Discourse in Magic

Keep your magic taste buds ready with these quick tactics from Jonah on how to book more gigs in 2020. The interviews will be back soon with some amazing guests. Booking Tactics: Email Marketing: Get into mailboxes! Reach out to the people in your market to let them know what you do.  Cold Calling: If you think of it as telemarketing, you’re doing it wrong. Contact the people in your market to build a personal connection with them. You’re looking to build a relationship so when the time comes, they know a magician who would be perfect. Niching Your Network: If you know your target market, scroll through your friends with your niche in mind and reach out to them to see if they have potential opportunities in mind.  Rebookings: the more organized you are, the easier this will be. Personally email the people who have booked you in the past to see if they’ll bring you back on again.  Referrals: Reach out to your past gigs to see if they can connect you to people like them.  Facebook Ads: You can target the people in your industry, view your metrics and customize your ads to better reach your market.  Google Ads: When people search for a magician in your niche, you want to be the one that comes up first in their search.  The post Magician Appetizer #9: Gig Booking Strategies for 2020 appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

As Jonah mentioned in the previous episode, he’s taking a four-week break from the regular interviews. So this week, while he works away behind the scenes, Jonah wants to hear about what magic is like in your city! Do a little research to see where magic and magicians reside in your city. For example, in Toronto: Clubs: Sid Lorraine Hat & Rabbit Club, Alakajam, Browser’s Den Monthly Club Shops: Browsers Den of Magic Conventions: Browser’s Bash Organization: Magicana, The Toronto Magic Company Shows: Newest Trick, The Art of Magic, The Wanderer Show, Magic & Martini Maybe you’re not seeing the event or community you want. Maybe there isn’t a community at all in your city. Well, good news! You have the opportunity to build one yourself! There are a lot of people who have recently started putting on shows and creating the magic they want to see in their area: Felice Ling & Zach Evans started up the Boston Magic Lab  Brent Braun launched the J & B Magic Shop  The Magic Underground has started up in Indianapolis  If you’re not sure where to start, please reach out through email or social media! Jonah would love to help you build up your community. The post Magician Appetizer #8: Magic in Your City appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Is this the end of Discourse in Magic? Of course not! But, Jonah is taking a break from interviews for the next few weeks to work on some projects for you, the listeners. However, he’ll keep serving up some bite-sized episodes to keep your appetites wet. While the podcast might be taking a slight break, Jonah won’t be. He’s currently working on a course that will help you take a trick and turn it into your own masterpiece. For more information, you can sign up for the mailing list at the bottom of the page. Jonah also recently released a book! If you’re looking for help on how to become a professional, Your First Five Gigs is a great resource. Jonah draws on his own experiences starting out to help you avoid the common mistakes he did. You can purchase the book here: https://gumroad.com/l/ZibZR. As always, if you have questions or comments about the podcast or anything magic related, please reach out! The post Magician Appetizer #7: A Short Break appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Episode 200!  To celebrate this milestone, Jonah travelled all the way to Spain to sit down with the maestro himself: Juan Tamariz.  At four years old, Juan fell in love with magic and knew he had to become a magician. However, becoming a magician wasn’t a viable option back in the day, so he attended film school. While working in the film industry, he performed in the summer; he learned a lot about performing while making very little. Eventually, after a brief stint in advertising, he decided to pursue magic as nothing else would suffice for him.  Mentors Slydini. Ascanio. Robert Houdini. Frakson. These are some of the magicians who were his friends and mentors. From teaching him to love his audience to not seeking glory to the fundamentals of magic, Juan learned alongside and was inspired by these magicians.  During the episode, Juan steps away from the mic to show Jonah a photo of him and his friends: Magic in Spain What separates magic in Spain compared to anywhere else, is the love of magic and fellow magician. Magicians in Spain are constantly meeting and sharing ideas, working together to create magic moments to share with their audiences. When newcomers to magic approach him or come to the magic club, they aren’t turned away but rather led down a path that matches their skill level. More and more, the people in Spain are recognizing magic as an art. They attend shows, know magicians and appreciate the beauty behind magic. Compared to when Juan was starting out, magic has continued to rise in popularity, making the potential to be a magician and share magic an attainable goal.  