This is something new, but I'd like to share with you the concept of Show Notes. This is specifically for the performer, but it can be an amateur or professional or even hobbyist for that matter. Magic is a performing art. You can be a lover of magic without performing certainly. But if you do any magic at all, you want to strive for the best presentation possible. For some, that means just doing the trick the way they've seen others do it. This is problematic however. First, you never want to copy someone else's routine, yet we've all likely done it to some degree. Personally, I like to play with magic from long dead masters. It's fun to bring back routines of the past. Levant, who is a comedy magician put together a series of videos on the Linking Rings. He teaches many routines from past masters: Dai Vernon, Roy Benson, Chung Ling Soo, Professor Hoffmann, and others. It's quite revealing to see what has been done in the past and use them as the basis for your own.
But, I'm getting away from my initial thought, which is Show Notes. People, magicians specifically seem to dislike criticism. And that's the first thing you have to rid yourself of if you want to improve. Never settle for 'just ok'. Or 'it gets a response'. Or my audiences seem to enjoy it. No. Always strive to improve your performance and a great way to do that is with fresh eyes taking notes of your performance.
Here is how it works. Find a trusted friend. They can be a fellow magician, or a lay person, or someone in theater, and ask them to take notes during your show. Tell them to look for things that stand out, both positive and negative. But you really want more negative because through these notes you'll be able to tackle the negative things and remove or fix them.
I have a core group of friends. Years ago when we were always together, we would either go to each others shows or we would video the shows. Then we would critique the shows by making notes of things we saw. For example, there are many bad habits we are not aware of. We can't be, we're too close to the material. Maybe you are mispronouncing a word. Maybe you repeat a word over and over. Maybe you don't accentuate the climax of your trick properly, because you rush through it, or don't hold it long enough to get the proper applause, or you kill it with a joke at the wrong time. Trust me, I've done every one of those things. And this was AFTER I tried to clean it all up as best I could. But then a fresh set of eyes comes in and is able to point out things I never realized, or I did realize and never fixed.
NEVER take things personally. And this goes for the note writer too. Don't be personal about your critiques. For example the note says, "that's a stupid trick, why do you do it?" Not helpful. But instead, maybe ask, "is this effect registering with the audience? Or, I think the audience is seeing right through this trick the way you are currently doing it" And be willing to work on solutions.
One of the note taking rules we used to have was to be brutal. No sense taking notes and not getting anything back...unless of course your routine is perfect, and whose is? Even the best routine, can probably use a tweak or two. Maybe it's an addition of a line, maybe the removal of a line. Maybe it's standing a certain way. Maybe it's the entrance, when you first walk on stage. Maybe it's the in between stuff that needs to be worked on.
This brings to me to one of my most frustrating things, and that is when people think the SECRET is all there is to a trick. The METHOD or SECRET is one tiny part. The presentation, the audience interaction, the patter, your movement, all of these things go together. And then there are outside elements, your costuming or how you dress, your grooming, your lighting, your sound if you use it, your diction, your script. I always have a script. I work on it judiciously when I first create a routine. I don't always write it down, which is my own mistake. And I'll go on record to say you should write it down. But my point is, a magic effect, a routine, a composition, is more than the secret. Sometimes, it could be a story which is the focal point and the magic backs up the story. I'm reminded of Penn Jillette's version of the Needle Through Balloon. If you've never seen it, the routine is extremely theatrical and dramatic. It's also very well thought out and totally different from any other routine of the kind. In fact, watch the video.
Now, imagine how many notes went into that routine. I'm sure it wasn't the masterpiece you now see the very first time it was presented. It took a while to get the script down. It took a while figuring out how to deliver the lines. It took a while figuring out just what could be done to the balloon that allowed it to remain without it exploding, and yet each step had to prove a point. I'll be this routine went through a lot of show notes, and yet, look at the result. Brilliant.
This is what show notes can help you accomplish. They help you improve faster than you could do it on your own. It's that fresh set of eyes, that I keep talking about. We are often blind to things that stand out to others. Wouldn't you rather know about those things and fix them? Again, it isn't about people being critical of you, it's about fixing, tweaking, improving, your magic to bring about the best possible results.
