I was going to make this a separate essay eventually, but a thread on another forum sparked my interest in putting into writing some of my notes on this subject. The following short essay is the result of that response. I hope you can find it, in part or full, useful.
I just got off a 10 week national tour of the east coast with the Freak Show Deluxe, and part of the show is of course audience participation. Having been an illusionist for years, and a sideshow performer for substantially less time, finding just the right person to bring on stage with you for an effect or stunt is a critical decision that often is made in a snap while you are in "the moment". The right spectator can really enhance the performance and convey to the rest of the audience the fun, excitement, and amazement they are experiencing. The audience member also serves a double fold purpose as well since they are one of the audience, they come on stage with an inherent natural trust of everyone else. Their perceptions are assumed to be natural, honest, and sincere, thus further distancing the thoughts of human trickery from the minds of everyone else watching the show.
But what goes into finding just the right person to bring up on stage with you? Since often these people are selected on the fly, what qualities do you look for? How do you handle rejection, and are there certain things you can do to ensure a better experience for everyone involved all around? Well there is no easy, or simple answer to those questions that can be given quickly; though I'll do my best to provide my full insights to each of them with their due respect.
Personally, I often just look for the closest available person to my stage or table who seems to really be into the show and ask them to help. Usually that gets the reactions that I want, but it has also lead to some rather unexpected situations as well! I remember performing at the Magic Castle not all that long ago, and after a long and very well performed bit my spectator in a moment of stupidity forgot her selected card (despite my constant warnings to remember it prior to her selection), and had it not been for her boyfriend also seeing the card the ending would have been ruined!
One of the things that I try to keep in mind is that working with a spectator is no different than working with a wild animal. They are both unpredictable, and even under the most rehearsed of situations, are capable of behaving in a manor that is either unsafe for you (or them) or is damaging to the show. They are the only thing on that stage with you at that time that isn't directly under your control, which is why it's critical that your directions to them are clear, concise, and easy enough to be understood, and executed without much room for error or interpretation. While most people don't actively want to mess you up, sometimes it happens. So it's always wise to be ready for anything, and have a few outs handy just in case.
Sometimes you don't realize that a spectator is a wrong choice until after they get up on stage with you. There are a host of different things that can happen. Sometimes they don't speak your language, sometimes they're drunk, sometimes they are the poster child for "Blonde", others are just all to happy to do their part to ensure the magicians failure. You can't catch them all beforehand, and try as you will, you can't avoid getting one of these on stage with you at some point in your career. Don't ever hesitate to dismiss a spectator, and or move onto a different effect should this happen to you! You have the integrity of your show and character on the line here, and frankly it's not worth damaging just because someone can't be with it. Usually, under most situations, dismissing and selecting a new spectator to help you will take less time than trying to muck through the bit with the one that isn't working well with you to begin with.
I find that it often helps out a lot to peek my head out from behind the curtain and scan the room before a show starts. If I'm working close up, I often walk among everyone before my show to get a feel for the audience. Some people who just seem to be into you, the environment, or are excited to see a show make the best audience participants, and why wouldn't they be? They are already emotionally invested! So before you do a show, take a moment and survey the audience, look for people who are excited, studying the stage or the room, engaging in conversations about the show, have a general interest in you as a performer, etc. I'd also recommend looking into some books on body language, because that's exactly what you're reading when you do this. You are picking up on the audience's body language to select specific people who will give you the best chances of having a successful and entertaining bit later on in your act. I recommend the extra study simply because I'm no expert in body language, and that subject alone is worthy of it's own essay.
Sometimes you can also get an audience member to agree to help you before the show starts. This is a great way to cut down on the time spent selecting a spectator, getting them to say yes, and getting them up on stage. Having someone preselected to assist in a specific effect can really streamline your performance. I want to be clear, you're not stooging them. (Unless you are...) You're not giving them a set list of instructions, you're just securing their agreement to participate before your show starts.
