talkmagic.co.uk

Hello everyone! This is my first post here, but i've been browsing the forums for a while.

Anyways, I made this topic to talk about something I'm sure we've all done at some point -- messing up a trick in the middle of a performance! No one is perfect all of the time, and everyone is bound to mess up a trick at some point or another, so what's a good way to deal with messing up?

If it's not too much of a screw up, I can either hide it or misdirect away while I (quickly) fix it, and if I'm luckily enough with the placement of the misshap I can lead it into a different trick.

But that's with luck, sometimes it's something that completely gives the trick away. Anyone have any decent ways of covering up mistakes in a trick?

If I am doing card work... I do another effect and make the outward appearance of the trick disprove the handling I messed up on. And make it look like it was a failed trick to lead to a more impossible test. So I may not have made it on the easy one... (often it is seen as on purpose anyway, or just completely ignored in afterthought) but I sure hit the harder "try". (Which often is done by a more surefire method. But the subtly of the easy version screw up makes it seem harder.)

How I frame what I do though leaves it open to an acceptable amount of failure. Hell, sometimes I miss on purpose.

A lot depends on the spectator, I've found that if there really is no way to recover go for a really over the top 'oh I can't believe I messed that up' act. Quite often that'll make the spec think it's all part of the show and you'll get away with it.

"No, no, I've just remembered, this trick is much better, let's forget that one."

OR

"OK, name your card"
"Jack of Diamonds"
"Of course it was" OR "I knew it"

You might like to get hold of Outs, Precautions and Challenges and arm yourself for this type of situation. I tend to use the two above though

I tend to find that if I have messed up specatularly then it is best to come clean but with a sense of positive disappointment.
Usually your audience wants to see magic happen and if you just say "Ooooh it's all gone wrong" in a confident manner and then quickly move on to something else then your audience will move on too and forget the error.
Just keep going is the name of the game and of course stay positive and dont let the mistake get you down. I'm sure all the best pros in the business slip up from time to time.

I just make out like I dont even notice..

Yesterday was prime example.. I was performing 'blur' from the red gaff deck. I forced the 7 of clubs by mistake instead of the 7 of spades.. I only realised right before I did the change.. but I just carried on ' See the 7 of spades you chose has blurred out of focus right before your eyes ' and just carried on.. I then changed the 7 of spades back into a 7 of clubs as I couldnt get away with looking through the deck '' look the 7 of clubs returns to its original state!! '

No one noticed.. although I wouldnt advise being that blatant..

Lots of options

'Oh I forget how that one goes'
'We'll come back to that one'
'Look.. an elephant' point in the distance.. when they turn round..run!!

Other than that ... I just tell them '' Sorry.. I am REALLY drunk.. you must forgive me!!! ''

Always carry an ID.

I.D wrote:Other than that ... I just tell them '' Sorry.. I am REALLY drunk.. you must forgive me!!! ''

ha ha yeah I love that one, blame the booze although its not a good excuse if your in work.

If I mess up I try and laugh it of then ask the spec what their card was. Sometimes if you can spot their card easily you can use it in the next trick which gets good reactions.

Or failing that hit them with a short impressive trick after using four aces or whatever. You could say that your checking to see that the cards are listening to your commands or you are training them after messing up your last trick.

In any case, you can still find out what their card was, steal it during the next trick, plant it during the following and need it in a later trick and find it's not available and the spek has it somewhere random.

Makes it plausable that the trick was supposed to go wrong, almost bound to go wrong because their card was not in the deck all the time.

I find out what the card was that I couldn't find. Then pw their card onto a blank card I have ready in a wallet and show that, "oh, this must be the one trick a day I get wrong, I have a card that I put in here before I come out. That is my back up plan, wild card if you like. It's usually right hang on a mo....this one right?". The reactions are usually greater than if I had got the trick right in the first place.

I used to use invisible, but this takes up less space and it is in the wallet I use for carrying my everyday stuff like credit cards and business cards etc so invites no suspicion at all.....well, only that i should perhaps be dunked in the river and burnt upon survival!

Personally, I never get a trick wrong. I never show that I'm at fault. It's the magic that's gone screwy, not me.

aaaahhh the beauty of a top glimpse...saves alot of trouble...

if it does go wrong though..kill all witnesses...i dont perform "tricks" though, i conduct experiments based on intuition and occasional trance like states...so if i mess up, well...its kinda their fault

nah - i just say, look - i got a complete mind-block then...my fault, lost my concentration...

occasionally though, as i start the next one i say nonchalant "by the way, what was that previous card?" as i spread through the cards..i steal it away as i look confused, look over the cards at them and say "are you sure?"

if they ask why, say "cos i didnt have that card in my deck..." then dont mention it and try an slip it in their coat or bag later...