Nederland, CO is a great little town. The kind of town you might imagine exists only in the realm of imagination, or at the very least, only in some distant rural hideaway. But this remarkable community is a just a short 30-minute drive into the mountains west of Boulder.
It’s the kind of community where if you’re wondering where your friends are hanging out on Friday night, you drive down the main street until you spot their car (no need for Foursquare or Gowalla here).
And for some reason, Nederland has an abundance of top-notch restaurants to choose from. The food here is divine!
Also, once a year the community gathers to celebrate Frozen Dead Guy Days, a winter festival in honor of Grandpa Bredo whose body was frozen and stored in a Tuff Shed some 20 years ago, and who is awaiting the day he can be reanimated.
They have frozen turkey bowling, the frozen fish toss, coffin races, and a parade of hearses. And this year, a little magic, too.
I brought my magic to Frozen Dead Guy Days, and I also brought along my video camera so I could have some fun with the Frozen Dead Guy celebrants.
After sharing some of my magic, I asked people to get goofy. Here’s what happened:
The New York Times calls Jim Steinmeyer the “celebrated invisible man — inventor, designer and creative brain behind many of the great stage magicians of the last quarter-century.” And while I am not a large-scale illusionist (working instead in the realm of sleight of hand), I have the deepest respect for Mr. Steinmeyer and this thoughts on the art of magic.
In a lecture Steinmeyer gave earlier this year (”Robert Harbin & the Polemics of Modern Illusion,” February 2009), he offered his thoughts on why Robert Harbin’s illusions have become classics of modern magic.
One quality Steinmeyer identified was that Harbin’s illusions have “a way in for the magician.” That is, Harbin’s illusions — in their very construction — give the magician something to do (doors to open, panels to insert).
A good illusion allows plenty of room for the magician: things for them to do, elements to talk about and accentuate, and opportunities to be interesting or charming. Like a good song, they are meant to be performed, and they are designed to show off a great performance.
I would extend Steinmeyer’s observation to the performance of close-up magic by proposing this modification: Good close-up magic will have a way in for the audience.
That is, good close-up magic ought to be constructed to allow room for the audience. After all, the very proximity of the audience means that magician and audience share the stage together. Good close-up magic is magic that gives the audience things to do, gives them opportunities to be interesting or charming, allows them to share the limelight.
Magic that requires an audience member to pick a card and then merely sit and watch cannot reach the same potential as magic that gives the participants a way into the action, an opportunity to shuffle the cards, to secure the magician’s sleeves, to inspect the props.
Over the years, through a process of natural selection, I’ve observed that magic that doesn’t offer a way in for the audience (magic in which the audience simply sits and watches) has not earned a place in my professional repertoire.
My close-up magic that allows a way in for the audience is simply better.
Worked a holiday party for a law firm at the Denver Athletic Club on Saturday. About 40 people (law firm partners and their spouses) at a well organized event. My job was to entertain from 6:00 to 7:00 as the guests mingled over hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Dinner was served promptly at 7:00 at which point I packed my bags and headed home.
The lawyers were a fun group to work for and as new people would join a group, I would get called back to do some magic for the newcomers. Times like these, it’s good to have a deep well from which to draw, so that those who were there for the first round will see something fresh — and can’t inadvertently tip the ending to the newbies (”Oh, you’ll like this! I have no idea how the card ends up in his wallet!”), thus spoiling any surprise.
One very important tip for events of this type. Make sure you have a special piece of magic to show the boss. It needs to be strong and it needs to be quick. Naturally, since he or she is your benefactor you would be remiss if you didn’t show them a good piece of magic. But more importantly, it must be quick — like 2-minutes quick. You need to be able to get in and out without monopolizing their time.
At a company function, everyone is going to be jockeying for position to have an audience with the boss. So you won’t have long with the boss before his or her attention is drawn elsewhere. True, if you win them over, they might ask to see more magic (and you should be prepared to oblige), but don’t assume that you’ll be able to complete your 15-minute, 3-phase routine, with the show-stopper ending.
Get in there. Hit ‘em hard. Hit ‘em fast. And be prepared to bow out and let someone else visit with the VIP.
