Ok guys, so I watched Mindfreak the other night (please bear with me!) and Criss did a close-up routine which literally just made me laugh, then laugh a lot more for a few minutes, because I couldn't believe it. It was a routine in which he took a cigarette and pushed it through a glass table, and began to smoke it while being stuck in the table, etc.

The thing is, this was different than the usual, "BANG! magic!" As I said, I was basically basking in disbelief; it was a great piece of entertainment, as it was nonstop for a couple minutes, no stopping and going.

Can anyone give me any ideas on types of routines that are this style?

If I understand you correctly, you are asking about effects where the Moment of Astonishment (as Paul Harris would say) is extended.

In Michael Ammar's book "The Magic of Michael Ammar," he talks about freezing the moment of magic and extending it that way. An example is "The Iceman Cometh," where a selected card appears back in the card case, inside of a block of ice (and Max Malini would produce a large 5 lb block of ice in a seemingly impromptu situation). It's not quite the same thing, but the nature of the trick combined with a carefully constructed presentation could have the same effect. The trick may be over, but the final condition is one that your audience could 'bask' in. The key, I think, is giving your audience time and space to do so.

Eric Mead writes about a different approach when he described a show he was working on. His approach is to carefully select his material and his audience, and condition them from the beginning to bask in the impossibility--to savor the moment.

Specifically, though, it sounds like you're looking for material where the magic continues to happen after the climax. Probably any routine with multiple climaxes that build on the last. I can't think of anything off the top of my head, but I think you've discovered a fine direction to take your magic in.

Good luck, and let us know how you progress!

Thanks a lot for the response! I've been thinking over the weekend for something like this, and let me tell you...I'm still thinking.

If anyone else has any ideas, that would be great!

Bryan- I saw that episode, and it had a similar effect on me where I felt that the audience's amazement went on for quite a while.

I think that CA is doing very well by reversing his technique. On the grand illusions (Clearwater Hotel, etc.) the moment of amazement happens really quick, and then it's over.

In the cigarette trick, he figured he could do something closeup and got back to it (take a drag out of it)...move it, etc., and people will continue to be amazed. It was a really good choice. It gives more "wow" moments that people will remember ("I saw him putting it through the glass"; "I saw him taking a drag"; "I saw him twist and move the cigarette.")....Different people will remember different things, but giving the variety of moves, it works really well because everyone may remember a different thing (also helps with the audience reactions on camera later where you get people mentioning the different things each saw).

Better return on investment, IMO.

Very, very true indeed, and this can work in our favor when developing any effect or routine.

I think, as magicians, we “program” and also limit ourselves
based upon what we see in magic,
what we’ve learned, and what we’re taught by other magicians.

It’s hard to break the cycle of “this is the way it’s always been done,”
and it’s hard to think-out-of-the-box...
Most magic works through a routine for a “ta-da” moment,
rather than a prolonged extension of the magic unfolding.

I believe one reason that a good human “Levitation” is so well received
is that, rather than a “ta-da” moment of someone popping out of a box,
there is extended magic
as the person slowly levitates into the air, and then down once again.

These techniques can surely be utilized more in close-up and parlor magic,
not just with large stage illusions, with creativity and investment of time and thought.

I also agree that the pieces you choose...and more importantly
how you choose to present them,
along with the type of audiences you choose to perform for
and the style of magic you choose to do,
all impact the extension of the magical-moments.

Another good example may be McBride's “Kundalini Rising,”
where there is a lot of expectation built-up during the piece,
where the performer takes his time to bring about the effect,
and where the magic is extended as the card begins to move, then slowly rise.

Perhaps another aspect of extended-magic is when there are “steps” involved.
This was part of the technique in Angels’ cigarette piece, with the moving and smoking.
If you have steps-of-amazement, the magic lasts longer, as example:
a) silk appears b) silk changes color c) silk changes to candle d) candle vanishes.

In my shows, due to my style where storytelling and theatre play major roles,
I’m able to extend the magical-moments more often and with more ease
than someone performing in the currently popular rapid-fire style
of one thing happening after another during one minute of frantic music
or the close-up model of “pick-a-card, now I do this, now I do that” patter.

