An Evening at The Mystery Lounge.

•August 23, 2012 • Leave a Comment

I had one of those rare ‘everything was great’ evening performing last night at the fabulous ‘Mystery Lounge’ in Cambridge, MA. Maybe I’m getting a little cynical as I get older, but I seldom just really enjoy a gig from the moment I walk through the door until after I have left. I did last night!

It was my good fortune to be booked at the ‘Mystery Lounge’ last night with my friends Joe Howard and Steve Kradolfer, they were wonderful hosts and tremendous performers who had the crowd screaming with their polished and laugh packed acts.

The ‘Lounge’ was created over 13 years ago and is Boston’s longest running magic and comedy club. It has become a very real part of the fabric of the always fun Cambridge scene. It must be very gratifying to its two founding producers, Steve Kradolfer and Jon Stetson to see the continued success of their ‘brainchild.’

I remember, back in the height of the comedy club era, always looking forward to playing in Cambridge at the ‘Catch a Rising Star’ club. One of the reasons I enjoyed it was that I got to spend some time with Jon Stetson—one of magic’s very nicest people! On one visit Jon told me about the Magic Lounge idea, and its Tuesday night occupancy. 13 years later the project is still going strong!

The audience in the Mystery Lounge is a great mix of ages and people. Magicians are scattered in the crowd with magic lovers, and they are so enthusiastic that it truly warms one’s heart. The 8:00 pm show started promptly at 8:15 and then the action never stopped. The audience really got their money’s worth and it was tough to keep the show to a sensible length.

The core group of performers, who are at the centre of the ‘Lounge’ are Jon Stetson, Steve Kradolfer, Mike Bent, Joe Howard David Oliver and Bob Riordan. That is quite a line-up of talent for the talent pool, other local and visiting magicians add too the performance roster. What is amazing is how fresh the whole event feels and how genuinely friendly things are.

I love the structure of the show they present each Tuesday, no boring opening/middle/closing format at the lounge. Boston is famous in the comedy world for the way their shows are usually hosted by the headliner–who goes into overdrive and whips the audience into shape. He introduces a couple of acts as his special guests and then finishes the show with his actual set. This system really works!

Joe Howard opened up the bill last night with a ten minute set that had the audience, eating out of the palm of his hand. He was funny, street savvy and smoother than silk. In ten minutes he took the crowd from zero to 100, and that was just for openers.

Steve Kradolfer followed Joe and kept the pace moving perfectly. He is a very funny man and he does some great magic. His ‘Cards Across’ was a perfect exercise in how to handle two assistants onstage and get laughs without any sense of embarrassment. He has a line for everything—and they are all funny. You realize instantly with Steve that you are in the hands of a real pro and just settle back and enjoy the ride. His closing ‘bit’ is an inspired and original comedy/magic routine that perfectly concluded his 25-minute performance, I was ready to watch much more!

Joe returned to the stage and picked up the energy still further, by the time he had finished his 15 minute second set the crowd was roaring. Joe truly has one of the greatest routines for the ‘Cups and Balls’ and it is visible and perfect entertainment even in a full showroom setting. I am usually not a big fan of the ‘Cups and Balls’ onstage, however Joe made me realize how wrong about it I could be.

Next on the bill, local Stand-Up comedian, Langston Kerman performed a smooth and effective ten minute set of pure stand-up. He was a nice addition to the show and as the audience had seen plenty of great magic and were ready for a ‘comedy break.’ It made a very nice touch to feature a classic comedy monologist at this point in the show.

It is a rare thing to fall into a beautifully oiled machine, designed to maximize your working environment. Thank you all for letting me participate in the evening. If you are not familiar with the Mystery Lounge check out their website www.mysterylounge.com and if you are in the Boston area, block of that Tuesday on your calendar—you won’t regret it!

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Great new magic footage on my webstite…….

•August 20, 2012 • Leave a Comment

The Max Maven interview on ‘The E-Files.

I just felt inspired and did the minor editing necessary to place a really cool interview with the masterful Max Maven into Cyberland. Max just killed with his one-man show back East and is one of my favorite ‘magical minds.’ I was delighted to have Max as a guest on my weekly entertainment series. ‘The Entertainment Files.’ It was a fun interview to film and I think it still look great a decade later. Plus …..Max does a great live trick on the show!

The theme of the show was movies and not magic, hence the many movie related lines of communication. I loved Max’s answers to his favorite movies.

Check out the 21 minute interview on my website. I think you will enjoy it

http://lewinenterprises.weebly.com/whats-new1.html

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Magic, Mentalism and stuff!

