talkmagic.co.uk

Your name is Army person so you maybe an army brat or wanting to joining the army. Would you give your position away to the enemey?

my question is - why do you want to show someone the mechanics of a trick?

what do you or them get out of it?

I was once persuaded to teach someone a trick:

http://www.talkmagic.co.uk/ftopic22796.php

It really does kill the magic.

Teaching someone who really wants to start learning magic can be OK. Giving in to someone who is merely curious, or can't stand not knowing, is not.

As many have said, why do you want to tell them how it's done?

I'm not sure of the context in which they're asking you to reveal stuff...is it after a performance? if so perhaps it's how some of the material is presented, i.e. if some element gets presented as a challenge then voila some people need to know how it's done at the end. I've done this before now and been suckered...you're basically between a rock and a hard place without a paddle; and I've shown some of them and that there...does really kill it you get the "oh...is that it...simple really" type comment.

I started reading Magic and Showmanship: A Handbook for Conjurers by Henning Nelms it deals with this exact point (as well as a shed load of others)...a worthy read I would recommend, reviews are available here on TM.

I was thinking of Knepper esque suggestion, and by revealing the method to a simple trick that everyone knows, such as the basic key card trick, while presenting it as a break or a "neat little trick someone showed me" you can possibly make your magic seem even more real.

When Kenton moves from mentalism with cards into a card trick, he might say, "Now, let's cool off and just do a few card tricks" as the segue. That suggests that what he was doing before wasn't just a trick. With this type of thinking, I wouldn't be surprised if someone could turn an exposure of a simple, relatively well known trick into a foil of their actual magic. I'm not sure if I'm using the term foil correctly, so if I'm not, let me know.

"Now, would you like to learn a simple little card trick to impress your friends with?"

"Well, I'm getting a bit burnt out, would you like to learn a neat little card trick to show people?"

If you use suggestion properly, it shouldn't be that hard to use it to your advantage.

ok....I asked this because I want people to stop asking "SHow me!?" ithey want me to show them how to do ....SOMEThING..and i thought I'd ask (to satisfy them) on here what would be appropiate....it seems whenever i post here it become contriversal...soo...i show them how to do nothing because it loses the magic when they see its just me doing little sleight ofhand with cards.....ok i get it...

If you reveeal a trick any trick regardless of skill level they will lose interest.
Its called "suspense of Disbeleif" or something like that. IOnce you reveal its no longer MAGIC to them its just a trick and then you really lose your crowd.

Why are you showing them a trick anyway. What benefit could you get from it, if they are interested help them along show them books dvds etc. Dont just obey them.

armyperson59 wrote:ok....I asked this because I want people to stop asking "SHow me!?" ithey want me to show them how to do ....SOMEThING..and I thought I'd ask (to satisfy them) on here what would be appropiate....it seems whenever I post here it become contriversal...soo...I show them how to do nothing because it loses the magic when they see its just me doing little sleight ofhand with cards.....ok I get it...

Seriously, you could say something like:

* "If you really want to know, I'll lend you a beginner's book on magic, OK?" (A book, mind you, not a prop trick and DVD.)

Or if you don't trust them with your property, you could say:

* "If you really want to know, I'll give you a book on magic for your next birthday, OK?" (If it has Peter Eldin's name on the front cover it's perfect.)

Or if you can't afford it, you could say:

* "If you really want to know, why not go and look for books of tricks in the local library?" (Since you're fifteen, the library you know best is probably the one at your school. My school library had several books of tricks that I remember reading. I hope yours does too.)

In any case, if they say something like, "I'm not really that interested", then shrug and say no more about it. But if you do persuade them to read a book on magic, and they end up showing you a trick, then maybe would be a good time to show them something in return, because then they've earned it.

The old 'If I told you how I did it I'd have to kill you' works quite well at times!

Well this has all been very interesting.
I'm still of the opinion that this can be used effectively and I suspect a lot of critics haven't tried it. It can certainly add to the strength of a routine and, if done properly, can be used without fear of exposure.

All down to the Dove's Head for a pint and a fight.