Interesting thread. In my opinion, there have been some valid and not so valid responses and theories here... CPR's post was a good one.
So as I've been reading the comments on the Dan Sperry "AGT" performance on youtube, I am finding it interesting to see the comments laypeople are leaving about the performance and trick. Many people are guessing the method for the trick.....one guess that I found funny was that Dan, while rubbing his throat to show that it is clean before the trick, is actually rubbing glue from a glue stick onto it. Many others, though, have left many enthusiastic and positive comments.
My point is not specifically to discuss the comments of this one performance, but to discuss the way some laypeople try to guess the method of a trick. Even if their guess is incorrect or very basic, they still hold it to be correct. For example, I once did a color change (snap change) for my 7 year old neighbor, and he was impressed. But after a couple of seconds of thinking, he said I must have had two cards. Luckily I did the clean-up and showed him I only had one....that shut him up. I then did the snap change for someone much older, and he guessed that I must have done some crazy fast change by reaching back into the deck and switching the card extremely quickly.......I like that guess
. I also once did an ambitious card for a girl.....and she said "You just put it on top" and then walked away.
But really with any effect, I assume all of us have spectators guessing the method, and most of the time, they are incorrect or only have a basic idea. Quite often, though, they feel confident with their answer. Obviously, with a massive audience of laypeople seeing a trick like Saw for the first time, guesses will definitely arise.
So what are your thoughts on the subject and do you have any stories of laypeople incorrectly guessing your effects? Also, why do some laypeople feel the need to guess the method out loud for everyone to hear?
Thanks!!!
Firstly, to address this. I agree with Justin - it is natural for people to try and guess how you do things. Especially if you put them up on YouTube. This is why I no longer record YouTube videos, unless I am sending it to someone for critique that I can't show in person. YouTube is not conducive to magic because it focusses on method.
At the same time, when performing live, there are also some people who are simply focussed on method. This is also inevitable.
But if this is happening to you consistently, then quite simply... You're s***. Do better. Note that this is not addressed to anyone in particular. And note that this is unnecessarily harsh, and not always true - but it's necessary to get the point across. And the part where you're failing is this part:
They aren't intrigued and interested enough in the why (presentation) which leads them to focus on the how, even if they get it wrong they feel like the time spent watching was worth it.
Two types of audience members who try to explain it away : The ones who want to be know-it-alls, and those who's attention you failed to capture with your presentation.
Two areas you're failing in: engaging with your personality and your presentation; and interacting with the audience.
In short, you're going "Look, magic!" and your spectators are going, "Look, sleight of hand!"
There's a disconnect between what you're doing and what your audiences are perceiving. The bottom line is that the only person who is fooled, is you. They may not get the right method. They may never get the right method.
But if they can point to your magic and say, "There IS a method" - then you have
failed. You are not performing magic. And that is where all the questions and guesses come from - because they know you're performing sleight of hand. Let me use an example...
It's natural for people to guess how you did something. The thing that always gets me is performing Out Of This World. I use Derren Brown's version (with some subtleties of my own), and it's very clean. People always assume i somehow changed the cards around so they're sorted into red and black....under their nose....in a few seconds.....without seeing the faces. Genius.
Out of this World is one of the strongest effects I perform. No-one ever asks about a switch. The only thing my spectators say is "I was watching you the whole time, there couldn't possibly have been any sleights, that was impossible!"
Your spectators are saying "You must have switched it" (I don't think it's giving anything away when I say that there is a switch - they've
guessed correctly!)
My spectators are saying "You can't possible have switched it, that's impossible" - which do you think is the better response? (And yes, there's a switch)
Demonstrations of skill are not always bad. But if your spectators, time and time again, are asking you how you did it, and guessing - there's a good chance you're doing something wrong.
If you give magic meaning, then they are much less likely to look for method. Why? Put it this way. When people tell others about magic they saw, they don't want to tell them about what happened. They want to tell them about how they
felt.
You can see evidence of this every time you hear an exaggerated story of magic you know couldn't possibly have happened. They exaggerate because they are conveying emotion, not fact.
Read that again - they are conveying EMOTION and NOT FACT. So if they are focussed on fact, it means that they have not been engaged with emotion. If they have no emotion, then it means your magic has no MEANING.
The other area you may be failing in is interacting your audience. I can't help but point this post out, I'm sorry, but it was the most blatant f***-up in this entire thread:
I was showing a series of trick to a spectators friend. You know, when you do a magic trick to a girl and she is like, "OMG you have to show my boyfriend!" And of course, he was trying to be all, I know how all this magic is done. Apparently his explanation for "every" magic effect was a crease in the card so that I could locate it later. So to fool him I lost his card in the deck and showed him a clipshift. Once again. "Yeah that was cool I guess, I know that you put a crease in my card to mark where it was. Thats how all of these tricks are done." Really? A crimp can accomplish a color change. Needless to say, I stopped performing for him and decided to piss him off my doing very intimate tricks with his girlfriend. Performing french kiss, with an actual kiss. lol. She loved it
Ok. This is appalling. Congratulations - you have managed to ruin magic for 50% of your audience.
Do you know WHY the boyfriend reacted in that way?
Because of something YOU did.
Yes, that's right. The reason her boyfriend is looking for a method is because YOU have prompted him to. YOU have provoked him into doing it.
YOU have made a mistake. You have failed to interact properly with your audience. You made the mistake, you blame him, and then you go and act like a jerk to him because you don't realise where you went wrong - that it's not his fault, but yours.
Let me explain.
Your girlfriend introduces you to a reasonably attractive young guy, gushing to you about how amazing he is, and what miracles he can produce. He's amazing. He does the impossible. She's never seen anyone do something so amazing. How do you feel?
This is an important point in spectator management. I performed recently for a young couple - the girl is a good friend of mine.
Now here's the key - I chose to perform effects that made HIM look good - I used HIM - not her, just because I wanted to flirt with the pretty girl - I chose HIM, to use him to perform effects that make HIM look good.
The problem many face when performing to girlfriends and boyfriends is that if you have previously demonstrated your magic to the girl, then you have accidentally been elevated to the alpha male status in the group. What happens is that the boyfriend feels emasculated. Therefore, you need to go to extra lengths to interact with your audience - especially the male participants. You need to make your magic about your audience, not about you. You need to elevate HIM - otherwise, you are just asking him to become a heckler by making him look bad in front of his girlfriend. OF COURSE he will look for a method! That way he can show his girlfriend that you didn't fool him. Interact with your audience. Make your performance about your audience. It is clear that your magic, as is, is selfish, and completely self-centred.
As long as it is so, you will continue to face hecklers. You will continue to have people try and mess you up. You will continue to alienate 50% of your audience. And often, they'll beat you. I'm sorry if this comes across as harsh - it's not intended to be - but it is from my experience, and the experience of many greats (Banachek and Roger Klause come to mind), the truth, and I honestly do feel that there is a lot of info here that is usable, important, and practical.