•August 14, 2012 • 4 Comments

I have been a fan and student of mentalism since I was a teenager, studying the performers and literature of this genre very carefully.  I grew up watching Al Koran, Chan Canasta, The Great Fogel and David Berglas on British television, and consider them powerful early influences. I was lucky enough to become a friend of the great Maurice Fogel and learned much from him. Mentalism has come a long way since I sat watching those performers on our old black and white ‘telly’ in England.

At this time mentalism is probably the fastest growing and most commercial form of magic. There I said it! However, in spite of my love for this branch of magic, I have never been tempted to become a committed ‘Mind Reader.‘ I guess it largely falls back on a slightly abstract and existential belief/observation.

If you construct a show entirely of ‘mental magic’ it is easy to get caught up in an, ‘I’m smarter than you, and have powers you don’t’— kind of syndrome. This has never felt comfortable to me; I find it somewhat distasteful, rather like the ‘I’m fooling you……’ school of magic.  If you are not careful you can end up looking strangely precious and pretentious, without even knowing it.

I have seen many lesser mentalists bask onstage in the reflected glory of non-existent powers that their audiences just don’t buy into. In fact sometimes it looks like the ‘Mind Reader’ is fooling himself more than his spectators. When this happens it makes me highly uncomfortable.

Most of those early mentalists I used to watch perform in the 60s, made quite a deal of proclaiming that there was nothing supernatural or indeed psychic about their work. A disclaimer early on in their shows would impress upon their audiences that everything they accomplished was done so by purely natural means. My guess is that they didn’t want to be confused with some of the charlatans populating the fringe areas of their world. I can understand this, but can’t help feeling it was a little counter intuitive to their best results.

I liked the easy authority that Koran brought to the art when he blended magic and mind reading into one show. He saw no problem mixing the two together—and neither did his audiences. In fact the mentalism was strengthened by his synergistic approach to the mixing of the two elements and it never weakened the audience’s reaction to his feats. Here was a remarkable man who did remarkable things. Isn’t that enough!

The opening words to Koran’s show were, ” Tonight I’m going to read your minds, but some of you may think it’s a trick, so what I’m going to do is show you a trick and then read your minds, and let you tell the difference.” I really like the attitude and style contained in these words. They left some ‘wriggle room’ in the mind of his audience. This approach remains my preferred way to create a powerful impact without backing yourself into a corner.

I would have to say that Uri Geller has been the most important and pivotal figure in the steady transformation of mentalism as a contemporary force in magical entertainment. He did something very simple—he pretty much implied that what he did was real!  Once the initial uproar over Geller’s claims to legitimacy was over, for the most part, things moved in different direction. Magician/mentalists began to suggest that their ability to influence ongoing events was due to a superior understanding of psychology and psychological processes.

Max Maven, for whom I have the utmost respect as a thinker, performer, person and magical philosopher, created a truly elegant framework for his persona based on his (pretty darn realistic) statements about his psychological and linguistic skills. He made the presentation of mental magic seem more realistic and reasonable without ever allowing his effects to be less devastating in their impact. His exploration and transformation of mentalism has revolutionized the field. Max’s books, treatises and video output is a phenomenal gift to the magic world—study them.

Recently, in England, Derren Brown has captivated an entire nation with his contemporary take on mental/psychological magic. He looks and acts in a highly effective manner, which allows his viewers to ascribe any skills or powers to him without being hokey for even a nano-second. He acts, speaks and dresses like a successful young businessman and entertainer. Does this mean that large segments of the public do not believe him to be a true psychic? Of course not!

Suddenly every magician seems to want to be a mind reader! However I am a firm believer that the future of mentalism, lies not in every magician proclaiming himself to be psychic, but in a steady progression of intelligently combining these two aspects of our craft. Currently mindreading is a highly commercial act for a buyer to book, but I think this is a golden goose waiting to become an overworked cliché with overexposed golden eggs.

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There is nothing like a good book! Here are three!

•August 8, 2012 • Leave a Comment

When I arrived in America it was a joy to discover the wonderfully written books of Harry Lorayne. They contained great tricks that were meticulously detailed and had an exciting blast of the author’s abrasive personality fully intact within the pages. You could make a great living just by mastering the content of Lorayne’s first three books. Heck, I did for several years.

It has recently been my joy to be reading three brilliant books simultaneously, learning and enjoying each of them to the utmost degree. I want to share them with you, if they can give you a fraction of the pleasure they have afforded me, then I have done my good deed for the day.

