Discourse in Magic

Jonah sits down with Zivi Kivi for episode 140 to talk the business of performing. Zivi is not only a children’s entertainer, but he operates several podcasts like the Balloon Artist Podcast, Generous Podcast, and the Magician Business Podcast while also instructing with the Kids Entertainer Academy.   Zivi’s interest in magic started while he working in Japan as a software developer sent over from Israel.  While in a toy store, he saw the invisible deck performed and immediately purchased the trick. On the plane ride home, he discovered the instructions were all in Japanese; he ended up sharing the experience of learning the trick with a passenger who spoke Japanese and English. Over time, his interest in magic and performance developed. Soon, magic became something Zivi wanted to pursue full time, so over the next eight years, he slowly built a reliable business. With a background in business, Zivi thought he was set to succeed in the entertainment world, only to quickly learn that the business of magic is drastically different from selling marketing software solutions. His journey to improve led him to discover the  Magician Business Podcast which radically changed his approach to marketing his services. The Ten Percent Rule As Zivi continued developing his business, he realized that applying an extra ten percent of his time to a task would scale the vale he received from said task. For example, if he is performing, he can film and edit a quick summary of the event which he can send to future clients. By applying an extra twenty minutes, he is able to create an additional resource for marketing his business. Zivi emphasizes that there is always one more thing you can do to achieve this ten percent. Ten Hour Principle Having worked with performs from around the world, Zivi noticed that everyone shares the same problems. He began to note how people approached solving the issues and began to apply these tactics to his own teachings, which led to him developing the eight marketing tactics: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Ad words Paid and unpaid Facebook marketing Instagram Email Champion building system tactics (focus is on creating and driving fans) Cold calling and outreach Ninja tactics (leveraging connections and networking) The ten-hour principle comes into play when you choose one of these tactics and focus on it for ten hours each week. By spending ten hours a week on one thing, Zivi says, you can reach a tipping point with your marketing where you’ll begin to see results; he says that most people follow marketing tips but don’t apply enough time to see results.to see results. He goes on to say that if you’re not happy with the results, you can always change next week, but you need to focus and get to the point where your marketing is productive and efficient. Eventually, as you learn what does and doesn’t work for you, you will have developed processes and systems that will allow you to achieve the same results in an hour; you just need to learn what works for you first. You will need to measure your results and understand the numbers to figure out where your time is best spent. By measuring what you get out of ten hours, you will understand where to focus. Failure Marketing & Ten Mistakes You need to plan for failure, Zivi says. By embracing the things that don’t work, you can learn from your mistakes and improve your approach to marketing. If you don’t see results after spending a few ten-hour slots on something, then go back to the list of eight to find an approach that may work better for you. Zivi goes on to break down the ten mistakes he made when he was starting out, reminding the audience that what didn’t work for him may still work for you. Branding his car: the branding on his car had no call to action and no way to track how many people were actually seeing it. Purchased too much: he had to throw away thousands in materials because he overestimated the amount of time he would have for tricks and what he would need. Ad words: he entered into a competition with his friend to see who could get the higher ranking. They spent a fortune during the competition buying competitive ad words rather than focusing on cheaper, niche keywords. 90-day social challenge: he did a 90-day social challenge where he posted for 90 days straight. While he had nice graphics and stories, he wasn’t being social in his posts and interconnecting with people on the platform. Water bottles: he had a plan to hand out silicone water bottles with his branding so that kids would be hydrated. The bottles got confiscated at customs which would have required him to pay a hefty fee to prove they were safe.  Not practicing practice: he was not practicing in an effective manner to truly improve his skill to amaze his customers. Not developing one more skill: he wishes that he could add one more amazing skill to his repertoire to accompany his balloon and magic skills. Backlinks: he didn’t understand the importance of backlinks for SEO and how 25% of your SEO should be dedicated to legitimate backlinks. Health: up until six months ago, he wasn’t being conscious of his body’s importance. Balancing wife and kids: he realized that fixing the balance between his work and home life gave him a sense of security. Wrap-Up What do you like about magic in 2018? What do you hate? Zivi isn’t actively looking into the magic trends. However, he has been interested in and enjoying close-up magic. Recommendation Matan Rosenberg Take Home Points Jonah enjoyed the part about diving into magic full time and taking an honest look at how you spend the hours in your day. Zivi enjoyed the overall theme of being an eternal learner and being open to new concepts. Resources Mentioned Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn The One Thing by Gary Keller Willpower Doesn’t Work by Benjamin Hardy Plugs Instagram Facebook Kivimedia.co Influence Marketing: 10% Principle Magician Business Podcast Kids Entertainment Podcast Generous Marriage Podcast Balloon Artist College Kids Entertainment School CBS E-Book: Use the code discourse for 90% off The post Marketing Secrets for Entrepreneurial Magicians with Zivi Kivi appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