So the choice of effect, the presentation, the style of magic...all come into play.
It will be interesting to watch this thread expand as others give more thought to the topic.

Magically,
Walt

I understand what you are asking, and the routine you mentioned is an extreme example. I wouldn't overlook the more common example of leaving an examinable giveaway item with the spectators. The things that come to mind are a signed card to ring box, bent penny or quarter, or anything you borrowed and returned in a magical way.

I think the key here is knowing when to exit. I seem to leave right after the height of the moment of wonder and before the "how did you do that question" can be asked. I try to treat the situation just like I was on stage and walking off before the applause ended. This logistically isn't possible 100% of the time, but when it works out, the spectator is left sitting with the magic in their hands.

If it was a great performance, they might talk about it for a night, a week, or remember it for years.

Walt,
That's some great information from an obviously very experienced perspective.

Now, to everyone else.
When I started in magic less than two years ago, I was so excited; seeing new demo videos and reading about new effects just made me nuts. I bought all kinds of crap I never used, lol. This summer, I decided to sit back and focus on taking what I know, and what I want to learn, and making it the best it can be through presentation and routining. What I am attempting is to take effects of a similar genre, link them together, and make them one nice "group" of miracles, intertwined together through...you guessed it, presentation and routining.

I honestly don't like the idea of presenting "tricks". I think this is derived from a performer who has no presentation; i.e., all the audience has to go on is the trick itself. Also, I have a problem with the diversity among these tricks when presented in one setting. The random aspect pretty much contributes to the belief that you're just there to show them tricks. For example, if you're gonna borrow a cigarette, and vanish it...then why are you going to pull out a deck of cards?? If you make miracles, shouldn't you do several with the cigarette or routine it with matches or with a lighter? The ability to "link" these effects together, to me, makes perfect sense. I'd have to believe that the spectators would remember MORE, since it was presented as ONE performance.

My stance on it is if you take 3 random effects and manage to link them together, seemingly as one "event", "performance", "miracle" or whatever, then you are able to extend the moment of astonishment.

It just comes down to me wanting to provide an experience, not a list of tricks. This idea was intended for my table-hopping work, but since I've returned to college, I had to move. So, I began to think about my performances outside of a paid venue.

Instead of presenting one trick, which happens to be a knockout...do you think you can present several knockout effects which share similarities (such as the item you're creating magic with) as one routine to accomplish this "extended moment of astonishment"? Or, do you think it will take away from any of the individual effects in the routine? Aah, or perhaps you already do so!

I may be going on a tangent here, but that's ok, I'm still thinking all of this over in my head.

I hate to let a fellow magician go off on a tangent alone.

I think that there are phases to this endeavor. This is a rough, off-the-cuff outline (that rhymed by the way):

1. Completely new: If it's cool, buy it. Hey, check this out. This is cool. Therefore, I'm cool.

2. What the heck can I do anyway?: I have all this stuff, but I can't do a single trick and feel comfortable.

3. I'm only doing sleights: Why did I buy all this gimmick crap? It has bad angles.

4. I'm a competent conjurer: Hey, I know some moves. I can astound with spare change and some cards.

5. Hey, wait, this is getting hard: I thought I knew some sleights. Then, I saw *****. Holy finger cramps, Batman.

6. Hey, where did those double fa**d cards go again?: If I mix in some gimmicks with my sleights, I could do this or this.

7. Now, how can I string this together? Couldn't I go from Twisting the Aces, to Spectator Cuts to the Aces, to Drunken Poker? Time to work on that farrow a little more.

8. The moment of DAWNING: What do people think when they see me do this? What subtleties can I use to make the effects stronger? How can I insert comedy and reinforce my routines with patter? How does what I say, and what I do, enhance the routine for the spectator?

9. Who am I?: From the moment of my introduction to the last step off, how is my magic perceived? More importantly, what does the audience take away with them?

I haven't by any means mastered these steps, by any means, but 8 was a real eye opener. I am truly working on character identity. I believe always working, and enjoying the work, is the key.

I'm sure this is better described somewhere. There was a lot that I could've included but chose not to for various reasons. If anyone has seen this type of thing somewhere else, please let me know.