 New Zealand is the home to one of magic’s most prolific and talented authors Richard Webster. Richard is a master of both ideas and craft in his writing. He has published over a hundred books, which have been translated into 29 languages! No wonder I am proud to consider him my major inspiration as a writer of magical works. It was with a great deal of excitement that I just mailed him a copy of my first two books, in honesty, it made me just a touch nervous as well.

I have been dipping into Richard’s latest book on mentalism, ‘Neal Scryer and Friends,’ like some lucky sorcerer’s apprentice with sudden access to the Philosopher’s Stone. It is an amazing work that should be savored by anyone interested in this deliciously complex and exciting area of the magic world. It is not an inexpensive book—GOOD! This kind of information should not be scattered at random as it is too special.

 

 

Now he wasn’t actually christened or given the birth name of Handsome Jack, in fact many of you will know him by his ‘real world’ name John Lovick. Handsome Jack is the delightfully quirky alter ego of the scholarly and rather serious Mr. Lovick. They are a mighty fine pair of magicians!

I’m not saying that Jack isn’t handsome, but it sure gets a huge laugh when he walks out after being introduced as the Castle’s resident sex symbol. In many ways it is quite difficult to fully define what ‘H.J.’s character really is all about. It is self-depreciating and carefully considered, all at the same time. I’m going to revert to the word I used before quirky.

I have also been really enjoying John Lovick’s ‘Switch.’ It is an encyclopedic and scholarly study of dollar bill switches, and a goldmine to someone like myself who makes a living largely through the $100 Bill Switch. Like Richard’s recent book, it combines the author’s insights with wonderful contributions from his illustrious friends and colleagues. Fabulous information.

 

 

 

Most recently, I have been glued to David Regal’s ‘Approaching Magic’ book. Wow, what a great read! I have been a huge fan of David’s work, ever since reading the Harry Lorayne book describing his earliest routines many years ago. His ideas just keep getting better and even more commercial as the years go by.

‘Approaching Magic’ contains great tricks, good advice, fabulous theory and some great comedy lines! What more could you hope for in a book? It is going to be my travel companion for many months to come, and then take a position of pride in my bookshelf right next to Ron Wilson, Billy McComb and Mr. Scryer’s work! I have no higher praise.

If you want to reward yourself with a treat, go to David’s website www.regalmagic.com and order a signed copy for a (currently) discounted rate of $60. You will thank me for the tip—and so will your audiences!

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‘Michael Finney’s Dry Heat Classic Heat 2001’

•July 13, 2012 • 1 Comment

Everyone in the magic world knows what a gem we have in our midst with Michael Finney. He is a brilliant comedy magician, a true patriot and a philanthropist, and also performs the funniest rope routine in magic! As promised in my last blog, I want to take the time this week to tell you about a project that is near and dear to his heart.

In the past 15 years ‘The Michael Finney Foundation’ has nurtured the ‘Dry Heat Classic from modest beginnings and transformed it into one of the countrie’s most eagerly anticipated charity events. Michael Finney is Arizona’s master comedian magician and he has added magic to the lives of all the people who have been affected by his tirelessly philanthropic nature.

As a result of Michael’s foundation, over $900,000 has been donated to a variety of worthwhile charities in the last 15 years. This isn’t how much money was raised, but is how much cash has actually ended up going to assist needy children. Every donation of $6000 can provide open-heart surgery for a child, surgery that would normally cost $150,000. That is an amazing amount of lives touched and transformed, and each year the numbers keeps increasing.

The recipients from ‘The Dry Heat Classic 2012’ charity golf tournament also include ‘Gift of Life,’ ‘Operation Smile,’  ‘Wounded Warriors’ and ‘The Arizona Spinal Cord Injury Association’—a chapter of the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The ‘Dry Heat’s’ sweet sixteen celebration will spread some very sweet relief to a wide range of excellent causes during the year ahead.

At the heart of the foundation, and supervising every step of the tournament, are Michael and his multi-talented wife Lori SooHoo Finney. Together they have developed an unbeatable format for making ‘The Dry Heat Classic’ a highlight event for all their attendees. There formula is simple, they do it by throwing a great three-day party where golf, fine food and world-class entertainment are blended together into an irresistible package.

I had the pleasure of taking part in the ‘Dry Heat’ two years ago and can tell you first hand just how much fun it is. If you have the chance to attend I can promise you an event you will never forget. Whether you attend for the golf, the magic or the comedy you are in for a treat.

The beautiful ‘Wild Horse Pass Hotel and Casino’ and the ‘Whirl Wind Golf Course’ are the location of the ‘Dry Heat Classic’ and they are the perfect place to house an event of this nature, making a superb base for every aspect of the activities. They comprise a perfect blend of design, location and spirit, which elegantly highlights each facet of the three-day celebration.