This week, Jonah sits down with Ondřej Pšenička to discuss creating magic, Fool Us, and the importance of community. Ondřej is an award-winning magician who has performed at the Magic Castle, on Penn & Teller, and is the creator of the Butterfly Deck. Ondřej doesn’t really have a story about how he got into magic, it was always just an interest.  With the help of his mom, he was able to find a magic club in Prague and soon began to work on his own competition routine. Magic became a career path for him when he met Alan Vejr of Eve’n Alan. Ondřej showed Alan a video of his performance, and, seeing potential, Alan became his mentor for four years until his passing. During his time under Alan, Ondřej was exposed to magic outside of Prague through videos of masters like Dai Vernon, Fred Kaps, and Cardini. Creating Magic When Ondřej creates magic, he is focused on creating effects that are strong in presentation because it is impossible to come up with something no one knows. However, he still wants to create magic that will fool laymen and magicians. With this goal in mind, Ondřej approaches magic creation by looking for methods and moments that he can implement in unexpected ways. Ondřej goes on to explain how it’s important to embrace your strengths and weaknesses. For him, clean magic means no sleight of hand. He doesn’t enjoy performing it and prefers the impact of mental effects. The Butterfly Deck is a prime example of how you can create stunning effects with simple concepts used in unexpected ways. Butterfly Deck The Butterfly Deck was designed to fool magicians. Ondřej says that it’s not special in any way because everything you need is hidden in the beautiful back design.  In response to those who feel like they can’t use marked decks out of fear they’ll be caught, Ondřej says that only magicians tend to check or suspect that the deck is marked. When laymen tend to look at his deck, they just comment on the design. He goes on to say that when you’re working with a marked deck, you should perform effects that can’t be explained away with a marked deck. When asked why Ondřej would reveal the secrets of the deck, he replies that he wants to see what people can do with the tool he created. If you have a Butterfly Deck, and you have interesting ideas on how to use it, email him at: Ondrej@butterflyplayingcards.com. Fool Us Ondřej never had the ambition to go on Fool Us. It wasn’t until he was working on his Magic Castle act that he developed an idea that was perfect for the show. He had this image of him, sitting beside Teller while watching Alyson fool Penn on stage. With this idea in mind, he created a video at the Magic Castle and sent it into the show. His primary goal for the effect was making Alyson the star of the show. Ondřej encourages you to submit a video to the show if you have an idea that you feel would work. When making your video, he urges you to consider the environment you will be performing; they have monitors where they can watch in detail what you’re doing, meaning they will catch some things but miss others. Additionally, and this goes for any TV performance, work with the directors and producers. They want to make you and the show look as good as possible for everyone watching.  University Magic Course Ondřej attended the University of Dance and Circus in Stockholm for a magic course. Over the course of three weeks, Tom Stone instructed Ondřej and his fifteen classmates, teaching them various magic methods and concepts. From there, the students split off in pairs to develop and brainstorm tricks that utilized what they had learned. The focus was never on teaching tricks but letting them develop their own material. Ondřej describes the course as life-changing. He learned the power of working with people to brainstorm ideas and develop tricks. Without his time spent at the university, he wouldn’t have his show, he wouldn’t have had his Fool Us Performance, and he wouldn’t have met the designer for the Butterfly Deck. While the course is not currently open, it may be running again in July or August in 2019. Follow Tom Stone on Facebook for details. Prague Magic While there have been prominent Czech magicians like Pavel Pomezny and Lubor Fiedler, there is not much magic in Prague. However, with the KIM club–which focuses on creating a magic community for young magicians in Prague–and lecturers, like Karl Hein, bringing in their magic perspectives, Ondřej says that it is getting better. He calls back to the idea of community when talking about how the magic culture is improving in Prague. With his upcoming show, 52 Lovers, he says that he is only the tip of the iceberg and owes so much to his magic friends. The material may be his for the one hour set, but none of his ideas would have developed without the assistance of the community. Importance of Scripting In Ondřej’s magic club, they were recently talking about Pete McCabe’s On Scripting Magic books. Coming from an acting background, Ondřej sees script writing as one of the most important and beneficial aspects of creating a performance. By scripting, you are able to lay out how you want the audience to feel while weaving in things like callbacks. Ondřej suggests watching the ending of Derren Brown’s Enigma to see the perfect example of how scripting can help you perform powerful magic.  Wrap-Up Favourite Part Jonah liked the idea of deadlines and limitations. They breed creativity and make you take action at a rate you weren’t taking before. Ondřej liked the part about having friends in magic. They are the people who will help you develop and improve. What do you love about 2018 magic? What do you hate? Ondřej likes that people are coming back to theatres for the live shows to move away from the special effects in theatre. He feels that magic is going the right direction, and he is excited to see where it goes. Recommendation Rico and Lisa de la Vega Drummond Resources Ondřej’s Instagram Ondřej’s Website Recommended Literature   The post Creating Magic and Fooling Magicians with Ondřej Pšenička appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

