Posts
magic4u02@aol.com
http://www.kyleandkellymagic.com
As a children's performer, how often do we get lost in the business of what we do? How many times do we worry about the hyper kid or the parent who doesn't care? How many times do we each call in a show simply because we are worried about the trip home or the bills that have to be paid?
If we are honest with each other, the answer is probably that it does happen. Maybe not all the time, but we are only human. We fall into these "traps" regardless of what we do.
We forget what it means to be a children's entertainer. We forget the joy that we felt as a child watching magic happen in front of us. We forget the amzed feelings we had seeing somethign appear from no where. We lose track of the amount of times we tried to make the magic happen oursleves yet had no real clue how to do it.
I recently had a rude awakening at a gig that brought all of this back to my mind again. I was doing strolling magic and this little 4 year old boy was crying. I may never know why, but he was not having a good time at all.
I started doing some ball manipulations to the music the DJ was playing. I was not paying much attention but out of the corner of my eye I see the child inch closer and the tears start to dry up. I started making the ball appear under my hat and a smile formed on this kid's face.
For 5 minutes this child watched me as if magic to him was something TRULY special. He stopped crying and was transfixed into everything he was seeing me do. His laughter made me laugh. His smile made me smile. His mother could not believe just how engulfed her son was in what I was doing.
Now I do not share this here as an ego thing. Instead I share it because for those 5 minutes I saw magic through the eyes of a child. I saw magic the way I remember seeing it so many years ago. I remembered what it was like to just totally believe in magic and to just allow oneself to be 'Entertained". No more and no less...to be entertained and not only fooled.
Through this child's own eyes, I got to feel like a kid again. But most of all, I got to remember the POWER each children's magician has inside of us. We have this ability we often take for granted.
We have the ability to make a child smile and laugh and forget about things even for just a few moments. We are often times the very first live magician that child may have ever seen. It is our duty and our JOB to never allow oursleves to give anything less then 100% effort every time out.
We must remind ourselves to see magic through the eyes of a child. We must remind ourselves of the joy magic can bring to a young one and how we can shape how that child views magicians from that day forward.
I may never know what will become of that child I saw that day. However, I do know that through his eyes, I saw magic again the way I first felt when I was his age. I remembered what being a children's performer is all about.
As much as his mother thanked me, I should be thanking him for allowing me to realize just how wonderful it is to do what we do.
As always, I encourage you the readers to let me know your thoughts. So if you have any thoughts on my articles or suggestions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me directly at magic4u02@aol.com. I would love to hear from you.
- I would like to let everyone know that I just released a NEW book and E-Book to the magic community. "Blue and Gold! The Complete Guide to Working The Scout Market!" is now available as a soft cover printed book as well as an ebook download.
http://www.magicenhancer.com/Blue/Gold.html
- "Encore! Creativity in the Art of Magic" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/Encore.html
- "Tips and Techniques on the Chair Suspension" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/ChairSuspension.html
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Who are You
Who are you? Not the first thing you want to hear upon arriving at any gig. However, too often this becomes a common statement. It results in an awkward moment between you and the person you are meeting. It also wastes time as you try and explain and get the details straight. Even then you often end up having to tell the story to a few more people as they pass you around to others.
I call this the “hot potato” principle. No one wants to take responsibility for having to talk and coordinate with you, so they pass you off to someone else as quickly as they can.
So why does this happen? Well for starters, it can happen simply because the person who booked you is not at the event yet. It also occurs because of total miscommunication. No one knows anything about you being there except the client you coordinated with. Furthermore, the person who booked you may not even be attending the event in the first place. Whatever the reason may be, it is safe to say that as a performer, you need to address issues like this before they become bigger problems.
There are several things I try and make a practice of doing so that I can avoid unpleasant situations like this.
- The first thing you have to realize is never to assume that the person you are dealing with to book the show is the same person who will be your contact at the event. In most cases, they will be. However, we can never assume this. Always ask ahead of time who will be your contact at the event. Will it be this person you are dealing with now, or will there be another person?
- When I ask for the contact person, I always ask for a cell phone number or phone number that I can use on the day of the event. This is so that I have it in the event I need to contact them. Having this information can be so valuable.
- I can also call the contact as I am approaching the venue. This lets them know that I am arriving on time and also gets them in the general area so they are ready upon my arrival. In the event that the person is not around, I can use this phone number to make contact with the person to iron out any changes of plan and to keep things running smoothly.
