Learning Magic Tricks Online

There are different kinds of magic tricks that can be performed and you can have the kind that would personally suit your style. There are some easy tricks that can be performed as well as harder ones. This means that you can start with the simpler tricks as a beginner and improve when you already have enough experience on performing a magic trick.

As a performer, most of the gratitude that you feel after each performance would be the motivator for you to do better. The feeling of having an audience appreciate your tricks is also the drive that can make each performer enjoy what he is doing. Getting this kind of reaction after a magic trick would not be difficult since there are many people who are interested in magic and there are more who actually appreciate it more than any other kind of performance. Thus, as it is easy to perform the tricks and get the attention of the audience, you can add excitement on their part when you keep them engaged in your tricks through audience participation. This will add the feeling of excitement on the part of your audience but you have to be very careful on what you are doing so as not to reveal the tricks behind your magic.

If you are interested in different tricks, you can easily search the Internet for sample tricks. There are many sites that can provide you with the right kind of tricks and you can choose from those that are fairly easy to learn, those that are complicated and those that needs to use props.

These magic tricks in the Internet may not be useful only to those who want to perform the tricks in front of the public. You may also rely on search results in the net if you are simply a curious audience and you want to know the trick behind the performance of a magician in a certain occasion. You can learn how they are performed and you can be satisfied your curiosity. After doing the research and learning more about how they are performed, you can already share this knowledge to other people and make them aware of the truth or you can try performing the tricks to others and show off that you can also do the magic tricks yourself.

However, you should not be too excited to show that you know the tricks since you still have to practice in performing them so that your show would be as smooth as the performance of the professional magician. Also, the excitement of performing the magic tricks would be incomplete if your audience already knows the secret behind your tricks so you should be more careful.

Donkeyland, Minnesota ((Part Nine - The Stage) (And Epilogue))

The Stage

(Part Nine) (concerning the boys on the Church steps, 1965))

The Church steps at Jackson and Sycamore, within what was called Donkeyland, three blocks away from Cayuga Street, is where Chick Evens and the boys hung out during many an evenings. It was a huge stone structure, on a limestone set foundation, with solid cement steps, perhaps fifteen steps to its backdoor, that led into the back of the church, funny, but the front was really in the back. And the church itself was a huge red brick building, with a steeple covered with black tiles, ones you'd use for a house. Across the street was the Jew Store, so it was called, two old fat Jews owned it, they looked older than Moses, the boys would warm up in the winter months, used it for when they catch a bus a few years back-if the old lady didn't chase you out that is: heading onto Como Jr. High School, out near Como Park, now the Kapaun's had bought it. The Church seemed to overshadow it from across the street. Up a block were the two local bars, where the guys from Donkeyland, were weaned from the cradle to the crypt.

Cars coming north and south, to downtown, and away from town, passed this way, and you couldn't avoid seeing the gang of ten or twenty, or even more kids gawking at the drivers, meeting one another, thinking, planning, as Gunner, and Mouse and a few of the other boys, rode by in their stolen Dodges, and Chevy Impalas, Ford Thunderbirds, and so on, and so forth. The Chattering band, told their rude jokes, and cried their wolf calls at lone women driving by, Jackie now was Doug's girl, and she was often there, as was Sam's and his future wife, Nancy, and Jennie with Larry, and Mike with Carol, it was the summer of 1965, and Chick with Barb. There they all sat-Ace doing his dance of the twenty-four blackbirds-now having a bigger audience-no one, and I mean no one at all, regretting a thing, half drunk, boisterously laughing at nothing, meaningless shouting, and endless streams of four-lettered words. In a way, these were not the dark days for the cops of Donkeyland, they knew were the boys were, and that was goodness. And unless someone made a complaint, they just rode by, some with shaded glasses on, as if not to be recognized in future times, some even waving their hands and Howe, usually stopped and would say a word or two.