It’s a solo episode for 138 as Jonah sits down to catch you up on his trip to Austin, where he’s at with his magic and new ideas for the podcast. Austin, Texas Jonah recently traveled to Austin, Texas to perform a private show for a group of online marketers. While there, he had the opportunity to listen to their expertise in marketing while being able to share his knowledge of performing. One of the highlights of his trip to Austin was seeing a political satire show that mixed music, sketches, and large-scale illusions–performed by Ray Anderson–together to create an incredible show. The show, Esther’s Follies, sees new skits each week as the performers meet up to create the show based on the week’s news cycle. This constant change in performance alongside the collaboration of talented people provided Jonah with a moment of inspiration.  Down the road, he hopes that he can incorporate the talents of outside people into his shows to elevate the overall experience for the audience. Len Cooper Award During the Browser’s Den of Magic 44th Anniversary party, Jonah won the Len Cooper Memorial Award which recognizes a magician under the age of 26 who has shown a dedication to the art of magic. Jonah is honored to have received the award and recognizes that he is in good company alongside the previous winners like James Alan, Ben Train, Chris Westfall, and Jeff Hinchliffe. Jonah was able to take a moment to sit down with Bernice Cooper — the wife of Len Cooper who the award honors — to discuss why Len was such a staple in the Toronto magic scene, and what qualities she would like to see in the people who win the award. Bernice replied that Len was very kind to young people entering into magic and that he was gentle in his approach. Her words resonated with Jonah, and he hopes that he can continue to apply these traits to his own magic. A Twist on the Classics Recently, Jonah has been moving away from trying weirder magic concepts, like potions and amulets, to putting his own spin on classic effects. His current focus is a chop cup routine that he has been performing at Newest Trick. Soon, he’ll be looking at putting his own twist on a metal bending routine. It’s a new approach for him, so he would like to hear from the listeners who may have suggestions or resources. Corporate Season While TMC slows down their shows during the November/December season, Jonah is picking up more and more private shows. After years of hard work, he now has a steady client base who continue to recommend and bring him back to perform. He highlights how important word of mouth can be for a magician as the audience members who recall what they saw, are recalling an impossible moment. That’s why it’s so important to have good, memorable material that you have spent time honing. Discourse in Magic In a few weeks, one lucky listener will have the chance to win a prize worth $200. Keep an eye out in the coming weeks for details on how to enter the contest. Soon, Jonah will be releasing a new theory resource guide to replace the current one. If you are interested in the old one, you should check it out soon as once the new one goes up, the old one will disappear. If you haven’t yet, consider joining the mailing list for updates and additional resources to enjoy alongside the podcast. The post Monthly Catch up: Len Cooper and Esther Follies appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Magic podcast hosts collide this episode as Carisa Hendrix, co-host of Shezam, sits down with Jonah to discuss performance, women in magic, cultural theory, and “It Factor.” Carisa is an award-winning magician who brings her background in visual arts and sideshow to her magic. Carisa’s reason for getting into magic is a complex one, but she can trace the root of her inspiration back to Max Maven’s Canadian kid’s show, “MAXimum Dimension.” Even now, she notes, you can see how the show inspired her character. Magic, however, was always a secondary outlet as she there was no one else in magic around her. When she was kicked out of her house at the age of sixteen, Carissa took up a position at a haunted house as a sideshow performer, honing her fire eating and juggling skills. She soon landed a job as a magician’s assistant. Eventually, Carisa went off to university to pursue a visual arts degree while continuing her work as a sideshow performer. It was at the age of 25 that she realized she hadn’t decided to live the life she was living. It was then that she made the conscious decision to embrace magic. Creating a Performance Carisa has a crafted her magic and sideshow acts over the years based on what she wants to show the audience. By sitting down and defining what success means to her, Carisa is able to write enough material to meet her individual goals. While she recommends looking at what other people have done, she warns that you shouldn’t try to be like them. When it comes down to it, you want to define your reputation based on your wants, not by what others have achieved. One of the most important aspects of polishing your routine is practicing your material wherever you can, Carissa explains. You need to find places where you can be terrible, like open mic nights or variety shows, in your city. In the end, the quickest way to achieve a polished set is to perform it over and over again for an audience you don’t know. Authentic Magic Being the most visually literate culture in history, our audiences can better derive meaning from and pick up on subtle aspects of texts. With this in mind, Carisa goes on to explain that you need to be authentic in your practice or your audience will pick up on your lies. Pulling from her own experience, Carisa says that she was originally creating magic just to be extremely fooling. The realization that she was forgetting to put art into her magic was a heartbreaking moment which made her start her routine from scratch again.  