I see two problems with your ideas for a parlor show. The first is that coins and cards are difficult to see and won't play to larger "parlor" audiences. I define a parlor show to be anywhere from 10 to 50 or even up to 100 people. You don’t have a stage and the audience is in front of you — possibly in rows of chairs, possibly at tables or possibly sitting on sofas and on the floor in a house. You are performing standing up in front of or behind a table. The effects need to be able to be seen and perceived by all of your audience.
The second is that there isn't much to your routines. Essentially, your answer to your own question is I’d do a couple of coin tricks and some card tricks. Take the time to write out what the audience sees and what you are going to say. There needs to be something more than just the trick in terms of presentation. Your presentation needs to be more than narration of what the prop is doing.
My parlor shows vary from 30 to 45 minutes. I choose effects from a bunch of routines that I've developed depending on the length of the show and the audience. I have certain effects that are for adults, certain effects for family shows and some effects just for kids shows. Some of the effects that I use or am currently working on perfecting are:
Invisible Deck - It involves upbeat music, a beach ball. audience participation and either a regular or jumbo invisible deck.
Billiard Balls - Alan Wakeling’s routine done to music. I’ve added a few enhancements, such as an appearing cane and collapsable top hat, to the beginning to make it more magical in the beginning.
Invisible Coins - I walk into the audience and have four coins vanish close up. I hand the invisible coins to several audience members. I return to the front of the room and the audience members toss the coins to me only to have them appear when they are caught in a large glass that I’m holding (or when they fall on the floor).
Miser’s Dream - Still a work in progress. I collect dollar coins in a brushed stainless steel ice bucket. Explaining that this is the way I save money for champagne, ice cubes appear in the bucket and a bottle of champagne appears from a balloon blown up by an audience member.
Linking Rings - Vernon’s Symphony of the Rings done to classical music or my own routine done after a heartwarming story about a young dragon that learns to believe in himself.
Cups & Balls - My “martini” routine using brushed stainless steel cups and green olives talking about when I tended bar in law school leading up to the production of a jumbo olive. The other routine involves the final production of six billiard balls (3 through 8).
The Efficiency Stamp - A postcard is selected by a spectator and vanished, only to appear in a mailbox across the room in a previously empty mailbox.
Lemonade Stand - What do you get when you combine Fabjance’s Airborne effect with a Steinmeier gaffed cigar case and a bill in lemon routine? The story of my first lemonade stand as a kid.
McCombical Deck - The classic Billy McComb routine done with a jumbo deck. The spectators see a trick that cannot go wrong actually go wrong — only to see if fixed by what can only be called magic.
Houdini’s Influence - An effect done with pictures of a deck of cards that belonged to Houdini. It is about influence but despite trying to resist my influence, it is Houdini’s influence that controls the outcome.
Dining Out - I act out a store about an expensive dinner date with two volunteers. No matter what the woman orders, I have just the right amount of money in my wallet… plus a tip — “Avoid First Dates at Expensive Restaurants” or maybe even “Never Date a Magician.”
Compatibility - A couple from the audience takes a compatibility test using two decks of cards and Eric Ross’ Election. The test asks the question, “is it better to be similar or different?” In the end, a good relationship takes a little of both.
A Book Test - I use several book tests including effects from Rachel Wild Colombini, Jim Steinmeyer, Rich Ferguson and Nate Kranzo. A demonstration of the power of books over our minds.
Card in a Bottle - A story about my Uncle Jim and his quest to find real magic (or maybe just get away from my aunt Bertha). The spectator’s chosen card disappears from the deck and appears in a previously empty glass bottle held by another spectator across the room.
Maragrite’s Wishes - An egg bag routine done to a story of a young girl and her mother in Nazi occupied France where things aren’t ever quite as they appear (or disappear).
The Magic Inside - A child selects a card and then makes it vanish from the deck and reappear inside a series of nested boxes. The routine is done to music with the child being directed silently by the magician to “perform” the magic.
The Story of Harvey and Lola - The story of why I don’t have a rabbit anymore. Harvey was a reluctant performer, Lola was a show girl. A story of boy meets girl and the inevitable consequences. A Benson Bowl routine using sponge bunnies and a top hat with a Benson Burner ending. Seriously, who wouldn’t want to end a magic show by producing 50 sponge bunnies?
Here are some of the effects that are solely for kids shows:
“Z” - My take on the Zombie Ball - “Z” is in training for his big disappearing act but he seems to have some issues following instructions. By the end of the performance, the young kids think he is real and the adults are wondering how the heck a metal ball levitates.
Vanishing Bandana - A beautiful effect by Robert Haas. A wacky look about how learning magic can be magical and funny.
How to Make a Zebra - A safari of a mismade silk effect complete with safari hats, a camera, an oversized magic wand and zebra with a tail. Lots of interaction with the kids.
Rabbit Hat Routine - David Ginn’s rabbit hat routine with a silk fountain and final appearance of a giant rabbit.
Emerson the Magic Dog - David Ginn’s sheepdog puppet harasses the magician by attempting to reveal tricks with his outlandish explanations and then tries to out perform the magician. Just keep him away from the sponge balls.
Silly Strings of Death - A Russian Roulette routine complete with danger, tension and silly string.
