting to your magic tricks as puzzles, chances are, you are doing something to signal to them, that is the correct behaviour. You may not be aware that you are doing it.

Notice how you feel most comfortable presenting your magic tricks. Being aware of the two approaches allows you to examine the patter you use, and the style of magic tricks you build into each working set or routine.

Puzzle magic tricks Vs. story magic?

Both approaches can be better or worse than the other. However, the most crucial factor is that you as the magician are aware of the distinction, and have consciously chosen which approach to take. A definite decision between the two will mean that your approach will be consistent across your whole act.

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How to do Street Magic Tricks – Tips and Advice for Magicians

by Merchant of Magic 1 Comment

“I want to learn street magic tricks. I am having trouble learning more magic tricks that can be used for street magic. Some tips would be great, and also suggestions for some street magic tricks I can learn.” – Jr

Street magic has become a worldwide phenomenon since David Blaine released Street Magic, his first TV Special.

Street Magic used to mean a performer that would gather a crowd for a show and then pass a hat around at the end to earn a living, the term Street Magic now it is used to refer to magicians that perform unprompted. Street magicians approach people in the street, often for free, simply for the love of performing.

There are lots of magic tricks that are great for street magic, and some that are not so great. I will go through a few key points that I believe make a great street magic trick.

Make your street magic quick and to the point.

Build up short routines that do not drag on. When you perform street magic for the public, they have not paid for a show and are not expecting one, you are essentially taking up their time. It may be to show them something amazing that will enrich their lives, but it is still their time you are spending. After you show them something, they may well want to invest more time in you then that will be their choice, and you are then free to show them some more street magic.

Learn street magic that’s as visual as possible.

You will find the reactions are much better if it is visual. Street magic has got a reputation for being visually amazing and so when you perform magic tricks for people in public this is what they expect. The public can be pretty honest in their opinions and harsh as critics, so it is best not to let them down!

Try to use ordinary or borrowed objects.

It is best to use items that are ordinary and not magic props. The idea is that you can perform magic tricks with anything and everything, so it is best to create that illusion. Steer away from obvious magic props like boxes and things you would ONLY find in a magic set or magic shop. If you can borrow someone’s phone or personal item and perform an amazing magic trick with that, you will see your reactions go through the roof.

You can find out about a large selection of magic tricks for street magic conditions here.