How to do Magic Tricks

Advice and Support for Magicians

The Missing Piece of Most Magic Training: Learn Impromptu Magic

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Learn Impromptu Magic

Learn impromptu magic, it’s the missing piece of your magicians training.

 

Tahmid writes: I’m a 17 year old in my last year of school and I really struggle with dealing with the kind of people who say ‘show me more’ or just out of the blue ‘show me a magic trick’. Most of the time I’m not ready to show them something and find it difficult to get out of those situations. Some tips would be great!

The difficulty you are facing is quite common. A lot of magicians, being keen and wanting fast progress, start building up their working knowledge of magic focusing on tricks that require gimmicks and props. There’s a problem. If you were stopped in the street and asked to show someone a magic trick, what would you do?  Are you the sort of person that never leaves the house without a pocket full of props? What would you do if you got caught out without a deck of cards, TT, or coin gimmicks on you?

Tahmid, you don’t ever need to make an excuse for not being able to perform.. There is no need do tips and lines to let those people down.. You need to learn impromptu magic, so you are ready to amaze anytime.

Why it’s vital that you build an impromptu magic repertoire.

Take the time to build up a range of quick impromptu magic tricks that you can perform at a moments notice without any ‘magicians props’  Effects that you can instantly do with a few coins, a paper napkin, a pen and piece of paper, or even a little mind reading…

You don’t need many, and you don’t need a lot of money because props don’t come into it.. 5 or 6 tricks that you have practiced and rehearsed properly, so they can be presented carefully and professionally to be as entertaining as your main working material.

If you don’t have this… Take the time RIGHT AWAY to magic the COMMITMENT to start learning this ‘set’ of material.

 

You’re a magician.. You should be able to perform magic at any moment, anywhere.. There is NO EXCUSS for failing to perform because you ‘don’t have anything with you’.

There is a huge range of sources to learn impromptu magic. Here’s some of the most popular:

Ring on Car Keys Trick When You’re Too Young to Drive

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Ring Flight Car Keys

By Ben Williams & Dominic Reyes

It seems that just about every magician is performing the ring on car keys trick, but Ben can’t do it.. he’s too young to drive.

 

Ben writes: ‘I am looking to purchase a ring flight, but many of them require a car key on your key-ring. However, I cannot drive yet as I’m only 15. Therefore,can you suggest some other possible alternative to the ring on car keys trick!’

Yep, a car key on your keyring might look very odd if you are too young to own a car. Don’t feel too bad though. Avoiding this trick might be your best move. The ‘ring on car keys trick’  is starting to be REALLY over done commercially. A lot of working magicians use that ending, and professional magicians are starting to find audiences expecting the ending, especially when they work in city bars or for corporate crowds that are used to seeing close up magicians.  There is no need for you to follow the crowd and be generic/interchangable.. Seek out effects that audiences don’t see other magicians doing all the time.

If you are looking to mix it up a bit, want to move away from the magic herd, or are simply too young to own a car, there are some great alternatives to the ring on car keys trick:

Ring Flight Case

How about a ring flight to a case instead?

https://www.magicshop.co.uk/ring-flite-by-ronjo-trick

Interlace ring flight

A ring to shoelace will blow your spectators away:

https://www.magicshop.co.uk/interlace-by-richard-sanders

ring flight to wallet

How about having the ring appear inside a nest of wallets:

https://www.magicshop.co.uk/super-soft-deluxe-nest-of-wallets-aka-nest-of-wallets-v2-by-nick-einhorn-and-alan-wong-trick

Departure Car Key Ring Flight

If you really do want to do the ring on car keys trick, it’s important to choose a model that is not over priced, yet will give you rock solid reliability and performance. Many magicians go for the Departure Car Key Ring Flight Device

Best Magic Tricks For YouTube Videos and Social Media

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Magic Tricks For YouTube

K writes: I’m making some videos to put on my website, youtube and social media. My target audience is 14 – 35 year olds.  I will mainly be doing street magic. I will be filming in and around London and will be using people I meet on the street. Tourists, by passers etc etc….

I am basically looking for a few magic tricks that look impressive that have not been seen much and that stand out a little. I would specifically like a torn and restored card trick.

Hi K
When it comes to torn and restored magic tricks for youtube,  what springs to my mind is Slide. This has the added animation of the card sliding across which looks awesome. You are good for up to about 160*. you don’t want anyone to the sides or behind you, but you can control the crowd by taking a step back so everyone can see clearly.

 

Something like Linko and OCL by Ben Williams would be perfect, for both street and a more intimate restaurant approach with very few angle issues.

 

Sky Cap 2.0 is awesome street magic that allows you to push a straw or pen or cigarette into a bottle and show the cap to be solid (this can be scrutinized quite closely too!) It’s a limited edition, so may not be available soon.

 

For a card trick look at either Envylope by Paul Harris Presents

 

Hercules is a Coin Bender that will allow you to bend a signed borrowed £1 coin (this is unheard of amongst coin benders!) This does take presentation, but if the misdirection is right angles will be OK.

 

Apparition is a trick that will allow you to have any word, picture, number or symbol appear in scorch marks by waving a lighter under a piece of paper or card. This is great for either freely thought of words or forces.

 

Deceptus and Strongman by Jimmy Strange are Street Magic to the core. These are very good on angles. Strongman lets you bend a solid nut and bolt then restore it straight again, and Deceptus allows you to put any small borrowed object into a can like some keys, a lighter, a ring or something like this.

 

Ring Flight is also something to check out!

 

I hope these suggestions help!
Good luck and I can’t wait to see your show reel.
Mark Henderson
www.magicshop.co.uk