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SHOWMANSHIP
For
MAGICIANS
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
There are many mechanical provisions necessary before your act can become a performable reality.
Once the idea has been developed satisfactorily you proceed about the business of getting the materials necessary for the various numbers. Don't use stock apparatus unless the nature of the act requires it. Insist that the apparatus look like something in keeping with the idea for the act. As an example: Suppose your idea was built around the egg bag at one stage in the routine. You can buy standard egg bags in black and red and plaid and a great number of colors. Yet they all look like egg bags. They don't look like anything except something a magician would use.
If you are a girl, putting a couple of handles on it and changing its shape to conform to a replica of a woman's handbag would bring it into plausible form for use, providing the basic idea of the act would find it consistent for you to have a hand-bag. Thayer did this in the bag that accompanies the mutilated parasol trick. He changed the form of the changing bag to appear as a hand-bag.
And for the lord's sake, if you are a he man, I don't mean one of the other kind because the hand, bag might then be in keeping, but if you are a he man, DON'T USE A LADIES' HAND, BAG. And don't use a ladies' parasol for ANY trick, no matter how good the trickis. It is out of character, or perhaps it isn't, only you would know. But at least you want to give the impression you are masculine, regardless of your private life.
But to get back to a method of camouflaging the egg bag:
Make it look like something a man would have under the circumstances required in the act. I'm afraid I've gotten myself into a corner in the selection of the egg bag for this illustration. It is a random selection, made as I write. Come to think of it there are few bags a man would be found with, and I'm not referring to wives. A tobacco pouch, perhaps. But that might be a bit too small for our purpose. A laundry bag, yes, if a reason can be found to bring in a laundry bag. A paper bag? That might present some difficulties. Perhaps a slipper or shoe bag. But if you can't find a type of bag consistent with the act idea, DISCARD THE TRICK AND USE SOMETHING ELSE. After all you merely wish to vanish or produce an egg or something of similar size. There are many ways to do that. And the tricks themselves are positively only tools.
Let us assume that you have the properties necessary for your tricks, all consistent with the central idea of the act. Now you prepare the talking material, if the act is to have talk. Have it written, or write it yourself, if you are competent. But be certain it, too, is consistent with the act idea. Now MEMORIZE IT.
As you become more and more familiar with the lines, you will find that they flow without effort. Now is the time to begin delivering these lines, not as a recitation, but as talk, naturally and in a manner in keeping with the idea of the act. Don't recite, TALK. Talk with ease and fluency, as if the lines were spontaneous thoughts. This gives freshness.
For the music, it is better if the numbers selected are familiar generally to the public you are to reach, particularly the lyrics, if you wish the music to carry an idea to them. Professional arrangers, as has been mentioned before, will fit the necessary portions of the music to the length of time necessary to fit the trick it is to accompany. They will also provide for modulations into other numbers.
There is another way this music may be fixed up. You can go to the bigger music stores and purchase orchestrations of the numbers required. Then fit this music to the length of time required. Cut out these portions of the various numbers and paste them up on sheets.
Be sure that the music is carefully cued. On ALL parts mark playing instructions carefully and clearly. Put on definite cues as to when to begin and when to stop, such as "FF until on," "Loudly until on, then very soft until end of handkerchief trick." Then, if you should want to cue a change: "When performer picks up glass box, " This means to start the next portion of the music when the performer performs the act indicated.
If there is to be a period of time when the music is to stop you mark the music in this manner: "Cut when performer shows rope restored. Tacit through trick with egg." Tacit means silence. Then, to bring music into the act again: "When performer picks up bottle and glass, " If you want the rhythm to fit the action, such as the dancing handkerchief or the bouncing egg, mark: "Catch tempo of bouncing egg (or of dancing handkerchief, whatever applies.)"