For her, magic is about realizing the aspects of your life that you deeply wish and fantasize about. People come to magic shows to experience real power or feel a different experience that they cannot otherwise achieve. Magic, just for a moment, allows people to step outside of adulthood and experience something else, returning them to a simpler time. Women in Magic Alongside Kayla Drescher, Carisa co-hosts a podcast focused on women in magic called Shezam. The podcast was born from the fact that everyone trying to solve the issue of women in magic was a dude. After five months of bouncing around ideas, they finally released the first episode expecting nothing to come of it. However, people were listening. Primarily, men who were interested in helping women feel accepted in magic were listening. Since the launch of Shezam, Carisa and Kayla have attended four conventions and have received funding from the IBM. For those interested in how they can make the community a more welcoming environment, Carisa recommends starting with advocacy. Advocate for women by inviting them to be on lineups and share their experiences, but be aware of tokenism and the effect it can have. If you don’t move beyond the “we need a single woman on the lineup” mentality, you set up a culture where the women who rise to the top can either play with the boys or are okay with being completely alone. Furthermore, you will continue to see the same faces over and over again because they fall into one of those two categories. Carisa explains that women shouldn’t be expected to grin and bear any misogyny that comes their way if they want to succeed. Men and women need to recognize that to be supportive, you have to acknowledge the issues that come with tokenism. When approaching the topic, try to put yourself into their perspective. Realize what it’s like to work by themselves, or what issues they were facing. Don’t subjugate them to the role of assistant.  The culture won’t fix itself overnight, but we can start fixing each part. Start with empathy. Start with questioning your default assumptions. Recognize that everyone is different. Meta-Modernity During her lecturing tour with John Reed, Carisa spoke about the idea of Meta-Modernity and how magic adapts with cultural shifts. Where visual art tends to be the first through the door when adapting to a new cultural art style, magic tends to be the last. Modernity was the era of cultural understanding after World War One. There was a sentiment and a generosity behind the idea that tech would solve all the problems. It wasn’t until Copperfield and Doug Henning, in the 80s, that magic really started to adapt these sentiments into the art. Following Modernism was Post-Modernism— an embrace of cynicism—which took shape in magicians like Criss Angel and David Blaine. With each cultural shift, these magicians became the stand out names due to their embrace of the culture. Currently, we are in a culture of Meta-Modernity: we’re tired of just irreverent cynicism but we’re not ready for overly cheesy material. We want to experience the swing of emotions in the narratives we’re told. It Factor The idea that some people are just born with a certain star quality is not an idea Carisa subscribes to. To her, “it factor” and “star power” are convenient lies we tell ourselves. Becoming a good entertainer takes time, polish and careful choices—chalking it up to “it factor” doesn’t do the performer justice. Carisa emphasizes the idea that you need to be unapologetic about who you are. Every struggle you have should be seen as a point for you, something you can draw on and embrace in your performance. Bubble U Until recently, Carisa has been performing bubble shows—a variety act that utilizes the amazing qualities of bubbles. With no expectations or gendered traits tied to them, bubbles are easily adapted to different genres to meet your purposes. Bubble U is Carisa’s online course that teaches performers the basics of manipulating bubbles and how to perform her routine. If you would like to sign up, visit http://www.nonsensekids.com and use coupon code “Discourse” to receive $50 off your purchase. Wrap-Up What do you love about magic in 2018? What do you hate about magic in 2018? Carisa loves that small, niche branches of magic are becoming popular. Magicians are able to embrace who they are and perform the magic that defines them. Carisa doesn’t like the way magic has been commodified. Lots of performers are just looking at the top ten on Penguin and cycling through them. Magic PSA There is no such thing as “it factor” or “star power.” These are oversimplifying complex choices made by performers over the years. Question of the Week How do you want magic to be remembered? Endless Chain Christopher Barnes Alba Plugs Instagram Website Shezampod Bubble U   The post Secrets to Developing Your Act with Carisa Hendrix appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Musician-turned-magician Jonathan Friedman joins Jonah this week to discuss combining outside passions with your magic and how magic has changed over the years. Jonathan is the best selling author of The 80’s Called…They Want Their Magic Book Back Vol. One and The Magic of Jonathan Friedman: The Musical. Jonathan was first introduced to magic at the age of six when his father showed him a few simple tricks. Magic, however, was never at the forefront of his hobbies. He would drift in and out of it over the years during his time as a musician. It wasn’t until he stopped playing music that he stuck with magic. A Changing Field After spending years away from magic, Jonathan came back to a completely changed landscape. Suddenly, everyone had access to information online, people’s attention spans had become shorter, and the tricks that were in style had drastically shifted from the packet tricks he is fond of performing. Rather than turn up his nose to it, Jonathan embraced the idea that the internet is a new venue for magic. Like the stage or close-up, you need to adapt your magic to the new style. Online, that first magical moment needs to happen in the first thirty seconds to meet the short attention spans and makeup for the lack of personal connection you can have in a real-life venue. Additionally, Jonathan highlights the benefit of being able to see the tricks performed online. Magic is a visual medium, so being able to see how the trick is performed helps him understand what the effect is supposed to look like.  