One of America’s most sought after stand-up performers, Finney persuades many of his best friends in the world of comedy, magic, sports and entertainment to join him each year for this special event. In fact the various shows that accompany the tournament have become so popular that a special package is now available for non-golfers who just want to attend the fine dining and entertainment events.

A multi-award winning magician, Michael succeeds in presenting many of the world’s most prestigious magical entertainers during his gala events. This year is no exception and the tournament is hosting a special tribute to one of magic’s most iconic teams, the legendary, Mark and Nani Wilson. As stars of groundbreaking network TV series, such as the ‘Magic Land of Allakazam’ Mark and Nani’s live and television appearances have been a huge influence to entire generations of magicians.  Mark and Nani will be accompanied at the tournament by their son Greg and his beautiful wife Ayako.

During the festivities, guests of honor Mark and Nani Wilson will be joined onstage by such magical notables as; Steven Bargatze, Mike Douglas, Kenton Knepper, Max Krause, Fielding West, Greg Wilson, Larry Wilson, Ken Scott, Luna Shimada, and Brad Zinn. The magic featured will be world class and unique in its breadth and scope. From dazzling close-up miracles to stunning full-scale illusions, there are guaranteed to be gasps of amazement throughout.

Adding laughter to the shows will be a host of comedians familiar to television viewers.  Adding comedic pizzazz to the event are funnymen; Nate Bargatze, Bruce ‘Babyman’ Baum, David Gee, Denny Johnston, Jack Mayberry, Tom McTigue, John Mendoza, and the emotional and highly anticipated return to the ‘Dry Heat’ by the beloved comedy team O’Brien & Valdez. A host of other celebrities from the sporting and entertainment world will also be in attendance.

From July 26th to the 28th, the stars will be shining as brightly inside ‘The Wild Horse Hotel and Casino’ as in the desert skies above the resort. Best of all, when the party winds down, there will be a wonderful residual benefit, another sizeable contribution to some truly deserving charities. Congratulations to Michael and Lori are in order for the wonderful job they do year after year with this event.

For registration and full details of ‘The Dry Heat Classic’ click on their website at www.dryheatclassic.com

If you want to check out my website go to www.nicklewin.com

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Magnificent Magic at the Magic Castle.

•July 6, 2012 • Leave a Comment

I spent two nights at the Magic Castle last week and was rewarded by seeing some World Class magic and a new Magic Castle tradition that is shaping up to revolutionize the already magic nights at the world’s greatest magic club. I was delighted to spend some of this time at the Castle with visiting Aussie magicians Steve Walker, Peter Rodgers and Graham Etherington. Let me take the time this week to share these events with our Magic New Zealand readers.

The Palace of Mysteries was lucky enough to act as home to two of my favorite magic acts last week. By the huge reaction from magicians and laypeople alike I am not alone in my admiration for Michael Finney and Jason Andrews. They are two very different performers who are both at the top of their fields and combined with opening act Mystina they totally rocked the house.

At 25 years old, Jason Andrews is developing into one America’s most elegant and accomplished manipulative magicians. With over 25 International Awards to his credit, Jason is fast becoming one of the most in-demand performers on the scene. His ‘Contemporary Classic’ act was on display at the Castle and it is the freshest and most entertaining show of its kind since Lance Burton first took the magic world by storm.

What sets Andrews apart from his contemporaries is more than just his easy combination of charm, skill and talent. Jason has mastered the all too rare ability to add a vulnerability and accessibility to his performance that gives him an instant appeal. His facial expressions and self-depreciating manner, as he shares his miracles with an audience is quite unique. In this regard he reminds me a little of the young Fred Kaps and this is as high praise as I know how to give.

Anchoring the show and providing more laughs per minute than would normally be expected from any three performers rolled into one, was the inimitable Michael Finney. Not only does Michael have a perfectly crafted comedy line for every situation, but he also has the timing of a true master as he delivers them. The jokes and lines are great but he also gets huge reactions by his looks, takes and mugging. Not many performers can get a roar of laughter just by scrunching their face up—Finney can and does!

I was excited to hear from Michael that this year his annual ‘Dry Heat Classic’ charity golf tournament, is going to be dedicated to magical treasures and icons Mark and Nani Wilson. The ‘Dry Heat’ has become one of the most prestigious gatherings of comedians, magicians and entertainers on the top-rung charity circuit. It will take place in Phoenix July 26th-28th and in next weeks column I am planning to give more details about the event and the performers taking part in the ‘Mark and Nani Wilson Tribute. If you are a golfer or a lover of fine food and entertainment it is not to be missed!