Making Magic Juan has no one method for creating his magic. He waits for inspiration to strike him. When an idea hits him, the focus is on the effect rather than the method; while he doesn’t want the audience to know how an effect is done, he wants the effect to be simple and clear.  In terms of expressing emotions or theme, Juan doesn’t set out with the single goal of expressing a particular idea through his patter or the trick; he believes that the effects he chooses and the way he performs express his interior views of the exterior world.  At the end of it all, he mainly wants to experience the magic with his audience. He loves the audience, and he loves magic. By stopping to experience the magical moment before moving to the next trick, he too can revel in the emotional impact magic can bring.  Wrap Up Endless Chain  Roberto Giobi What do you like about modern magic? What don’t you like?  Juan enjoys the communication of magic alongside the fact that there are more magicians sharing the wonderful art form with the world.  Take Home Point  “I LOVE YOU!” The post LOVE with Juan Tamariz appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Jonah is joined by Nathan Kranzo this week to talk about creating unique effects, entertaining an audience, and taking risks.  Nathan is known for his out of the box thinking when it comes to magic and performing. Like most kids, Nate received a magic kit, but he wasn’t exactly ready for one; it didn’t take long for him to fill the drawer box with lit firecrackers. His influence to take up magic came from his grandfather who, while not a magician, was the ultimate prankster. Nate was introduced to fake snot and envelopes filled with rattlesnakes eggs by his grandfather at a young age. While not magic, it instilled the love of jokes and pranks in him.  It wouldn’t be until he was 15 that he saw live magic. The carnival came to his suburban town and in the beer tent the local IBM had stationed their booth. He watched a man do an amazing billiard ball routine, giving him his first taste of good sleight of hand. Nate took their flyer and put it in his junk drawer, only returning to it a year later when he and his friends started to get into magic.  Nate would go on to cover every aspect of the familiar magician starting out stories. He joined a club and saw a performer with chops. He went off to university and worked at a magic store where he honed his presentation and sleight of hand skills. He started street performing and learned from buskers. He dealt with kids shows and made his way around open mic nights to hone his skills.  Unique Creations Say things out loud and follow the tangents. Throw things at the wall and see what sticks. Write down ideas that sound dumb because those are the ones that tend to be the best ones. There are no rules to creating, Nate explains, which is why you can’t limit yourself. When he was starting out, he started creating his own effects by drawing on the sleights and concepts he knew; he didn’t really have access to material and nobody told him he couldn’t try to make his own material.  Research Nate spends a lot of time researching and going down rabbit holes. Utilizing the endless amount of magic content on YouTube, library resources, calling and emailing people, and following leads on sites like Alexander, Nate has built up a substantial toolbox for himself. When an idea falls into his lap, he is able to point to similar concepts. While this, at first, isn’t necessarily creative, his knowledge helps him develop his own material.  Going out to see live entertainment is a resource Nate uses for performance research. The only way to be inspired to entertain is seeing other performers. Watch how they work the room and connect with the audience. Magic crosses over with a lot of other art forms, so you can draw on techniques of good showmen from other entertainment areas.  Comedy & Magic Magic doesn’t need to be funny, it just has to have an energy that moves the audience; you want them to feel the passion behind what you’re doing if you want them to be entertained. Nate just prefers mixing comedy and magic because making others laugh is what brings him joy.  If you’re looking to add comedy to your magic, Nate recommends not only watching comedians but listening to the audience. On the odd occasion and audience member may toss you a line that you can integrate into your show.  Wrap Up Endless Chain  Eric Buss Modern Magic Nate enjoys the fact that technology allows us to connect with people easier than before. Even though magic clubs are struggling, younger members are able to find them because of posts they see on Twitter and Instagram. Suddenly, they are now plugged into their community. Nate doesn’t like how much people shit on each other. We’re all playing in the same sandbox. Take Home Point There are no wrong answers. Magic can be whatever you want it to be for you.  Plugs Visit Kranzo Magic and use the discount code THANKS for 20% off for the next few weeks! Nate’s Instagram Nate’s Twitter The post No Wrong Answers with Nathan Kranzo appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Ben Train, Chris Mayhew and Jacque Swan join Jonah once again this year to reflect on 2019 and look ahead to 2020. From winning awards, to getting into performing, to disillusionment, a lot has happened since last year’s episode. The four also discuss coin magic, soup, and Ben creates a drinking game involving Jonah’s hats.  