musings

Part 1: Magic, more than tricks

Tue, 08 May 2012 02:49:37 +0100

The Question before me this evening: Does magic have any importance for the real world?
If so, what?

Magic is an art-form. If we can accept that art is the creative expression of one’s self, than there is no question that magic is a form of art. It’s true that there are those who simply learn to work a pack of cards and can deftly fool you. They are more tricksters, and craftsmen than artists. However, there is also a line where a magician (any artist really) opens his soul to the audience and shares his genius. The distinction between the craftsman and the artist is sometimes very difficult to draw, especially if you do not understand what you are looking at.

Let me put this into more mainstream terms. In the musical world there are those who are singers, and others who are singer / songwriters. There is a big difference. The singer generally has a gorgeous voice and produces the stuff of pop-culture. They are sexy and on the cover of teen-magazines. Great voice, and image, but rarely do they actually put their pen to the paper and let the musical muse lead them to create a piece that is genuinely theirs. The Singer/Songwriter, of course does ply the creationary juices to the guitar and pour his very soul into a song. The lyrics are his iambic stream of consciousness and the tune rhymes with his heartbeat. His song is the stuff of art. This is Dave Matthews vs. Britney Spears. Adele vs. Ke$ha. It has nothing to do with musical style, but everything to do with soul.

So, Magic is an art-form. So what? What relevance does it have on the world?

Virtually everyday, the world wakes up, goes to work, goes home, watches TV and goes to bed. Sadly, Routine is dominant, and mental dust collects on our imaginations.

Music, film, theater and literature generally deal with topics of social or political importance. Visual arts such as painting and sculpture often explore the quest for beauty and truth. What is the purpose of magic?

To confront the impossible.

In this age of smartphones, science and logic, there is very little uncertainty around us. Many would say this is good, but if we let Google remember everything for us and science explain away every mystery, what is left? Plenty, but we must be ready to deal with ambiguity and the unknown. We must realize that not everything is explainable with science.

What!? Science can’t explain everything? That’s correct. Even our own treasured human consciousness isn’t understood by psychology and neurology. If we cannot define something so primal as that, how can we expect to avoid other bits of the ambiguous and ultimately, the impossible?

It is true that magical effects are accomplished through clever manipulations by inventive performers, by that is far from the point. Magic is more than a series of puzzles which should lead you to ask, “How do he do that?”

Good Magic deals with the possibility of the impossible being real. Magic is there to brush the dust off of the imagination and jog the sense of astonishment. There is power in that. There is beauty and hope in that. I look forward to sharing the impossible with you.

(This a series of blog entries. I look forward to pulling back the curtain ever so slightly to discuss the way that magicians learn to deal with the dense concepts described above.)

The (Catholic) Druid

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 16:34:39 +0100

Working for various groups means that I get to meet people from many different walks of life. Many times the people I get to chat with are relatively normal. They are professionals in the fields of medicine, law, education, etc. They have families and weekend hobbies and all in all, they are interesting people to get to know.
One evening, I was performing close-up magic at a bar. Sitting at the end of the bar was a guy in his late forties. He wanted to see a little magic. After the trick was over, he was clearly interested and impressed (and inebriated).
He asked me, "In your opinion, as a conjuror, what is your stance on witches and witchcraft?"
Slightly taken aback by the oddness of his question, I answered, "Everything that I do is done by sleight-of-hand and psychology. There is nothing super-natural about it."
"I know, I know," he continued, "but do you think that witchcraft is real? I'm Catholic, but I'm also a practicing Druid. I've been studying Druidism for almost 15 years, and my wife, who I'm in the middle of divorcing right now, is a witch. Not Wiccan, that's the pop-culture stuff. I mean, she is an active, accomplished Witch."

Interesting, but Bizarre I thought to myself.

"And I've seen her stuff work! She does healings, and she has a wand and we host ceremonies..." He carried on for several minutes with several examples.
Ultimately, he never really came back around to asking me what my stance on witchcraft was, but he was one of the more interesting people I've met on the front lines of magic.

A success

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 21:08:17 +0100

I recently performed some magic at a very casual gathering of friends. There was a woman there who is in her early sixties and very (very) chatty. It's a good thing that I have the experience in performing that I do, because she did not play by 'the rules.' She would talk whenever she wanted, take the cards from my hands and shuffle them, watch from every which angle and generally be a magician's nightmare.
At the end of the trick, I still managed to find the right cards, fool the pants off of everyone and all was right with the world. People were laughing (myself included) and we were having a good time.

I saw this same woman a few days later. She came right up to me with a big grin and stated, "Dan, I have hated, HATED magic my entire life, but I could watch you 24/7."
I smiled back and said, "That's a very high compliment."