I made a repeat visit to the Castle to catch the special show in the ‘Peller Theatre’ this week. ‘The Peller’ is fast becoming the hottest ticket in the Castle on Friday-Sunday nights. It is a jewel box of a theatre that boasts a two-act format, which is becoming a showcase for some highly unique magical performances.

Rather than just having the entertainers appearing back to back, the recent trend has been for the performers to blend their talents into something unique and special. Recent weeks have featured shows that have been rated as Castle highlights by people whose opinions I trust. I was determined not to miss last week’s appearance by Shoot Ogawa and his magical mentor Mashiro Yanagida. It was very definitely worth the visit.

The ‘tag –team’ performance by these masterful performers was a joy to behold. The obvious bond and respect between them created a synergy that made for great magic and strong theatre. It was a non-stop 45 minutes of magical delights that were made all the more special by the fact that the program had so obviously been designed and constructed for just this occasion. The show was charming and delighted the audience from start to finish.

My congratulations to Jack Goldfinger who is working hard to nurture this gem of a theatre and use it to create something new and different. Sometimes the Castle can seem a little static when performers present the same show on each appearance. This combining of talents is a great addition for members and guests alike and I hope it continues and expands throughout the club.

In fact, I loved the combo-performance in the ‘Peller Theatre’ so much that I had to revamp plans for my upcoming engagement there! I am booked in the ‘Peller’ from July 13th-15th with the one and only Joe Monti, and I realized that we should do something different! Joe was game for it and we are going to cook up something special in our ‘Three Day Only’ special engagement. We have entitled the show ‘We’re no Angels!’ and I suspect it will make my first Castle engagement in 27 years very special for me.  I will also be lecturing on the July 15th—-so come visit if you can and say “Hi.”

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Some reflections on Finger Ring Linking!

•June 30, 2012 • 2 Comments

It is with a great sigh of relief and also pride that I have concluded the one-year project of releasing my ‘Ultimate Linking Finger Ring Routine’ today. The book is written, edited, illustrated and published. The CD is recorded and re-produced. The DVD is filmed, edited, mastered and burned. It was a true labor of love.

It was a lot of work, to try and do full justice to describing this eleven-minute chunk from my show. However, it has taken me over 35 years to get this trick right and I was determined to take the time and effort to do it right. This particular piece of magic has done very well for me and I wanted to repay it in kind.

The trick was the brainchild of the fine magician, dedicated practical joker and famous bandleader Richard Himber. Or was it? There has always been a powerful current of opinion from knowledgeable magicians that it was actually created by mathematically genius magician Persi Diaconis. I suspect it was something of collaboration, but Mr. Himber’s name was the one that was firmly attached to it from the start.

The first time I heard about this effect was when I was a kid, and magicians described (in almost hushed voices) the reaction to it when the great Al Koran performed it. Sadly, I never got to witness Koran presenting it. In fact I never saw anyone perform it before I added it to my show. There were very few routines in print in those days and after reading all of the ones that were available in the Magic Castle library, I then created my own from scratch. I had hated all the ones I had read!

The reason I wanted to perform the trick was simple; Marvyn (Mr. Electric) Roy told me that I should! When I was 21 years old I worked a gig with the awesome Marvyn and Carol Roy and during a late night breakfast at Denny’s, Marvyn created an entire act for me that consisted of linking things together. I was to become ‘Link Lewin’ (not a bad name actually) and the centerpiece of this show was to be the Himber Linking Finger Rings.

Well, I never created an entire ‘linking’ show or changed my name to Link, but the seed was sown and I was determined to perform this trick. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. There are few tricks in magic that create the emotional response that the Linking Finger Rings do. I had been introduced to an effect that would shape my entire magical career.

The two things I was determined to make central to my routine were that I would never use a plant to loan me a ring and that I would never link just three rings. The more I looked at the routine the more I realized that ‘borrowing’ a phony ring from a stooge in the audience was not the way to create the true miracle that was possible with the effect.

The trouble with using a stooge is that people talk (especially after an effect like this) and if you link just three rings then all the attention is on the center ring. I wanted to perform the effect anytime, anywhere and give the appearance of freely linking four or five rings in a chain before having them examined. I still believe these are two vital points for the performer to overcome in presenting this effect.

The routine was originally created and shaped during my Magic Castle performances in the 70s. It was also the key to my first national television appearance on ‘The Merv Griffin Show’ in 1979. Two years later I was asked to perform it for Orson Welles during the star studded Hollywood Foreign Press tribute to Mr. Welles. That remains one of the most memorable engagements of my career.

