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

Stage / Birthday Magic

B

blakehensley

Aug 17, 2008
473
13
Ann Arbor, MI
Hey guys, well unless i havent look hard enough i just wanted to start a thread that was about stage/birthday magic. Really anything about it is fair game. I just see so many threads about street magic and non about stage. So i hope you guys have fun.


thanks

~ B
 
Seriously...I cannot stop laughing at some of the recent posts.

How about asking a specific question instead of just throwing a random / general topic up on the board?

For example: What makes a child's birthday performance so challenging?
or
Where can I obtain and learn some history or basics to stage magic?

Just food for thought.
 
I sighed when I read the above replies. Why? Because you're no better than the kind of posters that you are so avidly fighting against. Can tell me the point in posting in a "pointless" thread? Unless, of course, your ultimate goal is to make the original poster feel kinda bad.


Anyways, I've only done two birthday parties before. The first time worked out great, everyone had a great time. The second time however, didn't go as well as I would have hoped. Some of the boys who were there had formed a sort of heckler group :P.

Essentially, I was wondering if anyone had any tips on what to do in a situation where a portion of your audience is bent on giving you a difficult time (purposfully or not). Does one focus on those who DO want to watch your performance? Or do you try to sway the hecklers to your side as well?

(just trying to give the thread the direction the above posters so demand)
 
Zephil said:
I sighed when I read the above replies. Why? Because you're no better than the kind of posters that you are so avidly fighting against. Can tell me the point in posting in a "pointless" thread? Unless, of course, your ultimate goal is to make the original poster feel kinda bad.
Click to expand...

I believe they posted so the user or anyone who reads this thread will know not to post threads that don't really have any intention of advancing anywhere. So they basically just used the OP as an example of what not to post.
No biggie.
 
Birthday party magic can be fun and exciting or it can turn into the worst nightmare you've ever wanted.

Luckily for me I have done 4 b-day parties very well and didn't have any hecklers....(knocks on wood) I have another birthday gig this Saturday. Here are a few of my tips.

You probably don't want your performance to run over 20-30 minutes for kids. Attention span can become a problem.

Everything must be very visual and / or funny. Laugh at yourself...have fun.
Skip card tricks unless they are kid friendly.
Ropes, sponge balls, change bags, mouth coils, stratosphere, D-Lites, etc....are your friends and use these items to your advantage.

Make the birthday child feel special by doing a trick that "show cases" them. The parents love this and it is good photo op.

Balloon animals are a great addition to the party. I close with every child at the party getting a balloon animal and the b-day child getting a huge twisted balloon hat.

As far as stage magic...I do not have any experience. I stick to kids shows for audience sizes around 15 kids or less.

My formal close up show for teens and adults is obviously a little more sophisticated and the material hits a little harder.
 
In terms of rope magic for kids, would a fiber optics (sanders) / Tabary style routine be too difficult to comprehend? With the ends switching and such?
 
I am glad you asked. I am going to use the first three phases / moves of Sanders Fiber Optics this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes. The kids will be age 6-11.

I am only going to display the 3 different size ropes.
Make them all change to the medium size.
Disgard one in my pocket and then make the remaining two turn into one.
Then I will have them magically cut the rope, pull the ends off so that it leaves a middle section only (loop) and then put the ends back on.

It is going to be VERY basic Sanders moves and none of the flashy advanced stuff.
 
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