- If the contact at the event is NOT going to be the same person who booked you, I always will ask for the contact’s name, email address and phone number. This way I can make contact with the person prior to the show. No one likes to be barraged on the day of the event. By contacting them ahead of time, I can introduce myself and go over any details with them. This saves you both time and ensures things run smoothly upon your arrival at the venue.
- Always get things in writing. This means to get the contact information and all arrival details down on paper ahead of time. It means having that contract and agreement signed and approved by the client long before you actually do the event itself.
- It also is a good idea to always make a confirmation call or send a confirmation email to the client a week prior to the event date. I always do this because I know details for events do change and this is my opportunity to double check all my facts with the client. I will list what we had agreed upon and ask them to verify it and any changes that may have come up. This is the time to double check your contact.
- Always ask where your contact will be upon arrival at the event. Many events have the client running around trying to tackle numerous issues that come up. Trying to find them is often not easy and you simply do not want to waste time trying to locate them. So I will always ask them where I should go to meet them upon arrival. I can also ask them this if I make my phone call to them as I am arriving at the venue. It saves a lot of time and makes things run smooth.
- You can also make things easier on yourself by never assuming the people who meet you know you are the entertainment. You may even be dressed to a point where you think it is quite obvious. However, you can never assume they know. When greeting anyone at the event, I will always state my name and that I am the magical entertainment for the event. By doing so they immediately will at least know why you are there and more chance to 1) assist you themselves or 2) hunt down the proper person who can.
A lot of these items above are simple tips that can be utilized to really help you to have an event run the way both parties intend it to run. It also makes you perceived as a professional. After all, it is this professional level that you want to carry with you all throughout the client relationship.
As always, I encourage you the readers to let me know your thoughts. So if you have any thoughts on my articles or suggestions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me directly at magic4u02@aol.com. I would love to hear from you.
- I would like to let everyone know that I just released a NEW book and E-Book to the magic Community. "Blue and Gold! The Complete Guide to Working The Scout Market!" is now available as a soft cover printed book as well as an ebook download.
http://magicenhancer.com/Blue/Gold.html
- "Encore! Creativity in the Art of Magic" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/Encore.html
- "Tips and Techniques on the Chair Suspension" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/ChairSuspension.html
I call this the “hot potato” principle. No one wants to take responsibility for having to talk and coordinate with you, so they pass you off to someone else as quickly as they can.
So why does this happen? Well for starters, it can happen simply because the person who booked you is not at the event yet. It also occurs because of total miscommunication. No one knows anything about you being there except the client you coordinated with. Furthermore, the person who booked you may not even be attending the event in the first place. Whatever the reason may be, it is safe to say that as a performer, you need to address issues like this before they become bigger problems.
There are several things I try and make a practice of doing so that I can avoid unpleasant situations like this.
- The first thing you have to realize is never to assume that the person you are dealing with to book the show is the same person who will be your contact at the event. In most cases, they will be. However, we can never assume this. Always ask ahead of time who will be your contact at the event. Will it be this person you are dealing with now, or will there be another person?
- When I ask for the contact person, I always ask for a cell phone number or phone number that I can use on the day of the event. This is so that I have it in the event I need to contact them. Having this information can be so valuable.
- I can also call the contact as I am approaching the venue. This lets them know that I am arriving on time and also gets them in the general area so they are ready upon my arrival. In the event that the person is not around, I can use this phone number to make contact with the person to iron out any changes of plan and to keep things running smoothly.
- If the contact at the event is NOT going to be the same person who booked you, I always will ask for the contact’s name, email address and phone number. This way I can make contact with the person prior to the show. No one likes to be barraged on the day of the event. By contacting them ahead of time, I can introduce myself and go over any details with them. This saves you both time and ensures things run smoothly upon your arrival at the venue.
- Always get things in writing. This means to get the contact information and all arrival details down on paper ahead of time. It means having that contract and agreement signed and approved by the client long before you actually do the event itself.
- It also is a good idea to always make a confirmation call or send a confirmation email to the client a week prior to the event date. I always do this because I know details for events do change and this is my opportunity to double check all my facts with the client. I will list what we had agreed upon and ask them to verify it and any changes that may have come up. This is the time to double check your contact.