Magic Stores Currently, Jonathan works part-time at the Market Magic Shop in Seattle, WA.  Recounting a time when a man took a moment to show him a Paul Harris trick at Tannen’s magic shop, Jonathan says that he wants to assist new magicians on their journey. His time at a brick and mortar store has put him in a position where he can pass on his knowledge to up and comers. When recommending material, Jonathan believes that to move up a level in magic, you’ll have to use books. However, if someone is trying to get into magic, a book nowadays may not be the right place to start. He emphasizes the idea that you need to offer them material that appeals to them in the beginning. Overlapping Interests   If you want to combine one of your passions with your magic, Jonathan recommends a few ways to approach it. You have to make sure the passion is universal to everyone. Music, food, movies are all interests that everyone can understand to a degree; you can mix them with your magic and not lose your audience. The passion you bring into your magic should bring an extra layer, a hook, to the effect and presentation. Second, it shouldn’t be a challenge to combine the two passions together. Jonathan believes that if you have to fight for two things you’re interested in to work together, then maybe one of them isn’t as strong of a passion. If you have to use a lot of emotional effort to create a hook, then the emotional impact just isn’t there to begin with. To find out how your passions connect and overlap, Jonathan recommends brainstorming, and trial and error. You will eventually discover how your passions emotionally resonate together.  Wrap Up Question of the week Why have you stopped doing specific tricks? Is it because they don’t play well for the audience? Or because you’re tired of performing them? PSA Slow down. Recommendation Seth Race (Columbus Ohio) 2018 love and hate Jonathan loves how, because of social media, the world has opened up. He is able to see magic coming out of different parts of the world that he otherwise would have never had access to. He hates how the art has been devalued because it is so attainable. How can you have a real appreciation when it is all a click away? Also, accidental exposure in reference to the person doing an effect so poorly and posting it so that everyone can see what’s going on. Plugs Magicana in Genii magazine The Magic of Jonathan Friedman: The Musical The Fifth Fourth Instagram The post Music, Magic and Using Your Other Passions with Jonathan Friedman appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

This week, Jonah finally sits down with Andi Gladwin—co-founder of Vanishing Inc.—to discuss the business of magic, publishing magic, and how to manage your time. Andi has also appeared on Fool Us and The Next Great Magician where he performed his Man in a Balloon act.  Andi never planned to be a full-time magician. Unlike his magician friends, Andi left university to take on a job with a web hosting company. While he loved his time there, he found that he was falling behind in the magic world. He wanted to be the best magician he could be but couldn’t with a full-time job. With the help of his magician friends, Andi was able to start performing magic while earning what he did at his web hosting job. His approach to magic is driven by Gary Vaynerchuk’s saying: legacy over currency. Everything he does in magic is based on the desire to improve the quality of magic in the world. Vanishing Inc. Andi and Joshua Jay launched Vanishing Inc. six months before Andi left his job to pursue work as a professional magician. The idea to launch the company came after frustration with not having control over the quality of their products; they could create the content, but it was out of their hands once they sold it. The idea to start Vanishing Inc. came from this desire for a magic shop that focused on quality over quantity. With the recent acquisition of The Art of Magic, Andi explains his appreciation for what Dan and Dave have created. While he’s not sure how Vanishing Inc. and Art of Magic will work together, Andi promises that they’ll continue to deliver high-quality products. You can see Dan and Dave’s goodbye video here. The Business of Magic Asking magicians to trust them with their creations after telling the story of how Vanishing Inc came to be is always a tricky situation for Andi. He is asking magicians to trust him with their content when he himself started a company to control how his material is released. However, he believes that Vanishing Inc, with their ten years of proven experience, can provide magicians with the quality they seek. Any magician Vanishing Inc. partners with must match their ethos of wanting to create good magic; they don’t want people who are solely creating tricks for the sake of financial gain.  In terms of going pro, Andi recommends doing it slowly. Create a business plan, look at the numbers, determine if it is a doable situation for you. It will take time to develop a steady flow of gigs, and you shouldn’t rush into it. Andi reminds you that, if it’s not for you, you can always return to your old job. For creating and publishing magic, Andi works off the Michael Close theory: For it to be a publishable effect, there needs to be a change to the presentation, effect, or method that improves it. Furthermore, Andi explains that a magician should perform the trick a few hundred times to understand the ins and outs of their creation before trying to sell it. Managing Time Running a business, performing and practicing magic, meeting with friends and spending time with family can be hectic. To balance his life, Andi foregoes movies and television to put hours into his work and practice. He goes on to explain that he taught himself how to sit down and focus on the task at hand. To better manage your time, Andi