What kind of magician are you?

Sep 18, 2020
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"As an artist, as a magician, you are only answerable to yourself. Your work is a pact between you and the universe. I think that all artists and magicians are probably, naturally, anarchists... or at least probably should be. but that's just me." - Alan Moore

All kinds of magicians converge here - what kind of magician are you?
 
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Jun 18, 2019
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West Bengal, India
A good one, I hope.

In details, I'm a close up magician, with a very strong bias towards card, coin and mental magic.

Though I'm not sure if you're looking for this answer...
 
May 13, 2020
15
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Short answer: total newbie.

However, I’m currently aspiring to be a parlor/stage magician.

The people who inspire me the most right now are Harry Anderson, Ricky Jay, Lance Burton, Derek DelGaudio and Jon Dorenbos (because I’m a huge Eagles fan...go Birds!)
 
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WitchDocIsIn

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Sep 13, 2008
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I hesitate to call myself a magician at all. I don't do much magic these days.

I am a traditional mentalist and seance artist.
 
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Sep 18, 2020
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In another post you mentioned suggestion and hypnosis - do you use props at all? And what about seances, how do these work?
 
Jun 18, 2019
540
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West Bengal, India
That's a perfect reply Mohana.

Cards, coins, mental magic etc. cool - who are your inspirations?
Oh man, I'm inspired by too many people! :D

Since it's not possible to name all of them really, some of the people I look up to (if we talk only about inspirations from the magic community) that I can name off the top of my head are Dai Vernon, Harry Houdini, Eugene Burger, Garrett Thomas, Paul Daniels, Penn and Teller, Marcus Eddie, Steven Frayne (Dynamo) and Derren Brown, in no specific order.
 
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WitchDocIsIn

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Sep 13, 2008
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In another post you mentioned suggestion and hypnosis - do you use props at all?

Props are any physical thing you have during a show, so in that sense yes I use props. I don't use many gimmicks, though.

To dive further into it - I basically have three main 'magic' performances: Mentalism, Side Show, Seance.

For mentalism I use as many genuine skills as possible, and the show I am currently working on will be 100% real - no deception. This was meant to be the show I began performing this year, but Covid borked that idea.

For side show it's about 50/50 real and gimmicked. That's a duo-act with my wife and we each do between two and four routines, depending on the show length. Whenever possible, I only do real skills, but if we need a longer show I'll mix in the gimmicked stuff as well.

And what about seances, how do these work?

This is a small question with a surprisingly complicated answer. I can write (and have written) quite a bit on the subject. Even the short answer isn't that short -

Short(ish) answer: Seance can either be a genuine attempt to communicate with the dead, in which case it is a religious/spiritual ritual and not entertainment, or it can be a form of interactive theater in which the audience participates directly with what's going in an attempt to have what feels like a genuine supernatural experience.

For a theatrical seance it can further divide between more spookshow style, and then more faithful Victorian-esque style.

Spookshow style is what you'll see most magicians doing, and calling it a seance. It's more like going to a haunted house attraction than a seance. And yes, that definitely has its place and can be a lot of fun, but it's not really a seance. It's more bizarre magic than anything in my opinion.

What I perform is closer to what an actual Victorian Seance would have been like, and uses very little gadgetry. There is a jump scare or two, though, just for funsies. It's advertised as an interactive theatrical experience.
 
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Josh Burch

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Aug 11, 2011
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I'm a writer, student, and creator. I don't love performing but I love seeing other people do something I have created. I like being behind the scenes at this point in my career. It means that I can be a part of all types of magic.
 

CaseyRudd

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Jun 5, 2009
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I used to want to be a performing magician but I've found it to be incredibly fulfilling to be involved in a lot of the stuff behind the scenes and just treating the performance side as a hobby. NPH actually brought up this point when talking with Chris Ramsay and it made a lot of sense. Immersing yourself in the world of magic just from a historical and knowledge standpoint is fascinating and in some ways is more enjoyable for most people.
 

WitchDocIsIn

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Sep 13, 2008
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All of them.

Kidding aside I'd have to look at my shelves. Maximum Entertainment and Scripting Magic are two I recommend to everyone. Paul Brooks' books are great, I usually recommend people start with Alchemical Tools. Our Magic was a fun read that really showed me that the magic community never really changes. Derren Brown's books are good if you can get them. Jamie Ian Swiss has a few good books - Devious Standards, Shattering Illusions, and Preserving Mystery. I remember liking Tangled Web by Eric Mead but it's been long enough since I read it that I can't recall how much of it is philosophy and how much is tricks. Magic and Showmanship by Henning Nelms.

Anything you can get ahold of by Eugene Burger, Robert Neale, Bob Cassidy or Juan Tamariz.
 
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Sep 18, 2020
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Yes I've read almost every book on your list. What I was thinking of was more along the lines of the origins of magic, rather than magic tricks, entertainers and their performances. But if you are interested in looking back at the comparatively recent history of magic/mentalism then get the three volume set of Annemman's Jinx Magazine from the 30s... now that is a great read!
 
Jul 26, 2016
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"All kinds of magicians converge here - what kind of magician are you?"

This question really made me think (for a change, LOL). As far as the type of magic I do, it is (1) mainly close up magic (generally strolling around in restaurants, bars and parties/special events); and (2) a stand up show that can be anywhere from 15 minutes to one hour, with a variety of routines (including but not limited to cards, cups and balls, ropes, mental magic and/or mentalism). As far as my goals and performing philosophy, it has evolved a lot from when I first started out, when my goal was just to blow people away with what I could do. I want to make people laugh, to have fun and a great time and to forget their problems. I use a lot of interaction with the audience and audience participation, where the focus is taken away from how "clever" or good I am, and which features them doing a lot of the magic, and makes them the center of attention and stars of the show.
 
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RealityOne

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Nov 1, 2009
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All kinds of magicians converge here - what kind of magician are you?

I'm a magician who asks the audience, through my presentation and effects, to join me on an adventure through my imagination where anything can and will happen. If they do, they will be rewarded with an experience that touches their sense of whimsy, provides a glimpse of impossibility, stimulates their intellect and, just maybe, touches their heart.

Fascinating stuff, the history of magic and its origins. Any recommendations on good books to read?

Check out any of Jim Steinmeyer's books on magic history.
 

obrienmagic

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Nov 4, 2014
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Orange County, Ca
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I think my style can be summed up with one word, "Nostalgia." Much of my magic takes my audience on a journey through my childhood. I touch on the nerdy things I enjoyed as a child such as Pokemon, manga, Nintendo, etc. I also talk much about my Irish heritage that ,y father was so proud of and engraved in me. I never lived in Ireland but it is as much a part of me as my American heritage. My gaily including my wife and daughter are also a constant in my act. The idea is introducing things that I love and using the props in my act as tools to tell my stories.
 
Sep 18, 2020
29
2
Nostalgia magic, what a cool genre to pursue. Putting your own unique stamp on the magic, making it personal, sharing stories, how brilliant! Is anyone else here doing this kind of thing?
 
May 11, 2017
73
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Ukraine, Odessa
Oh man, I'm inspired by too many people! :D

Since it's not possible to name all of them really, some of the people I look up to (if we talk only about inspirations from the magic community) that I can name off the top of my head are Dai Vernon, Harry Houdini, Eugene Burger, Garrett Thomas, Paul Daniels, Penn and Teller, Marcus Eddie, Steven Frayne (Dynamo) and Derren Brown, in no specific order.

Probably the sleight of hand artist.
 
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