As spectators, we often see magicians doing wild effects. And this is perfectly fine... on tv or internet. It works because sensationalism sells. They get to design a "WOW" scenario, and practice it over and over again until it looks perfect. But then what?
Working magicians aren't doing those ridiculous effects everytime they perform. They are doing the same predetermined set of illusions that are the best in their own wheelhouse. These effects work because they're clean and effective.
I only picked up my first set of sponge balls this past summer, and I've come a long way since then. My act with them is by no means the best in the world. In fact, I think it's just OK (lol). But as I perform it more and more, it occurs to me that it's what people love. This age old trick that shouldn't fool anyone anymore, is fooling everyone just the same. And the ones who aren't fooled by it, are still entertained at the presentation.
As I do these tricks more and more, it reaffirms to me that the trick itself is irrelevant. It honestly has nothing to do with the trick. It is all about the performance. Mechanically, I'm doing nothing different in my motions and control over these 1.5 inch red sponge balls than any other magician before me. But it's how I handle my own audience that makes me different.
I watch as these assumed "higher level" magicians do complex tricks. And while the audience is amazed at the trick, it's only the trick that they are captivated by. Meanwhile, I sometimes catch glimpses of vaudevillian style magicians doing ages old routines, busking on the streets, to audiences pouring laughter and applause. Nothing complex in their repertoire, just a healthy amount of stage presence and character.
Over my tenure as a professional magician, I've learned the most valuable lesson ever. The magic is not in the tricks. It's in the faces and experiences of the spectators. It's in the way they see it while you know the secrets. A wiser magician than I once told me, "We aren't keeping the secrets from the audience, we're keeping the secrets for them." He was right. Our secrets make it magic. Our secrets make the magic real. Our secrets make it so adults feel like children, and children continue to believe in the unbelievable.
Any fool can do a trick, it takes a magician to make magic.
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