talkmagic.co.uk

greedoniz wrote:David Blaine has a lot to answer for. A generation of magicians running into the streets and "slaying" their audience with "killer" effects expecting the audience to "freak out".

Maybe Domcsore doesn't have that mentally. Sure, there are lots of magicians who think like that, but there are lots who don't. Not everyone who wants to do street magic wants to act like a tit or be mean to people.

greedoniz wrote:Try approaching a hospitals, hospices or different charities and see if you can offer your services. Not only do you get to practice on strangers but you do your bit for the community at the same time.

I don't see that this is good advice. This could be a horribly depressing experience. It depends on the type of person you are of course. What if he just wants to go out and have some fun and be surrounded by happy people? Not everyone is cut out for that sort of thing. I certainly wouldn't be able to cope with hanging out in a hospice without becoming horribly depressed and sad. You should only go to a hospice if you're the type of person who can handle it, which is probably a very small percentage of the population, it seems to me. Of course, it would be a wonderful world if everyone did go around caring for others, but that's not the world we live in.

Domcsore wrote:I really do like the idea of a children's hospital. Something close to heart and maybe an easier audience... I would assume.

Not necessarily an easier audience, 5-7 year olds are usually enthralled, but in a children's ward you may be looking at up to 16 years old.

I really appreciate the devils taylor's comments, make sense. I would try a children's hospice to see what it is like, I do not think I would have an issue but who knows until I have actually tried it.

I work at children's hospitals and hospices a few times each month. I imagine it does take a certain type of person to do it. You have to be mindful that people there have a job to do, that there are some very ill children, and that you are most certainly not the centre of attention.

Reactions are usually a lot more subdued than you may be used to (obviously), and of course you have to be sensible. Nothing "madcap" or too wild. Just gentle entertainment. And you must have quite a thick skin. Trying to continue with a show while a child is screaming their head off in pain 20 feet away is quite tough.

But there are rewards too. One that sticks in my head is a child who had never reacted or interacted with another human being in her entire life. I made her a balloon dog and she smiled. The mother and nurses were in tears. So was, I but for different reasons. It was an awful balloon dog. The proportions were just all wrong.

themagicwand wrote:But there are rewards too. One that sticks in my head is a child who had never reacted or interacted with another human being in her entire life. I made her a balloon dog and she smiled. The mother and nurses were in tears. So was, I but for different reasons. It was an awful balloon dog. The proportions were just all wrong.

These are the reward I would most appreciate, to be honest. I enjoy entertaining people and making them happy. So this sounds like a good choice for me.