Smart Alicks

[MagicShadow9]

Have you ever been in a situation where a guy tells you do some kind of magic which you can't do? For example, i was doing blindsided one day and afterwards one of the spectators said "Ok, now change it back to red". Stuff like that.

How would you handle that? Obviously you can't meet their request. So what do you tell them?

 

[tally-ho]

i actually was doing some spoon bending and it broke, and most people were amazed, this one man, said "put it back together" normally i would have declined, saying that ive run out of magical powers - ok not really but a decent excuse, but this time i had an extra spoon in my pocket, switched it for the other one by sleeving it. he was impressed.

 

[lunatic core]

"Who's running this show?" is a typical response. I hate canned lines personally.

 

[visualartist]

I dont really try and talk back at them
with whatever they suggest i say " yeah that would be good,im not sure i can do that but lets try something real quick.."
Since im always usually set up for something else I try and build up the drama so the person who wanted to see something,in his or her way, more impossible or amazing to them they get that without me actually having to do what they say,if that makes sense.
Since i always start with a card effect its easier to do something more 'incredible' if by any chance they challenge me because I always stop card tricks after the first effect and go for a more "organic" type of magic.

 

[Jack Webster]

this is what ive actaully used before. ive yelled out very loud "DONT TELL ME WHAT TO DO"

 

[jake the snake magic]

Have you ever been in a situation where a guy tells you do some kind of magic which you can't do? For example, i was doing blindsided one day and afterwards one of the spectators said "Ok, now change it back to red". Stuff like that.

How would you handle that? Obviously you can't meet their request. So what do you tell them?

yahh ever since a man really beat me up one day doing that i started to call them cranks in the crowd. They're always the innoying skepticlal ones to try and ruin your act. Actually the way I've handled that over the years is just by simply screaming after they say: turn it back to red, i would say, "woah we got a skeptical guy here. Once i say that every one would start to chuckle and get diverted as i maybe set up to meet his request. Or.. well sometimes there is just not much you could do, and you just gotta make up a line to get you back into your routine and sort of ignore him. That's just unfortunatley a big part of doing magic.

 

[MagicShadow9]

I dont really try and talk back at them
with whatever they suggest i say " yeah that would be good,im not sure i can do that but lets try something real quick.."
Since im always usually set up for something else I try and build up the drama so the person who wanted to see something,in his or her way, more impossible or amazing to them they get that without me actually having to do what they say,if that makes sense.
Since i always start with a card effect its easier to do something more 'incredible' if by any chance they challenge me because I always stop card tricks after the first effect and go for a more "organic" type of magic.

Yes, but usually it's not cuz they wanna see something amazing, it's because they want to ruin my trick by proposing something that i can't do. Basically they're saying "Well if you can really do magic then you can do this."

 

[visualartist]

Yes, but usually it's not cuz they wanna see something amazing, it's because they want to ruin my trick by proposing something that i can't do. Basically they're saying "Well if you can really do magic then you can do this."

Oh yeah,I totally know what you mean ive had those type of people.
But ive learned that those people come up because I would never acknowledge them when they came up to me. What i mean is,Before I start to do a trick I talk to them in a kind of "hey,whats up man" kind of way(because they're usually always men) and try to establish a connection with them before the magic that way I dont have problems with them during my "show".
Now i know that there are those that jump in the middle of a routine and interrupt by saying those things.
And umm..give me an example of something that they've told you to do and ill try to give you a could way to respond..

 

[jackeduprex]

i would just say, "well i like blue better than red. so lets keep it like that."

 

[MagicShadow9]

Oh yeah,I totally know what you mean ive had those type of people.
But ive learned that those people come up because I would never acknowledge them when they came up to me. What i mean is,Before I start to do a trick I talk to them in a kind of "hey,whats up man" kind of way(because they're usually always men) and try to establish a connection with them before the magic that way I dont have problems with them during my "show".
Now i know that there are those that jump in the middle of a routine and interrupt by saying those things.
And umm..give me an example of something that they've told you to do and ill try to give you a could way to respond..

After a color changing deck: "Ok, change it back to red"

After the zipper gaff trick (from E's rec bike gaffs): "Zip it all the way"

After a transpo effect: "Make them switch back"

After angle zero (or another torn corner effect): "Put it back together"

 

[ninja]

i say no.......................yeah that's about it

 

[Toby]

This is maybe off topic, but can you combine Angle Zero with Torn Too, to make that happen?

 

[aJohnson]

Maybe try a good 'ol "I could do that, or I could show you something even more amazing..." and perform another trick, completely takes there mind off of the previous one.

 

[MagicShadow9]

This is maybe off topic, but can you combine Angle Zero with Torn Too, to make that happen?

Well both those tricks use different methods and combining them will take quite a bit of set-up. I wont tell you why to prevent exposure.

Maybe try a good 'ol "I could do that, or I could show you something even more amazing..." and perform another trick, completely takes there mind off of the previous one.

Yea but then the guy would be thinking "Psshh..... He's not a real magician, he's just a phony. He couldn't even change a blue deck to red and back again"

 

[aJohnson]

Yea but then the guy would be thinking "Psshh..... He's not a real magician, he's just a phony. He couldn't even change a blue deck to red and back again"

Maybe, but if you perform an amazing trick afterwards and word it right it can come out perfect. Like I've had someone ask me to do Wrath again but as I know, it would give the "gimmick" away, so I said "I could do that, but I could also do this..." and as I said that I got out a new deck and performed Panic. He completely forgot about what he asked beforehand.

 

[aJohnson]

It's like Daniel Garcia explained in his Lecture at Blackpool, what he did was change a 5pound note into a 10pound note and then the 10pound note into a 20pound note. Then he said "Want a 50?" and then switched it into a 50pence piece and from that, he took away all the attention from the notes and was left clean as new car.

 

[Jv]

Hi- When I normally get a response like this, I usually say:

"Let's try something a little different".

Then I go in a little routine, making them forget about their last statement/attention.

It has work for me before, and have never gotten the same statement of the person I'm performing for.

-KOS07

 

[RickEverhart]

I just tend to laugh and in a joking manner ask, "Who's running this show?" and so far "knock on wood" everyone laughs and I just move on to the next trick. I think lunatic said he does this as well.

 

[Magic Man4293]

I hate to be the needle in the hay stack but....


If you garner those reactions normally i.e. Change it back. YOU are not doing your job right. You need to take a second look at your presentation and ask "What made him tell me to change it back?" Add to you patter phrases like "This might not work but lets try it anyway." This way that heckler cavity in the spectators mind will be taken care of before you are finished. Prior proper planing prevents piss poor performance.



-Michael

 

[Dylan P.]

Yeah. I did a ttrick like that and the kid said something that couldn't be done and I just replied: "Oh. Yeah I can do that but only on thursdays, I have no idea why. But just Thursdays." They laughed and got that it was a joke.