Since then I can only guess how many times I have linked and unlinked spectators finger rings. I was even nominated for an ACE award for its presentation of it on a Cable Television appearance. I have performed it in clubs, bars and theaters until it became the most vital single ingredient in my act. One tiny ring!

As I slow down from my crazed performing days, I am now excited to see if I can capture the essence of this routine and pass it on to other performers. It took me a year to do it (along with my brilliant graphic designer friend—Steve Mitchell) and now I am excited to know I have succeeded: I am even more excited to see what other performers can add to the mix when they perform it. I have also booked my first Magic Castle date in 28 years from July13th-15th in the Peller Theatre. This will bring a circle to completion when I perform the Linking Finger Rings there again. This semi-retirement thing looks like being fun!

I have recently taken some ‘time out’ to create a couple of new web sites, one of them just for magicians. I am uploading some really cool video of conversations with master magicians taken from my 90s Las Vegas interview show ‘The Entertainment Files.’ Currently featured is an interview with Mac King. Interviews with other magic icons such as Max Maven, Lance Burton and Jeff McBride will follow.

Please check out the sites by logging into www.nicklewin.com and bookmark it to catch the updates. I think you will enjoy them.

 

 

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Talking about tricks and texture!

•June 30, 2012 • Leave a Comment

Last week I gave some ideas about adding dynamics to your show and this week I am going to finish my thoughts by discussing adding texture. This double approach can be very successful in giving a good make over to any show. Let’s begin with a dictionary definition

Texture.

The feel, appearance, or consistency of a surface or a substance: skin texture and tone | the cheese is firm in texture | the different colors and textures of bark.

The quality created by the combination of the different elements in a work of music or literature.

In my last blog entry we discussed dynamics it was more focused on the audio aspect of these two concepts, as this was the direction that the word generally points to. As you might guess from the definition of texture, our thoughts are moving this week into a more tactile direction. Texture is usually associated with fabric or material. Material is something we can definitely discuss in our performance make over!

Last week I concentrated on what is said/how it is said in a show. By extension the statements also could be applied to the music that you use to complete the presentation of your show. Now let’s talk about the different tricks that create the structure of your performance. Everything said here can be applied to any kind of magic show. An easy simplification of the concept of texture is to think of it as variety. When you are putting together a show you need to create a nice varied collection of effects to capture your audiences’ heart, mind and attention.

Your presence and persona can create a unifying effect over the show but the show itself needs to be created from a broad spectrum of elements and effects.

looked at my show one day and realized it primarily consisted of ‘torn and restored’ and  ‘restoration’ effects. I guess they really appealed to me and initially I even half way convinced myself that there was a theme going on in my show. However, the more I thought about it the more I realized that the act needed a few other effects to be a rounded presentation. I created a less lopsided menu for myself, and the show really improved as a result. The curious part was that I wasn’t consciously aware how many similar effects had bonded together in my show in the first place; I guess it happened gradually.

If you are doing a close-up show you might want to check that you aren’t top heavy with card tricks. I love card tricks but many people get turned off after two or three in a row. You can achieve a much more textured effect by adding a coin or a ring trick into the mix. By planning out the show in this manner you can make it much more varied and appealing, especially to a lay audience.

Even if you perform a dedicated ‘all-card show,’ the principle is the same. Don’t do six ‘pick a card’ tricks in a row, but instead combine a selection of different styled tricks to comprise your show. You can apply some of the variations described in the next paragraph to add texture to this hypothetical card show.

What are some of the basic values that can be assigned to a trick/effect when using your mental paintbrush to create a rounded

performance?  A trick can be funny or serious, short or long, or any of a thousand variations between these opposites. It can be surprising, amusing, unusual, romantic, shocking, cerebral, scary, beautiful, classical etc. etc. Of course it isn’t really any of these things until you make it so and this is what makes an infinite variety possible to all performers.

Some of the classifications you want to watch out for when composing your show are ‘repetitive’ and ‘boring!’ Sometimes, of course, you need to employ repetition to make a trick work— the 6 Card Repeat wouldn’t be very effective if you only performed the basic effect once. However, the fact that you need repetition doesn’t mean that you can’t guard against boredom sneaking in to it. When performing this rather standard trick I introduce a little variation into the proceedings by suddenly finding I have 3 cards and throwing away 6 cards only to find I still have 3 cards. I then revert to the standard method of having 6 cards and throwing away 6.