It seemed as if Doug was dating everyone in the neighborhood at one time or another during this time, Larry had stuck with Jennie St. John, and John St. John had come to age, and joined the boys on the church steps, he was the youngest of the gang. And Mike, after a number of years of marriage, would find Jessie St. John, as his mate for a fling, giving up his marriage for a toss in the hay; Jessie had earned that reputation, the same one Jill Manning had earned-was earning, and Vicky Schultz was earning, and Pizza Face had earned. But for Mike, that was still years in the making.

In the relationship between the boys and the steps, there was a quality that even seemed to-almost seemed to-produce a healthy respect for the public, they didn't want to lose their new found meeting place, the turnaround by Evens' house was dark and dead and lost whatever quality it had, now this was alive, it was like they were on stage, unhealthy for the environment perhaps and the tax payers, but steadily they looked into the eyes of the roaming public, drowning their puzzled look into their eyes. But in a matter of two years, with a combination of leaving whiskey and wine and beer bottles on the steps, and sing as loud as one could the latest tunes by Roger Miller-such as "King of the Road," and giving the finger to the passing by cars, and a few police raids the church itself took the steps out, and made the back, which was the front, the back, and the front became the front without steps, and that was that for the new, and now old meeting place. Sometimes we become our worse enemies, we work against ourselves. But the boys were growing up now, and they preferred houses to steps, and Chick Evens got to know Jerry Hino, and started his drinking over there with his wife Betty, and Ace would show up, and Doug now and then, and now Roger was working for the Horseshoe Bar on Rice Street so he didn't have time for the boys, and Doug was getting in to new adventures, and a many of the boys were going into the Army, and things were changing in 1966 to 1968, matter of fact, the whole world of those days of no regrets were ending fast.

No: 577 (1-19-2010)

Epilogue

The Hours

There is little life in that neighborhood now, it has all crept out of our bones, and out of the neighborhood it self: the houses are all torn down, and the steel factory is gone, and the park is a parking lot, and the trains have halted, and the two grocery stores, once owned by two Jews and then bought by two non Jews they also are gone, made into apartments. Yet the darkness of those years still stirs and reverberates in the night-in my dreams. Strange years they were, in what was called Donkeyland, Minnesota. The ground under my feet seems to crack when I think back on them-perhaps its me cracking with age-and my hands when I move them, I feel like a decaying trunk of a tree, left on the wayside, they are stiff and sore: its now been forty-four years that have passed. In a few more most of us who lived this time, will have passed on, our hours will be up on earth, as surely as the branches of those shimmering green trees have long since fallen-once and for all, -and they have because I've been there. Actually, they were pulled out by their roots, like we all were, slowly. And that dusty old empty lot, that surrounded us overshadowing our ever move, encircling our daily paths through our growing years, that may be the only thing left, a path in back of Rice School, that lead down to the empty lot, across from the Evens, that is the only thing left, and after I'm gone, perhaps will be the only thing, one will find to prove this story once was.

No: 578 (1-20-2010)

Easy Street Magic

All of us are captivated by magic in all forms. For the past few years, magic has taken bold new steps in every possible direction. This includes coming down from the stage and hitting the streets to entertain everyday people with magic that are uncommon. If you've always wanted to learn magic, then learning easy street magic would prove to be a great starting point.

Before you jump into magic and start exploring all the tricks that are available, focus on street magic. As easy as it may sound, street magic requires more creativity on your part because of its "impromptu" nature. A fast hand may indeed be required but considering your possible audience, not all will be amazed by just your tricks alone. This is why you need to be creative and unique with your particular presentation.

When it comes to street magic (or any kind of magic for that matter) you will need to choose your specialty first. Some people will concentrate on using coins, some will use cards, while others will use cups and bottles in their magic acts - it's just a matter of preference. Choosing a particular specialty that you're already interested in will make the learning more enjoyable and faster paced.

Another thing to remember when learning street magic is to start with the fundamentals. While it may be understandable that you want to learn anything and everything about street magic, you'll still need to start with the basics first if you ever really want to be good at it. So be patient and keep practicing, because mastery will come naturally with repetition. Easy street magic tricks can be mastered in a short time and can produce hours of fun and enjoyment for you and your audience. There are so many tricks that can be learned as well. One good magic trick that you can start practicing on would be the 'card on glass trick'.

