When Doing Your Magic Act And You Make A Mistake
When doing your magic act and you make a mistake, do you admit the mistake or act as if it was supposed to happen? Many beginner magicians ask this question and every professional magician has made a mistake in their shows at one point in their career. But how we handle it can vary depending on the situation and the trick.
As magicians, we strive to make our shows run smoothly and error free. It takes a lot work and practice to achieve a flawless performance. There are some instances that a magic effect does not go as planned and may expose the secret of how it’s done.
As magicians, we strive to make our shows run smoothly and error free. It takes a lot work and practice to achieve a flawless performance. There are some instances that a magic effect does not go as planned and may expose the secret of how it’s done.
Most of the time, the audience won’t notice the mistake if you don’t acknowledge it in the first place. The audience does not know your act nor what magic tricks you are going to perform. In the beginning of your magic show, you do not give them a list of tricks you plan on presenting. Everything you do should always be a surprise and flow into the next routine.
The performer is the only person who knows where the routine is going, so if something goes wrong, they can take another path to direct the audience towards and they will not notice any difference.
The performer is the only person who knows where the routine is going, so if something goes wrong, they can take another path to direct the audience towards and they will not notice any difference.
Sometimes there is nothing we can do to cover up a mistake with certain magic tricks. The viewers will notice the blunder and may feel bad for the performer. You start to feel the sweat trickle down your forehead and nervousness sets in.
This is an uneasy feeling and quite embarrassing while performing a live magic show. A suggestion is to admit to making a mistake but make a joke or funny comment about it and then move on to an easier effect to build confidence back up.
This is an uneasy feeling and quite embarrassing while performing a live magic show. A suggestion is to admit to making a mistake but make a joke or funny comment about it and then move on to an easier effect to build confidence back up.
Funny Jokes To Say
Having a couple of funny jokes or lines to say or a comment of sincerity that you value your audience’s entertainment experience will help relieve the tension. It could also go over bigger than the intended performance while making you appear humble, honest, and more endearing. Then, continue on with the rest of the show as if it wasn’t important and nobody will care if you did the effect or not. Remember, the show must go on!
How To Avoid Making Mistakes
When a performing artist wants to incorporate a new routine into their act, it is wise to know the routine backwards and forwards. This is achieved through the practice and rehearsal phases.
Practice Phase
The practice phase is the training process in order to figure out the various problems that can occur. You might discover a variety of “outs” by going through this process. Go through every routine and look for break points where things can go wrong. Then figure out an alternative way to proceed for each point in each of the routines.
It will make it much easier to have smooth and consistent performances as well as help avoid messing up an effect. Then move on to the rehearsal phase.
It will make it much easier to have smooth and consistent performances as well as help avoid messing up an effect. Then move on to the rehearsal phase.
Rehearsal Phase
The rehearsal phase is doing the entire act or show as if there is an audience watching. When you are rehearsing the new routine, try out the variations of the outs. It will allow you to be comfortable with the handling of mistakes that could possibly arise in a live performance. Go through the entire performance without stopping. You will transition from one routine to the next.
If a mistake happens, keep going. After you go through the entirety of the performance, evaluate everything you just learned and ask yourself questions. Did you make any mistakes? Did you recover from them? What can or needs to be avoided? Did the transition from one routine to the next move smoothly? Are there any alternative handlings of the routines that were discovered?
To make the rehearsal phase easier, it can be broken down into sections. Pick one, two, or three routines that are giving you trouble. Go through the same procedure of performing from beginning to end.
If a mistake happens, keep going. After you go through the entirety of the performance, evaluate everything you just learned and ask yourself questions. Did you make any mistakes? Did you recover from them? What can or needs to be avoided? Did the transition from one routine to the next move smoothly? Are there any alternative handlings of the routines that were discovered?
To make the rehearsal phase easier, it can be broken down into sections. Pick one, two, or three routines that are giving you trouble. Go through the same procedure of performing from beginning to end.
Accidents Do Happen
During a performance accidents may occur. This raises the question “Do I admit to the mistake?” or “Do I move on?” Of course this will depend on greatly of how obvious the mistake is, can you recover from it and continue the routine, or own it and move on to the next without skipping a beat.
There have been times that I would bump into my table and props would fall or tip over exposing the secret. I simply picked it up and tossed it to the side as if nothing was wrong and didn’t do that particular trick.
There have been times that I would bump into my table and props would fall or tip over exposing the secret. I simply picked it up and tossed it to the side as if nothing was wrong and didn’t do that particular trick.
I have even fallen off the stage or down the steps of the stage on occasions. Sometimes you have to make a joke out of it, laugh, and move on. No one really cares.
Remember, this is your show, your performance, your act. You orchestrate it and you are the conductor. The audience is there to go on the ride and your show goes where you want it to go.
Remember, this is your show, your performance, your act. You orchestrate it and you are the conductor. The audience is there to go on the ride and your show goes where you want it to go.