- Always ask where your contact will be upon arrival at the event. Many events have the client running around trying to tackle numerous issues that come up. Trying to find them is often not easy and you simply do not want to waste time trying to locate them. So I will always ask them where I should go to meet them upon arrival. I can also ask them this if I make my phone call to them as I am arriving at the venue. It saves a lot of time and makes things run smooth.
- You can also make things easier on yourself by never assuming the people who meet you know you are the entertainment. You may even be dressed to a point where you think it is quite obvious. However, you can never assume they know. When greeting anyone at the event, I will always state my name and that I am the magical entertainment for the event. By doing so they immediately will at least know why you are there and more chance to 1) assist you themselves or 2) hunt down the proper person who can.
A lot of these items above are simple tips that can be utilized to really help you to have an event run the way both parties intend it to run. It also makes you perceived as a professional. After all, it is this professional level that you want to carry with you all throughout the client relationship.
As always, I encourage you the readers to let me know your thoughts. So if you have any thoughts on my articles or suggestions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me directly at magic4u02@aol.com. I would love to hear from you.
- I would like to let everyone know that I just released a NEW book and E-Book to the magic Community. "Blue and Gold! The Complete Guide to Working The Scout Market!" is now available as a soft cover printed book as well as an ebook download.
http://magicenhancer.com/Blue/Gold.html
- "Encore! Creativity in the Art of Magic" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/Encore.html
- "Tips and Techniques on the Chair Suspension" Ebook. Order online now at:
http://www.magicenhancer.com/ChairSuspension.html
Saturday, February 27, 2010
A Great Tool for Creativity
As many of you know, I have written a lot lately on creativity and the need for magicians to take action towards learning to be more creative thinkers of the magic we perform. We all own more magic then we need. We really do not need to buy more magic. What we do need is the ability to be more creative with the magic we already have.
An idea I have expressed in the past is to keep what I refer to as a “Creativity Journal”. This is a concept derived from my art school days and I continue to do it to this day. It is an easy idea and one that is not new at all. However, I find it is new to a lot of magicians.
The concept is to simply carry with you and keep with you a blank journal from which you can write down any and all creative thoughts and ideas. The goal is "free thinking". In free thinking there are no boundaries and there are no rules. You break down the barriers that hold you back. Any idea is a good idea and that needs to be written down by you.
It has often been said that the reason you write thoughts down is that there is power in the process. When you write ideas in your creativity journals, you are basically planting a seed in your mind. This seed can grow. It tells the mind and teaches it that it is ok to open the mind up to receiving these kinds of creative thought.
Like any exercise, the more you do, the better you get and the stronger you become. Think of the creativity journal as an exercise of the mind. It builds up the mind and makes it stronger.
But what I have found lately is a new tool that brings the creativity journal to a new level and makes it even easier to be creative and to retain those creative thoughts. There is a free website out there online called www.jott.com. It is simply a wonderful tool I have been using a lot lately in the past few months. Now before I proceed to tell you about it, please keep in mind that I am not affiliated in any way with the website nor do I get any compensation form them. It is just a very useful tool I have found that works for me and I wanted to share with you the readers.
Jott.com is a website that allows you to have the ability to send emails or text messages to yourself or anyone you want simply with the power of your own voice. The website is 100% free and very easy to set up initially. It takes only a matter of 5 minutes to set it up and away you go.
You can now be on the road at a show or anywhere and call the Jott number. It will ask you who you want to jott and you can freely state any name set up in your database. If you Jott yourself then you just talk for up to 45 seconds of anything you want. When you are done, Jott will send your voice message and transcribe it as text and send that text to your email address or even a text message on your cell phone. When you get home, you will have an email waiting for you that is everything you said in the phone but in a written format for you to print out or to save in your creativity journal. It is just that easy. You have the ability to Jott messages to anyone email you want.
This becomes a very powerful free tool if you think about it. Now I can be anywhere and if a creative idea comes to my mind, I can immediately send a Jott message to my email. When I get home it will be there waiting for me and I will have it all in a written format I can use. I no longer have to search for paper or try and recall an idea when I get home. I can do it the moment the idea comes to me.
Another way I use Jott is after a show is over. When I am in the truck I can send a Jott message home and tell about the show, how it went over, what tricks I performed and any notes I might want to have. I can do this while it is all fresh in my memory.
