Best reaction tricks?

[Fritts1223]

I haven't posted on here in awhile. I've just been lingering in the shadows, haha. But I've been pondering this a bit lately and was curious of other people's opinions and experiences.

Some of us magicians pride ourselves on our sleight of hand and the technicalities of things. Does that really get the job done though when it comes to your spectators reaction and experience?

I've found that, in my experience at least, the most simple of tricks get the big wows. Tricks like Time Machine, French Kiss, a simple coin vanish, or even just forcing a card and then predicting it can bring the best reactions.

I'm not saying sleights aren't a great thing to know and aren't good. But I think when tricks are long and drawn out and there's a billion of sleights in there...it's just too much and the spectator is going to get bored.

What do you think?

 

[vipermagic]

I think simple tricks allow you to focus on better presentation. That is not to say tricks that are "sleight-y" don't require as much, in fact they would require more thought in terms of scripting and misdirection.Self-working tricks require that you put more effort into building the effect or else they become just "meh" tricks.

Sleight of hand can be entertaining to watch when it is done well. It can be a thing of beauty in the right hands, a true art form.

That is my two cents.

 

[SKSleighofHand]

Best reactions only comes from the presentation and to connect with the audience. I also agreed that simple hits hard such as 2 Card Monte, Biddle, Poker's Picnic, Do As I Do, and etc. Vipermagic has a goood point when it comes to building a climax of a certain effect.

 

[joshrobarts]

the tricks i get the BIGGEST reactions for are as follows

Be Honest what is it
Crowded
Muscle Pass (ant-gravity)
Stigmata
Watch Steal
Card To pocket
Triumph type effects
Devastation
Coin on Shoulder.

They hit harder than anything else and leave people screaming or speechless.

the next question you have to ask yourself is how much is that dependent upon your presentation. The same tricks i just listed.. are the one's i have worked on the most presentationally and done the longest. So is it the trick, or is it the presenter or presentation

 

[Austin Fields]

Simple tricks allow you to build them up, it's not the trick, but the performer is less focused on what he's doing, and is allowed to focus more on building the effect.

Richard Osterlind is a master at building up effects.

Another point to add here, is that simple effects are also very straight forward, tricks can be weighted down by explanation of what you're doing before the trick starts or at any point. The more straight forward, the more impossible.

Here's something I go by, I believe Dai Vernon said it (who else?). "Confusion is not magic."

Very simple, yet apply it to everything, make sure your tricks are clean and clear. Don't ever rush through your trick, no matter how nervous you are, because the spectators will be so confused that by the time you're done they won't even know what happened. This adds a strong point to your magic if the spectators think they know exactly what's going on ever step of the way, and there is no doubt in their mind that they're seeing reality. Then you are able to really pull out the rug.

so on the subject of powerful tricks
"it's not the wand, it's the magician."

 

[joshrobarts]

its also about perception. Imagine. Bringing out a single card, handing it out to be inspected, then simply turning it face down on the table. then someone else picks it up and its changed. Simple, direct clean and in the spectators mind the most impossible thing ever. Many time longer or more complicated tricks allow on some level for the spec to think that something has happened. They may have not seen anything or have any idea what happened but they know there was time, and in the back of their mind they understand that you could have done something. Now if something happens quicker, with minimal moves, complications and they can actually touch it.. then their mind cant even formulate a possibility of what could have happened. it wont even allow for the idea that you could have done something, and thats what hits them at their core.

 

[Haunter]

I don't think the actual difficulty of the sleights used to achieve an effect has any bearing on the impact of the effect for laymen.

An effect can be extremely straight forward in presentation yet still require difficult sleights. Earnest Earick's Kato Nine Tails is a shining example of that.

 

[praetoritevong]

As I've been saying for God knows how long - sleights mean nothing to a spectator, unless the spectator is a magician or you get caught.

What makes magic strong is you. You personality, your presentation. The strongest reactions are emotional actions. Anyone can make someone scream. Dump a bathtub of yoghurt on them. Anyone can make someone freak out. Threaten a demonstration of violence*.

The point is, physical reactions are nothing. They're easy. Any shmuck can create them

Not many people can create emotional reactions. What are emotional reactions? Apart from being the strongest reactions, they are reactions to meaning. This doesn't mean you have to go on about the meaning of life. Meaning can be derived from showing what is apparently impossible. That's meaning. It can of course be about the meaning of life too, if that's what you like.

The performer makes magic interesting. People who say "this trick and this trick" are the strongest are missing the point by a mile.

These are YOUR strongest tricks. YOUR strongest tricks. Not your STRONGEST tricks. They are strong because they work well with you. Not because the trick is strong.

*Obviously, for the record, I don't condone this. It is an exaggerated response to demonstrate a point. If you do this for no reason, you are a tool, and probably don't deserve to live.

 

[Haunter]

What makes magic strong is you. You personality, your presentation.

This. Forever.