recommends a few useful tips: Assign certain tasks to certain days of the week Designate locations for doing work Set aside specific times in your day for specific tasks Create a to-do list using a scheduling app or a day planner Ultimately, Andi’s goal is to set aside time to practice and perform magic. Round-up Who would you like to see on the Podcast? Benjamin Earl Danny Buckler What do you love about 2018 magic? What do you hate? He likes how video is such an important medium in magic now. Magic is visual, so filming your trick allows you to better share your content. He doesn’t like the people who hate on the current direction magic is going or the politics that sometimes comes with magic. Question of the week: What are we going to do this week to give ourselves more time for magic? What do you look for in a magic shop? Social Media and Projects Andi Gladwin on Instagram Card magic of Edward G. Brown is a project Andi is currently working on. You can expect to see the book released in a few months.  Resources Mentioned: 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss Going Pro Magic in Mind Wunderlist and Asana  The post Vanishing Inc, Going Pro and Publishing your Magic with Andi Gladwin appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

It’s a short episode this week with Jonah talking about the state of the podcast, the Banksy painting fiasco, and the Toronto Magic Company. The Banksy Painting Referencing David Parr’s episode, Jonah relates the shredding of the Banksy painting to David’s idea of a narrative allowing you to get away with a method. This comparison was sparked by an article that attempts to determine if the painting was actually shredded. Jonah explains that people were so focused on a painting being shredded immediately after being purchased that the people present didn’t stop to question what they were seeing in the moment. Toronto Magic Company Jonah provides a brief catch-up on the current state of the Toronto Magic Company, as events that were on pause over the summer are now in full swing. The Newest Trick in the Book – Canada’s only open mic magic show – is back and in its fourth week. Every week, different magicians take to the stage in Toronto to perform new tricks. The best part about the show, Jonah explains, is that he gets to see a variety of acts to inspire him, rather than the same shows each week.   In the wake of five sold-out shows, the sixth Art of Magic returns in the November with the Sentimentalists headlining the show. Each month, these shows feature an amazing line-up like the Evasons, Mark Correia, Keith Brown, and Nick Wallace. Alongside the draw of talented magicians, Jonah credits the combination of TMC’s content and paid marketing on Facebook alongside the relevance of their name. If you have any questions about starting up shows in your city, they encourage you to reach out to them or check out the episode they did for the podcast.  State of the Podcast Jonah would like to thank everyone who has reached out since the last episode. He was touched by the number of qualified people who offered to be the new co-host for the podcast. However, Jonah will be hosting the podcast solo, but he does plan to bring on guest hosts in the future. There will, potentially, be a new mini-episode on Mondays based on the listener’s participation. You would have the chance to send in your questions via an audio clip, and Jonah would address them on the show. The question would then be turned over to the audience for further answers. If you like the idea, reach out to him over Instagram or through email.   The lineup behind the scenes of the podcast has changed. A few episodes before Tyler left, there was a new edition to the team. Jacque Swan, a magician in Toronto, has joined the podcast to do the episode write-ups and edit the audio. Feel free to reach out and say “hi” to her on Instagram.  Question of the week What is one thing in magic 2018 which you love? And one thing in magic 2018 which you hate? The post Co-hosts, Banksy, and Getting Caught Up appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

With his passion shifting away from magic, Tyler says goodbye to the magic community and to Discourse in Magic in episode 133. Over the course of two hours, Tyler and Jonah discuss why he has decided to leave while reminiscing about their time working on the podcast.  The Reasons Behind his Departure Tyler never planned to become a professional magician. He originally got into magic as a way to get social attention. Magic allowed him to interact with and captivate people. He was happy being the magic person among people because it gave him a way to interact. But, with his life moving in a different direction and finding a passion for video editing, Tyler has found his passion for magic fading away. Magic is no longer helping him form meaningful relationships with people, so he has decided to step back and focus on just being him. As he has mentioned over the last few episodes, Tyler has found a passion for video editing. It’s a task he is able to sit down and complete which is something that has always been difficult for him. Tyler goes on to explain that he wants to be able to move on from projects. With video, he may create several drafts, but he will eventually deliver it to his client and be done with the project. With magic, there is always something more to improve and he can’t move on like he wants to. He further goes on to explain that working for someone else pushes him to be his best. It is a consistent job, and he doesn’t feel guilty completing other tasks outside of his work. Overall, Tyler wants to focus on being just Tyler. Reminiscing The second half is spent briefly covering the 132 episodes they have done together, providing a behind the scenes glimpse into the recording process. Jonah and Tyler cover their favourite episodes, the mistakes they made starting out, and the memorable moments that weren’t recorded. Ending Notes Tyler is glad he did the podcast and believes it has benefited the magic community. He reminds everyone to be good. Not just in magic, but in