That is a simple example of how to introduce texture within a single trick. It keeps the audience watching more closely and interested in what you are doing. The same applies to the overall show. Are all the tricks you are performing about the same length in timing? This is a very easy habit to fall into and even easier to cure. Throw in a couple of shorter tricks to break up the pacing a little.

I used to write all the facts, timings, props etc associated with a trick on index cards and put them into box in three groups—openers, middles and closers. I would then create my show by shuffling the index cards into different sequences. I might look at the cards and realize that three tricks in a row involved audience participation—time to shuffle the cards or swap them around. You really could analyze and structure your show this way. Of course, now I use the Bento program on my computer, but the process is identical.

I hope these musings have been of some interest and maybe even given you a fresh insight into adding some dynamics and texture to your show!

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Adding some texture and dynamics to your show.

•June 6, 2012 • Leave a Comment

 There are two simple ides that I would like to discuss in this column, between the two they add some powerful tools to the performers ‘bag of tricks.’ These two subtleties are texture and dynamics and while closely related they are certainly not identical, instead they are complimentary in nature. Let’s begin the old fashioned way, with a dictionary definition or two.

Dynamics.

In musical terms, ‘The varying levels of volume of sound in different parts of a musical performance.’

Using the word as a noun, a force that stimulates change or progress within a system or process.

Texture.

The quality created by the combination of the different elements in a work of music or literature.

I am asking you to think about employing these two ideas into one step to improve your show.  We will start with dynamics and I will ‘Tweak’ the definition slightly, ‘To use varying levels of volume of sound in different parts of a performance in order to create a force that stimulates change or progress within your show.’

I watch a great many performers who never greatly vary the volume, pitch or pacing of what they say, and how they say it, during their show. They settle for a monotone effect that is similar to what is sometimes referred too as a ‘conversational tone.’ You can significantly improve the impact of your performance by making it a little more theatrical and a little less conversational.

Don’t be afraid to really highlight parts of your show by making your voice louder or perhaps letting it sink to a whisper. Each of these vocal deliveries has its own effect and impact on an audience. They can both draw special attention to what you are saying and the actions that accompany the words spoken. They can jolt an audience into attention or seduce them into silence, both very useful techniques.

During my 50-minute show, I work hard at building the audience into loud responsive fits of laughter and then ‘turning on a dime’ and creating a momentary silence, which is all the more effective because of the dynamic range between itself and the unrestrained laughter that proceeded it. It makes for a much more interesting show.

In my work I take this a step further and concentrate very carefully on the ‘highs and lows’ that my voice uses to convey my words. You can achieve an effect (or create a laugh) just by letting your voice rise or fall in tone, as well as in its volume. Before I begin any show I take five or ten minutes to explore the range of my voice. I perform vocal exercises to strengthen the upper and lower boundaries of my vocal range.

How do you know what will work best for a specific phrase, punchline or statement? You ‘mix it up a bit’ and experiment as you perform your shows and see what works. The very worst that will happen is that you expose the audience to your larger vocal palette. If ‘Variety is the spice of life’ then variety must also be an excellent ingredient for a variety act!

Nowadays it is commonplace for magicians to extensively videotape their shows and watch the resulting tapes to improve their show. This is great, however, the performer watching these tapes is often a great deal more aware of what he is doing than what he is saying—much less the subtleties of how he is saying it. As an organ the eye tends to influence us much more directly than the ear.

It is possible to learn a huge amount about yourself as a performer by slipping your iPhone in your top pocket and making an audio recording of what happens during your show. There is an entirely different dynamic involved in the use of the eye and the ear and it starts to open your mind to potential improvements just by realizing this and isolating your vocal performance,

While you are listening to this audio recording take the opportunity to notice, AND WRITE DOWN, every superfluous statement or words you use. You will be shocked by how much time you waste saying unnecessary things just to fill in time because of something you are doing. Is there a more economical way to choose your words that will allow you to create a more streamlined and effective presentation? Almost definitely, and sometimes by filling that verbal time with a more carefully chosen and polished audio you will make huge strides as a performer.

By carefully analyzing and improving the vocal dynamics of your performance you will have gone a great distance towards improving the overall texture of your show. Texture is the second word I began this blog by defining and we will look at it more closely next week.

Let me finish by saying that although I am choosing to illustrate my ideas about this topic using verbal examples, everything I am saying could, with minor changes, be applied to the material with which you are performing. If this is too abstract then I will happily add a third blog with some examples and hints about putting these thoughts into application in this area. Let me know your thoughts.

