Boy, it really hit me! I was thinking back on the first shows I created, and how over the years, I could never be satisfied with my show the way it is, which in turn causes me to constantly make changes in search of that elusive perfection which I will never reach.


Anyway, it hit me that the show I now do has not even the slightest resemblance to my original one.

In fact, I've created a monster!

(A very expensive monster, at that)

Any way, I just wondered if there is anyone out there who has managed to keep the same show year after year without changes, (I would envy you) or are there others out there who are also creating monsters of their own.

Is this process good and natural, or does this evolution show evidence of a need to settle down and keep the same show unchanged for years.

What do you think?

I've created so many monsters over the years that if the name wasn't already taken I could call my act "Monster's Inc.". I do however feel that it is a healthy thing to always be trying to make my show better. I have several different "core" shows that I use for different types of engagements, but I am constantly tinkering with these shows in an effort to make them better. Sometimes the tinkering does in fact make things better other times not. I for one feel this is a good and natural thing. The audience is oblivious to any tinkering, and as long as the final product that they get is of high quality they're happy.
I think the tinkering is more for me, while the show is basically the same, making adjustments makes it easier for me to keep each performance looking fresh and unique.

Like yours my current show bears little resemblance to my first feeble attempts at entertainment, and like you I have spent what at times feels like a small fortune. I do feel that after all these years I have finally become at least a reasonably smart shopper when it comes to magic. I am finally able to look past the shiny paint and flashy sales pitches and objectively evaluate how an effect will fit into my act. I could have gotten an Ivy League education for what I paid to acquire this knowledge, but I don't think I would have had as much fun.

A C Spectre

Everything you said in your reply I can relate to having experienced parallel things myself.

I have definitely spent the small fortune you've mentioned, in fact, I would go so far as to say I've spent what could have been my retirement someday.

And like you, my shopping savvy has increased exponentially! These lessons are among the most expensive I have ever experienced in my forty eight years on this earth.


And like you, I've had a ton of fun "going broke"!

It seems to me that most long time professionals do the exact (or just about exact) act. I believe Wit Hayden (fantastic pro, and recent winner of the Magic Castle's close up magician of the year) pretty much does the same act he has done for decades. I remmeber seeing Johnny Ace Palmer doing his award winning FISM act the year he won with it (I think 1988), and have seen basically the same act another 30-50 times over the years even as recently as a few months ago. It is still great to see his act.

You obviously see the advantages of not changing the act. Mostly money, but also imagine how good you get at doing the same thing thousands of times instead of just dozens or hundreds of times.

My plan is to do mostly the same act, but every year or so add or take out something to make it a bit different. Or, you could put together 2 or 3 acts that are totally different, and alternate them to keep it interesting to you.

Lincoln

My mentor always says that evolution is good in an act, but revolution is very bad. So a gradual change for the better is good, as it means honing things to work better, and cutting the things that don't work for you. Revolution is a state where it's all change all the time and nothing ever beds in or gets workable. JMHO