I started doing mentalism about 3 years ago. I got tired of doing magic because it was all “tricks” in the eyes of the spectator. Mentalism opens up new possibilities in your spectators mind and steers away from “magic tricks.”
I still do magic, but I realized a way to increase my reactions times 10 when doing magic. I feel that in order for magic to be powerful there needs to be an emotional connection for the spectator. There needs to be something else besides the deck of cards. When I do card tricks I always bring in “outside elements.” Everyone knows the classic 2 card transposition, and almost every magician does it with the card changing in the spectators hand. That gets great reactions…but I needed something extra. Instead, I have a spectator pick any object (that you can lift up) in the room. I then put 1 card under that object, and then perform the transpo. This makes the trick more memorable because I am dealing with things outside “just a deck of cards.” I usually do this effect while the spectator steps on a card, and then do the switch. The key is to make the effect different, unique, and memorable for a spectator.
One of the key examples of this is the Invisible Deck. I used to do this trick a lot, and I realized that I could greatly increase my reactions by having the spectator call a friend that was close to them, and have that person name the card. Why? There is no difference for the magician… yet for the spectator it is completely different! They will remember the unique situation of having to call their best friend for a magic trick.
On a different note, I usually find sandwich card tricks to be boring. So the card appears between 2 others…so what? What does that mean to a spectator? I give myself personal homework every week. I take a trick I know and completely change the performance around to bring in these “outside elements” to bring in the surroundings and the spectator. One I have done recently was the classic 2 card monte. Instead of a gambling trick, I try to convince my spectator of visual hallucinations and how common they can be. It is important to be out of the box, it is important to create a unique emotional experience for your spectator.
When you go up to a spectator you have 5 minutes to prove that you are the best magician they have ever seen or will ever see, by creating a more memorable effect- you can separate yourself from the other magicians who do the average, pick-a- card trick.
I just wanted to share my philosophy on magic, I hope I didn’t ramble…
This, and some of my other thoughts on magic will be featured in some lecture notes I’m working on.
share your ideas...
I still do magic, but I realized a way to increase my reactions times 10 when doing magic. I feel that in order for magic to be powerful there needs to be an emotional connection for the spectator. There needs to be something else besides the deck of cards. When I do card tricks I always bring in “outside elements.” Everyone knows the classic 2 card transposition, and almost every magician does it with the card changing in the spectators hand. That gets great reactions…but I needed something extra. Instead, I have a spectator pick any object (that you can lift up) in the room. I then put 1 card under that object, and then perform the transpo. This makes the trick more memorable because I am dealing with things outside “just a deck of cards.” I usually do this effect while the spectator steps on a card, and then do the switch. The key is to make the effect different, unique, and memorable for a spectator.
One of the key examples of this is the Invisible Deck. I used to do this trick a lot, and I realized that I could greatly increase my reactions by having the spectator call a friend that was close to them, and have that person name the card. Why? There is no difference for the magician… yet for the spectator it is completely different! They will remember the unique situation of having to call their best friend for a magic trick.
On a different note, I usually find sandwich card tricks to be boring. So the card appears between 2 others…so what? What does that mean to a spectator? I give myself personal homework every week. I take a trick I know and completely change the performance around to bring in these “outside elements” to bring in the surroundings and the spectator. One I have done recently was the classic 2 card monte. Instead of a gambling trick, I try to convince my spectator of visual hallucinations and how common they can be. It is important to be out of the box, it is important to create a unique emotional experience for your spectator.
When you go up to a spectator you have 5 minutes to prove that you are the best magician they have ever seen or will ever see, by creating a more memorable effect- you can separate yourself from the other magicians who do the average, pick-a- card trick.
I just wanted to share my philosophy on magic, I hope I didn’t ramble…
This, and some of my other thoughts on magic will be featured in some lecture notes I’m working on.
share your ideas...