Rings For Rope

Dear Mr. Magic,
I've been learning some ring on rope moves and building a routine. However I'm not sure I'm using the right kind of ring as some of the moves seem much harder than I though they'd be.

Dear Magician,
Some Ring And Rope moves are difficult to do in the smooth, graceful manner that keeps them from looking like moves. And of course a few of the often more spectacular moves are a challenge to work out and need continual practice to master.

At the same time the ring and the rope used are likely to make handling easier if they are properly chosen.

Opinions will vary as to what type of rope is best and some performers favor cord rather than rope. Generally 1/4 inch / 6.4 mm diameter cotton rope with a woven outer sleeve and twisted core is good. Many magic dealers offer magician's rope that varies from this traditional cotton rope and may not work as well.

The rope must have enough body so it will hold a loop or circle, but must not be so stiff that it does not drape well. If the rope is too soft and limp it will be difficult to manipulate. If it is twisted too tightly it will tend to curl or kink in use, although you can sometimes get around this by giving one end of the rope a quarter or half turn.

The proper ring is of a larger diameter than one might expect. Mr. Magic has always considered the ring sold by the now defunct Supreme Magic as being ideal. Made from 1/4 inch stock, it measures 4-3/4 inches / 12 cm in diameter and weighs 5 ounces. Whatever the ring used it should not be too light weight or much smaller or larger in diameter than the diameter of the rope or cord used.

Starting Late

Dear Mr. Magic,
How old is too old to start a career in magic?

Dear Magician,
It probably helps to be born into a circus family if you plan a career on the high wire or trapeze, but as far as magic is concerned this is not generally the case.

For some reason many professional magicians can't think of much to say when they give interviews so too many of them fall back on the decidedly dull line "I've been doing magic since ..." which isn't exactly headline material. The truth is that anyone, of any age, can become a magician with a bit of application.

That said, becoming a professional magician is another story. Not that switching careers to do so isn't done, but because most professional magicians have always wanted to be so their entire lives and thus are able to ignore the downside of the idea. Which is that magic isn't the most stable and rewarding occupation except for a very few who manage to get to the top.

So there are two issues here. One is a fascination with magic which to friends and loved ones will probably be seen as eccentric. The other is the decision to run away to the join the circus. Mr. Magic won't comment on the later since he pretty much did that himself. The fascination part however is fairly difficult to control. Once someone gets interested in magic it is all over, although turning professional can help temper such enthusiasm.

Back to your question, it is probably never too late to start a career in anything, provided the dedication, will and talent are there. Becoming a magician usually isn't on the top of most people's lists as to why they'd like to quit their day job, but the truth is you never know until you give it a try. It is possible however to find out just how successful one can be as a magician without abandoning other sources of income. Many talented magicians actually have other occupations and still manage to accept work when it is offered. This is usually in the close-up category as with a stage show there is so much overhead that you either do it or you don't.

The key to all this, of course, is not really how well you do your magic as it is how much enjoyment people get out of watching you and whether they're willing to pay for it.

Appearing Silks

Dear Mr. Magic,
What's the best method for making a silk handkerchief appear?

Dear Magician,
There are a great number of methods to create the effect of a handkerchief appearing out of thin air at the finger tips.

Some methods rely on a hidden gizmo of one sort or another, such as a thumb tip or hank ball, that keeps the handkerchief out of sight and compressed prior to its appearance. This, by the way, is the reason that silk is the preferred material for magical handkerchiefs as it compresses easily and expands rapidly. The first magician to capitalize on the properties of silk in a magical context was Buatier De Kolta.

While there are many reliable gimmicks used in handkerchief productions, it is also possible to produce a handkerchief by sleight of hand. Often the method used depends on the circumstances and the routine. If more than one handkerchief is produced, the first may use sleight of hand, while subsequent productions may use a variety of gimmicks or dodges.

Many magicians pay too little attention to stealing bundled silks from body clips or table wells and then producing them without the use of any gimmicks. While the setup is more fussy than just poking a silk into a thumb tip or hank ball and the handling and presentation are more complicated, the result is a silk appearing at the finger tips without having to then get rid of the gimmick it came from.

