magicmindben wrote:The difference between movies and plays, and magic performences, is that magic performences have a lot more audience interaction.
And why is that? It's because we break the fourth wall, which is a rarely used technique in movies or plays. But, for us, we have to.
Still, I guess this depends greatly on whether you're a stage magician or a stand up magician or a close up magician. Anyway...
I agree to have a GOOD rough outline of what you are going to say, and your reasoning.
Please, you will note that at the end of my post, I specifically stated, "Script your material, even if it is just a loose script." I think we are saying the same thing, yes?
Then, you work around with what you are saying while interacting with spectators. Otherwise you risk having a solid script that is prepared only for single reactions or interactions.
No, you don't risk anything. The script tells you exactly where you are. The more you do any given trick, the more you say the same stuff over and over. The script identifies areas that allow for a break in the action. Remember, if you start interacting with your audience right on the cusp of your climax, then you have an anti-climax.
Also, you should be trying to get your script as tight as you possibly can. Not too much, not too little. Writing a script is a tough thing to do because, as the late Eugene Poinc says, "Sometimes you have to kill your children." You see, in your script you may have something that you are really proud of, a clever line or something like that, but it doesn't help to drive the script or enhance the effect. You get rid of it - you kill your children.
With a tightly scripted piece, you know precisely where you can break to allow for audience interaction. You should be leading the spectators, not at the mercy of the spectators. You are the guy on stage - you must control your audience. With a good, tight script, this is much easier to accomplish.
Without a script, it is easy to trip over your words or get caught up in audience interaction to the point that you lose your audience. Again, your job as an entertainer is to lead your audience, not try to catch up with them. If you let them, they will get out of hand. Trust me, they have a lot more important things to deal with in life than watching your silly, little tricks.
One important thing to do is to interact well with your audience. It is also important to have fun interacting with them.
Fully agreed. How do you figure a script will destroy this?
If you fail to be entertaining in this way you might become a person who just does tricks.
You might just become that person with or without a script. But I'll tell you this, with a script you've got a better chance of being an entertaining magician over a guy who haphazardly makes up stuff as he goes because he wants to interact rather than have a plan to take his spectators through a journey.
As I said, there is a time and a place for everything under the sun. I know of one magician who likes to have absolutely no script when he first unveils his new tricks to friends and family. But, then he uses those sessions to build the script that he will ultimately use when he starts showing those tricks to strangers. It's how he writes his script - but nevertheless, he writes a script.
Personally, I like to do "jazz" magic from time to time, especially when I am with friends in an intimate setting and they ask me to do something. I have come up with some really good routines this way. But I would never perform walk around in a restaurant or get in front of any audience for pay without having a script for the magic that I will show them that evening.
Mike.
