>> Astonishment and Trivialization

I’m focusing a bit on magic and the stuff I love doing in this post. I don’t perform to to make people look like fools, to make myself look more popular, or superior. I perform because I love performing and want people to have a good time. My goals are simple. What is this feeling of “Astonishment”? Take a new born baby. To it, everything it sees or experiences is new. It looks at everything in awe and amazement. Even something as simple as a ball or a TV. Why don’t we feel that same sense of astonishment that the baby feels? It’s because we know the working behind it. It’s not impressive to us. Anymore.

Magic brings back this sense of wonder and astonishment in people. Seeing something unbelievable, something with no explanation; it takes them back to their childhood days and the times when anything and everything amazed them. It really is a great feeling. And that is the feeling I try to bring about in my spectators whenever I perform. It’s not easy, but I’m getting there! I’ve seen it happen so many times – your eyes brighten up, you smile, laugh, chuckle, gasp, et al when a card does something impossible, when something switches places, when something awesome happens in THEIR hands. It’s not only a great feeling for YOU but for ME as well. Magicians live because of their audience. Without YOU, there would be no magic.

A lotta times people want to know how I do what I do. How does it work, how do you make that happen, what’s the secret behind x, y and z? Can you do ‘real’ magic? Well, let me tell you this. You know that feeling of astonishment and wonder you got when you were seeing it? The very second you figure out how it happened, you’ll lose that awesome feeling. Trust me – I’ve seen it happen and believe me it’s better for you to just sit back an enjoy the experience… I don’t perform ‘real’ magic, I don’t have any superpowers, I can just perhaps let you suspend your disbelief for a period of time. Take you to the very edge and blow reality.

There are many things that the newer guys to the field make a mistake about. They learn something and just get out and perform. Without giving it the time it deserves, without working on the aspects apart from the handling and sleights. As a result the magic is trivialized. Now… what is this trivialization? I’ll get to that. Who doesn’t like solving puzzles? Almost everyone does especially if it’s given to them. Let’s say I give you a puzzle to think about, ponder and break your head over. You can’t solve it and when you come to me I refuse to give you the solution. Wouldn’t that totally bum you out? Here’s what I’m coming at – magic isn’t meant to be presented as a puzzle. It’s not something that should be brought down to a level where you start making people look for solutions to it. Obviously people aren’t going to be as impressed when presented with a puzzle that they cannot solve. It’s frustrating. Don’t trivialize it. Aim to impart awe. I guess I’ll conclude this rant now.

Peace.