For many years there were magicians who presented entire acts based on the production, vanish and manipulation of handkerchiefs. This type of act has been out of vogue for some time, but the effects possible remain very magical. In addition, silk, being an organic fabric, has a unique, vibrant glow to it under stage like that isn't present with other materials.

If you have a serious interest in creating magic using silk handkerchiefs, you should do some research on the subject. Harold Rice's multi-volume 'Encyclopedia Of Silk Magic' covers the subject in an exhaustive fashion. There are also many booklets dealing with handkerchief manipulations and a variety of classic apparatus available from magic dealers.

In working with silk, you should learn the different methods of folding the silk used in various productions - different folds produce different effects. You should learn about washing and ironing silk so that it appears neat in use. Keep in mind that you don't have to necessarily use the silk handkerchiefs sold by magic dealers. Fabric stores often sell printed silk fabrics that are quite magical looking, although in some cases they may be of a heavier weight and not compress into as compact an area as silks sold by magic dealers.

Practice Time

Dear Mr. Magic,
How long should I practice a trick before actually performing it?

Dear Magician,
A magic effect is composed of three basic elements: the presentation, the mechanics and the properties.

The properties are the objects, called props, that are used in the effect. First make sure that these objects are satisfactory. If they are gimmicked does the gimmick work correctly? If you drop it out of a window onto a concrete sidewalk does it still work? What can break, go wrong or hang up with the prop?

Having set your mind at rest about the prop, now it is time to practice manipulating the prop. This practice includes the sleights, if any, that you need to learn. And issues such as where will the prop be when you need it and what will you do with it once you've finished with it?

Next comes presentation. How will you create the illusion of magic in an entertaining manner using the prop and mechanics? What costume will you be wearing? Do you need music? Can the audience see what you're doing? Can the audience not see what they shouldn't?

Generally, you should practice every day, running through the mechanics and rehearsing the presentation. After two weeks of daily sessions, you'll probably feel ready to perform the effect for someone. Which you should do, once. Even if they're you're biggest fan and are amazed by what you've done, you should then think about how things went, what worked, what didn't, then spend more time with practice and rehearsal. An effect is never really perfect, over time you will introduce new elements which will alter what you're doing.

Performing magic is an on going process. The effects you use to demonstrate that you're a magician must be maintained through constant work, in the same way a guitarist or pianist will rehearse every day. This builds skill and confidence which becomes experience.

Locked Link

Dear Mr. Magic,
I'm thinking about getting a set of Linking Rings. I see that some are offered with a locking ring and some aren't. What should I do?

Dear Magician,
While the rest of the world may be skeptical, there's little doubt that magicians believe in miracles, particularly when it comes to buying the props they think will allow them to do the seemingly miraculous. The idea of using a locking ring in a linking ring routine is definitely in this miracle class.

Magic dealers tend to exaggerate a bit when describing ring sets with locking keys. First and foremost, a locking key ring cannot be handled by the spectators and in many cases cannot even be viewed close up without exposure. While there are more and less visible locking key rings, none are invisible.

Next, ring sets made with locking keys are very often less than serviceable when it comes to actually performing a linking ring routine. The classic example of this is a set of hollow aluminum rings with a locking key. Even when the rings are made from steel or other hard metals, since the manufacturer and the purchaser are so intent on the lock that won't been seen the rings themselves are often of odd proportions.

While some locking keys act like a revolving door, others can only be unlocked with one hand and require two hands to relock. In the midst of a proper routine one doubts the spectators will want to wait around for this.

All of the above aside, the real issue with using a locking key is that it gets in the way of performing many of the best moves and sequences that can be done with a proper set of linking rings. The traditional straight cut key ring is traditional for a reason: it is the most functional method of making apparently solid rings mysteriously link and unlink.

