theory11 — Magic Tricks & the World's Finest Playing Cards

Royal Road Effect

ok, I like Design for Laughter, or Now You See It. Both are "mistake and recovery" type tricks. Very strong effects.
 
my tricks,
[video=youtube;2Q-7f77kZD4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q-7f77kZD4[/video]

Pm me for page numbers of the tricks.
 
I've only watched the first minute or so of towtox's video (sorry, I'm procrastinating right now, I should be studying, exams in two weeks), but some basic comments...

Towtox, you don't seem to feel comfortable with a deck of cards in your hand, and you certainly don't look comfortable. You rumble a lot, and display an almost obsessive penchant for squaring up a squared deck. Also, your double lift needs a lot of work. Your get-ready is too slow and clumsy, and you should learn a different turnover (turn it over using one hand). The good news is that all of this will come in time, and I certainly understand that you're quite new to magic, so that's alright. But definitely, right now, the technical stuff is what you should work on.

EDIT: To be fair, I decided to watch the first minute of YRA's video as well. So some more basic comments...

YRA, you seem to be a little more advanced than towtox with your technical capabilities, which is good, but your presentation is in need of improvement. In general, I feel like you have not rehearsed the effect enough - the sleights are fine, and you've practiced those, but not the effect. Your patter can't really be called patter at all, since, a minute in, I had no idea what the effect was. There's something to be said in support of surprise in magic, but not this kind. Also, you umm'd and ahh'd a lot, which is a general sign you don't really know what you're doing. Basically, the sense I got from that video was that you have your sleights down fine, but you're just doing tricks. You're not standing out as a magician - there was nothing to tell me anything about you except that you come across like every other person on YouTube I've ever seen - and I think your next step is to work on your persona and presentation - turning your level of technical ability into the experience of magic, and developing your tricks into magic.

EDIT 2: I apologise if this comes across as harsh. These are my genuine opinions, though - I have no motivation to criticise for the sake of criticism. towtox - having said that last line about working on your technical ability, I believe that too many young magicians are brought up to learn tricks, and not enough about presentation, so it's probably worthwhile to read my comments on YRA's video as well after you watch that.
 
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ok thanks and yes i do need a better get ready thanks ill admit i am sorta new (9 months) but i do have skilll just not in sliight of hand and also its a camera not a real person so it looks better in person i preform it 29+ time to spectators(not family at school) and they dont notice anything its caue ur a magician so u notice it more
 
im re recording it the reason i looked not comfortable was i was sick the day of filming so i just wanted to go to sleep i will do a better one!
 
Thanks for the advice! Patter and presentation has never been my strong suit. I've always gotten good reactions though, which surprises me, this guy was just not the type to "freak out". I've been doing magic for about 5 years so I do have the technical skill to back up my lack of presentation.

If you have any suggestions for a "story" for my tricks let me know! I'll post another video here of me doing more of a routine once I finish editing it, that may have more of a presentation. I think I'm trying too hard to let the tricks speak for themselves.
 
Better! I got confused though! At about the 1 min. mark I was thinking "what's happening here?" Never a good thing! When I do reversals it's always very simple and short. Usually my reversals are off the cuff things. People think they know how reversals are done (the old bottom card trick, still great when used right), so doing this type of reversal is great to throw them off.

I think you were going for a "mistake and recovery" trick, but it ended up confusing. It takes skill to pull off a mistake and recovery trick. I can see this idea working, but it needs some improvement.
 
towtox said:
ok thanks so my moves are better but the patter sucked? o well i like it!
Click to expand...

Honestly, I thought the patter was better than every single one of the "moves" you used. I am not being rude. I am being honest. The worst thing a magician can do to another magic is tell them things looked good when they don't. A person will never learn to better themselves if they are surrounded by "yes-men".

Your double lift still needs work. Lots of work. If it was me, I would take a week away from all magic and really study and practice hard on your double lift.

Next you really do not want to get a break for the double using your left thumb the way you do in the video. I know you are trying to hide things for the camera, but you will not be performing for a camera. You will be performing for people standing in front of you not over the top of the deck the way this video was shot.

You still over handle the deck. You don't have to do all the riffles and squaring up that you do. It's not just the deck though. You even over handle single cards. In your video you showed the queen of spades and said it wasn't the spectators card then attempted to do a pirouette flourish. (BTW if you are going to learn it, learn it from the >right place<) Lee Asher told me once, about one of my original sleights, that the more you touch the deck the more people are going to think you are "doing something" whether you are or not.

On to the actual effect itself :

Card is chosen then you show the bottom and the top card of the deck (six of diamonds and ace of hearts) for absolutely no reason. Then with the deck face down you peel off the bottom card (6 of D) and put it face up on top of a face down deck for absolutely no reason. Then you take that card back and put it on the bottom of the deck for absolutely no reason. Back to the two cards (6 of D and A of H) from the top and bottom of the deck. They have nothing to do with the end of the effect. So why do you bring so much attention to them. Then you reveal the 3 of clubs reversed in the deck.

I really am not trying to sound rude about this. The biggest word of advice I can give you is to take your copy of Royal Road and open it to the Overhand Shuffle Chapter at the beginning of the book and start from there. You do not need to buy a single book or DVD that you have on your "list". If you do own Royal Road then that is enough to last you a while.

Owning too much magic in your first year will do nothing but overload you. Take your time, you are young. You have forever to get good at magic. Royal Road has good effects in it. In the first chapter of Royal Road is the trick "Topsy-Turvy Cards". It will serve you well. Learn the Overhand Shuffle and dominate with this effect. You do not have to do the "cool magic" to do good magic. Just because you don't see videos for sale on T11 and E about effects in Royal Road doesn't mean they can't hit hard and be great effects.

AND FOR GOD'S SAKE, QUIT LEARNING MAGIC OFF OF YOUTUBE!
 
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