Ok here's the deal I have my first gig coming up. I'm 19 years old and have been practicing magic for about five years, and while I know I have my routine down I'm still incredibly nervous. I practiced until I could do all my flourishes and effects blindfolded , but I still feel as if something is missing. How I do I get over the shakes, and get rid of that nagging feeling that something is missing. Anything helps thanks!
First gig, any tips?
- Thread starter starthelegend
- Start date
Shakes are natural, and only go away by performing. If you've been only practicing for 5 years and have hardly ever performed, you're gonna have the shakes. Being nervous can be good, so you know you have room to improve and you can take that nervousness and turn it into adrenaline, but until you start actually performing more and more, you are going to shake.
Here's exactly what I would do if I were in your shoes at this point in time. Practicing by yourself is not going to help you get ready for this gig. I would go perform the exact effects (that are going to be used in your gig)for spectators somewhere. Coffee shop, McDonalds, the local mall, next door neighbor, anyone who is not mom or dad. You need to perform these effects "out of your comfort zone". I know you will be nervous and afraid to but you MUST do it. The more you get used to performing live for people...the shakes and fear goes away eventually. I would do them in the exact order and practice the script / patter that you plan on using at your gig.
Only problem with me is that Im just not a very sociable guy. I can't just walk up to a random stranger, and be like "hey! Wanna see some magic?! 
" its just not easy for me. I have gathered, small crowds of people but it was just out of people starring curiously at my flourishes I didn't approach anyone, and then from there I asked around who likes magic, and kinda go from the cardist to the magician.
" its just not easy for me. I have gathered, small crowds of people but it was just out of people starring curiously at my flourishes I didn't approach anyone, and then from there I asked around who likes magic, and kinda go from the cardist to the magician.Here's what you do, before you start asking "Who likes magic?". Just go up random people on the street,store, etc and say "Hi" to them to hello to them and try to maintain eye contact with them each time. You won't really have anything to lose and if somebody doesn't return the favor, then it's really at no lose to you.
Well being anti-social isn't a very beneficial quality to a magician haha, especially if you plan on actually performing at more gigs. Since I got hired by a restaurant about 7 or 8 months ago, I find myself smiling and saying hi to people EVERYWHERE. It's just a natural thing now, even at my day job I'm smiling at people. I'm already a social butterfly, but it used to be more with my friends or people I kind of knew. Now I can go up to strangers and have a great time. It's all about being open, friendly, and engaging. If you present yourself that way, you will more often than not be greeted with the same response. And those who don't, well they don't deserve your time anyway 
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Only problem with me is that Im just not a very sociable guy. I can't just walk up to a random stranger, and be like "hey! Wanna see some magic?!
You just gotta put yourself out there. Not everyone is naturally outgoing and sociable, especially around strangers. Start by doing magic for groups of people, mainly people around teenage/college ages. Just walk up, ask if they like magic, and blow their minds. I don't have a problem with how you normally would draw a crowd, everyone does things their own way. Just try not to get to rooted in what your comfortable with. If you're not used to approaching people, do that more, and eventually, you'll get better at it.
Just think of it this way, the worst they can say is "no", right? So don't pass up an opportunity to perform for someone and possibly get a gig out of that performance.
I apologise for the random story here, but bear with it, it has a point. ha ha.
I know how you feel, I am a very shy person too and the one thing I have worried about since I started Magic a few months ago was the fact that I'm not good at just aproaching people. Just recently in my town I have started to use the proper Market more rather than the supermarket, and the sort of people who shop here are the kind of people that tend to be very outgoing. When they say hello, they say it loudly and proudly. They say it with confidence and they say it like they genuinely mean it, because they do. At first I would say hello back, but fairly quietly, and I would only say it when someone said hello to me. After just a month or so I find that I am the one saying hi to people, and I'm saying it in the same way they would. I'm saying it with more confidence and conviction.
SO, like a post above suggests, just start saying hello to people. be outgoing and friendly and see how that goes to start with. No magic, just a simple "good Morning" will do at first. Then move on to "Good morning, How are you doing?" You never know, it may just start a conversation. If it does you could get the conversation onto what you are doing, which could lead to you pulling some cards out of your pocket, and doing your first performance. If it doesn't, then so what. You've just been friendly to someone.