Help for my friend...

[darosa.justin]

My friend has started to gain a real interest in magic after I showed him some card stuf. He is not really sure where to start, but he said that after watching the Control trailer he is really interested in this ind of magic and actually wanted to get control.

I explained to him that buying a random cool looking trick isn't the way to start his adventure into the art of magic.

He says that control-esqe type of magic 'creepy', stuff is most interesting to him. However, this is a hard type of magic to begin with. Does anyone have any recommendations of DVDs/books that he could get to start his magic?

Any advice would be appreciated too, thanks!

 

[Cyrus]

So it sounds to me that he wants to get into the whole Bizarre and Mentalism magic stuff, am I right?

For mentalism, I hear that Banachek's PSI series DVD set is pretty good. That would probably be good for starting out because it teaches more than just one trick. If he really starts to pick it up and get into it, I recommend the book 13 Steps to Mentalism. But I agree with you, its very hard to start in weird magic or mentalism. I'd recommend getting him started in cards first because thats where I honestly started and he can practice literally anywhere.

When he gets better, he definitely needs to get Stigmata.

-Cyrus

 

[ThrallMind]

I'd recommend getting him started in cards first because thats where I honestly started and he can practice literally anywhere.
-Cyrus

Yes, but...

This only perpetuates that to be a magician, you MUST be able to work cards like a pro. Look at Banachek. I'm sure he can do cards, but in the entirety of the Psi series, I cannot recall him using any card sleights.

If someone wants to be good with Bizzare and Mentalism, start there! Work on what you like.

I would recommend getting your friend 13 Steps to Mentalism. Have him look at Psi Series DVD 1, Psi Series DVD 2 (Which has the original Stigmata on it, I might add), Psi Series DVD 3, and Psi Series DVD 4, and see which effects seem most appealing to him. Have him get one of those and 13 Steps to Mentalism, and practice them. He will have a good time working on all that material. Once he has those, work on the next Psi DVD that looks appealing to him.

Make sure he doesnt buy them all and get overwhelmed. That's a bad thing to do

Hope this helps!

-ThrallMind

 

[Steerpike]

Yes, but...

This only perpetuates that to be a magician, you MUST be able to work cards like a pro. Look at Banachek. I'm sure he can do cards, but in the entirety of the Psi series, I cannot recall him using any card sleights.

As brilliant as Banachek is, he's not the end-all of mentalism. Bob Cassidy, Max Maven, and others reference Jean Hugard's Encyclopedia of Card Tricks as a valuable source of mentalism using just a deck of cards. It's not to be underestimated.

On top of that, Theo Anneman's work contains just as much card work as billet work.

I also recommend he look into a few utilities that can easily be adapted to any style of presentation. The 100 Dollar Bill Switch is covered in extensive detail in Sankey's Hundred Dollar Miracles, showing just how versatile it is for both magic and mentalism. There are some real Twilight Zone effects on that DVD.

The Invisible Deck is another one that has a lot of potential.

If you're friend is really interested in dark/Bizzarrist work, I'd love to talk with him. I'm always interested in speaking to another person on subjects generally shunned by... well, we call those people "mundanes". Besides, this will make it easier for me to give recommendations.

 

[ThrallMind]

As brilliant as Banachek is, he's not the end-all of mentalism. Bob Cassidy, Max Maven, and others reference Jean Hugard's Encyclopedia of Card Tricks as a valuable source of mentalism using just a deck of cards. It's not to be underestimated.

This is true, I just don't believe in some asking for bizarre magic help, and someone saying "Do cards!" Not to say that is what you said, Cyrus

Max Maven is a great suggestion, and his Color Series is awesome and has a nice amount of material.

-ThrallMind

 

[Cyrus]

Yes, but...

This only perpetuates that to be a magician, you MUST be able to work cards like a pro. Look at Banachek. I'm sure he can do cards, but in the entirety of the Psi series, I cannot recall him using any card sleights.

If someone wants to be good with Bizzare and Mentalism, start there! Work on what you like.

Good point. I didn't know if he used cards or not on the DVDs because I still haven't bought them. I'm not sure if I would recommend 13 Steps to Mentalism as the very first thing to get because it doesn't hook you in quickly like a DVD will. But I do highly recommend it.

-Cyrus

 

[Deleted member 2755]

You should tell him that when doing magic, not everything he will be doing will be creepy and bizarre magic. Although it is my favorite kind as well, he must realize that he will have to learn some "normal" tricks in addition to the freaky bizarre stuff. Tell him this, and I'll recommend some stuff here for a good beginner.

LOOPS.
Loops are great, they take almost no skill at all whatsoever. After watching that trailer since he is pretty new into magic, he'll most likely want this over everything. Loops are great.

Factory Sealed
Awesome stuff.

Sinful
Great stuff.

Stigmata
Amazing.

Indecent
This one of course takes a bit of practice and presentation, so if he wants this tell him to get a few card tricks down first so he has more than one.

Control
Not a good effect to start out with, this good, but you should have a bit of experience with presentation and showmanship to do this.

Don't show him all this stuff at once. Show your friend one or two things at a time. Otherwise he will be tempted to just buy everything which is obviously not a good thing. All that stuff will get you huge reactions and it's all beginner stuff.

-Doug

 

[Steerpike]

You should tell him that when doing magic, not everything he will be doing will be creepy and bizarre magic. Although it is my favorite kind as well, he must realize that he will have to learn some "normal" tricks in addition to the freaky bizarre stuff. Tell him this, and I'll recommend some stuff here for a good beginner.

I do agree with you on this, but I have to disagree with most of your choices. Don't get me wrong, they're all great effects, but I'd be more in favor of him learning more utilities.

On that, I do have to agree with the Guerilla Guide to Loops. Though I personally would recommend a couple of beginner DVDs and books on cards, coins, and basic mentalism.

 

[Deleted member 2755]

I do agree with you on this, but I have to disagree with most of your choices. Don't get me wrong, they're all great effects, but I'd be more in favor of him learning more utilities.

On that, I do have to agree with the Guerilla Guide to Loops. Though I personally would recommend a couple of beginner DVDs and books on cards, coins, and basic mentalism.

I would as well, however, he is not interested in that stuff. A few of these things can grab him and put him in the right mindset for magic. After doing some of this stuff, then he can and maybe even will want to start learning coins and cards. If he wants to do freaky and bizarre magic and you give him the Royal Road to Card Magic... he's going to be disappointed.

-Doug

 

[Steerpike]

If he wants to do freaky and bizarre magic and you give him the Royal Road to Card Magic... he's going to be disappointed.

-Doug

Conversely, most of the material available on dark magic assumes the reader already knows the basics.

You have to find the balance somewhere.