There are just some people that don't make for good participants. I try to avoid people who display negative body language that suggests disconnection from the experience, or me. Things like arms crossed, eyes being diverted away from the show, constant talking with others, texting, etc. They aren't having a good time out in the audience, and they won't have a good time on stage! In fact they may become more inclined to do what they can to mess you up just because you now made them the center of attention! Some people don't like attention. I also avoid people who are in the back, or center of rows, because it takes too long to get them on stage, and people who are drinking in excess, because drunks are a pain to work with.
If I am doing a show that requires multiple audience members to help at some point then I try to break up my participation evenly among the genders. I try to not focus on just having the pretty ladies help me. I think that only picking on the beautiful girls to help is not only sexist, but it's annoying and transparent as to your motivations to everyone else present. You're there to entertain, not hit on everyones girlfriends. Sometimes you can't avoid it. There will be times that you only have beautiful girls (or guys) helping you. If that's the case, then you need to be mindful of how you interact with them. Again, make the show about the magic, and not about your attempts to hit on them.
Sometimes a spectator won't want to help you. That's okay! I don't spend my time begging them. They say no, it's their loss. I'll skip right over them, to the person often sitting next to them and try again. Skipping once or twice is okay, but you don't want to be going up to everyone asking them to help you. It really slows the show down that way, so make sure you're trying to cherry pick the best potentials each time you ask. I, myself, find that if you politely tell someone to help you instead of asking them (which gives them an option to say "no") then spot lighting them with an encouraging round of applause from the audience will more often than not get them on stage with you if they show the slightest sign of hesitation. I'll usually say something like "would you please come to the stage and assist me? Thank you! Audience give her a huge round of applause!" works for me like 95% of the time.
Audience participation is a wonderful thing to have in the show. It involves everyone present, it gets them emotionally invested in what you are doing, it connects you with the crowd, and it can really enhance your show. Skills in selecting the right spectator for the right effect should be as important to you as audience management, or even your sleight of hand. While this short essay is in no way the be all end all of audience participation guides, I hope it serves as a good primer to give you a few ideas and good notes. I hope your shows are wonderful, your audiences the best, and to you much success in magic.
Cheers,
William Draven
I just got off a 10 week national tour of the east coast with the Freak Show Deluxe, and part of the show is of course audience participation. Having been an illusionist for years, and a sideshow performer for substantially less time, finding just the right person to bring on stage with you for an effect or stunt is a critical decision that often is made in a snap while you are in "the moment". The right spectator can really enhance the performance and convey to the rest of the audience the fun, excitement, and amazement they are experiencing. The audience member also serves a double fold purpose as well since they are one of the audience, they come on stage with an inherent natural trust of everyone else. Their perceptions are assumed to be natural, honest, and sincere, thus further distancing the thoughts of human trickery from the minds of everyone else watching the show.
But what goes into finding just the right person to bring up on stage with you? Since often these people are selected on the fly, what qualities do you look for? How do you handle rejection, and are there certain things you can do to ensure a better experience for everyone involved all around? Well there is no easy, or simple answer to those questions that can be given quickly; though I'll do my best to provide my full insights to each of them with their due respect.
Personally, I often just look for the closest available person to my stage or table who seems to really be into the show and ask them to help. Usually that gets the reactions that I want, but it has also lead to some rather unexpected situations as well! I remember performing at the Magic Castle not all that long ago, and after a long and very well performed bit my spectator in a moment of stupidity forgot her selected card (despite my constant warnings to remember it prior to her selection), and had it not been for her boyfriend also seeing the card the ending would have been ruined!
One of the things that I try to keep in mind is that working with a spectator is no different than working with a wild animal. They are both unpredictable, and even under the most rehearsed of situations, are capable of behaving in a manor that is either unsafe for you (or them) or is damaging to the show. They are the only thing on that stage with you at that time that isn't directly under your control, which is why it's critical that your directions to them are clear, concise, and easy enough to be understood, and executed without much room for error or interpretation. While most people don't actively want to mess you up, sometimes it happens. So it's always wise to be ready for anything, and have a few outs handy just in case.