If you're interested in working on a ring routine, the best way to start is with a good set of rings. Once you've learned the basics and actually performed the routine in public, you can better evaluate the advantages and drawbacks of adding a locking key to the mix.

Mr. Magic personally favors semi-hollow stainless steel rings, which are quite expensive, but like a good set up cups for the Cups & Balls, pay for themselves by being dependable to manipulate, correctly proportioned in thickness and diameter, not too heavy and have a pleasant tone when struck together.

Big Vanish

Dear Mr. Magic,
I am looking for the magic plans of an illusion like Kalanag's car vanish or Sorcar's elephant vanish but in its modern version, something like when Copperfield made a plane vanish.

Dear Magician,
The vanishing car illusion you refer to is explained in many introductory magic books by Walter Gibson. It uses a rather cumbersome and suspicious looking slatted frame and a fairly enormous puff of smoke. It isn't particularly convincing and certainly nothing like Copperfield's tv plane vanish. Please keep in mind that illusions you see in person and illusions presented on television are not necessarily the same.

Perhaps the best vanish of a really large object was the elephant vanish Harry Blackstone, Jr. used on Broadway. The elephant visibly disappeared from the stage. The method harks back to theatrical principle of a scrim sometimes used in the "Nutcracker" and to making a ghost appear in "King Lear," but it was cleverly disguised with truly spectacular results. A similar effect using a Brahma bull was used on a Siegfried and Roy tv special.

Note that understanding the working of an illusion and having illusion plans are two very different things. The basic working can usually be expressed in a sentence or two. The plans for constructing an illusion are much more complicated, involving the physical materials, stage technology, decoration, lighting, choreography and the need for an illusionist to combine these elements into a moment of wonder for the spectators.

Vanishes are the most difficult of all stage illusions to present because the object obviously does not really vanish. It has to go somewhere without the spectators being aware of when, how and where it went. So there is a great deal of theater involved in a vanish and in most cases the theater is vastly more important to achieving the effect than the mechanics.

Crowd Control

Dear Mr. Magic,
How do I deal with someone in the audience shouting out how a trick is done?

Dear Magician,
One of the great rules of show business is that the audience is always right. After all, they paid to get in and therefore should be allowed to express their pleasure or displeasure as the case may be.

Despite this general rule, every performer occasionally finds her or himself in front of an audience who are nothing but trouble. Depending on the venue they can be noisy, rude or just throw things. At that point the performer has every right to wonder "What am I doing here?"

Experienced performers know how to match their venues with their talents. They don't accept dates that they can't control because they know it will be seen as their fault if the audience is unhappy. Often a bad sound system, poor lighting, other activities or insufficient production on the part of the presenter will result in horrible performing conditions. Of course the performer will take the blame for this.

There are other issues here as well. If the audience is being rude or not paying attention, the performer has to question his ability and material. After all, the audience may be right. And this of course leads us to the cold reality that "tricks" are not a magic show. If you just do a bunch of tricks for people eventually they may well start interacting by telling you how the tricks are done. If you entertain them, they won't care what tricks you do.

One thing that isn't advisable is to try to verbally wrestle with an audience member who isn't being polite. You run the risk of alienating the rest of the audience. If just one person is causing trouble, your best bet is to ignore that person and hope that the rest of audience will realize that person is ruining their enjoyment of the show and will try to shut him or her up.

Finding yourself in these situations is part of becoming a professional performer. It actually is good experience, although it may not seem so at the time. It causes you to question what you're doing and how you're doing it and will eventually teach you how to command the attention of the audience so it never occurs to them that they should do anything but enjoy your performance.

Invisible Magic

Dear Mr. Magic,
What do you think the best floating trick is for performing close up?

Dear Magician,
An interesting question. After considering close up floating effects Mr. Magic would have to say there isn't one.

All the close up floating effects Mr. Magic has seen seem contrived and not very magical. This is because the effect creators started with a length of invisible thread then found something to hang on it so it would appear to be floating.

Thus we have a balled up dollar bill bouncing in space and a playing card hovering above the deck and a wine bottle cork bobbling up and down and a paper match stick hanging over a playing card back.