Ignite Cheyenne 4: The Topic

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 03:34:46 +0100

I'm in the middle of putting together my talk for Ignite Cheyenne 4. The format of the event has forced me to focus my thoughts onto one small area. I only get 5 minutes. In reality, I could carry on about this topic for hours and hours, but I don't know that anyone besides me would find it interesting. Sadly, I won't be performing any pieces of magic for the talk (maybe afterward).

The topic that I have decided on is very important to me as a performer. I believe that the audience (of any live performance) is at least partially responsible for their own experience. In live theater, we clap, laugh and moan at different lines. At music concerts we cheer and sing along. But all to often in magic we have people would work hard to solve the puzzle. They are fixed on the mindset of "Nope! He's not going to fool me!" But what if they were totally missing the point? What is the point of magic?

I think that a solid moment of astonishment is good for the soul. Honestly. We know everything about everything, and if we don't know, we Google it. But what about the things that Google can't answer? What if there is more to life than knowing everything? Every once in a while, its healthy to brush the dust off of our imaginations, and feel what it's like to be a kid again.

Magic lives on the edges of reality and possibility. By attempting to categorize the events of a magic trick, and analyze the methods employed, we miss the boat entirely. When you watched Avatar, you didn't sit there the whole time saying "I don't think those blue guys are really real." Of course not. You were drawn into that world, and for a few moments (thanks to good 3D effects) even felt like you were there with them. Is it real? No. BUT it sure looked and felt real, so what's the difference?

This concept is very true in magic. Is it real? No. But magicians have worked for centuries to make it appear real, so what's the difference?

If you want to hear more, come out to Ignite Cheyenne 4. Tickets are FREE and available now at http://ignitecheyennewy4.eventbrite.com/

I'll see you there!

Dan

Turning Tricks vs Making Magic

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 13:08:43 +0100

I run into young or new magicians (or sometimes veterans) who have a hard time wrapping their heads around this. Magic is WAY MORE that just a pile of tricks. A quick Google Search for 'magic' will reveal how many online magic shops are out there, selling new, old and refurbished magic tricks. The descriptions of these tricks read "Simply have the spectator blow on the fork and it visually, magically melts...taught in complete detail in 2 hours of video..." Would-be-Magicians read that thinking, 'Oh oh, now. that. is. AWESOME.' And it is awesome, but its not that simple. They buy it (for $35+), learn it exactly how the DVD teaches, and then do it for their friends. The friends are surprised to see the fork melt. Mission Accomplished. Right?

If the job of a magician is simply execute the trick, than anyone could do it. If all a magician had to accomplish were to 'find the card' it would be easy.

What if Harry Potter simply shuffled and found signed cards? or made salt shakers disappear?

As a magician, it is my job to create magic. Real Magic. Not just executing the sleight-of-hand and causing a coin to change places. Imagine sitting at a big, banquet dinner, and you find out that a magician is also there. Before digging in, everyone asks him to 'do a trick.' So the magi pulls out a clown nose, a balloon and five coins. He ties the balloon into something that resembles an animal and with a wave of his magic wand, makes the coins disappear from his hand, only to be found under his coffee cup. Everyone claps and is mildly amused as they dig into the meal.

Now, imagine the same setting. Upon request to 'do a trick' the magician looks across the table to a young women, Jenny and says, ' Think of the name of a person. Not just any person, an old friend that you haven't seen in a few years. imagine the hugs, and laughter.' The magician asks her to hold out her hand flat and he puts one of the dinner forks on it. 'Now imagine the great conversation and catching up that would happen.' As she closes her eyes and imagines this, a beautiful little smile crosses her face and the fork begins to slowly move on her hand. Everyone at the table is leaning in to get a closer look. The magician continues, 'Open your eyes and look at me. This evening, I think you should call Amy and tell her you where thinking about her.'

Jenny's eye open wide as she exclaims, 'How did you know her name?'

The rest of the table is asking her, 'Did you feel the fork moving?' and 'Was Amy who you were thinking of?' and 'WHAT JUST HAPPENED HERE?' Chaos ensues.

Magic. Magic just happened. For the rest of the evening, everyone is talking about that communal experience. They are not discussing possible methods, because there are none to be offered. The methods are 1) invisible and 2) unimportant to the guests. The experience of astonishment was so powerful that they don't care how it was accomplished. The creation of magic is far more than buying, learning and performing tricks. It cannot be looked up on youtube or google. It is personal, powerful and artistic. More than that, it has meaning. If magic were real, it would be relevant to our lives.

Magic can involve cards, coins, fork or even balloons. The prop doesn't matter. What you do with it is far more interesting.

[The piece of magic described above is real. I perform it often.]

Mommy, where does magic come from?

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 03:21:57 +0100

The following is a semi-true story.

