Through the ages, practitioners of the magical crafts have entertained crowds of people and left them awestruck. There are several styles of magic tricks and their numbers are steadily increasing as performers become ever more creative. Pleasing people of all ages and life sets is what makes perfecting this craft worth the effort.
Perfecting a skill for performing magical mysteries does not happen by chance. Students of the craft will spend years learning to hone their talents to their fullest. That is why most magicians will stick to performing no more than two genres of tricks. They often confer with each other to create new material.
The one code by which all magicians are expected to abide is to never share trade secrets with members of the general population. The real magic is in the mystery and it is important for a performer to finely home their showmanship talents and techniques. Style and methods of manipulation are determined by the magical genre chosen.
There are some tricks, like those involving a normal deck of playing cards, that anyone can perform with very little practice once they understand the technical aspects behind it. These are known as being self-working because the basics never change and they rarely ever fail. Performances that rely on specially designed props like a fixed coin or fake thumb are referred to as gimmicks. The key to their effectiveness is depending on the magician's misdirection and concealment coming off as planned.
Close-up performances are the type that are commonly performed on the streets or at parties. There are no trick props but the magician must be a master at slight of hand and misdirection. Items used are every day things often borrowed right from the spectators. Performers must also have a great flair for keeping the audience mesmerized and their attention directed exactly where it should be for optimum effect, and a talent for showmanship that leaves them begging for more.
Stage performers, sometimes referred to as Platform Artist, are the well-known theatrical performers of major entertainment hubs. Routinely called Illusionists, these magicians specialize in extravagant stage set-ups involving flashy lights, pyrotechnics, beautiful assistants, suspenseful music and colorful props. Bits such as levitation, disappearances and body separations are performed using deceptive props and mirrors.
Perhaps the most dramatic and heart stopping brand of magic belongs to the escape artist. They require both great acting ability, unique physical prowess as well as their own special gimmicks. These performers achieve death-defying feats that the average person would never dare dream to attempt. While the audience stares with wide eyes and bated breath, the magician uses his unique skills and special tools to succeed at an exciting last minute escape.
Mentalists often use a type of illusion to convince crowds that they can tell the future, read minds or even talk to the dead. The shows rely on the performer's talent for dramatic flair and creative storytelling. What they are actually doing is using their skill at reading subtle changes in body language and taking clues from their subjects to make educated guesses.
The most important success secret of any magician is practice. No performer in the trade ever started at the top. They all started with simple magic tricks and worked their way up to perfection in their chosen style of craft.
Perfecting a skill for performing magical mysteries does not happen by chance. Students of the craft will spend years learning to hone their talents to their fullest. That is why most magicians will stick to performing no more than two genres of tricks. They often confer with each other to create new material.
The one code by which all magicians are expected to abide is to never share trade secrets with members of the general population. The real magic is in the mystery and it is important for a performer to finely home their showmanship talents and techniques. Style and methods of manipulation are determined by the magical genre chosen.
There are some tricks, like those involving a normal deck of playing cards, that anyone can perform with very little practice once they understand the technical aspects behind it. These are known as being self-working because the basics never change and they rarely ever fail. Performances that rely on specially designed props like a fixed coin or fake thumb are referred to as gimmicks. The key to their effectiveness is depending on the magician's misdirection and concealment coming off as planned.
Close-up performances are the type that are commonly performed on the streets or at parties. There are no trick props but the magician must be a master at slight of hand and misdirection. Items used are every day things often borrowed right from the spectators. Performers must also have a great flair for keeping the audience mesmerized and their attention directed exactly where it should be for optimum effect, and a talent for showmanship that leaves them begging for more.
Stage performers, sometimes referred to as Platform Artist, are the well-known theatrical performers of major entertainment hubs. Routinely called Illusionists, these magicians specialize in extravagant stage set-ups involving flashy lights, pyrotechnics, beautiful assistants, suspenseful music and colorful props. Bits such as levitation, disappearances and body separations are performed using deceptive props and mirrors.
Perhaps the most dramatic and heart stopping brand of magic belongs to the escape artist. They require both great acting ability, unique physical prowess as well as their own special gimmicks. These performers achieve death-defying feats that the average person would never dare dream to attempt. While the audience stares with wide eyes and bated breath, the magician uses his unique skills and special tools to succeed at an exciting last minute escape.
Mentalists often use a type of illusion to convince crowds that they can tell the future, read minds or even talk to the dead. The shows rely on the performer's talent for dramatic flair and creative storytelling. What they are actually doing is using their skill at reading subtle changes in body language and taking clues from their subjects to make educated guesses.
The most important success secret of any magician is practice. No performer in the trade ever started at the top. They all started with simple magic tricks and worked their way up to perfection in their chosen style of craft.