wat do you do i screwed up my last trick in front of family but it was still very imbarrasing(yes i practice 1 hour a day evryday)
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What to do if you mess up or forget a trick at a show
- Thread starter towtox
- Start date
you have to get out on to the street and perform for random people.
Why?
Because the more you perform for random people[ the more mistakes you make, hence, the more you have to cover up. You will eventually learn how to cover up any mistake that you make during a trick. I make a mistake almost every day when I perform, only the crowd does not notice. One of my spectators was asking if I ever forget something or anything like that, and I told them the exact same thing.
A way to not forget a trick is to simply repeat it more often, and not while in front of the tv. Have a 30 minute/hour where you sit down or stand and just practice your entire routine over and over (if you can even do it over and over in 30 minutes). Don't think of your patter in your head, say it out loud and clearly. This will help you memorize it.
Mehar
Why?
Because the more you perform for random people[ the more mistakes you make, hence, the more you have to cover up. You will eventually learn how to cover up any mistake that you make during a trick. I make a mistake almost every day when I perform, only the crowd does not notice. One of my spectators was asking if I ever forget something or anything like that, and I told them the exact same thing.
A way to not forget a trick is to simply repeat it more often, and not while in front of the tv. Have a 30 minute/hour where you sit down or stand and just practice your entire routine over and over (if you can even do it over and over in 30 minutes). Don't think of your patter in your head, say it out loud and clearly. This will help you memorize it.
Mehar
By the time you're accepting paid gigs, you won't be messing up tricks very often.
Depending on how the trick is messed up will determine how to fix it or cover it up.
It's good to purposely mess up in practice and then think your way out of the situation. A couple of scenarios:
What would you do if you lost their card in the deck, or they asked to shuffle?
What do you do if the card you reveal isn't their card?
What if someone calls you out because you flashed?
Drop the cards everywhere randomly in the middle of practicing...what would you do?
Answering these questions (and more) will help you prepare for live performances.
Depending on how the trick is messed up will determine how to fix it or cover it up.
It's good to purposely mess up in practice and then think your way out of the situation. A couple of scenarios:
What would you do if you lost their card in the deck, or they asked to shuffle?
What do you do if the card you reveal isn't their card?
What if someone calls you out because you flashed?
Drop the cards everywhere randomly in the middle of practicing...what would you do?
Answering these questions (and more) will help you prepare for live performances.
Your gonna make tons of mistakes through out magic. You'll learn with time how to cover them up and there's always outs for tricks. If you mess up in front of someone don't act like you messed up... don't stop... keep going. When your practicing see how you mess up in practice and ask yourself if there's a way you can get out of it or make it into something else.. or with words fix it. I'd give examples but i don't wanna risk exposing anything. Don't be embarrassed about it.. just brush it off, it'll be fine. Practice, Perform, Learn.
also remember that quote "an amature practices till he gets it right a professional practices untill he cant get it wrong"
also remember that quote "an amature practices till he gets it right a professional practices untill he cant get it wrong"
you learn to cover. It comes experience. I messed up twice in the past week and covered both in a way that both entertained the people and never let on i made a mistake. Its all about experience. sometimes mistakes make the best tricks
After you mess up, there's very little you can do sometimes. You recover as best you can. Occasionally, it's a lost cause. But you get better at covering up. And you go home (well, you're already at home), you go back to the drawing board, and you work out what you did wrong, take note of it, and practice. Before you mess up... Honestly, if you're forgetting a trick, you haven't practiced nearly enough. It's not just about practicing more, you probably need to practice for months more if you're just forgetting a trick at a show.
Some years back Billy McComb shared in a lecture, the importance of "outs"... material that you can move into "seamlessly" should something go askew... a thread breaks, you drop the gimmick, etc. Too, he stressed the import of rehearsing your show using those outs... having scenarios in which you act out the most likely fowl-ups and how to recover.
Magicians have massive egos and we hate to recognize the fact that we are but mere mortals and thus, subject to failure... it's just how life works. But learning to be prepared for possible short comings here and there, is how you succeed; not just in magic but life. Part of that preparation centers on KNOWING your stuff and in magic there is a huge difference between knowing how a trick works and knowing how to create magic... anyone can learn the mechanics of an effect but it takes a gifted artist and visionary to transform it and turn it into something sensational. My favorite example of this is the old Flash Vanish Bird Cage of Blackstone fame; take a look at Harry doing it and then watch a clip of McComb's slow motion variation... I doubt that it translates well on video but live it was one of the most beautiful bits I've ever witnessed.
The other thing you need to think about is that sometimes you simply can't have that out... when the thread to the Floating Light broke Blackstone would look out at the audience and say, "Hey, it's a trick, what do you expect?"
Magicians have massive egos and we hate to recognize the fact that we are but mere mortals and thus, subject to failure... it's just how life works. But learning to be prepared for possible short comings here and there, is how you succeed; not just in magic but life. Part of that preparation centers on KNOWING your stuff and in magic there is a huge difference between knowing how a trick works and knowing how to create magic... anyone can learn the mechanics of an effect but it takes a gifted artist and visionary to transform it and turn it into something sensational. My favorite example of this is the old Flash Vanish Bird Cage of Blackstone fame; take a look at Harry doing it and then watch a clip of McComb's slow motion variation... I doubt that it translates well on video but live it was one of the most beautiful bits I've ever witnessed.
The other thing you need to think about is that sometimes you simply can't have that out... when the thread to the Floating Light broke Blackstone would look out at the audience and say, "Hey, it's a trick, what do you expect?"
hmm....this has not happened to me ever....But I will let you know what to do later...It was pretty hilarious that you consider 1 hr of practice a lot btw 
.It was pretty hilarious that you consider 1 hr of practice a lot btw
...Everyone starts somewhere
Anyway towtox, I usually just brush it off and carry on...