For this you'll need an ordinary stack of cards and any medium sized glass with or without liquid. Of course, balancing glass on a card is impossible, but not if your card has an added feature to it. In essence, your special card is actually two cards stuck together with the back card folded into two using sticky tape or glue. In essence the trick works by folding the other card whenever you do the trick adding another leg to your card and making it appear in the audiences' point of view that the glass is balancing on top of the card.

Magic Trick Secrets to Impress Your Friends

Are you thinking about becoming a magician? You'll be a hit at parties. But first, you need to learn some magic trick secrets. Thankfully, there are plenty of magic tricks that are simple to learn, and you'll only need a few props.

The most common tricks, however, normally use playing cards and coins. These are great tricks to learn technical skills and misdirection skills.

Most beginner magicians start off by using card tricks, since they are fairly easy to learn. There are different kinds of card kits, but it's best to start off with a regular deck of cards. You'll learn techniques that won't encourage you to rely on props.

You should start off with the easier tricks, probably one of the best magic trick secrets. The more complicated tricks can be harder to master.

For example, to pull of an illusion trick, it can take up to months to perfect. To help build your self-confidence, it is better to start small with simpler tricks. You will keep quicker results with easier tricks and that will help you feel like you are successful.

Best of all, even some of the easiest magic tricks can still impress your audience. However, you still need to practice if you want to please the crowd with your trick. Feel free to use everyday objects around the house to use in your tricks until you feel like it's time to buy better equipment.

Part of being a successful magician is being comfortable in front of people, so you'll need to work on that too. Try out your tricks for friends and family members before trying your luck with a bigger audience.

One of the most important magic trick secrets is all about the art of distraction and misdirection. Once you have learned the essentials of trick you need to start contemplating how you are going to use misdirection so that you can control the outcome of the audience.

Not only does misdirection keep an audience on their toes, but it also helps you complete your tricks without revealing them.

It is also important that you figure out what your performing style is. Not only should your tricks be entertaining and interesting, but also the words and gestures.

Discover How to do Magic and the the secrets behind David Blaine Magic Tricks and Criss Angel Magic Tricks.

Nuts! A Crazy Card Trick

The Magician takes a walnut, a knife, and a hammer, and very carefully opens a walnut shell. He then takes a card, the Six of diamonds for example, folds it and puts it inside the shell. The walnut shell is carefully glued back together to conceal any evidence of tampering. It might serve you well to make several of these gimmicked shells, using the same card if possible in all the shells.

During the performance the performer forces a Six of Diamonds to a spectator, using whatever their favorite card force may be. The magician cuts the deck as has the Six returned to the deck, catching a pinkie break above the Six. Bring the six to the top and then riffle shuffle the deck a couple of times while maintaining the position of the Six on top of the deck.

Holding the deck in their left hand, the magician places his/her right hand over the top of the deck while they tell the spectator that they are going to find his card in a very unique way. Pushing the top card slightly forward with their middle three fingers, the magician presses down on the upper edge of the card causing the back of the card to rise upward into the palm. Now, with the top card in a palmed position, they hand the deck to the spectator with the left hand while quickly spiriting the palmed card into their pants or jacket pocket... where they leave the palmed card and produces a common inexpensive 'nut cracker'.

Laying the nut cracker on the table, the magician has the spectator to look through the deck and find his card.

After a couple of passes through the deck, the spectator must admit that he/she cannot find their selected card. The magician says that IF the spectator is quite sure the card is NOT in the deck, then its time to look elsewhere.

The magician points out a small paper cup, turned upside down, on the table and asks the spectator if he noticed the cup. Regardless, the magician asks the spectator to look under the cup since he (the magician) doesn't want to affect the outcome of the magic in any way. After turning over the cup and finding a single walnut, the spectator is asked to take the nut cracker and open the nut - revealing the missing, chosen card. If the magician prepared several nuts, they can all be placed under a cup and the spectator can have his pick of any one of the nuts.

