Can a 7 year old perform magic?

Jun 14, 2011
3
0
Im sure most would agree anyone can do a magic trick so perhaps a better question is, can a 7 year old perform effective magic. Never-the-less, the title is a tad misleading as my true intention was to introduce to you a 7 year old magician, not a discussion on age ability.

Niko is his name, and he just turned 7 in August. He has been taking magic lessons for the past 5 months and the progress he has made is staggering, both with closeup/card magic and larger stage, stuff. If you could watch the vids and let us know what you think that would be really great

Ambitious Card Routine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbKuQ2DKuJU
Rope Magic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24x-aYi0uLA

Now I can accept that nothing is perfect and he has a long way to go, but I think you can appreciate not only the difficulty of performing such routines but with the age factor, it just makes it that more impressive. Any feedback, advice, comments are always appreciated.
 
I clicked on the Youtube links being absolutely sure that I'm going to see a bad, webcam recorded performance. I was wrong. Letting aside the video quality, Niko's performance is by far better than 80 percent of what I see on these forums and on Youtube in general. I'm not exaggerating.

I suggest putting aside the cards for the moment. Teach him more tricks with ropes because it fits his age and his hands so well;
You can teach him the three shell game, buy him a hamster or a bunny and I'm sure he'll find a way to include a small animal in his show.

I'm so happy for Niko because he has someone with an eye for good magic to guide him.
 

GarethNg

Elite Member
Oct 14, 2011
146
1
The problem with performing at such a young age is that it is hard to tell children how the effect actually looks. Even though he is seven doesn't really give him an excuse for not enough practice. The routine is pretty good but the actual execution of most of the sleights could be much improved. I would suggest telling him that the double lift is a bit too tense and he flashes a bit. I'm not trying to be mean or anything but I think he has quite a lot of potential and I would like to see some more of his work sometime soon.
 
This kid has so much potential, you should be proud of him! While I agree his technical execution of the double lift needs much improvement, what he does well is showmanship. You can teach technical skills, but what you can't teach someone is how to be a showman. That is either something you have, or something you don't, and it looks like Niko has it.

Have you considered bridge sized cards for him? They are smaller than standard poker cards and may be easier for him to handle.

Keep up the good work! You've got a talented neophyte in your care, and I expect he will develop into quite the magician in time.
 
Dec 18, 2007
1,610
14
64
Northampton, MA - USA
I was doing shows in my backyard by 6 and 7 so why not?

There was a couple of kids, a boy & girl that would come to the Castle doing the cutest version of Pollack styled act + some very classy dancing, silk work, etc. and both were still like 9 and 10 and absolutely amazing.

Not all kids "have it" but every now and then you run across one that just stands out. . . look at a young Greg Wilson (or whatever it is calls himself now days)
 
Jun 14, 2011
3
0
Thanks for you comments so far, I will make sure Niko reads them.

You know I can see where you are coming from RE the cards, but I think you can learn almost every principal/concept in magic with a deck of cards. While he is still in the early stages, he cannot get better by NOT doing more card work. Now he has got the presentation side of things sorted, we can hone down on specific technique.

In saying all that, we are also putting together a show type routine of which the ropes are part of. I've posted a link of Niko's first ever public performance at his school fair. If you can get through the first few minutes of bad audio, right about the 4 minute mark, you can see a change in his whole body language and you can almost see him feeding from the audience reaction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olNcPFJ1txU

@MattTarrant - You are bang on with the accent
 
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