Highlights Ben: His highlight was being able to produce so many shows in 2019. Through TMC, he has been able to share the magicians he loves with Toronto.  Chris: Now that he’s working with Lost Art, he had the opportunity to experience the business and curation side of magic. He also was happy to start performing on stage again.  Jacque: Her highlight was the amount of shows she performed in, seeing her confidence grow on stage, and finding tricks that she’s been able to make her own.  Jonah: Overall, he had a fantastic year. Between travelling to interview magicians for the podcast to his summer tour to the work he did with TMC, he was able to accomplish so much magic wise.  Lowlights Ben: He didn’t make the changes he had wanted to make in terms of his personal show.   Chris: Although working with Lost Art has been fantastic, he regrets not working on more of his own material for release.  Jacque: The period where she just had no drive to practice or do any magic. She feels the impacts of that down time now.  Jonah: He struggled with how much time he wanted to spend focusing on the creative aspects of magic.  2020 Resolutions: Ben:  He wants to find a balance in his magic by looking into other aspects like lecturing and producing shoes. He’s also made moves in other areas outside of magic to help this balance.  Chris: He wants to start performing his one man show again. Jacque: She wants to actively show people the material she’s working on.  Jonah: While he still wants to be a performer, he wants to grow as a show producer and podcaster.  Words of Wisdom Ben: Accept and invite change in your life.  Chris: Self love is critical.  Jacque: Embrace your community.  Jonah: Plan big. Be ambitious.  Plugs: Ben’s Instagram (Check out The Toronto Magic Company) Chris’ Instagram (Check out Lost Art Magic) Jacque’s Instagram (Check out Sleight Club)   The post 2020 Visions with Ben Train, Chris Mayhew, and Jacque Swan appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

To kick off the new magic year, Jonah sits down with Woody Aragon to discuss developing taste, resonating with an audience, and expressing a message through your magic. Woody is viewed as one of the most important modern card magicians, known for his contribution to stack work.  Woody jokes that he came out of themwomb loving magic. He can’t recall a time when he was a layperson even though, where he grew up in Spain, there wasn’t a magic scene. Because access to magic knowledge was difficult, his formative years were spent recording and analyzing Tamariz performances. Eventually, he gained access to books and the Spanish magic community.  While magic may currently be his profession, it wasn’t really an option for him growing up. Woody’s family, having not come from the arts, wanted him to do something more practical than “magician,” so he took up a job in the video game industry and, eventually, worked as a composer. His career as a magician didn’t begin until he started to win magic competitions, leading to other magicians booking him for shows. Realizing magic could sustain his lifestyle, Woody pursued his dream. Developing Taste Magicians have a tendency to kill the feeling of magic as they don’t take in the external life of a trick. While lectures and books are great for learning, they fail to let you experience the effects for what they are. So, to truly develop a taste, Woody recommends watching the audience. Observe when they laugh. When they’re shocked. When they’re excited. Little by little you’ll develop a taste for what excites an audience.  The Subtext of Magic  Through your art you are creating something that expresses what you have inside of you. If you over analyze what and how you want to express yourself, you will lose it. Choose the effects and patter that feel natural to who you are. Behind every trick you perform is a message whether you acknowledge it or not.  Structure & Composition  Knowing the difference between structure and composition is a useful tool for magicians to know. Structure applies to what the audience doesn’t see; the secret moves necessary to create the desired effect. Composition applies to what the spectator sees. Together these two aspects affect how the spectator observes and feels about the performance. For a deeper insight into Structure & Composition, you can read the essay in Woody’s A Book in English.  Tamariz & Spain Tamariz was like a father to Woody; he was generous in sharing with Woody, teaching him everything he knows about magic. And therein lies the secret, Woody explains, the sharing of knowledge. Spain is about sharing and being open with magic. Whether new or veterans, magicians in Spain gather together to share and collaborate on effects, creating a dynamic that influences the progress of magic. When Woody enters other communities, he’s often disappointed by the lack of sharing between the older and younger generations. Wrap Up  Endless Chain  Hector Mancha Camilo Vazquez What do you like about modern magic? What don’t you like?  Magic is always great!  