I do table hopping, that's what I am good at. I also do more magic that is more adult oriented (not risque, just that kids wont get it).

I have been asked to do a 25-45 minutes close-up show for 7-10 year olds.
I have 45 minutes worth of material but not "kiddie" material.
Has anyone else done this and what kinds of things did you do that went over well.

Any other advise would be appreciated.

If you haven't done kids shows before then, pardon me for saying this, you're not ready. Even my coach & mentor, who knows Lance Burton, Max Maven, as well as Max King very well refuses to do kids shows. I took David Ginn's Lecture & learned a lot
about performing for children. It's a good place to start. Remember, it's not just about what you do, but about what you DON'T do! How do you handle an 11 year-old heckler? What do you do if one of the older kid's brings along their 5-year old sibling who decides that THEY want to be the center of attention? It's a lot to learn, and I hope you do well!

Sir Richard.

I have done kid shows but that was many years ago.
The thing that I am asking about is not how to do a kid show but how to do close-up for kids.

Thanks for your advise though.

Sorry for the misunderstanding. I don't do close-up for kids, I do a "parlor" act.

Sir Richard.

Bill Abbott (I think) put out a video/dvd about close-up for kids.

The experienced kid show magicians typically do a stage show, but if you can manage the audience, close up for kids in certainly possible. Pick visual effects and don't make things too complicated. Also, I probably don't need to say this, adapt your patter. Nothing about gambling, work or women.

That said, even with the right effects, there is one crucial thing you need to learn before doing this: audience management. The show won't work if the kids constantly grab at your props and whine because they don't have a clear angle to see you. If this is any less than 2 months away, I would recommend against doing the show unless you can practice on kids on a regular basis and get it right within the next month.

How many kids would there be?

I didn't see how many kids and staging which are factors.

Sponge effects.
Coin Matrix' or Assemblies.
Egg Bag.
Cups & Balls.

There will be around 10 kids and I am sure there will be adults as well.

I am going to set-up at the end of a dinner table with the kids/adults around it seated and standing. I figure that's best for me.

I perform at a restaurant both on kids night and non-kid nights. So doing magic for children is not unknown to me. I just have not done a whole close-up show for them before.

The pattern I am getting from everyone is basically do what I do for adults.
(I have this post in the kids section too.)

Thanks for everyone's input.

Spongeballs always win kids over.

Rope routines usually play well.

Cups and balls is usually well received and the benson bowl also.

The smaller linking rings are good for closer work with kids.

I use three coloring books and do a coloring book monte where they have to follow the one colored... that is always fun.

I find that kids get bored easy with card tricks and most mentalism style effects.

Warning!! Keep the kids away from your props.
I'm guessing that you will be in a home other that yours.
Unless managed those kids may feel it's OK to touch your stuff.

Good Luck,

You can't go wrong with spongeballs.

Slyhand,

here is a simple show you can do for 7-10 year olds and not have them bored.
Professors nightmare, a mouth coil routine as a torn and restored paper routine, a cut and restored rope routine, also a napkin over the head trick but they have to be quiet and not tell.

My usual show fits in a apron and it plays to all kinds. Kids love my comedy because I tease them without getting sarcastic and babyish. let me know if you have any questions. I promise, this works.

larry moore

Hello my friend,

I must say, that the ages of 7 to 10 will want a bit more then the garden variety clown type show. so the close up will work well.
I perform them all the time.

the routines I use to good affect are,
misers dream
sponge balls
coin like matrix, transpositions, spell bound.
any cad locations.
I even do some meal bending, and mentalism.

the kid today have access to the net, they are way more sophisticated then just a few years ago.
I treat them like young adults and they respond as such.

6 and under I sill do the childrens magic routines.

just my opinion, but I do perform a lot for all ages with tons of references from teachers, parents and other professionals.

hope this helps some

25-45 minutes of close up for ANYONE is a snooze ... for kids it's the kiss of death.

Why do you feel you have to do every show that comes along? It took me until I was almost 50 years old to realize that you need to know yourself and your act ... turning away work is not necessarily a bad thing.

BTW, kids are kids .... kids will always be kids. The old tired line that they are somehow more sophisitcated is hogwash.

I regularly work close-up magic for family groups in a restaurant situation and for over 20 years I've also done my kidz show at birthday functions aimed at 3 to 8 year olds.
On two occasions I've tried to do a "close-up show" for slightly older kidz (9-12 years) and on both occasions I "died" miserably. Not a pretty site!!
They're inbetween young children and young adults and their attention span is virtually NIL. Just my opinion!!
I agree with Starrpower - don't go there; give it a wide berth; stick with what you do best.

Miser's Dream is great! Sponge Balls! Any visual magic that you already do does not have to be dumbed down for kids that age. They understand appearance, disappearance, transposition, floating, and more. The only tricks they don't really follow all that well are long drawn-out card tricks or mentalism. Kids are smart.

Its really funny how people that admit they do not do kids shows are somehow experts.

I perform for schools, restaurants, children's birthday parties, and use routines such as-
misers dream, sponge routines, coin flurry to jumbo coin, cut and restored ropes, fork bending, coin bending, stigmata, red hot momma, and many other so called close up adult tricks.
the fact remains its not the trick, it is the presentation of the trick.

you modify your presentation to to it your target audience.
this is not to say "dumb it down" but rather put it in a context that is both interesting, and understandable for hem.

"BTW, kids are kids .... kids will always be kids. The old tired line that they are somehow more sophisitcated is hogwash."

the age, social economic positioning, wold experience of each child can no be put in a tight nit box as our friend ha done.
kids have the net, and tv, these two things alone set them apart from he children o even 10 years ago.
they see Criss Angel, youtube, and so much more.
the ac is, if you do not have the desire to perform for them you will never be able to entertain them.
they will see through you.

you must first respect them as people, second spend the time to get to know what the children of today are interested in and build a ho around that.

look a harry potter....levitation, vanishing, transmuting, just to name a few of the possibilities.

but again this is just my point of view.

Michael

Posted: Feb 10, 2010 1:53pm
My keys are messing up sorry about the typos, some keys stick while others do not function all the time... guess I need a new pc lol

Bill Abbott has a dvd out called Close up for kids. Not a bad dvd. This might start you in the right direction. Good luck

Someone said, "Treat them as young adults." Respect them. Work out of your pockets if you can.

GO FOR IT.

Let us know how it goes.

Keith Fields does a routine ideal for kid's shows as it ahs full audience participation. Not quite magic, but gets everyone on your side. It used musical chimes and wooden spoons. Don't know what it costs. try http://www.keithfields.com