The Sheridan Course in Card Manipulation

Jan 5, 2010
658
2
Alabama
Wow! Have you guys seen this over at Penguin Magic? It's got a hefty price, and I'm just wondering if any of you have bought it. It looks really amazing, I'm just trying to think if it would be applicable in my life right now.

I've gotten some of Dan Sperry's stuff on here, but this is a whole course from beginner to pro.

Thoughts?
 
Nov 7, 2009
135
0
Paris, France
First thoughts :
"The pioneer of modern street magic". What The Hell ? Since when card manipulation is street magic?

Second thoughts :
From begginer to pro, well not much new content having already seen Dan Sperry's series AND the 3 volumes of Dan Sperry are 30 bucks, so it's half the price.However, he probably offers more insight, as there are 3 DVDs


Well, with that said, I remember Dan speaking about a famous course in Card manipulation... I didn't get the name right however, maybe that's this one in book format?


So I would recommend getting it if your serious about stage card manipulation and interested in it's history, else, get Dan Sperry's.
 
Jan 5, 2010
658
2
Alabama
He talked about the Chavez course, a highly respected course in manipulation.

I just wanted to make sure I was going to miss out on something huge in this complete course. It says he taught Blaine and Copperfield, yet I've never seen them do any stage manipulation (that I've seen, I could be 100% wrong).
 
First thoughts :
"The pioneer of modern street magic". What The Hell ? Since when card manipulation is street magic?

Jeff Sheridan was one of the US' most influential street magicians back in the 1970s. He was a busker who often used card manipulation and similar parlor-style effects to attract major crowds in New York City. He performed magic on the streets this way to actually earn a living. Traditional parlor effects such as this kind of card manipulation, Cups and Balls, Professor's Nightmare, 20th Century Silks were considered street magic long before Blaine's time, because the visuals of such material gathered larger crowds, which in turn, produced a better income. What Blaine made popular in recent years is a misnomer, and isn't really considered street magic by a lot of traditionalist buskers. It's amusing, because if you present effects like the Ambitious Card and Cigarette Through Quarter as street magic to the likes of Jim Cellini, Gazzo, or Jeff Sheridan, these legitimate street performers would ask the same question you did, "What the hell? Since when is that street magic?" Jeff Sheridan also wrote a book on the history and culture of street magic in 1977, which has become a much respected read throughout the magic community and remains a definitive source of street magic history today.

In any case, from what I understand, Jeff Sheridan is a much respected card manipulator in his own right and would probably be an outstanding resource to learn this kind of material if it interests you. He is often referenced by Jeff McBride on his own famous Art of Card Manipulation DVDs. Personally, I feel that Sheridan's card manipulation technique is cleaner, sharper, and more elegant than the majority of alternative manipulators with products on the market. His years of experience in the craft definitely shows in the quality of his work in my opinion.

RS.
 
Nov 20, 2007
4,410
6
Sydney, Australia
Jeff Sheridan was one of the US' most influential street magicians back in the 1970s. He was a busker who often used card manipulation and similar parlor-style effects to attract major crowds in New York City. He performed magic on the streets this way to actually earn a living. Traditional parlor effects such as this kind of card manipulation, Cups and Balls, Professor's Nightmare, 20th Century Silks were considered street magic long before Blaine's time, because the visuals of such material gathered larger crowds, which in turn, produced a better income. What Blaine made popular in recent years is a misnomer, and isn't really considered street magic by a lot of traditionalist buskers. It's amusing, because if you present effects like the Ambitious Card and Cigarette Through Quarter as street magic to the likes of Jim Cellini, Gazzo, or Jeff Sheridan, these legitimate street performers would ask the same question you did, "What the hell? Since when is that street magic?" Jeff Sheridan also wrote a book on the history and culture of street magic in 1977, which has become a much respected read throughout the magic community and remains a definitive source of street magic history today.

In any case, from what I understand, Jeff Sheridan is a much respected card manipulator in his own right and would probably be an outstanding resource to learn this kind of material if it interests you. He is often referenced by Jeff McBride on his own famous Art of Card Manipulation DVDs. Personally, I feel that Sheridan's card manipulation technique is cleaner, sharper, and more elegant than the majority of alternative manipulators with products on the market. His years of experience in the craft definitely shows in the quality of his work in my opinion.

RS.

I definitely didn't know that RS. Thank you for all that information. It just goes to show how important it is to have knowledge of the past, and what came before.
 
Nov 8, 2007
1,238
3
First thoughts :
"The pioneer of modern street magic". What The Hell ? Since when card manipulation is street magic?

Blaine actually tried to get Sheridan to consult for his first special, as Sheridan was/is the definitive authority on street magic, but Sheridan declined. As we all know, though, everything worked out just fine for Blaine.
 
