Teens on Masters of Illusions

[magicman_1999]

Loud boisterous reactions are not the only sign that you have connected with your audience though. Different people react very differently to the same effect. While you might get one person who will scream and stamp around at a rising card sequence. Another person may internalize there feelings and just (as Flyspazz put it) stand there looking like their "brain(s were) scrambled like eggs on Sunday morning." Both of these reactions are legitament signs that one has connect with his/her spectators. The reactions have as much to do with the psychology of a person as the effect itself.

 

[Brad Henderson]

It's possible to get the loud boisterous reactions David Blaine gets. You just have to present your magic in a way that connects with the audience.

Of course you can get loud reactions, but it has nothing to do with your (or the materials) connection with the audience. In fact, there may be a converse relationship.

Think of it this way - think of "scary." Which is scarier:

1) something leaps out at you and surprises you so you scream and jump up and down

or

2) something gets inside your head (like the exorcist) and the more you think about it, the more disturbed you get until the mere thought of a certain image or idea forces you to turn on the lights.

Boo scares are fun. But deep seated terror is something else. Boo scares get screams and great reactions are are super cool to see your friends get taken in with. But terror stays with you. It lives inside of you. It becomes part of you.

I don't want my magic to result in a scream. Once the scream happens, it's over.

I want my magic to live inside of you.

It's all about what you're willing to settle for. Screams make for good TV, but they mean nothing to the person who experiences it.

Brad

 

[Randy]

Never said people shouldn't try to get different reactions. Just said that it's possible to get the TV style reactions. Tho I am assuming that depending on how they present it. It can either get people to cry (Rene Lavand). Get them to laugh (Bill Malone, David Willaimson and Gregory Wilson.)

Tho for me I prefer the old Paul Harris Astonishment gasp.

 

[The Tumbleweed]

Of course you can get loud reactions, but it has nothing to do with your (or the materials) connection with the audience. In fact, there may be a converse relationship.

Think of it this way - think of "scary." Which is scarier:

1) something leaps out at you and surprises you so you scream and jump up and down

or

2) something gets inside your head (like the exorcist) and the more you think about it, the more disturbed you get until the mere thought of a certain image or idea forces you to turn on the lights.

Boo scares are fun. But deep seated terror is something else. Boo scares get screams and great reactions are are super cool to see your friends get taken in with. But terror stays with you. It lives inside of you. It becomes part of you.

I don't want my magic to result in a scream. Once the scream happens, it's over.

I want my magic to live inside of you.

It's all about what you're willing to settle for. Screams make for good TV, but they mean nothing to the person who experiences it.

Brad

Best metaphor..... ever........

 

[Brad Henderson]

Never said people shouldn't try to get different reactions. Just said that it's possible to get the TV style reactions.

Sure, we all get screams. Heck, I've had someone take out an entire table.
Brad Henderson

I don't think anyone disputes that possibility. My issue is where these reactions come from and which should we strive for.

 

[dejavu05]

You can't really classify how good a magician is on his spectators reactions (as in a "wow" or "OMG YOU ARE DOING PURE MAGIC!!! OMG!!!". As long as the reaction was positive the magician did his (or her) job. The impact a magic trick has on someone is not always shown publicly. Lets say a scientist who graduated from Harvard and got a bachelors degree at Dartmouth saw a trick and was completely baffled. He might express his reaction as a simple "wow...good job" so as not to embarass himself as if he was completely fooled. He also is probably more mannered than a hillbilly that doesn't know the difference between one card and another (whom is mostly seen in David Blaine specials).

Obviously I just compared two completely different that you might or might not see on Hollywood Blvd. Regardless of if you see those kinds of people it still comes down to a person's manners and principles. The scientist might embarass himself and go againest his principles by screaming out "OMG...DEVIL MAGIC!!!" as opposed to a hillbilly who might say that and not go againest his typical manners or principles at all. Therefore I come to the conclusion that reactions don't truly reflect how a trick impacted a person which in turn tells us that reactions cannot always truly show how "good" a magician is.

 

[Steerpike]

Boo scares are fun. But deep seated terror is something else. Boo scares get screams and great reactions are are super cool to see your friends get taken in with. But terror stays with you. It lives inside of you. It becomes part of you.

I don't want my magic to result in a scream. Once the scream happens, it's over.

I want my magic to live inside of you.

It's all about what you're willing to settle for. Screams make for good TV, but they mean nothing to the person who experiences it.

Keep in mind that as effective as that analogy is, you're talking to a generation who has more than likely never seen a film like Rosemary's Baby, Carnival of Souls, or The Exorcist.

It's difficult to appreciate the artistic aspect of something when you've never actually been exposed to real art.

 

[Randy]

Keep in mind that as effective as that analogy is, you're talking to a generation who has more than likely never seen a film like Rosemary's Baby, Carnival of Souls, or The Exorcist.

It's difficult to appreciate the artistic aspect of something when you've never actually been exposed to real art.

Saw all 3 films. This a generation where people see films like Saw, Hostel and other crappy films.

If they really want to see gore fests then I suggest the good ole fashioned Faces of Death films (even tho most of those were fake.).

The point is that they see David Blaine get screams and they want that. I also doubt those people are "homeless" on the video's. "Hey those guys are hanging out.. They must be homeless."

 

[PjPinsonnault]

This a generation where people see films like Saw, Hostel and other crappy films.

This genre has been dubbed "Torture Porn" and it has been in favor with the younger crowds for the last few years. This analogy was well made and this point might suggest why the screaming, freaking out reactions are all that seem to matter so much to some.

For me, it took a while to realize how amazing a stunned, quiet response can be. The people who've removed a giveaway item from their purse years after they saw me perform are never the ones I remember running away or flipping out. They're the ones who shook their heads and offered a quiet "oh man..." under their breath.

I haven't seen the show in question, so I am admittedly speaking in generalities here.

Pj