You can also use a two-way bag with prepared walnuts in one side and regular walnuts in the other side. After allowing the spectator to reach in a pick one of the prepared nuts, the magician can then empty the regular nuts onto the table and have several opened to show that only one walnut contained the chosen card, thus adding a second layer of mystery to this 'nutty' trick. (Sorry for the pun... I couldn't resist..)

Try this effect once, and it will become a staple of your act. This is also a perfect effect for street magic performers.

Rick is the publisher of the Magic Roadshow, the largest free ezine in the field of magic. Thousands of readers from around the world can't be wrong. New subscribers will receive up to six free ebooks, including Expert at the Card Table. Subscribe at http://www.StreetMagic.info

How Can I Learn Magic Tricks in an Easy Way

If you want to learn magic tricks the easy way, no magician worth his salt will teach you. It is their bread and butter. But you can learn magic tricks and all about how famous magicians perform their now famous tricks in a master mentalism guide.

You can be privy to some very closely guarded secrets that no magician would like being disclosed. They had paid a fortune to learn all about the magic secrets from gurus. And the gurus have now decided to let the secrets be known to all. You would know about magic mentalism that is frequently confused with supernatural powers whenever any magician performs a feat that cannot be explained.

It is easy to learn if you take recourse to a guide that tells it all and also goes about instructing you with a step by step approach. You can learn magic tricks the way a 12 year old can also learn. The very basis of all inexplicable feats is mastering mentalism. It is about reading the mind of the people to whom you would be showing the magic secrets.

As the steps are easy to follow, they are easier to perform after you practice them. To give you a feel of the magic world, there are interviews with famous magicians like David Blaine and Chris Angel who talk in length about their craft. Street magic David Blaine and Chris Angel and the secrets could be yours for very little money compared to the fortune paid by magicians to learn the art and craft from gurus.

In a full 200 pages guide you can learn about spoon bending, levitation, remote viewing, card tricks, hypnotism, mind reading, mentalism and street magic. Street magic is impromptu magic that can be performed at the drop of a hat and even in front of a small room full of people.

And to cap it all, you can also be privy to the secret of David Copperfield's disappearance of the Statue of Liberty. Magic tricks of the sort performed by pros can be performed by you.

If you would like to learn how to do the exact same mentalism and magic tricks you see on television by Criss Angel, Derren Brown & David Blaine,be sure to visit http://www.mastermentalism.net

Discover Killer Magic Skills in Easy Steps

You too can discover the killer magic skills in easy steps as tricks of some of the best magicians have now come online. There are two sets in a magic show anywhere in the world. It is the magician himself and the audience. And killer magic skills involve mentalism, street magic, mind reading, hypnotism, levitation, remote viewing, card tricks, spoon bending, and illusions and may more that you can learn step by step.

You cannot rush through any of the killer steps to learn the tricks, but get to know them one by one, practicing them all along. And nothing is more challenging than beginning with magic mentalism.

It is exactly the way you make simple tricks appear out of the ordinary to your audience. You learn about the psychological challenge of making the audience think the way you do. You not only manipulate their thoughts as they watch you dumbfounded, but also learn to get into their minds and steer their decisions. It is a way of mind reading and that is what magic mentalism is all about. This is all about the special abilities you have known only famous magicians can possess.

Magic secrets are all about putting to practice the skills of famous magicians. Learning these skills can be easy in simple steps and the supernatural abilities that you were in awe of could be yours. Hypnotism is a skill that can be learnt and the effect it can have on the audience as you go about showing them the magic tricks. And mastering magic mentalism is no harm at all. You learn how to grip your audience by their minds while you perform your tricks. It is exactly what others have been doing all along leaving you wondering if they were aliens form another planet.

Using the killer steps you can also bend spoons, perform levitation and card tricks while the audience would conclude that some supernatural act was at play. Illusion of the audience can be achieved easily by using the killer steps available online.