‘Cruise Magic 101: how to make a great living performing magic on a cruise ship.’ It is a really great book with tips, tricks and powerful techniques for shaping your performing skills to include bookings in this flourishing marketplace. If you want a signed copy of the book, in it’s early release; contact me at  http://www.nicklewin1@mac.com

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Keeping The Show Fresh and Interesting.

•May 31, 2012 • Leave a Comment

I am a great believer in working hard to keep your show as fresh and up to date as possible. Unlike most performing skills this one doesn’t automatically get easier the longer you have been performing your show. In fact, in some ways it gets harder and harder as time goes on, to remain fresh.

Bob Dylan has described the most difficult part of aging, developing and improving your show as, “Learning to do consciously, what you used to do unconsciously.’ There aren’t many people who use words as carefully and effectively as Dylan or who have re-invented themselves more times. After more than 50 years as a performer who matters and whose career keeps hitting new heights, I think that comment is worth doing a little private meditation upon.

When we begin (as most of us did) performing magic shows as kids, it is easy to be fresh and appealing, it is a huge part of the success we achieve.The longer you perform the more necessary it is to look at your show with fresh eyes. It can become very easy to become slicker but less interesting as performers. Although we still get the audience reaction we want, sometimes we loose the audience’s empathy, which is the magic ingredient that marks all great entertainers.

It is possible to become so immune to the immediacy of our show that we are saying words, or performing actions, without feeling the emotions that should be causing those words or actions to take place. There is much talk in magic about Robert Houdin’s statement, ‘A magician is an actor playing the part of a magician.’ Good actors worry more about being ‘in the moment’ than they do about acting. Gary Cooper once said, “Acting is great, just never get caught doing it.” I believe the same holds true for performing.

How did Bob Dylan master this art of rediscovery of self? He spent a decade on what is now known as ‘The Never Ending Tour,’ and just performed gig after gig after gig changing something every time he performed. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t—he didn’t care. He was just trying to recapture his state of mind when he was young, fresh and bold enough to create some of the most important songs in musical history.

One night he would sing ‘Like A Rolling Stone’ as a country waltz, the next night as a snarling blues. The next night it was an angry attack and then a rueful ballad of regret. Every night he played in different keys and used different chords to try and regain the spirit within him that created the song in the first place. Each night he was interested in finding at least one new and fresh moment of truth in his performance.

By the end of the first decade of ‘The Never Ending Tour’ he had taken those songs and turned them inside out—sometimes making them almost unrecognizable in the process. This didn’t always make his old fans happy and a lot of them dropped away in the process. However something strange began to happen and young people started to attend his concerts again. The new younger audience he acquired recognized the truth and sincerity with which he was dismantling and rebuilding his legacy.

Then something really exciting began to happen, and after a decade of scarcely writing a new song, he started to write some of the finest songs of his entire career. He made exciting and commercial albums that received huge critical acclaim. Of course, these albums didn’t sound like they did in the first rush of his creativity in the ‘60s; they had a maturity and insight that his early work was always building towards. To put it another way, he started to be able to achieve consciously what he once achieved unconsciously.

Now it may seem that I have wandered a long way from doing a magic show, but the title of the column is ‘Keeping the show fresh,’ and that is why I used Dylan’s process as an inspiration. Of course, you and I aren’t genius level icons like Bob Dylan, but if we want to keep on performing for 50 years and remain as popular, relevant and successful as he has then we may find a very important lesson here. I did.

I compressed the first decade of Dylan’s ‘Never Ending Tour’ into the five years I spent performing my one-man show in Las Vegas in the mid ‘90s. I performed two one-hour shows a day, six days a week, 48 weeks a year for nearly five years. That is a lot of shows.After the first two years I discovered what the term ‘Vegasy’ meant and why it was so used as an insult. I would be performing and not even thinking about what I was saying to the audience. I’d say things like “Good afternoon, welcome to the show,” and, not only not mean the words I was saying, but not even know I had said them! The show incidentally, was a huge success and getting great reaction—I just wasn’t there to be part of it.

Then I began to try and do something new everyday, say something totally different or even use a different voice; in order to wake myself up at some point. I would then try and stay awake and be ‘in the moment’ for the remainder of the show. This is what I have been doing ever since and it has resulted in a quantum leap in my performing skills.

The strangest thing in the world is when you discover that it is possible, without realizing it, to spend a large part of your day in a state of sleep. It may be shallower than nighttime sleep but it is still sleep, even when you are doing something as vibrant as standing onstage entertaining hundreds of people. I am happy to say that this approach is really working and I am now ‘conscious when I used to be unconscious.’ That is my thoughts on keeping the show fresh……..

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