Take Home Point How do you feel when you perform magic? How do you express that feeling to the audience. What do you want to do with this feeling? Plugs Woody’s Website  Woody’s YouTube  Woody’s Instagram Woody’s Penguin Lectures  The post Composing Magic with Woody Aragon appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Surprise! It’s a bonus episode to end your year with a little more magic. Jonah sits down with Paul Gertner to talk about performing on TV, putting a spin on your magic, and developing a kicker. Paul is a closeup magician with an on running show in Boston; he’s also the only magician who has appeared on Fool Us three times. The ads on the back of comics for magic tricks and other oddities fascinated Paul. While he never ordered any of the magic, he sought out magic books in the library. Soon, he was building props on his own, learning simple card tricks, and studying the world of magic. However, as a kid growing up in Pittsburgh, he didn’t know how to access these other magicians.  His first introduction to the magic community came from his mother having a chance encounter with a woman on the bus – her husband was a magician and would soon become Paul’s mentor. His mentor, Ron, would soon introduce him to the magic club and store alongside showing Paul there was a world of knowledge beyond what the library books could offer him.  Creating Unique Magic At some level, there are those with the innate ability to create unique magic. However, to truly develop good magic, obsession and knowing the ins and out of your art will make a difference. If you’re fascinated with the creating aspect of magic, then you need to be willing to play and practice with your magic. Learning the techniques and concepts while diving further into what surprises you can get out of a trick will help you develop your own twist on effects.  Now, if you’re looking to add a kicker, you need to be weary – too many kickers and “surprise” moments will get boring, and adding a kicker that requires too much thinking on the audience’s part may result in a lackluster response. You need to ask yourself “Why am I doing this?” from the audience’s perspective. Is there a moment you can call back to? Does the kicker make sense in the overall plot thread of the trick?  Appearing on TV Between his multiple appearances on Carson and Fool Us, it’s safe to say that Paul knows how to perform on television. For getting on Carson, it came down to understanding what Johnny wanted and appealing to his desire to be a magician again. For Fool Us, even though he wasn’t initially supposed to appear on the show, Paul understood that he needed to play against what Penn & Teller knew if he wanted to fool them, and he wanted to fool them in a way that they’d enjoy. Developing a Show When he was living in Pittsburgh, Paul’s dream of having his own boutique close-up show didn’t seem reasonable. There wasn’t enough traffic to sustain a show like the one he wanted. It wasn’t until he moved to Boston that his dream became realistic, and he set off from hotel to hotel, trying to find a venue that met his needs. With some venues wanting too much money and other’s outright declining him, Paul was becoming discouraged but, on a whim, took a shot at the Omni Parker Hotel. Miracles and Other Deceptions is now a weekly show going three years strong at the Omni Parker. While the show had a slow start, Paul now performs his intimate close-up show twice a night for sold out audiences. Wrap Up Endless Chain  Richard Turner  What do you like about modern magic? What don’t you like? Gertner enjoys the fact that someone like Shin Lim, a closeup magician, can become a star on the same level as Siegfried and Roy. He isn’t a fan of how some magicians posting online seem to believe that a method is a trick in itself. Take Home Point Ask yourself “Why am I doing something?”  Plugs Paul’s Show Paul’s Website Paul’s YouTube Paul’s Instagram  The post Finding the Right Approach with Paul Gertner appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Happy Holidays! As the decade draws to a close, Jonah sits down to reflect on the trends we’ve seen in magic and makes his prediction on where magic is headed. The post Happy Holidays: Magic Trends & Predictions appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

This week Ben Earl joins Jonah to discuss practice, sleight of hand, and approaching magic as an art. Alongside being a skilled sleight of hand artist, Ben is also an author and founder of Studio52. Ben’s interest in magic started when he stumbled across Expert Card Technique at his local library. The book was his glimpse into an underground subculture that he knew he needed to learn more about. However, in his twelve year old mind, sleight of hand was illegal, so he dropped the book out of the window. He didn’t want the librarian to take the book away from him or send him to jail because he was considering taking the book out.  Ben devoured the book, never connecting that the moves he was learning were for magic tricks until he saw David Blaine on TV doing moves he recognized. After showing his friends a few moves and finding a magic shop, he was addicted to the art form.  