Sometimes you don't realize that a spectator is a wrong choice until after they get up on stage with you. There are a host of different things that can happen. Sometimes they don't speak your language, sometimes they're drunk, sometimes they are the poster child for "Blonde", others are just all to happy to do their part to ensure the magicians failure. You can't catch them all beforehand, and try as you will, you can't avoid getting one of these on stage with you at some point in your career. Don't ever hesitate to dismiss a spectator, and or move onto a different effect should this happen to you! You have the integrity of your show and character on the line here, and frankly it's not worth damaging just because someone can't be with it. Usually, under most situations, dismissing and selecting a new spectator to help you will take less time than trying to muck through the bit with the one that isn't working well with you to begin with.
I find that it often helps out a lot to peek my head out from behind the curtain and scan the room before a show starts. If I'm working close up, I often walk among everyone before my show to get a feel for the audience. Some people who just seem to be into you, the environment, or are excited to see a show make the best audience participants, and why wouldn't they be? They are already emotionally invested! So before you do a show, take a moment and survey the audience, look for people who are excited, studying the stage or the room, engaging in conversations about the show, have a general interest in you as a performer, etc. I'd also recommend looking into some books on body language, because that's exactly what you're reading when you do this. You are picking up on the audience's body language to select specific people who will give you the best chances of having a successful and entertaining bit later on in your act. I recommend the extra study simply because I'm no expert in body language, and that subject alone is worthy of it's own essay.
Sometimes you can also get an audience member to agree to help you before the show starts. This is a great way to cut down on the time spent selecting a spectator, getting them to say yes, and getting them up on stage. Having someone preselected to assist in a specific effect can really streamline your performance. I want to be clear, you're not stooging them. (Unless you are...) You're not giving them a set list of instructions, you're just securing their agreement to participate before your show starts.
There are just some people that don't make for good participants. I try to avoid people who display negative body language that suggests disconnection from the experience, or me. Things like arms crossed, eyes being diverted away from the show, constant talking with others, texting, etc. They aren't having a good time out in the audience, and they won't have a good time on stage! In fact they may become more inclined to do what they can to mess you up just because you now made them the center of attention! Some people don't like attention. I also avoid people who are in the back, or center of rows, because it takes too long to get them on stage, and people who are drinking in excess, because drunks are a pain to work with.
If I am doing a show that requires multiple audience members to help at some point then I try to break up my participation evenly among the genders. I try to not focus on just having the pretty ladies help me. I think that only picking on the beautiful girls to help is not only sexist, but it's annoying and transparent as to your motivations to everyone else present. You're there to entertain, not hit on everyones girlfriends. Sometimes you can't avoid it. There will be times that you only have beautiful girls (or guys) helping you. If that's the case, then you need to be mindful of how you interact with them. Again, make the show about the magic, and not about your attempts to hit on them.
Sometimes a spectator won't want to help you. That's okay! I don't spend my time begging them. They say no, it's their loss. I'll skip right over them, to the person often sitting next to them and try again. Skipping once or twice is okay, but you don't want to be going up to everyone asking them to help you. It really slows the show down that way, so make sure you're trying to cherry pick the best potentials each time you ask. I, myself, find that if you politely tell someone to help you instead of asking them (which gives them an option to say "no") then spot lighting them with an encouraging round of applause from the audience will more often than not get them on stage with you if they show the slightest sign of hesitation. I'll usually say something like "would you please come to the stage and assist me? Thank you! Audience give her a huge round of applause!" works for me like 95% of the time.
Audience participation is a wonderful thing to have in the show. It involves everyone present, it gets them emotionally invested in what you are doing, it connects you with the crowd, and it can really enhance your show. Skills in selecting the right spectator for the right effect should be as important to you as audience management, or even your sleight of hand. While this short essay is in no way the be all end all of audience participation guides, I hope it serves as a good primer to give you a few ideas and good notes. I hope your shows are wonderful, your audiences the best, and to you much success in magic.
Cheers,
William Draven