Performed mix & mingle magic for a Bar Mitzvah reception on Saturday.
I’ve been told umpteen times (by other performers) that this is a tough age group to work for, but I’ve never found it so. To be clear, I would NEVER perform “children’s magic” for 13-year-olds. The young people get the same high-caliber magic that I would perform for my grown-up audiences. At this age, they’re more likely to have seen David Blaine or Criss Angel (or Cyril Takayama via YouTube) than their parents, so if you have to be able to deliver the goods.
What makes these gigs fun is that the young people give free rein to their emotions. If you fool them, they will laugh, they will scream, they will run out of the room (and come back with bunch of their friends in tow).
I do suspect that some of my success with young people stems from my age. I’m not a teenage magician (who wouldn’t be worthy of their respect), but I’m also usually younger than their parents (and therefore still able to wear the mantle of hipness). If you’re too close to their age they’ll take you down. Ditto if you’re too old. I happen to be at the right age where I can claim the role of Alpha dog and assert order on what could become a wild pack.
One thing you need to be prepared for is to think on your feet. Unlike the more polite adult audience, young people (giving free reign to their emotions) will call on you to “do it again!” or “roll up your sleeves!” or “let me shuffle the cards!”
So only bring your strongest rock-solid material to these gigs. If you’re working on a new bit and you’re the slightest bit uncertain, they’ll smell your fear and (unlike their parents) they won’t hesitate to call you out.
Hmm. I started off this post by saying that this is not a tough age group to work for, but after reading my own advise, perhaps I should amend that.
Yes, Mitzvah-aged kid are tough to work for. But if you come prepared, if you earn their respect, if you have the confidence to take charge, it’s a fun and rewarding age group to work for.
Had a great time performing at the Lakewood Cultural Center last Saturday as a part of “Magic Beyond Belief III.” For the third year, the Mile High Magicians Society hosted a sold-out performance. I shared the bill with 6 other magicians, including friends, Rich Nakata and Mark Strivings.
The venue is perfect for magic with 316 seats, but steeply raked so that every seat has good sight lines, and everyone feels close to the action. Plus they have a top-notch technical team (thanks Tim, Johnathan, and Star!) and excellent sound and lighting.
I performed one of my workhorse routines in which a playing card is found using a very sharp knife. I’ve spent several years honing this routine to the point that it has become a reliable standby. And thankfully, it requires little more than a pack of playing card. Normally I wouldn’t do this routine for audiences over 200 without a video projection screen to ensure visibility, but knowing how intimate the space was I was confident this would play.
The routine went well and earned a great response for me and my volunteer. Initially, the mood of the audience was somewhat disjointed, but once I got them focused they were very responsive.
Playing for a large audience can be a lot like steering a big ship. When you guide a small boat (or a small audience) you can accelerate quickly and turn nimbly. But working for a big audience you have to think ahead to where you want the audience to be, and begin guiding them early. If you make the audience giddy with laughter, you can’t expect them to change immediately to a serious mood. You have to coax them along, being sensitive to where they are. The audience may not even be aware that you are laying the groundwork for a change of mood, but when you are ready to take them in a new direction, they will have been primed.
I received a key piece of wisdom (in advance of the performance) from my friend Bob Domeros who advised me not to try to pack too much magic into my 15 minute set. He felt that I’d be better able to convey my personality — and to connect to the audience — if I didn’t rush from one magic effect to the next. He was right. Life is good when you have someone who’s directorial advice you can rely on.
Did my mix & mingle magic for the Rocky Mountain Professional Convention Management Association last night. The board members were holding a retreat to plan for 2009, so after their long day of hard work, I was brought in to lighten the moody and reward the board for their efforts.
This was a fairly small group of people (about 25) so I wasn’t under pressure to race from group to group to see everyone before the evening was over. Instead I spent time visiting with people, finding out what they do, and making them feel welcome.
As far as the magic goes, for small groups like this, I start out by doing the same set of magic for each group. Later in the evening, I’ll see new people whom I haven’t entertained — but they’ll be visiting with people for whom I’ve already performed. At this point I can switch to my second set of magic, so that everyone in the group sees something new. Keep your powder dry, in other words.