Coin Magic Tricks - Use This Every Day Object to Delight and Astound Your Friends

Ever since we have all been young children, street magic has always been a fascinating experience for many to spectate upon. What is even more fascinating about street magic, is that you can learn how to do it too! With this simple, and easy to follow guide on coin magic tricks, you will be able to catch the attention of many as you show off your new found skills! After practicing everything you learn in this coin magic tricks guide, you will be able to hone your skills even more by experimenting with your tricks on both friends and family. This will be fun to watch their expressions, as they ask the same questions that you once did, such as "How did you do that?" or "Will you teach me?" As many street magicians say, you never tell your secrets of the trick, it will be all up to you who you decide to let in on your new magnificent tricks!

One of the oldest tricks in the book is to make a coin appear to be pushed through your leg. This is quite simple once you get the hang of it. Here are the step by step directions of what you need to accomplish this trick.

What You Will Need:

- a coin, preferably a quarter or half dollar

- you need to be in a sitting position

- a captivated audience

- a large square piece of cloth

Directions:

Step 1- Show your coin to your audience, then proceed to placing it on the top of your pant leg, around six inches above your knee. Hold the coin in place with your right thumb.

Step 2- Pinch the cloth underneath the coin, which will turn your coin upward, and will hide underneath the cloth.

Step 3- Place your left forefinger on the top of the fold. While you are doing this, your right hand fingers will straighten up, and your right thumb will then withdraw the coin from the fold and press it into your right finger palm.

Step 4- Take your right hand and immediately move it down and grasp the cloth between the fold, and slowly pull it through a circle you will make out of your thumb and forefinger. This will show that the coin is gone.

Step 5- Slap your left leg with your left hand.

Step 6- Reach your right hand under your leg, where you are still holding the coin, and produce the coin for the audience.

To give the best demonstration of this trick, everything needs to be done fast enough where your audience is captivated, and yet you can get away with your new found coin magic tricks. To keep a distraction with your audience, you can speak of what you are doing, as most street magicians do. This usually keeps the attention on what you are about to do, when you know all you are really doing, is tricking them with your coin magic!

Enjoy practicing this trick on family and friends, as your act will become perfect with practice. Have fun displaying your simple street magic trick virtually anywhere, and all the smiling faces which will result from your coin magic tricks.

Get a lot more information and a complete guide to performing magic tricks by visiting our easy magic tricks site at http://www.realmagicsecretsrevealed.com you can find magic tricks tips and start performing amazing. magic tricks

Entertainment Agencies - The Best Way to Find and Book Entertainment

Most of the people have been to a party or event at which they had amusement. They believably used their local phone directory, use the Internet facility or had seen the service or act personally. So why you should use an Entertainment Agency to come up what you are looking for? Well first it takes the miss and hit out of ascertaining what you are searching for, a best Entertainment Agency has get to many of different forms of Entertainment and will relieve you the problem of setting it. Secondly a best Entertainment Agency lives on its repute, so it is in their concern to assure that the Entertainment they provide is of best quality.

Imagine if you are searching for a band, you can expend ages exploring the net only to find that what you like is booked already, and finding it can take hours, and do you have that much time to spent? Getting through an honorable Entertainment Agency takes away all the worries, as they will do all your work.

In the beginning a Booking Agency, you require years of experience especially when you start out first. There are those people who have been in the industry for hundred years or more, now retired, who want to remain, caught up in the tutor and craft those who are simply beginning out in the business. There is lot more to music than simply making beats or creating music.

If you are sincere about producing rap music, you should as well learn the music business. Discover the ropes, create connections. Determine the all over business cycle from A&R and duplication to distribution and promotion as you bestow your music to the market. Just target your music, and see what the devotees are listening to. After all, it is the sounds on the street that finally decides. The trend might be past by the time it acquires to their ears. The streets frequently prescribe what is listened on the radio and what is listened in the club.

