Flourishes while doing card magic?

[kangsham]

In your opinion is it better to do flourishes while doing card magic or to keep your skills with a pack of cards hidden?

I usually do Sybil cuts and molecule cuts because it keeps the spectators from asking can they shuffle the deck because they think the card is lost.

 

[SinCera]

In my opinion, doing flourishes while performing a card trick is not a good idea.
It makes the "magical" feeling disappear.
You're lucky you made them believe that the card is lost.
Some spectators will say, "Of course you know where my card is, you do that crazy-arse rotating card thing."
They see flourish more as a misdirection and "irrelevant movement"
Some magicman even try to reduce the use of "false cut", "Control Cut" and "False Shuffle", and try to do passes instead.

But that is only my 2-cents
-Sin

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

This topic has come up repeatedly in the last week or so.

It has to be in line with your character. If your character is flashy and show-off-y, then flourishes can work. But don't do complicated cuts, then try to convince the spectators that you magically caused the card to melt up through the deck. They're going to assume that you moved the card during all that flourishing, which they can't follow.

Confusion is not magic.

 

[Jay Adra]

If you're doing a demonstration of skill/card control, it can be okay to use the flourishes as the apparent (or real) method of the manipulation.

If you're trying to say that you're controlling the cards with a snap of your fingers, keep the "skill" displays to a minimum. This doesn't mean handle the cards clumsily (unless that's your style), but don't use overt flourishy techniques and then try to say all you did was snap your fingers etc.

 

[SuperLemming]

I think the Bucks do a good job of incorporating flourishy moves into magic routines without using any obvious "moves". The skill and card control are all in the reveals or the handling of the deck/chosen card rather than the losing of the card, which is impressive to a spectator without giving them any reason to accuse you of using flourishy false cuts etc. Check out the trailers for the "tricks" portion of the trilogy to see what I mean. I think that's about as far as I'd go as regards mixing flourishing with magic, unless you wanted to get a few reactions pulling a pandora or something between tricks.

 

[venom546]

The only flourish I do and I only do it because I just love the way it looks is Victoria by Zach Mueller. I do it so much that when I actually do the move, no one suspects anything. I think if you want to do a flourish while doing magic, don't do something too flashy. Just do a settle flourish. I feel that they might suspect I am doing something because I am doing this huge flourish. This is my opinion though so

 

[AnthonyL]

Flourishes can be used in certain tricks and performances styles. but for an average trick i would stay far away. There's nothing wrong with handling the deck well but once you show skill with a pack of cards they'll assume you're doing sleight of hand and not magic.

 

[WyattSB]

Theres not really any reason to do a riffle shuffle, as its easier to do it a different way, but doesn't look as good. Spectators know that, but the riffle is quite accepted. I think as long as you don't, place a card somewhere 'in' the deck, then lose it with a sybil, with emphasis on the sybil cut being a shuffling action, then you'll be fine.