t11.bulletin - theory11 has a MASSIVE secret

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CaseyRudd

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Since there's now apparently 7 releases, and not five.. are the other two going to be 1-on-1's?

Maybe since they've been working hard on things, 1 on 1s might not be a release. If they do, I hope it's something for the General Magic section, seeming that there are only a few of those. My friend and I are working on some General Magic to submit here actually. Not saying anything about the effect yet, we're gonna see how it goes when we send them our demo video for the effect. It's pretty awesome, visual goodness, and yes, this is a very open yet discreet plug...:)

-Casey
 
Dec 20, 2009
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Do not busk in a mall. No reason to. It's legal to busk pretty much everywhere in Boston except ... a place .. the name of which I'm totally blanking on. But it kind of sucks to busk there anyway, because they schedule you and all that jazz. For that place you need a license (given by the people that run it) ... gah it bugs me when I blank on names. Stupid OCD.

Casey had good points. I would add: Learn some hat lines. If you want to be fairly sure about making money, ask for it during your set. Keep your set short and simple. If you've never busked before, 8 minutes may be all the time you can hold a crowd's attention. What I do is create a modular set of routines that can go for up to about 20 minutes. Get a table. I got one at Target for $15 (folding 'activity table') and it easily tripled the amount of crowds I drew.

Plan out your routines with some 'core' tricks. My only 'cores' are the opener and closer. Use your opener to draw a crowd. It should be visual and also modular. Once you get one person to stop, more will stop. Invite them closer, try to catch more people's attention. If the crowd is really digging the show, use some of the 'extra' routines you have prepared. If they're just kind of hanging on, go for your closer. Make sure you tell them you work for tips. There's tons of hat lines out there, you can probably Google for good ones.

As Casey said, always be polite. Always tell them your name. It's great to be recognized as, "the magician" but it's much better to be recognized as "(Your name), the magician!"

Confidence is key, as mentioned. When you're a busker, you have to believe you are the best thing since sliced bread. Don't be a jerk, but project confidence.

Thanks! So do you live in Massachusetts or something? Because you seem to know a lot about Boston. And about the scheduling thing, I'm pretty sure it's the place in front of Faneuil Hall (I think that's what it's called...).

Just to make sure, you're saying that it's absolutely legal to busk anywhere in boston except there?

also, T - 1 hour (or maybe two, it's usually off an hour)
 

WitchDocIsIn

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Sep 13, 2008
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Thanks! So do you live in Massachusetts or something? Because you seem to know a lot about Boston. And about the scheduling thing, I'm pretty sure it's the place in front of Faneuil Hall (I think that's what it's called...).

Just to make sure, you're saying that it's absolutely legal to busk anywhere in boston except there?

also, T - 1 hour (or maybe two, it's usually off an hour)

Yeah! Faneuil Hall.

I used to live in Providence. It's way easy to busk there. I have a friend, also a magician, who lives in Boston and he recently started busking at about the same time I started here in Fresno.

Yes, as long as you're not obstructing businesses you can busk in Boston.
 

WitchDocIsIn

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Sep 13, 2008
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Do you mean two performers, or having a buddy come up and pretend to be a spectator?

I'm fine with either, really. If more people I know would show up to the farmer's market I perform at, I'd be giving them fives and tens to give back to me periodically while performing. That's a technique that's probably been around as long as busking has.

I don't do any partner acts, but that's how Penn & Teller started so .... It's really just a matter of putting together a good act. If you can do that, it doesn't really matter that much what it consists of. Of course, if you have a partner you're splitting your profits in half. More people does not equate to more tips, after all.
 

CaseyRudd

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Jun 5, 2009
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Lol...

Also, Christopher, what do you think of team busking?

I've done team busking once with a guy that's a friend of my brothers. The only thing I didn't like about that experience (it was our first get together) was that he said you don't have to give money. I was kinda in need for money that day so it didn't go as planned, but I forgot about that and we had a good time performing. We coud also talk to each other giving advice between tricks if a crowd was leaving. So you get feedback immediately from a magician. It's great to have that experience.

And in 7 minutes, secrets will be revealed. Let's see what this is all about!
 
Most of the time ive had people come up and hand me anywhere from $50-100 in a donation straight away. So those sort of people help.

Had a guy once got the the ATM to get $200 out lol.

They way I see it, if people see you doing that sort of thing, they are more likely to remember you and thus book you in the future/go to your shows.
 
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