talkmagic.co.uk

I've seen it before while watching magicians as well as other performers. It's annoying to those of us who are just in the audience as well.
Some of us just want to see the show!

A man in the pub was telling my brother the other day, who happened to mention that I was into magic, about a magician this guy saw many years ago.

This man is the heckler of the story. The magician was using a stacked deck for an effect and this man, being a clever bum, shouts out how it is done halfways through the trick. He does a similar heckle on the next trick, and the next. After a brief break, the magician comes back onto the stage and says "For this trick, I need a volunteer. You sir, seem to know a good deal about magic, perhaps you could assist me?"
Heckler man is taken aback, but gets up on stage. He admitted to my brother he wasn't just showing off, he was a bit drunk and genuinely just wanted to embarass this guy.
The magician has him take out a five pound note from his pocket, hold it above his head, tear it up and drop it into an ashtray. He then says "Now, you're so f$%&!ing clever, put that back together!" Heckler walks off stage, ashamed.
Not exactly the best way to deal with it, but the guy still has the fiver framed, still in pieces, at his home as a reminder to be more polite. Never heckled again

Long story, but it amused me when bro told me today!

Dat8962 writes, in part: " . . . .making him look even more foolish."

Wonderful! I thought we were supposed to entertain our audiences, not humiliate them!

I don't care what justification one uses, that sort of behavior is simply unacceptable in a performer.
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The Devil's Tailor wrote: But if they walk through the world (and between the tables) with the concept in their head that they're an entertainer (or a similar concept) then it's not going to be a big deal if someone spoils a trick,

Couldn't have put it better myself, well said. If you're an entertainer then your magic probably won't come across as 'challenging', I say probably because there are always exceptions!

If someone tries to steal the limelight when I'm performing (which rarely happens but, mix alcohol with humans and who knows what can happen!), good luck to them. I actually make them into the 'star' of the show, can't be doing with confrontation, don't get paid enough to fight.

You just gotta live with this type of thing and deal with it the best that you can when it happens, just try not to take yourself too seriously, if you don't then the audience won't either!

All the best,

Gary Jones.