Nov 7, 2009
135
0
Paris, France
Alright great infos thanks!
Still, I'm pretty sure 80% of Penguin Magic customers understand "modern street magic" as David Blaine, and not as Jim Cellini, and I'm pretty sure they know that ;)
 
Blaine performs close-up magic on the streets. While it may just be a conflict of semantics, many would argue it's not street magic. Street magic, in the traditional sense, is a whole different sub-culture where if you aren't loud, flamboyant, big and bold, you typically won't eat at night. It's a living. The aim of street magic in this regard is to attract a crowd and ultimately get paid for your entertainment through spontaneous tips. The style of magic used to do so drastically differs from the intimacy of close-up magic which David Blaine made popular. You typically cannot attract a large enough crowd who'll want to pay you by quietly presenting Coin Bite the way Blaine did on television.

Blaine's success wasn't due to street magic. His success was ultimately due to television. His approach to magic was refreshingly different for television audiences, because people never really saw how much magic can affect a spectator before. Before his time, magic was always a steady series of shots of illusionists onstage. Blaine made the intimacy of close-up magic popular by putting more emphasis on animated spectator reactions. Getting reactions on the street is one thing. Getting paid on the street is another. That, I believe, is the quintessential difference between a busking street magician and someone who performs magic in a similar fashion Blaine does.

This, of course, doesn't take anything away from Blaine. He single-handedly reinvented the way magic was perceived in the modern era. I prefer the intimacy and directness of close-up magic, and I enjoy surprising people in spontaneous settings with it. I care more the personal relationship I build with an audience through magic. This, however, really isn't a new idea or philosophy. It's just close-up magic. Professional close-up magicians were doing the same material Blaine was for decades prior to his first television special. Blaine's success wasn't a new form of magic-- it was simply a new idea of bringing the craft to an MTV-era audience. And daaaamn, it worked. It made magic cool again.

It's important to recognize though, that it isn't really street magic, where a magician's success is ultimately determined by his bankroll at the end of the day. Regardless, as SlightedMind pointed out, it's likely that sites like Penguin, Ellusionist, and arguably even T-11 will continue to bastardize the term because of marketing...

RS.
 
Aug 19, 2009
51
1
From begginer to pro, well not much new content having already seen Dan Sperry's series AND the 3 volumes of Dan Sperry are 30 bucks, so it's half the price.However, he probably offers more insight, as there are 3 DVDs

Can you provide a link to these products?
 
Nov 7, 2009
135
0
Paris, France
Yes, sorry for the confusion, Dan Sperry only released 3 products, respectively Volume 1, 2 and 3 found here on T11.
What I meant was that those 3 volumes can be bought for half the price of the Sheridan course, and contains most of the classic and imho the most useful stuff.
With that said, the Sheridan course is much longer and probably contains additionnal insights.
 
Jun 10, 2010
1,360
1
In a nutshell, if you're just going to dabble with the stuff taught in Dan Sperry's 101 series and Jeff Sheridan's DVDs, then go for Dan Sperry's. It's what I'll probably do considering I'm not serious about getting into stage manipulation as an act, etc. etc. If, however, you are considering it, Jeff's DVDs look like the way to go.
 
Jan 16, 2010
30
0
Hey guys I'm primarily a stage magician so I'm gonna try and clear a bunch of this stuff up as I have all of the above mentioned card manipulation DVD courses. As card manip is a big part of one of my stage magic acts.

1.) Sheridans course: it is pricey, 70.00 dollars but the amount of material you get is incredible. It is actually an insanely ridiculous amount. So in that aspect these dvds are brilliant. But at the same time, its a Double edged sword, as you have some critical aspects that are only half explained, or not explained to there fullest extent. This wasn't an issue for me as I already had a back ground and knew what he was talking about. But to a beginner this could be highly frustrating. other than that this DVD set is incredibly valuable. HOWEVER. my recommendation, would be to only get this if you are going to get very serious into card manipulation. as it branches out into incredibly challenging techniques. for one to become pro from this DVD set, you would have to practice for years. So only look at this if you are looking to put card manipulation solidly into your act.

2.) Dan Sperry: Love everything about him, and these one on ones only helped build on that. They are incredibly valuable to me, and I still go back on them almost once a week to see if I can pick something else up, and not yet have they disappointed me. I am learning something new everything single time I play these videos. He also goes from beginner to advanced in these videos, however unlike the Sheridan courses, everything is explained to an incredible degree of accuracy, and information. You also are treated to some incredible gimmicks that will take your routine from a 2 - 10 in less than 15 minutes of prep. For the beginner these are the downloads to look into.

So in my opinion, if you're just starting, get Sperry's, and if you fall in love like I did, then get the Sheridan course. They are both incredible, and neither of the description are false in anyway.

If you have questions, just PM me and I'll get back to you guys ASAP. Hope that helped.
 
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