talkmagic.co.uk

hey everyone,

I have been practicing to be a magician for about 8 months straight now, and i finally reached a point where the effects i perform get about as natural as they can. i can perform everything flawless and it seems very natural to me. so the sleight of hand part is okay.

but what seems to bug me is i cant seem to practice my patter.

me and patter dont really go together. as soon as i try practicing patter or what im going to say in an effect i feel stupid and embarrassed. i cant seem to concentrate and i dont even know what to say, its all so awkward and annoying. everything that seems to come out of my mouth sounds so boring and guilty.

im really struggling with this problem, i feel really bad about it, because i perform a lot, but people never take me serious because my patter doesnt make much sense.

there are some points in how i want to present myself and do my effects;

-i dont want to be seen as some jolly entertainer.

-i rather want to take it more seriously and give it a deeper and more meaningfull approach.

i dont start this thread so you guys can help me to come up with patter for my repertoire because that just wouldnt be possible.

im just struggling with coming up with genuine, natural sounding patter for most of my effects.

this means patter that reaches further than just; if i snap my fingers, if i do this, then that happens, or if a rub this...

do you guys know what i mean? its hard to explain. i dont want to seem plain ignorant about it. but its really really difficult for me. mainly because im also not an english native speaking guy(belgium)

i just want the audience to participate on their part as well. and to engage them in my effects. and just to make it really magical.

i dont want to talk too much. but i also dont want to talk too less.

i mainly do card effects.

i dont quite understand why im having this problem. im very conscious about the things i say.

you guys have the same problem?

or how to practice it properly? are there any techniques? i dont have any books on presentation side of magic. i was hoping you guys could help.

thank you so much allready.

It just sounds like confidance to me, you need to be confidant in what you're saying. Alot of the time, it really doesn't matter all that much what you say as to how you say it. Speak like you know what you're doing and people will usually go along with you.

Just be yourself when you're talking, don't try to be something that you're not. Do try to copy anyone else and also don't try to be funny if you're not really that funny.

When it comes to practice, I use a poster up on the wall (Johnny Depp) who I practice performing to. It sounds really silly but it's a great way of getting you used to your patter while performing as well as getting things like misdirection, eye contact and timing right.

thank u,

people (other magicians) have been telling me also its mostly about confidence. just know what ur doing.

i do know what im doing, but sometimes i get that feeling; who am i fooling..? u know what i mean?

i also dont want to talk my way through a trick like im doing magic for the blind; saying everything you are actually doing..

the poster thing sounds fun

Figaro wrote:i do know what im doing, but sometimes i get that feeling; who am i fooling..? u know what i mean?

Something that really helps is to find a quiet time and mentally put yourself in the place of the spectator, watching you perform.

You sound better placed than most, in the sense that you know how you DONT want to come across. Now just work on the things you would like to say. I know some who swear by a script and recite it word for word. I find that if you do a trick often enough it becomes a script thats open for improvisation anyway.

Saying less sometimes makes people think they're more mysterious than a gabbler, but patter can be used as misdirection so it's foolish to discard it in favour of some David Blaine style mumbling mystique.

It's just practice old fruit, that and a coupla lumps of confidence.

Robert Houdin said something along the lines of:
"Magicians are just actors playing the part of a magician."

Although this isn't how I look at it, it may be of some help.

thank you all for your help.

i know the problem lies with me, i should try a lot of things and eliminate what doesnt suit me. or keep what does.

i followed an acting course for a month to get away from stage fright and perform fearlessly, and i must say im not afraid anymore, but i still suck at improvising.

i should rehearse some patter and adapt myself everytime to the audience members.

one of the most important things for me is that it all seems genuine and honest and humble and charming. is that too much? funny is cool, but its not on my priority list.

I think it is best as a performer to be yourself but with the volume turned up a bit.
Also sitting down and thinking what you want to achieve with each effect in reagards to what mood you wish to create or what idea you wish to put across and then script it out entirely so that ad-libbing is no longer much of a concern

When you perform and the adrenaline is pumping, you're acutely aware of everything that is happening, so to you, your own "patter" or scripting sounds cheesy and horrible because you're aware of every word of it. But remember, they don't have that nervous adrenaline feeling!