Magic as an Art  Magic has been a constant in Ben’s life as the art keeps him intellectually and creatively stimulated like nothing else. He can take a coin and make it appear or disappear with this intuitive understanding that he is just playing with bigger ideas. Methods and concepts are just tools he can use to communicate ideas and understand his own approach to the world. There is an inherent duality to magic. At times, Ben feels that he’s just performing card tricks whereas other times he recognizes he can reshape someone’s understanding of the world. Just by understanding that magic, like any other art form, has an inherent, absurd duality to it, Ben is able to step aside from one aspect of magic to focus on ones that intrigue him.  This is why he doesn’t call himself a magician per se but a creative artist; he is constantly creating, and writing, and thinking about magic, but he is only a magician in the eyes of a layperson who can only describe what he just showed them as magic. By calling himself a creative artist, he doesn’t feel like he’s attaching himself to a restrictive or reductive title. Attributing Meaning  Magic is fascinating because it isn’t real. The art form revolves around simulating the impossible with the shared understanding that what is being done isn’t real. However, like in a film, we suspend our disbelief long enough to experience something beyond our understanding of the world.  With this being said, it can be difficult to bring your own meaning into the art form. For Ben, meaning comes from moving towards the things he likes; when something feels right, he does more of it. Overtime, he discovers things that have meaning to him and what drives him to what he’s connected to. Problem solving and creating aesthetically pleasing solutions appeal to Ben which drives his magic creation process.  Approaching Sleight of Hand Sleight of hand, supposedly, is using deceptive means to achieve a certain result, yet magicians often regard good sleight of hand artists as ones where we can “see” the moves happening; you perceive in their performance that a move has happened. In Ben’s opinion, good sleight of hand is when the sleight is so perfectly choreographed into the routine that you can’t tell when or how it happened; you missed the move like you were supposed to.  To achieve good sleight of hand, you have to put into perspective what you want sleight of hand to be for the spectator. An ace cutting routine is inherently a demonstration of your skill, while controlling a card or performing a pass shouldn’t even be smelt by the spectators. With that being said, magicians are still trying to determine how to separate the performance aspect of sleight of hand from the deceptive nature of the practice. When you’re practicing sleight of hand, you are building habits and muscle memory that will eventually make a move an extension of your body. However, if you practice slouched over your desk, staring at your cards, and disregarding the other factors inherent in performance, that is how you will perform for other people. Ben recommends practicing moves in environments that stimulate social situations as to grow comfortable with compensating for environmental restrictions.  Discovering your Path  Magic is an overwhelming art form with various avenues to explore. You, unfortunately, can’t do all the moves and tricks. Rather than trying to cover up your magic gaps, Ben recommends embracing them as a part of who you are. The difficult part is finding the right path for you and what you want to explore in magic. Writing, teaching, performing. These are just some of the paths in magic people can explore, and they may not all be for you, but just enjoy the process of discovering what is magic to you.  However, be aware that you’re being trained to be a consumer. Magic is a small community, and there is material constantly being released. With everyone buying and reading the same material, Ben sees people approaching magic with the same influences; they are all talking and developing the same material, rather than exploring different territory. By not reading the latest book or playing with the latest gimmick, Ben is able to control his influences and approach magic with a more objective viewpoint.  The Shift The Shift is the magic book Ben always wanted to publish — everything he loves about magic is embodied by this book. From effects to technique to theory, Ben breaks down each of these aspects of magic into detailed sections, giving his thoughts and insight into how he approaches these foundations of magic.  The font, the layout, the images. Every minute detail of the book was carefully considered, Ben explains. Even the title, The Shift, was chosen as the book is meant to represent a shift in thinking and the reader’s approach to magic. Wrap Up Endless Chain Chris Kenner What do you like about modern magic? What don’t you like? For Ben, the level of access to magic is both a pro and a con. Because incoming magicians don’t have to experience the difficult journey of seeking out information, they lose a valuable aspect of the discovery process. However, magic is seeing a rise in skill and connectivity among the community.  Take Home Point  Ben reminds the listeners to take joy in what they do.  Plugs The Shift  Studio52 Ben’s Website  Ben’s Instagram Ben’s Material  The post Magic is Hard with Benjamin Earl appeared first on Discourse in Magic.