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Title: Magic and Showmanship : A Handbook for Conjurers by Henning Nelms ISBN: 0-486-41087-0 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 13 April, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.86 (7 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: The Bible for Magicians
Comment: Nelm's Magic and Showmanship is like the Bible for magicians. By that I mean it is the MOST highly praised and the LEAST ACTUALLY READ of any magic book in existence! All magicians pay lip service to it, but I've never met that first one who actually followed the advice given.
Actually, the author does make some very good points. When you do magic, it is like a puzzle to the audience. When they can't figure it out, like any puzzle, they expect to be told the secret, which the magician refuses to do. This causes frustration. The author's solution to this is to remove the "mystical" aspects from the performance. For example, instead of doing the cut and restored string routine, you present it as a strong man feat in which a piece of string which has been cut in two cannot be pulled from your fingers. For a stage act, the author suggests doing a comedy routine in which the performer is playing a stereotypical magician, but he is possessed by an African Obeah man, who is causing all of his tricks to turn out wrong. By making it appear that the magician is under the control of someone else, he turns it into a comedy act which eases the audience's resentment at being fooled.
No close up trick should simply be pulled out of the pocket and performed; rather, it should be carefully worked into the conversation before performance. For example, you talk about psychics which segues into talk about a mind reading demonstration that you've been working on, which segues into the performance of a trick, practically without your spectators realizing it.
While I think Nelms' premise is correct, I don't think his solution is very practical for most performances. Certainly a somewhat shy magician would have a very hard time skillfully steering a conversation around to a particular topic so that he could show a related trick. The mystical aspect cannot be removed from most effects, contrary to what Nelms says.
That said, Nelms does give some excellent tips on staging, timing, posture, making the most of assistants and other important topics. There are also several outstanding effects worked into the book as illustrations of the author's points.
This is a very thought-provoking book--for anybody who actually bothers to read it!
Rating: 5
Summary: This is good!
Comment: Buy this book if ever you have to do anything on stage.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Foundation of Showmanship in Magic
Comment: My own copy of Mr. Nelms' book is crinkeled with age. The spine is creased. The pages turning yellow. I have read and reread this book at least 500 times these past 20 years, (from its original publication date) and each time I learn something new.
Magic and Showmanship teaches us magi how to suspend disbelief on the part of the audience. How to create mystery. Weave a story. Create suspense.
He teaches us how to turn tricks into real magic. I highly recommend this book.
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Title: Practical Mental Magic by Theodore Annemann ISBN: 0486244261 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 February, 1983 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
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Title: Modern Coin Magic by J. B. Bobo ISBN: 0486242587 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 February, 1982 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic by Mark Wilson ISBN: 0762414553 Publisher: Running Press Pub. Date: 27 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Self-Working Table Magic : 97 Foolproof Tricks with Everyday Objects by Karl Fulves ISBN: 0486241165 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 August, 1981 List Price(USD): $6.95 |
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Title: Expert Card Technique by Jean Hugard, Frederick Braue ISBN: 0486217558 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 June, 1974 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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