I didn't get into magic as a kid. When I was 11 years-old I told myself how to juggle. From then on I was a juggler. There is a difference between knowing how to or being able to and being a juggler. I live, breathed, slept and occasionally ate juggling. (So far, its all true)
When I was in college, I was working a store in the Mall of America called Air Traffic. They sell high-end strategy games, stunt kites and juggling gear. I was 20 and a resident juggler. That was a great job. The manager at the time was the number 3 yoyoer in the world. Doc Pop (as he was known) taught me all sorts of cool tricks with a yoyo. Yes, I can still do them.
Around the corner from Air Traffic was a costume shop called the Fun Shop. It carried all the standard items, from creepy to sexy. In the back corner of the Fun Shop they had a small magic counter, run by a real magician. I knew him simply as John. I could watch John for hours. John Deems (I only found out his name when I heard that he passed away last year) was a retired mafia card cheat. He spent most of his life at a card table. John sold me my first book of magic, Card College Volume 2 by Roberto Giobbi. John also steered me away from all the gimmicks and contraptions of magic toward the sleight of hand heavy material. He argued that with these fundamental techniques, I'd be able to perform wonders. He was right. One of the very first pieces of card magic he taught me I still perform today (10 years later).

As I dove deeper in magic, I became a magician. I moved from being a juggler to being a magician.

The sense of mystery that comes with magic is the stuff of dreams. Truly, if I can dream it up, magic can make it happen. Bringing real magic to my audiences is what makes me tick. Seeing the look in someone's eyes as I read their thoughts. Hearing an audible gasp as the fork melts in their hand, and knowing that people tell their friends about it. That's where magic comes from. The interplay between me, The Magician, and them, My Guests on the journey.

I know this is crazy, but I firmly believe in magic. I hope you still do to.

'You're a magician?'

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:39:12 +0100

I chatted with a DJ friend of mine the other night. He was very complimentary of my magic and style of presentation. As he was talking, I found it odd how he described his experience working with other magicians at other events. He said the rest of the magical entertainers he’d encountered were either so cheesey that no one took them seriously (except maybe a few kids) or stuffy and unapproachable. For a brief moment I felt embarrassed for those magicians he was talking about.

Personally, I know that I have put a lot of conscious effort into not being 'that' magician. The vast majority of my work is for adults. You don’t get far in the college or corporate entertainment world with cheese. Nor is it proper to walk into that type of event in a tux with tails and talking like Shakespeare wrote your script.

Put the people and personal interactions first. Be interested in the guests, the event, the company and the friends that you can make, and then show them some magic. That’s a professional approach to what I do. I am paid to be a magician at a party. Think about that for a second. We all know that magic doesn’t really exist, don’t we? But what if it did? What would it look like? What would it be like to chat with a magician? Magicians are supposed to know things that other (normal) people don’t. Cool things. We are supposed to be interesting to talk with and be around.

As soon as you force a magic trick onto a group, you cease to be a magician, and you begin to be a showoff or, worse, an annoyance. If you have made friends with the people you are talking with, and they find out you are the magician for the evening, they will ask you to do few tricks. That is completely different than pouncing on them with an awkward-looking magic prop. On that note, I don’t use ‘magic props’ in my work. Yes, I use a deck of cards, but that is something that everyone has in their homes. If you have seen me work, you know that I use cards, slips of paper, money that I borrow from audience member, and …forks. The forks are the most out-of-place item that I use, but they are also the highlight of the evening for people who get to see me work with one.

When people ask me what I do for a living, and I answer, ‘I’m a magician,’ there is a subtle look in their eye that I have come to understand. That look is a condescending, misinformed, manifestation of the thought, 'you mean like the guy we had at my son’s 6th birthday?' No, I’m sorry, not like that. I am an artist. I’ve worked for governors, and doctors, and lawyers and millionaires. I take the creation and profession of magic very seriously. I firmly believe that magic can be real, if it is handled properly. I feel that magic is a powerful and moving art form in the hands of serious practitioners.

As my DJ friend described the other magicians he had worked with, I was embarrassed for a second, then there was a small pride. My hard work...worked.

If you build it the will come (if you're good)

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:08:55 +0100

I work all types of events. Many times I am mingling through a crowd doing close-up magic with small groups of 3 or 4 guests at a time. I will spent a few minutes with a group and then move onto the next small group. I go to them. Other events, like the one in this photo, I am at a booth or table. That means that I don't move from there, all night long. There are certain advantages to either approach. When I'm at a booth, I have a table to work with, I can do longer sets of magic, and the people who stop are stopping to see me. When I'm mingling, I use the guest's free hands to hold cards, and I tend to move quicker as I have to get to as many groups as I can. Also, occasionally, I will run into a guest who is not very interested in seeing magic, but they don't want to be rude. It's a drag for both sides. I can sense the lack of interest.

The approach that I take to delivering the magic to the guests varies depending on a load of variables. How many other performers are working, how many guests there are, what the event coordinator wants me to do. I'm comfortable with either mingling or working a booth.

Magician@Play - The first blog post

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:11:44 +0100

I have a been working hard on a new stage show. It's set and ready to rock on any stage.