If you have percussion cues, mark them both on lead sheet (the sheet used by the director) and on the drum sheet. Typical markings are: "As performer starts bringing large red silk streamer from tube, drum roll crescendo. As end appears, cymbal crash." Or, "Rim shot as each card is dropped."
Remember, neither the leader nor any of his musicians know anything about your act. Give them full instructions. With full instructions, they can play your act as you desire it. The music cues must be explicit and complete.
Assemble all music, marked for proper order, in folders. All of the piano score should go in one folder. All of the violin parts should go in another. And so on. Label the folders on the outside with the name of your act and the instrument the parts are for.
Leave the music with the musicians until the end of your engagement. But immediately after your last performance go to the leader and get it back. Count all folders and check to see that all music for each instrument has been returned. These pieces get mixed up sometimes with other music.
A cue sheet should also be prepared for the stage manager. This gives all curtain cues, when to open and when to close the curtains. Be specific as to exactly when the curtains are to start to close.
A stage electrician's sheet will show all light cues that have to do with the stage switchboard. This means all lighting, including house lights, except for flood and spotlight from the booth. Such light cues resemble the cues on the music. For example:
"Open, full up. At performer showing packet of razor blades, stage black." This means all white lights are on until the magician shows a packet of razor blades. When he does this, the stage lights are to be blacked out and the spotlight from the booth will be the only illumination. All instructions for colored illumination are also on this sheet. For example: "1st border blue. 2nd border blue and red." This brings blue light in the first row of overhead lights and blue and red in the second row.
If you want the lights to diminish gradually or increase in intensity say: "All whites, (or whatever color desired) on dimmer. Fade whites gradually to end of floating ball trick," or "Gradually, bring up white as silks are produced from hat."
If you go into the audience: "House lights up when performer leaves stage, kill, when he returns."
In case of doubt in lighting, err on the side of too much light. The spectators insist on seeing what is going on in a magic act. I remember very well a performance during the act of one of the principals in the International Magicians show. Somehow the light cues got mixed up and the performer was working in a very dimly lit stage. From far out in the darkness of the audience came a complaining bass voice, "He must be on the W. P. A. I can't see him doin' nothin'."
Another cue sheet should be prepared for the spotlight operator in the booth. These instructions must be complete also. Such as, "White spot, Pick up performer at stage R as he enters. Follow. Kill spot on shadow trick. Blue flood during water number."
There should also be a property sheet for the property man. This tells exactly what you want, every table and what is on every table, every chair and every other property you use. AND EXACTLY WHERE IT IS TO BE PLACED. Usually a magician or his assistant sets up his apparatus on his tables exactly where he wants it, and the property man carries it on and places it. These days of fast sequences the magician cannot delay the show and kill time while he monkeys around fiddling with his properties.
So let us assume now that the properties you need are all at hand, the music score is ready, all cue sheets, music, curtains, lights, property sheets, are ready, you have your costume, your lines are committed. There is still one other point. Having decided where each property for each trick is to go, make a map of each table or chair. Show exactly where everything is to go. Then make a map of the precise placing of each table or chair. This is for your own guidance as a quick check.
Before you go on, make certain that everything is in the proper place. Make certain that the musicians understand how the music is played. Make sure the crew understands how the lights are to be operated. Be certain the stage manager knows the cue for opening and closing the curtain.
Well, here we are. The stage is ready. The music is playing and the curtains are starting open. Go after 'em. Don't forget that you aren't going to sell them tricks. Remember YOU are the important thing here. Get that across to them. Get it across in such a way that when you finish there will be a terrific storm of applause. For YOU. Make 'em want you back. When the applause begins to diminish even the slightest bit, don't wait too long, go out for a bow. Take as many bows as you can.
But don't make the mistake of doing another trick for them. You've got 'em where you want 'em now. Don't risk losing that smash finish. When they're yelling, clapping, whistling and stamping, you're on top. If you go back and do another trick and they're content to let you finish, you've lost a lot of ground. Quit at the peak.
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