general. In and outside of magic. Tyler wants you to not just better yourself the whole time, but to try to better the world. You have a gift–a talent you worked hard for. Everything is a gift and you need to remember that. Tyler wants to the thank and apologizes to the fans and the people he has built relationships with through the podcast. It only took one person each week to keep him and Jonah putting out episodes. He thanks you for listening and supporting them over the years and encourages people to continue listening to the podcast after his departure. He hopes that, in the future, he has more to give to the community because it has given him so much. The podcast will continue, but Jonah encourages fans to reach out and keep up with Tyler if he has affected you in any way. If you wish to send Tyler a message, you can reach him at tylersolwilliams@gmail.com   The post Why Tyler is Leaving the Podcast appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Known for his appearance on Fool Us, David Parr joins Tyler and Jonah. Bringing his theatrical background to magic this episode, David discusses the value of live theatre, the power of storytelling and Fool Us. David received a magic set when he was younger, and, once he learned all its tricks, needed to know more. His studies led him to the local library and magic store. Soon after, he was performing for library programs in his hometown of Milwaukee. As he moved into regular gigs, his focus was on the enjoyment of performing magic and letting people experience the things he loved. It wasn’t until seeing Doug Henning perform that it dawned on him that magic was something he could do for a living. Sharing the Live Experience David emphasizes that the value of live theatre lies in the moment. Everything the audience and the performer is experiencing is a product of that set of people, in that room during specific conditions. The value of the ticket comes from the ephemeral moment that the audience gets to experience. From these moments, the audience can have their effect on the magic which allows the performance to undergo its evolutionary phase. During his show with Joe Diamond, David mentions that they use to ask the audience who had seen a live magic performance before. Most people had not. For David, this becomes an opportunity to define what live magic can be for the audience. Defining Magic David believes that the definition of your magic influences what you do. He explored this concept in his book, Magic Mirror, which he co-authored with Bob Neal. While Bob came up with a (self-admitted) convoluted defition, David realized he needed to come up with his own simpler definition. This led him to his current description: Simulated impossibility.   This base definition becomes his foundation. From there, he builds the theatrical and technical elements that allow him to fulfill and exceed his audience’s expectations. By giving people multiple levels to engage with, David is able to capture people’s attention and give them memorable moments. People will find something to engage with–whether the puzzle element or the stories–if you give them multiple elements. By the end of the show, people should have an understanding of who he is as a person. Storytelling and Scripting Theatre and film have procedural aspects to their narratives, David explains. Narrative is a powerful tool at our disposal because humans are programmed to connect with narratives. By taking them from point A to point B, you can create memorable moments that they can retain in their mind after the show is over. People will go out and try to share their memories, extending the performance beyond the initial room. David strongly believes in scripting magic. Scripting is the chance for a performer to make deliberate, conscious choices about their performances and why they are doing specific things. David goes on to remind us that you don’t have to be chained to your script. You can deviate and respond to your audience–a script will just allow you to return to the trick without the need to fish around. When writing your script, David recommends recording your performance and transcribing everything you say during it, including the verbal ticks. You can then see where the problems are and can start to make conscious choices about the way you’re performing. You can begin to ask questions like, “what does my audience need to know to understand the narrative?” Fool Us David points to his Fool Us performance as an example of how important narrative is. The back-and-forth game of his trick acted as a compelling enough narrative that people were caught up watching; they didn’t have the opportunity to reverse engineer the procedure. David goes on to say that he fooled them with theatrics as he knows Teller is aware of the effect’s principle. Wrap-Up Magical PSA Ask yourself “Why am I doing this?” If the answer is “look at me” then you probably need to reassess why you’re doing magic. Asking this question over and over will allow us to grow not only as performers but as people. Question of the week? Who am I? How have the threads of the people who have inspired you been woven into your work? Magic is a process of self-discovery. What do you like about the 2018 magic community? Something you don’t like? Many magicians are clinging to the past because they can’t horde secrets anymore. They are denying the reality we live in. So give them more beyond that. Give them a human being to relate to. Take Home Point Jonah resonated with the idea of editing and including as little as necessary to give people multiple layers they can connect with. David liked the idea of determining what it is you want to accomplish. Tyler liked the idea that a script is not a straightjacket and that it can only serve to better your performance. Endless Chain Chrisitan Cagigal or Joe Diamond Social Media Website: https://www.davidparr.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parrmagic/?hl=en Twitter: https://twitter.com/parrmagic?lang=en   The post Performance That Engages on Multiple Levels with David Parr appeared first on Discourse in Magic.

