The Only Thing That Is Right For Us, Is What Is Right For You

How You Can Become a Magician

It really depends on what you wish to do with your magic once you have mastered it. Most people want to be able to do a few tricks for friends, but have no idea how to start, if this is you, this is what I suggest you do…

1. Make up your mind you are going to study the art, we already have too many bad magicians and to be honest I don’t want you to become another one of them.
   
   
2. Visit your local library, they will have a few books on magic, whilst in the library turn to page one of a book you fancy and read it. What you are looking for is

• Something you would enjoy performing

• Something that does not require spending lots of money on props

• Something that you think will fool and ENTERTAIN your audiences

3. If you don’t like page one, turn to page two and keep going until you have a trick (yes just ONE) that you fancy performing.
   
   
4. Now there are three rules for those who wish to perform magic, practise, PRACTISE and MORE PRACTISE you must keep going until you have perfected the trick and know how and when to perform it and when not to perform it. You must be able to perform, Drunk or Sober, Wake and Fresh or VERY tired and fit to drop, if fact the performance must be AUTOMATIC so you don’t ever have to think about what you are doing, it must be second nature to you, just like tying a shoe lace, you just do it without thinking about it.
   
   
5. Don’t be trapped into trying to learn trick two before you have mastered trick one. If you do, the chances are you will become yet another bad magician I spoke about earlier, your audiences will not enjoy what you do, they will not ask you to perform and your interest will whither on the vine.
   
   
6. Once you have really mastered trick one, then move on to trick two, BUT make this a different trick. If trick one was a card trick, make trick two a coin trick or a rope trick or a trick with an elastic band anything so long as it is different and entertaining.
   
   
7. Remember the rule about practise, but now you have two tricks to perform and you must start thinking how you are going to link them together. You might link them with a bit of patter (something you say) or maybe the elastic band was around the box of cards and you do a quick trick with the band after the card trick just before you put it back on the card box. Linked tricks in this way look better, are often more entertaining and might look impromptu.
   
   
8. Once you have three tricks you can perform very well (not 10 you perform badly) pick up a copy of Yellow Pages or seach on-line for a magician in your area, you will find them under “Entertainers” and “Children’s Entertainers” give one a call. tip: don’t call a freephone number, they will usually know (they are magicians!) and want to end the conversation quickly, not what you want. Tell them the truth you are a budding amateur magician, you have mastered three tricks and you are interested in joining a local magic club and wondered if they knew the contact details of the local club secretary.
   
   
9. Contact the local club and find out about the club…

• When it meets

• What goes on

• What happens after meetings

• Lectures at the club

• Subs and joining costs

• When you would be allowed to come along for a look at the club

10. Go along on a club night and sound out the professional magicians. A typical club will have around 50 members,

• Perhaps 3 or 4 full time magicians who will be earning their living performing magic (I don’t mean a person who has retired from a job with a pension and does a few shows to supplement their income)

• Around 50% will be part time performing a varying number of paid shows from 1or 2 up to 250 (if they are lucky and good). The standard of these semi-pros will usually be mixed some very good, others less so.

• The rest of the membership will be made up mainly of magicians who do lots of tricks badly.

11. If you also do lots of tricks badly, the good guys in the club will lump you in with the others that do perform badly. If, however, you show yourself able to perform three tricks very well, the pro’s will respect your efforts and might well take you under their wing and help you progress.
    
    
12. This does not mean study and practise stops, certainly not, but they will be able to help you

• Acquire more magic

• Suggest books to read

• Help you with your practise

• Suggest ways you can improve etc etc.

N.B. If you are aged above 10 years and below 18 years you might be eligible to join The Young Magicians Club (the junior section of The Magic Circle). Have a look at www.youngmagiciansclub.co.uk