CARRYING
IN WITH MIKE By Simon Lovell
Mike Rogers
new column is particularly fascinating
to me as this is fundamental to the performance
of good magic in my opinion. There are
a number of effects I do that play well
to magicians but not to lay people and
visa-versa. As Mike points out it is the
'hook' that makes all the difference to
lay people. By asking yourself why you
are doing the effect as against how you
do it you start to understand this much
better.
I'm certainly
not the only one who has thought of doing
twisting the aces with four chosen cards
instead but if you haven't tried this
I suggest you do so - it takes an already
powerful effect and adds high emotional
content to it! A tiny addition is that
the card playing the ace of spades is
a signed card from a previous effect while
the others are unsigned. I can turn the
unsigned ones but can't turn the one with
the signature upon it, "because it has
too much of the spectators personality
imprinted upon it." I then give the packet
to the spectator who signed it and get
them to twist the packet and spread it
out to show that they've 'turned' the
card! The reaction is really cool with
the added advantage that the climax of
the effect happens in their hands - always
a powerful syndrome. The routine I use
by the way is the classic Vernon one,
still the best in my humble opinion!
You can take
this several stages further of course.
If I am doing a four ace assembly I always
use four chosen cards instead one of which
has been signed from a previous routine.
The signed card becomes the 'leader card'
and is placed before the spectator who
signed it. He or she magically draws the
other chosen cards to their signed card.
Again the spectator does the 'magic' not
me!
Another way
I add emotional content is to give the
cards personalities as with the effect
I described at the teach in at DMS. Essentially
it is sandwich style effect but the catcher
cards are the two red twos with the two
of hearts representing the first flush
of love and the two of diamonds representing
how love can grow. Two cards are chosen
one of which represents the male half
of a couple I'm working to while the other
represents the lady. They (their cards)
are lost in the population (the deck).
The twos catch the two chosen cards, "Ah
they were meant to be together in love!".
A tag line I use is to give them the cards
saying, "If you ever feel you are drifting
apart or are just having a bad day remember
how that first flush of love brought you
together and much richer you have become
as it has grown." AWWWWWWW!! By adding
emotional content and high interest hooks
your magic can only get so much better.
Remember don't ask how - instead ask why!!
All the best
for now,
Lemming