Harapan Ong joins Tyler and Jonah this week to discuss Instagram magic, developing your art, and the public’s exposure to magic. While Harapan is not a full-time magician, you can find him performing from and reviewing magic books on his Instagram show, Fully Booked. Growing up in Singapore, Harapan had a very limited exposure to magic. His intro to magic began after seeing David Copperfield performing his Grandpa’s Aces routine on T.V. Completely mesmerized, he spent the night trying to figure it out. For his birthday, his dad found a magic shop, called the Magic Castle, hidden away in a shopping mall. The Amateur Magician When he was younger, Harapan considered quitting school to purse magic full time, but parental pressure stopped him. However, he has no regrets. By not needing to focus on magic that would appeal to a hypothetical audience, Harapan has the opportunity to explore the magic that interests him. Currently inspired by the blog, The Jerx, Harapan recommends their booklet, Amateur at the Kitchen Table, for amateurs looking for ideas and performance ideas. Instagram Magic Magic online, primarily on Instagram, is often a contentious issue that sees magicians taking sides. Harapan steps in to provide a young person’s insight mixed with the understanding of the older generations. To him, social media magic is just a new platform to perform on. Referencing Paul Harris’, Harapan reminds the audience that some tricks were developed solely for television. Social media has just become a more accessible video avenue To grow on social media, you need to follow certain rules and apply techniques — it’s a whole new art form that Harapan wishes more magicians would explore and utilize to share their magic. He does warn, however, that you should be able to perform some tricks in real life to show people you’re more than just a person on the screen, but someone they can connect with.   Creating and Improving While Harapan does highlight the pros of using video to learn, he focuses primarily on a books ability to better spark the imagination. To him, the value of a book comes from the number of ideas it inspires in you. This is why books with decent ideas appeal to him; they come with tricks that he is able to improve on, in his own way. To new magicians–primarily young magicians–Harapan emphasizes the need to create your own magic. Creating allows you to understand your voice, pushes you to be original, and teaches you how to be unhappy with a method and how to find a solution to fix it. Where Harapan takes issue with creating is trying to sell a trick too early in your career. If you’re creating tricks for the sake of publication, you probably won’t be creating material worth publishing. Public’s Exposure to Magic As magic continues to mature and its popularity grows in the mainstream, Harapan hopes it will push magicians to be more original and become savvier with magic. Recounting a story told to him by Pipo Villaneua, he explains that Spain had two channels on T.V., and one was basically dedicated to Juan Tamariz performing card tricks. Spanish people were exposed to really good card magic at a young age, which resulted in the public knowing what excellent magic looks like. Young magicians were trying to top Tamriz which resulted in the amazing Spanish performers we see today. Wrap Up Magical PSA Strive to be good at what you do. Strive to be original. In terms of learning, explore everything. Learn about the art you love. Never lose focus on what you love about magic. Be the best magician you can be. Question of the Week Why are you not reading Ascanio’s books on theory yet? What do you like about 2018 magic? What do you hate about 2018 magic? Harapan really likes how exposed the general public is getting to magic. They are seeing good magic which, as a result, pushes the art form as a whole. He doesn’t like the gap between the newer and older generations. Where the new is detached from crediting and doesn’t seem to want to pay for the material, the older generations don’t exactly seem willing to help the younger generation understand the history of magic. Endless Chain of Magicians Pipo Villaneua  Favourite Parts Jonah liked that part about encouraging people to create is fine, but releasing too soon is a problem. Tyler liked the idea of releasing unpolished stuff to get feedback on via social media. Harapan liked the idea of magicians getting accustomed to sharing online and generating a discussion about magic. Social Media Instagram: @Harapanong The post Bridging the Old and the New with Harapan Ong appeared first on Discourse in Magic.