What do you do when you mess up a trick?

[Zeedub81]

This is something that I always have trouble with. Sometimes no matter how much you practice, you're gunna screw up at one point or another. So, do you give in and admit that something went wrong, or do you try to cover yourself?
For instance, say you ask someone to pick a card, and while trying to control it to the top you accidentily lose it in the pack for real, what would you do?

 

[Sharog]

move on to another effect. if someone mentions it, just add "what, am i suppose to do something magical about that carD? "

 

[Steerpike]

Kenton Knepper's Kolossal Killer is the perfect out for such a situation. Just don't act like you made a mistake. Use KK as if that were the effect you intended all along.

Other than that, there's plenty of outs. "There. Jack of Spades... I didn't say it was your card, I said it was the Jack of Spades." From there I can do card-to-pocket several times and transition into a packet trick, or I can do Devastation as taught by Geoff Williams on Miracles for Mortals.

 

[timft]

Well the first time I performed, I was performing ACR, and I messed up, their card didn't come to the top. All I did was laugh and say, "Sorry." I didn't do another trick that whole day.

But that was ages ago. Now i'm all grown up and I perform ALOT. I work in a bar so I have alot of chances to perform so, I do. But when I do mess up all I say is, "See that was the trick, there was none, I tricked you into thinking I was going to do a trick. So, the trick is really no trick but just a quick misconception of the mind." And I go on to another trick.

TimFt.

 

[Eddie]

Move on and say even a magician can make mistakes sometimes.

 

[Da_Shine]

start crying and then they'll forget.

No but really either make a joke. (For example for the Acr say. "See! Your card went to the top..and changed!" Or just move on another effect and they'll forget about it.

 

[Magic Man4293]

I stand still and act like a statue jk (but seriously dont do that you might get touched by bad people) haha **it happens enjoy it while you can soon you wont be able to make a mistake if you tried.

 

[tsarothpaco]

If you lose a card you could pull out an invisible deck and find it.

Also I'd agree with Steerpike on the card to pocket, that will definitely make them forget and in certain situations it may be better than cracking a joke, though jokes are always good if you're unprepared and or the mistake slaps you in the face so you can say something witty instead of pausing and then doing something.

~PaCo

 

[youngd94]

what i did once was

that exactly happened to me and i just said

oh... actually it would be better if it were signed...

and i just pulled out a sharpie, had them name aloud their card, had them sign it, and proceeded to perform an ACR

 

[illusionone]

I usually throw the deck at the specs faces then yell at them telling them it was their fault....
jk.....
usually, I just move on.If they say "was that supposed to happen" you go:
1) magician:can you keep a secret?
spec:yes
magician: so can i.

2) I dont know, you tell me.

 

[timsilva]

what i did once was

that exactly happened to me and i just said

oh... actually it would be better if it were signed...

and i just pulled out a sharpie, had them name aloud their card, had them sign it, and proceeded to perform an ACR

That's very smart... I need to make sure to carry a sharpie or a pen with me more often.

 

[RichmanMatthew]

start crying and then they'll forget.

No but really either make a joke. (For example for the Acr say. "See! Your card went to the top..and changed!" Or just move on another effect and they'll forget about it.

That is a good one. It made me laugh.

 

[illusionist14]

Well if I lose a card, I'll say something like "Not only did your card rise from the top of the deck, but it changed to the" (whatever the top card is)

I basically have a joke to say for al my effects. Also on one of the 1on1s from Chris Kenner, (I don't remember which effect it was) after a card was selected then one card turned over, and he said "this card is an indicater card, it indicates to me that the trick did not work.

From what I have experienced jokes will almost always save you.

 

[SVillanueva]

all i do if i lost their card im like .. 'Now lets start the trick, what was your card? ..... ... , the AoS? ... cool .... you look for it and then you cull it and palm it .... then you say wow!!!!!! thats weird your card is not in the deck, etc...."

 

[mattjones]

I recently messed up on Danny Garcia's Scatter (mainly because my spectator remembered the two of hearts and told me it was a black card... Which, in hindsight, makes sense because all of the cards printed on the piece of paper were, in fact, black.... Go figure.) At the end I just laughed it off because everyone relized it didn't work... The was still entertained, though.

 

[CaesarMagic]

if you really mess up ask them "wait where you thinking about your card??" if they say no ,say "thats why here pick another card will give it another try" if they say yes, say " thats why here pick another card will give it another try"lol thats what I would do lol

 

[Ben Long]

That's all fine and dandy, but what if you blatantly flash a sleight or bomb the climax or something?

 

[iwannayoyo]

IMO this is my favorite advice, first learn the classic force and get it down reallllllly well. Second, always have them pick a card with the classic force (i think thats the name, the one thats from running through the cards horizontaly) for practice, then when you mess up, if you did the force right you do the ACR joke and turn it right into a menatlism effect. I did that once, i had a person choose a card and when I spread the pack a kid came over and knocked it on the ground, so after everyone had made their jokes and left, I turned to the person holding the card, (he had stayed) and asked, can I have the... I paused and acted like I was mind reading, three of hearts.

 

[cbols23]

(For example for the Acr say. "See! Your card went to the top..and changed!" .

An Amazing Jonathan Quote.

Yeah I just say that line and I amm set.

 

[Ahmed Fouad]

discussing messed up tricks , is it only me or do u guys love the tricks where spectators think u messed up then u shock them with something unexpected, those are my favorite type of effects, i would recommend "hit the road" for lee aher and paul wilson as it contains a trick of this type that i always do