How to be a better magician by Steve Trash.
1. Learn the
trick completely.
I don’t like reading instructions. But to be a better magician...
I have to. And so do you. There’s important stuff in the instructions.
You’ll learn how the trick is SUPPOSED to look to your audience
and you’ll learn what you are REALLY supposed to be doing. There
is a BIG difference between these two. All magic tricks involve appearing
to do something that everyone knows is impossible. So, getting all excited
and jumping into performing the trick without properly understanding it
can lead to people “catching” you. Catching means that the
trick doesn’t appear magical to them. And that’s no good.
You want to make your magic trick look like you can defy the laws of nature.
That’s what magic is. You give the appearance of making the impossible
happen. Pieces of paper cannot magically change shape. Everybody knows
that. But they can if you learn the magic secret to my CARBON CREATURES
magic trick really well. Which leads us to the next tip.
2. Rehearse
it. Practice it. Do it over and over!
Now that you’ve learned the trick completely. Practice the trick
many times until it feels good. My favorite magician Doug Henning used
to say, “The difficult must become easy. Easy must become habit.
And habit must become beautiful.” That’s it exactly. His philosophy
is a great way to approach anything that’s difficult to learn, but
especially magic tricks. Now lets say you feel like you’ve got the
“moves” down and you feel comfortable with them. THEN go practice
in front of a mirror. This will show you how the AUDIENCE sees the trick.
And that’s the important thing. Sometimes the trick even looks better
when you watch yourself doing it, than you think. People who have a video
camera can shoot themselves doing the trick to see how it looks, but this
isn’t necessary. Mirrors have worked for magic rehearsal hundreds
of years.
3. Don’t
worry about messing up.
If you get nervous and worry too much about messing up... it causes you
brain to think only about... messing up. This is crazy! We want to do
a good job. So practice, practice, practice. Then focus confidently on
doing the trick really well. And most of the time you’ll do a great
job. And anyway... If you mess up... it’s not the end of the world,
just smile and say “I messed up.” All magicians mess up every
once in a while. Even professional magicians mess up. But the best magicians
have clever ways to cover the mess-ups (so the audience doesn’t
realize they messed up) or they have such clever personalities the audience
loves them even with the mess-ups. I use both of these regularly.
4. Watch magicians.
Watch magic on tv. Watch magic live. See how other magicians are performing
their magic tricks. Watch their presentation. Watch how they use drama
and the principles of theater to make it interesting for their audience.
5. Learn more
tricks.
Go to the library and check out a magic book. Go to the book store and
buy a magic book. Go to the magic store and buy a magic trick. Go to my
web store (LINK TO WEB STORE) and buy a magic book from us. Learn one
of the free magic tricks I created here on the YOUNG ECO HERO CLUB web
site, but learn more tricks. The more you learn the better you’ll
get. The principles of magic will soak into your noggin and come out in
your performance. I started doing magic tricks when I was about 7 years
old. I wasn’t very good, but I REALLY liked doing it. So I learned
as much as I could. I read as many magic books as I could find. It has
made me a better magician.
6. Don’t
tell the “secrets”
Telling secrets only destroys the mystery that makes magic fun. Most magic
secrets are REALLY REALLY simple. Once people discover how they’re
done, they think, “Oh that’s stupid. How was I fooled by that?”
Try not to spoil the mystery for them. Magic tricks are to be shared only
with people who are willing to do the “sweat equity” to learn
the trick and perform it well.
7. Have fun.
Magic is my profession and it’s sometimes fun and sometimes not
fun. The difference is simple. Hobbyists perform magic when THEY want
to. Professionals perform magic when their AUDIENCES want them to. More
than likely, you probably fall closer to the amateur end of the spectrum.
So have fun with your magic. It should always be fun for you. Learning
magic tricks can be fun. Performing magic tricks can be fun. Practicing
magic tricks can be... well not really. I NEVER enjoy practicing magic
tricks, but I do practice them, because it makes be a better magician.
People have enjoyed magic for thousands of years. So, enjoy learning and
practicing this ancient art yourself. So go out and be a better magician.
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Steve Trash is a professional illusionist, eco-entertainer, and kid comedian.
His credits include appearances all over the planet, including Japan,
Australia, and Canada. He’s been on CBS This Morning, ESPN’s
Outdoors, and he’s been featured on the cover of THE WEEKLY READER.
He lives in Frog Pond, Alabama with his wife and five Australian Shepherd
dogs. Copyright Steve Trash Enterprises 2004