Don't pay much attention to it in front of your audience, But once you get home PAY ATTENTION TO IT!!...Try to figure out what went wrong and practice over and over again.
- Jenai
hmm....this has not happened to me ever....But I will let you know what to do later...It was pretty hilarious that you consider 1 hr of practice a lot btw
maybe one day we can all be as good as you..
as far as the question goes.
You perform and you learn. That's pretty much it, there isn't an exact science.
You learn jokes along the way that can fix situations, you learn sleights that can help too.
keep trying and you will figure it out.
I'm not that great but for me to escape from the mistake I've done while doing a trick. I just simply cut the trick and say some joke and the that's it. I will then begin the trick again and say"oh I'm just joking" or "I'm just testing if you're paying attention."
I would only perform tricks that you can do blindfolded and still nail it every time, and you know what you're doing without thinking about it. Basically in a nutshell, get comfortable doing it. I know 1 hour of practice a day is good, but just keep practicing the effect until you got it down so there is no way you can mess up.
If in front of your family and friends. Then you just move on. Don't make a big deal of it and brush it off. They will most likely forget about it as well later on.
That's great Casey, but there are more factors to consider. Lets say that your performing an effect were there is NO way you can mess up, and a spectator accidentally knocks the cards out of your hands. Or unintentionally hits your arm and your gaff/gimmick falls?
There's much more to it than practice (even though practice is HUGE). Not everyone is perfect... except Elite.
That's great Casey, but there are more factors to consider. Lets say that your performing an effect were there is NO way you can mess up, and a spectator accidentally knocks the cards out of your hands. Or unintentionally hits your arm and your gaff/gimmick falls?
There's much more to it than practice (even though practice is HUGE). Not everyone is perfect... except Elite.
Well pointed out.
I prefer ducks myself.
That's great Casey, but there are more factors to consider. Lets say that your performing an effect were there is NO way you can mess up, and a spectator accidentally knocks the cards out of your hands. Or unintentionally hits your arm and your gaff/gimmick falls?
There's much more to it than practice (even though practice is HUGE). Not everyone is perfect... except Elite.
I've never had anyone try to knock cards out of my hands (unless if I met Brian Tudor), and it's been like that ever since I started which was 2 years ago. I know it could happen but it's very unlikely. Especially if you're at a paid gig.
Casey,
I think the point that Robert is trying to make is that it's impossible to nail everything, every time. I remember seeing a video of the late and great Dai Vernon messing up the climax of Cups & Balls. Whilst I know what you mean, I agree with Robert with what I think he was trying to say, which is that perfection in that sense is not possible - because we engage with living, breathing (I hope) human beings, you will never be able to control for all variables, nor predict those problems, nor practice dealing with them - except learning it through experience.
I think the point that Robert is trying to make is that it's impossible to nail everything, every time. I remember seeing a video of the late and great Dai Vernon messing up the climax of Cups & Balls. Whilst I know what you mean, I agree with Robert with what I think he was trying to say, which is that perfection in that sense is not possible - because we engage with living, breathing (I hope) human beings, you will never be able to control for all variables, nor predict those problems, nor practice dealing with them - except learning it through experience.
If there wasn't a ton of build up before the reveal you can just say something like "Oh man that would be so awesome if I could do that!".
If you realize before the end that you messed up just say "actually, this isn't a very good trick let me try this instead".
Something else that may be helpful: Today I was in a position where I was holding a card that I was supposed to peek at while the spectator was shuffling the deck and I didn't realize I forgot to until they finished and were looking at me like "Ok whats next?". So I simply said "I really want to make sure we keep this as fair as possible how about your friend shuffles the deck too?". Which created another opportunity for me to peek the card I was holding and makes the effect just a little stronger in the process.
Alternatively you could try saying that their card is actually written on the bottom of one of the spectators shoes and as they try to figure it out you just run away.
How you frame the effect beforehand can also create some outs. One popular example is something along the lines of "Now I can't always do this so I'm not sure if it will work this time" or you can try more effects that are framed as if a spectator is doing the magic. Take any kind of prediction effect for example. Instead of framing the effect as you are predicting what they will do, you frame it as you are going to try to send a word, phrase, card selection etc to them and you are writing it down to keep yourself honest. That way you can even say something like its very rare for the person to get it right the first time so you have this out in a nice neat package AND since the focus of the effect is on a spectator and not you, they are much less likely to burn your hands and much more likely to want the effect to go over well.
Hope that helps.
If you realize before the end that you messed up just say "actually, this isn't a very good trick let me try this instead".
Something else that may be helpful: Today I was in a position where I was holding a card that I was supposed to peek at while the spectator was shuffling the deck and I didn't realize I forgot to until they finished and were looking at me like "Ok whats next?". So I simply said "I really want to make sure we keep this as fair as possible how about your friend shuffles the deck too?". Which created another opportunity for me to peek the card I was holding and makes the effect just a little stronger in the process.
Alternatively you could try saying that their card is actually written on the bottom of one of the spectators shoes and as they try to figure it out you just run away.
How you frame the effect beforehand can also create some outs. One popular example is something along the lines of "Now I can't always do this so I'm not sure if it will work this time" or you can try more effects that are framed as if a spectator is doing the magic. Take any kind of prediction effect for example. Instead of framing the effect as you are predicting what they will do, you frame it as you are going to try to send a word, phrase, card selection etc to them and you are writing it down to keep yourself honest. That way you can even say something like its very rare for the person to get it right the first time so you have this out in a nice neat package AND since the focus of the effect is on a spectator and not you, they are much less likely to burn your hands and much more likely to want the effect to go over well.
Hope that helps.
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