It is a very powerful tool for any creative thinker and I hope you might give it a try. I have been using it for a few months now and have really found the power in it to broaden my creativity and to help me in the process. Let me know how it works for you.
An idea I have expressed in the past is to keep what I refer to as a “Creativity Journal”. This is a concept derived from my art school days and I continue to do it to this day. It is an easy idea and one that is not new at all. However, I find it is new to a lot of magicians.
The concept is to simply carry with you and keep with you a blank journal from which you can write down any and all creative thoughts and ideas. The goal is "free thinking". In free thinking there are no boundaries and there are no rules. You break down the barriers that hold you back. Any idea is a good idea and that needs to be written down by you.
It has often been said that the reason you write thoughts down is that there is power in the process. When you write ideas in your creativity journals, you are basically planting a seed in your mind. This seed can grow. It tells the mind and teaches it that it is ok to open the mind up to receiving these kinds of creative thought.
Like any exercise, the more you do, the better you get and the stronger you become. Think of the creativity journal as an exercise of the mind. It builds up the mind and makes it stronger.
But what I have found lately is a new tool that brings the creativity journal to a new level and makes it even easier to be creative and to retain those creative thoughts. There is a free website out there online called www.jott.com. It is simply a wonderful tool I have been using a lot lately in the past few months. Now before I proceed to tell you about it, please keep in mind that I am not affiliated in any way with the website nor do I get any compensation form them. It is just a very useful tool I have found that works for me and I wanted to share with you the readers.
Jott.com is a website that allows you to have the ability to send emails or text messages to yourself or anyone you want simply with the power of your own voice. The website is 100% free and very easy to set up initially. It takes only a matter of 5 minutes to set it up and away you go.
You can now be on the road at a show or anywhere and call the Jott number. It will ask you who you want to jott and you can freely state any name set up in your database. If you Jott yourself then you just talk for up to 45 seconds of anything you want. When you are done, Jott will send your voice message and transcribe it as text and send that text to your email address or even a text message on your cell phone. When you get home, you will have an email waiting for you that is everything you said in the phone but in a written format for you to print out or to save in your creativity journal. It is just that easy. You have the ability to Jott messages to anyone email you want.
This becomes a very powerful free tool if you think about it. Now I can be anywhere and if a creative idea comes to my mind, I can immediately send a Jott message to my email. When I get home it will be there waiting for me and I will have it all in a written format I can use. I no longer have to search for paper or try and recall an idea when I get home. I can do it the moment the idea comes to me.
Another way I use Jott is after a show is over. When I am in the truck I can send a Jott message home and tell about the show, how it went over, what tricks I performed and any notes I might want to have. I can do this while it is all fresh in my memory.
It is a very powerful tool for any creative thinker and I hope you might give it a try. I have been using it for a few months now and have really found the power in it to broaden my creativity and to help me in the process. Let me know how it works for you.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Be Yourself
I am sure we have all heard it growing up and from others in our life from time to time. Be yourself and not someone else. Act the way you would act and do what you know is right for you. Seems a pretty simple and straightforward concept. These are the lessons of life and we learn from them.
However, why does his simple phrase become forgotten in the magical arts? Why is it that we feel this phrase is no longer important or simply does not apply to us when performing magic? Perhaps we hear the phrase but pay it no attention. Perhaps we do not want to hear it at all.
Why is this so important? It’s important because too often the magical arts is filled with “clones.” These are the same people doing the same thing the same way and for the same audiences. If you do not believe me, just talk to a layperson. The attitude an opinion of lay folks is such that every magician is the same and we all look and act alike. You know what? They are right. We are and we do.
So why does this happen? There are many reasons but the biggest one is a simple word…LAZY. We are simply flat out lazy. If success were based upon taking action, then more people would be successful. The problem is most folks do not want to take the action because they see a simpler path to follow. Why take the hard road when the paved road is easier to travel?
The same applies to magic. Why try and create something that is unique to us if we can “borrow” something from someone else? It is just easier to buy a “routine in a box” and add it to your show.
I say routine in a box because that is the way things are sold these days. Now do not get me wrong here. I like magic dealers and inventors as much as the other guy. However, the fact of the matter is that things are created and sold to you so you do not have to think for yourself. The trick you buy comes with instructions, tells you what to say, how to move, gives you comedy lines, alternative patter and a DVD showing you exactly how to do it the way the other magician does. Dose this make us unique? NO! It simply makes us a lesser copy of someone else.