My advice would simply be to try to enjoy the performance, and their reactions and interactions. If you separate yourself, thinking "I'm the magician, I must get out my script flawlessly..." you'll be very nervous and won't feel part of the situation necessarily. If you enjoy it, share jokes with them, ask them questions about themselves in between tricks etc. it becomes much more about people just meeting and chatting, with some magic thrown in. Much more natural.

Some people would say scrap the script - I would say stick with it, but as you become more confident, thin it down to the bare bones. It's good to have permanent lines, like bullet points, that help to structure the effect, but allow for chat and reactions too.

wow that was good advice about being youself but with the volume turned up. i like that one

sometimes i think i spend too much time with cards, i feel empty when performing for people, because ive been holding those cards 24/7

i guess i would have a lot to talk about if i leave the cards for a while and get back to it if someone asks me to perform.

i also try to say something else everytime to see what kind of reactions they get... which makes me an awefull performer at the moment.

they look at me with their eyeballs.

those eyeballs...

Remember that just because you are being serious about your magic doesn't mean that you have to be sombre or gloomy.

Imagine you had an ability to, for example, look into someone's eyes and tell them what card they are thinking of. I mean imagine you could really do it, by telepathy or whatever.

If you wanted to demonstrate that ability, how would you do it? This is a good place to start with how to present an effect. It's also a good place to start when working out what to say.

If you're feeling self conscious, don't think that you are showing the audience a trick, imagine that you are sharing a moment of magic with them, they are as much a part of it as you are, and therefore the focus is as much on them as on you.

Farlsborough wrote:My advice would simply be to try to enjoy the performance, and their reactions and interactions. If you separate yourself, thinking "I'm the magician, I must get out my script flawlessly..." you'll be very nervous and won't feel part of the situation necessarily. If you enjoy it, share jokes with them, ask them questions about themselves in between tricks etc. it becomes much more about people just meeting and chatting, with some magic thrown in. Much more natural.

This is a great piece of advice here. Definatley worth remembering.

It's good to hear you're putting some thought into your presentation. Most new magicians tend to focus only on learning a large number of effects, and tend to think that's all it takes to be a good magician.

I'm afraid it's a difficult question to answer really - because being able to improvise your patter is kind of an "aquired skill"....which only comes with time. If you've only been doing magic for 8 months - don't worry too much....you've got years ahead of you to perfect the art of thinking on the spot. The more you worry, the more your audience will be able to see it in your performance, and will probably end up being awkward for you.

If you spend sometime writing a short script for each of your effects, and rehearse the words until you know them perfectly, you will feel much more confident with being able to improvise on them when needed.

I think there's a few good presentation tips in the back of "Expert Card Technique" (it's a book worth getting for the rest of the material in there to be honest).....but the best piece of advice I can give you is to forget trying too hard to be interesting, that always comes across as boring. I normally use patter as more of a "misdirection tool" than a way of seeming more fascinating to the spectators. Your own style of unique patter is something that develops as you get more performance experience. Give it time mate. You'll get there.

Stick at it, and before you know it, you'll be able to dazzle them without worrying about how you sound. All the best to you, I hope you manage to find the kind of patter which suits your natural personality.

Regards,

Tyler.

It is good aqdvice from Farlsborough - go out and enjoy it.

What you;re experiencing is common to many magicians and it's down to a lack of experience. Once you get out and start performing to an audience then the 'patter' will start to come naturally and you'll find what suits you and what doesn't.

May I ask what sources you've been learning from (if that's even possible to answer succinctly)? There are big differences in how much weight authors put on presentation. With each new resource I go through, I force myself to read through the sleights I'm already comfortable with, as I sometimes find that the author has given some excellent piece of presentation/patter advice that other authors just didn't bother with or that happens to fit my style better.

I am guessing from your writing style you are young and maybe still at school?

If so, go and talk with your drama teacher about this.

You need (as mentioned) to become an actor playing the part of a magician.

If you script your magic, it will help create a confidence in your performance. Your lines need to be worked out, written down, edited, improved, learnt.

I'm sure an English or Drama teacher would be able to help you with this.

If you're not at school, then seek out a local amdram society and ask if they can recommend a local writer, director, actor that might be able to help...