None of these effects are actually effects. Instead they are curiosities which have no story to tell or entertainment value. They are just fun for magicians to fiddle with and pretend they are making magic.

There are some thread motivated platform and stage effects which could be adapted to close up work using invisible thread. But this hasn't happened which confirms Mr. Magic assumption that the only people magicians fool with invisible thread are themselves.

Mr. Magic has even seen professional magicians fall into this invisible thread trap, usually with the floating bill effect. The reaction by those watch is to stare at the floating bill for a moment then walk away to look out a window to see if there's anything interesting going on with the weather.

A gimmick is not a trick or an effect or magic. It is just a gimmick which only justifies its existence when it is secretly employed to facilitate the impossible. What is almost universally lacking in the use of invisible thread is the facilitator coming up with something worthy of facilitation.

This means that Mr. Magic thinks that invisible thread is an invaluable prop still waiting for some magician to be inspired enough to use it properly. Which means a magician who comes up with the effect first, then decides invisible thread is the best way to manage it.

Manipulating

Dear Mr. Magic,
I'm about ready to add a manipulation routine to my show. Which objects do you think are the easiest to manipulate and the most magical: coins, balls, or cards?

Dear Magician,
Coins, balls, and cards are the classic choices as the objects to be manipulated in a stage sleight of hand routine. While there are certainly other objects that could be used, choosing among these three points out the various issues involved in stage manipulations for the performer and also for those watching.

The first question to be asked is can the spectators see what you're manipulating? The larger the hall, the more difficult it is for those in the back to figure out what's going on if they can't see the props. Coins suffer most in that they become practically invisible in a large room. This is why most coin manipulation routines are based on a Miser's Dream premise since the sound of the coins being dropped into a container makes up for the lack of visibility.

Cards and balls properly pointed up remain visible at greater distances although they lack the underlying charm of a magician being able to pluck something of value from thin air.

A simple multiplying billiard ball routine is probably the easiest way to add a manipulation sequence to a show. While easy is a subjective concept when it comes to manipulation, working out a basic one to four ball routine will certainly teach the performer more than he thought he needed to know about using sleight of hand and a simple gimmick to create the illusion of magic. There are also limitations as to how long the audience will watch balls multiply, vanish, and change color before they're ready to move on to the next effect.

Playing card manipulation is undoubtedly the most difficult in terms of the practice and rehearsal time required before the magician dares to add a card sequence. While acquiring this digital dexterity is the initial issue, even more important is the ability to create the illusion that the cards are appearing, multiplying, and vanishing at the finger tips.

Since card manipulations rarely depend on gimmicks, as such devices tend to hinder rather than help in this area, the entire manipulative routine relies on presentation supported by skill. A card manipulation routine can only succeed when the performer has the technical competence and presentational confidence to make what the spectators see anything but manipulation.

What's interesting about working out manipulative routines is that once you've had success with one such routine the entire process becomes easier using other objects with different sleights. This is because learning how to present a routine relying on manipulation is as important as learning how to manipulate.

Indexing

Dear Mr. Magic,
Would you please explain what a magician means when he says he uses an index?

Dear Magician,
An index is a gimmick that allows the magician to offer a spectator a number of choices and no matter what the spectator chooses the magician proves in some manner that he knew in advance what the choice would be. The gimmick used varies with the choices offered the spectator. The gimmick can be just that, a hidden device, or it can be built into a visible prop.

The card index is the most legendary magic index, although it is more talked about then actually used. It is a gimmick hidden in the costume that allows the magician to reach into a pocket and bring out the one playing card a spectator has chosen. A great deal of practice to eliminate fumbling and hesitation is required to use a card index successfully which of course eliminates those who demand instant miracles.

Several book tests, where the spectator selects a book, a page at random, and a word on that page, use an index. In this situation the index is often built into a prop. Peter Warlock's Book Of The Mind is an excellent example of this kind of indexing. The method is straight forward, requiring theatrical ability rather than finger twisting.