How many of us have also seen a magic show and flat out stole the routine and patter of the person we saw? Be honest with yourself. The answer is a LOT of us. We get caught up in the power of the effect and the reactions we saw. The problem is that we forget that THAT magician caused the reactions. It was not simply the effect itself. If the effect or prop was getting the reactions, then why not just place the prop on a table and walk off stage. The point is that the magician makes the entertainment experience.
Therein may lay the problem. Can anyone be like this magician? No, they can’t. Would you want to be this magician? No, I would think you would want to be yourself. Would someone else garner the same exact reactions as this magician? Probably not.
They would still get laughs and reactions but not the same way. The reason is simple. They are not that magician. They cannot possibly know or perform the nuances that the magician brought to the performance. They may replicate what they saw. However, replication with some minor updating is NOT being creative or true to you.
We need to get over this idea that stealing others acts or routines will make us a better performer. That simply does not happen. It makes for more magicians performing more bad magic.
What we need to remember is that simple phrase…”Be Yourself.” Learn to find out who you are as a performer. Find your own unique style and define your character on stage. Know what that character would and would not do. Remember to script your routines so it fits who you are.
Is this tough, well yeah it requires you taking some action. But remember that any success requires you taking that first step.
As always, I encourage you the readers to let me know your thoughts. So if you have any thoughts on my articles or suggestions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me directly at magic4u02@aol.com. I would love to hear from you.
However, why does his simple phrase become forgotten in the magical arts? Why is it that we feel this phrase is no longer important or simply does not apply to us when performing magic? Perhaps we hear the phrase but pay it no attention. Perhaps we do not want to hear it at all.
Why is this so important? It’s important because too often the magical arts is filled with “clones.” These are the same people doing the same thing the same way and for the same audiences. If you do not believe me, just talk to a layperson. The attitude an opinion of lay folks is such that every magician is the same and we all look and act alike. You know what? They are right. We are and we do.
So why does this happen? There are many reasons but the biggest one is a simple word…LAZY. We are simply flat out lazy. If success were based upon taking action, then more people would be successful. The problem is most folks do not want to take the action because they see a simpler path to follow. Why take the hard road when the paved road is easier to travel?
The same applies to magic. Why try and create something that is unique to us if we can “borrow” something from someone else? It is just easier to buy a “routine in a box” and add it to your show.
I say routine in a box because that is the way things are sold these days. Now do not get me wrong here. I like magic dealers and inventors as much as the other guy. However, the fact of the matter is that things are created and sold to you so you do not have to think for yourself. The trick you buy comes with instructions, tells you what to say, how to move, gives you comedy lines, alternative patter and a DVD showing you exactly how to do it the way the other magician does. Dose this make us unique? NO! It simply makes us a lesser copy of someone else.
How many of us have also seen a magic show and flat out stole the routine and patter of the person we saw? Be honest with yourself. The answer is a LOT of us. We get caught up in the power of the effect and the reactions we saw. The problem is that we forget that THAT magician caused the reactions. It was not simply the effect itself. If the effect or prop was getting the reactions, then why not just place the prop on a table and walk off stage. The point is that the magician makes the entertainment experience.
Therein may lay the problem. Can anyone be like this magician? No, they can’t. Would you want to be this magician? No, I would think you would want to be yourself. Would someone else garner the same exact reactions as this magician? Probably not.
They would still get laughs and reactions but not the same way. The reason is simple. They are not that magician. They cannot possibly know or perform the nuances that the magician brought to the performance. They may replicate what they saw. However, replication with some minor updating is NOT being creative or true to you.
We need to get over this idea that stealing others acts or routines will make us a better performer. That simply does not happen. It makes for more magicians performing more bad magic.
What we need to remember is that simple phrase…”Be Yourself.” Learn to find out who you are as a performer. Find your own unique style and define your character on stage. Know what that character would and would not do. Remember to script your routines so it fits who you are.
Is this tough, well yeah it requires you taking some action. But remember that any success requires you taking that first step.
As always, I encourage you the readers to let me know your thoughts. So if you have any thoughts on my articles or suggestions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me directly at magic4u02@aol.com. I would love to hear from you.
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