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A good magician is really just a good actor playing at being a good magician.  Poor magicians may be technically good, but if they just go through the motions and deliver their act like a robot, then they will never get the appreciative audience that they desire.

 

 

 

 

Introduction to Magic

Putting on a Show
Learning a trick takes a lot of time and dedication, but even the most perfected trick is useless unless there is someone to see it.  Showing it to yourself is no good because you know how it works!  That means putting on a show of some sort and having an audience.  Big or small, expensive or with no expense, the magic ingredient in the show is always the same.  The biggest secret that a magician can learn, although not all magicians do, is that, it is not the trick that is important but the way in which you deliver it.
A good magician is really just a good actor playing at being a good magician.  Poor magicians may be technically good, but if they just go through the motions and deliver their act like a robot, then they will never get the appreciative audience that they desire.  Luckily the more times you do a performance the better performer you will become.  This is because familiarity breeds confidence which in turn allows you to relax and when you relax your real self will emerge.  This is the point at which the performance is truly enjoyable for both you and your audience.

Choose Your Magic Carefully
Make sure that you select the right type of magic to specialise in, one that matches your personality.  It is no good presenting comedy magic if you can’t tell funny stories.  What ever your personality is like, then there is a branch of magic that will suit you.  Find a dominate trait in your character, such as being clumsy, loud mouthed, quiet, shy, bold or whatever and then extend it into your stage act.  Just like a favourite coat or pair of shoes you will soon feel comfortable with your stage persona.  Do not attempt to adopt a shotgun approach and fire off a selection of different types of tricks, try instead to rationalise your act.  If you perform card tricks then perform card tricks, don’t try escaping from handcuffs at the same time! That is unless your personality matches that sort of act!

Amaze Your Audience
Always remember that being a magician is always a two way illusion.  You the magician know that it is not really magic and that there is a trick to it that you do not want the audience to know.  On the other hand, the audience also know that it is not magic and that there is a trick to it, but they don’t want you to let them find it out.  Your audience is willing and prepared to let you maintain this fiction for as long as you can persuade them with your charm, enthusiasm and your total belief in your magic.  If you believe then so will they.  If you break that spell then the trick will fail, but neither you nor your audience want that to happen.  They are on your side.

Expect the Unexpected
Never be fooled by thinking that it will be alright on the night.  It will never be alright on the night because something unexpected will always happen.  You have to be so familiar with your material and tricks that you can make changes during the performance and not let the audience know any difference. 
There is only one to achieve this and that is to practise, practise, practise and then practise some more.  You should not only practise your act until you could do it in your sleep, but also look at every element of the performance and work out what could go wrong with it.  Then, if it could go wrong, you can be certain that one day it will, so practise what you would do if it did go wrong.  How would you incorporate it into your act?   How would you go about picking up the object that just dropped? What do you say when a trick doesn’t work? 

Don't Forget to Move
Slow smooth hand gestures are a major part of any illusion and so practise these, as well the movement of your body.  Magicians in their early days are concentrating on the trick so much that they forget to move.  Practise how you come on at the start of your act.  You must look confident and self-assured.  What will you do when your audience claps? Taking a bow can look silly when done by someone who is uncomfortable and self-conscious.
The audience will also need cues about your act, about when the climax of the trick is coming and when to clap.  These can be small, simple gestures like a smile or a movement of the arms or an extended pause.  Choreograph your act so that it engages with and helps the audience and makes them your friend and not your enemy.  Make them smile, make them laugh, make them wonder in amazement, but most of all enjoy yourself.

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