There are any number of effects that can be created using an index although magicians tend to favor everything but an index. As to why indexing isn't on their list of simple, straight forward methods, is difficult to understand. It is possible they think an index is too easy, or feel that they're somehow cheating.

Any effect where a spectator is given a limited number of objects to choose among can be resolved with an index. The card index requires a 52 element index. A choice of a red, green, yellow, blue, or white silk requires a 5 element index. So if the magician has five costume pockets, and five thumb tips each loaded with a silk of a specific color, he can easily produce that colored silk from nowhere. What's interesting about this as an effect is that the spectator is more likely to be concerned with how the magician knew the color rather than where the silk came from.

Another amusing example of indexing that Mr. Magic spent some time working out was a small, open top box. Mr. Magic announced that the box contained a particular fruit. He then asked a spectator to chose a pear, an apple, an orange or a lemon. Once the choice was made Mr. Magic reached into the box and removed the chosen fruit, showing the box otherwise empty in the process. This was done by building a four side / four flap handkerchief box and managing to find compressible rubber fruits. The number of choices would be increased to five if a flap was also added to the box bottom.

While indexing may not be the first thing to occurs when figuring out how to work an effect, it should always be kept in mind.

Suitcase Table

Dear Mr. Magic,
Where can I find an affordable suitcase table?

Dear Magician,
To some extent the concept of a suitcase table is a figment of the magician's imagination. The same might be said of many of those who build suitcase tables for magicians. The idea is to build a box on wheels with a handle on the top, the box unfolding to double in height so that the downstage view looks sort of like a table and the upstage view is an open area with shelves where the magician's props await their moment in the spotlight.

Having invested a substantial amount in ready made suitcase tables as well as having had a half dozen of various designs custom built, Mr. Magic has to say that finding a functional, road worthy, and reliable suitcase table is surprisingly difficult. Much of this difficulty centers on the table builder's idea of a what a light weight functional table should be since they rarely take into account that some poor magician is planning to use it but seem more concerned that it takes a good picture for their catalog.

So the magician as buyer must beware. In fact it is advisable to see the actual table before purchasing it.

Also the magician must separate fact from fantasy. Can you carry your whole show in the table? Probably not, depending on the number of props used. Can the props are set up and ready to go before you leave home? This is very unlikely since props like anything else that might go into a suitcase usually have to be packed for travel.

Then comes the weight issue. Since a suitcase table has to of fairly sturdy construction it is likely to be heavy enough so that once you add your props it will not be easy to carry any great distance. With casters it can be more of less rolled from place to place, except for the stage. Most stage floors are hardly idea for safely rolling a opened out and set up table with props onto center stage.

If there are any secrets to a prop suitcase table they would be simplicity of construction and ease of access. The construction should be as simple as possible, the fewer latches, hinges, locking supports and the like, the better. Clever is not a good word. The open back must be open with no protruding table top or other obstruction on the upstage side to ensure you won't have to get down on your hands and knees with a flashlight to find the next prop.

Finally, keep in mind that while you may be able to store quite a few props in the table if you plan to put them back in the table after you use them on stage you really won't have time to put them away neatly so the interior space must be arranged so a no longer used prop can be quickly removed from sight. Again this limits the number of props that can travel inside the suitcase when it becomes a table.

As for the cost of a table inexpensive is relative. A properly made and road worthy table is a worthwhile investment. A tricked out table that promises to do your show for you will have to be added to the cost of the next table you buy. It is usually a good idea to consider whether you really need a suitcase table and what the alternatives are. Often there are simpler, more reliable ways to display your props and have on stage table space than hoping to work off a table that folds down into a suitcase.

GO AHEAD, ASK MR. MAGIC
Mister Magic sees all, hears all, can center tear with the best of them and isn't really afraid of balloon animals. He's also a really nice guy who's happy to explain the inner workings of the arcane art of magic, if you don't ask him how David Blaine does the snap change. If you've got a question you'd like Mr. Magic to ponder, transport yourself to the Mr. Magic email form.