In the past I’ve made my work more difficult by performing a hodge-podge of magic sets too early in the evening. Then when I’d come across a group with some people who hadn’t seen me work and some people who had, I wasn’t able to keep track of who had seen what.
That’s all I have time for today. I need to cut this short as I’ve got to get ready for a performance tonight.
The Chateaux at Fox Meadows celebrated their 10 year anniversary yesterday evening. The Chateaux is a beautiful venue for weddings and other events, and looks like a French country villa.
I was there at the request of Pat Bruno of A Music Plus. Pat has been very supportive of my work and really helped me get established in the industry, so I owe him a lot. A Music Plus is an entertainment company that provides DJs, Bands, and other entertainers.
I performed in the “Las Vegas Lounge” along with singers (like the incomparable Natalie Ottobrino) , bands, and an Elvis impersonator (who was conducting Vegas style weddings); I did a set from the stage (including the infamous “Jumping Knot of Kuala Lumpor”), and then did a little Mix & Mingle magic for the guests up close and one on one.
Upstairs they had more bands, dancers, a palm reader, hand-rolled cigars, ice sculptures, and delicious cakes by my friend Nancy of Nancy Best Cake Design.
I don’t know the official count, but would say about 300 people attended. The Chateaux and A Music Plus really pulled out all the stops for this one. It’s good to know people who know how to throw a great party.
Best Buy is opening a new store in Boulder, Colorado, and tonight was a special event for their preferred customers. Earlier this year, I had performed magic for after-hours event at a Best Buy in Broomfield, and the management brought be back for an encore performance at their new store.
This type of work requires a performer to be aware of what the management really needs. Yes, they want me to perform magic, they want me to astonish their guests, and they want me to turn their evening into a special event.
But the real reason we are all there is to sell merchandise.
If I build a large crowd and hold them spellbound with a 30 minute performance I’ll look like a superstar, but if those customers leave without buying anything, then Best Buy has wasted their money hiring me.
So with that in mind, tonight I keep the magic short. I thank the customers for coming, remind them of the special discounts (one day only!), and encourage them to look around (lots of cool things at great prices!).
If I see that they are on a mission to buy, I skip the magic all together and lead them directly to a sales rep or to the product they were looking for. Once they’ve found what they are looking for, I may do some magic for them on their way out.
The best people to perform for in this environment were those who I call the tag-alongs. These are people who aren’t there to buy anything, but are there, instead, to accompany someone who is buying. Sometimes this is a friend waiting for his or her friend to buy a TV or game console. Or it may be a spouse waiting for his or her spouse to decide which computer to buy. These people are great to perform for because they have nothing else to do and because I can entertain them without interfering with the sales reps.
After tonight’s performance, they asked me back for their official grand opening, so tomorrow I’ll have a busy evening with Best Buy and the Chateaux at Fox Meadows back to back.
Well, it’s not often that you get to do magic for a 90-year old’s birthday party, but that’s what I did yesterday. Straight from the airport (returning from Las Vegas), I headed over to the Governor’s Mansion for Will’s 90th Birthday party.
For the past month Denverites have seen billboards and other advertisements causing them to ask, “Who is Will?”
Well, at yesterday’s party, Mayor Hickenlooper officially revealed that Will is — in fact — Good Will Industries of Denver. And that for the last 90 years Good Will has been helping at-risk youth, and disabled and disadvantaged adults in the Denver community to achieve self-sufficiency through work.
The event featured local celebrities, donors, and people who have benefited from the work done by Good Will.
What made the magic work so well for this event was that, Alison (the event planner who booked me) took the time to give me the background on the event and on her organization so that I could prepare magic specifically tailored for the occasion. I love working with event planners who take the time to ensure that all aspects of their event work together and complement each other. In this case, I was able to create a card trick in which a playing card magically transformed into a birthday card (for Will), and I was able to create another piece of magic that allowed me to talk about the great things that Good Will has done for Denver over the last 90 years.
Event planners who just hire a magician to do generic magic are missing a great opportunity. If you have a theme or message, make sure it’s reinforced and supported by everyone who contributes to your event.