You should create a web site and ask with fans what they want. They will provide you honest answers and talk from their hearts. Detailed feedback is invaluable. Most artists like to share their music and be found out but it is not easy acquiring radio airplay. Luckily, there are several places to place your music on the Internet. Fans are not pausing or reluctant to purchase from these websites.

You might as well get points for delivering your songs listed and get known for bringing out rap music. You can then utilize your report to direct fans to your web site. This is a best way to construct a fan list.

Universal Attractions is a prominent leading force in the Talent booking business working with many of today's biggest names in all genres of urban music from Contemporary R&B to Gospel to Classic Soul, Funk, Jazz and Comedy. For more information please visit: http://www.universalattractions.com/

Online Singing Advice, Performance Techniques - Overcoming Shyness When You Sing Or Speak Publicly

There are several causes of singing or speaking with a weak, uninteresting voice. In this article we're going to examine the first of these...shyness.

It's difficult to change the way you basically are (shy) just because you are singing a song or giving a speech. But, did you know that many of our greatest singers, comedians, speakers and actors suffer from extreme shyness, and yet are able to go on stage and become someone who is able to inspire others with their outreaching personalities and ability to communicate?

Tom Hanks, Lucille Ball, Bob Dylan, Carry Underwood, Cher, David Letterman, Diane Schurr, Elvis Presley, George Harrison, Ella Fitzgerald, Jim Carrey, Harrison Ford, Johnny Carson and many many others have publicly admitted being extremely shy. Most of them remain(ed) shy in their day to day lives, and yet were able to reach fame and fortune by replacing their shy persona with outgoing, powerful persona when they got on stage.

If you are shy your singing and speaking will probably be shy. There are terrific books, videos, seminars and classes which can help you with this problem. Go on the web, visit a bookstore find a good therapist. But first you must admit and accept your shyness. If you shrug it off and say "oh that's just the way I am" you'll never become a singer or public speaker. You don't have to change the way you are, but you do need to learn how to put it aside when you are performing.

A useful tip is to "play" a character when singing a song. Like an actor, become the person who wrote the song. What are they feeling? Whom are they speaking to? What motivates the song or speech? Go there and you can leave your shy self behind for those minutes you are singing the song or speaking the speech.

Oh, and don't forget that one of the main reasons we are shy about singing or public speaking is that we are insecure in our abilities. Find a good teacher and learn to be excellent at whatever you want to do.

2 Awesome Street Magic Tricks Revealed!

If you are like many of us, you have watched people like David Blaine and Chris Angel perform amazing tricks right in front of people. It makes you want to know learn about street magic tricks revealed in order to do them yourself and entertain as they do. Here are 2 very awesome, very simple street magic tricks revealed that you can use to amaze people right in front of their own eyes.

The David Blaine Ash Trick is the first of the street magic tricks revealed here. This is a great trick, however, keep in mind that all magic depends on your ability to perform and entertain the audience more than or equal to your ability to perform a specific trick. This trick is no different, and most of this trick depends on your ability to create a specific atmosphere.

In order to do this trick, you will need a small pad of paper, a pen, an ashtray, a lighter, and a small piece of wax or soap. You ask a spectator to write a name on a piece of paper and then crumble that paper up and place it in the ashtray. The paper is set on fire and you then rub the ashes on your arm which causes the name to mysteriously appear there.

The key to this trick is to allow the person to write the name on the piece of paper while it is still in the tablet. Once they write the name and tear out the piece of paper, have them immediately hand you the tablet. With practice, you will get good at being able to read the impression left on the piece of paper below the one they wrote on and read the name they have written. You will need to be able to get to the point where you can do this without it being obvious.

With proper misdirection, you can very quickly and without being noticed, write the name on your arm with the piece of soap or wax. When the ashes are rubbed onto your arm, they will stick to the soap or wax leaving the name on your arm. The key to this entire trick is your ability to create the right atmosphere and direct people when you need to in order to write and read as you need to. Practice makes perfect!!

The second of the street magic tricks revealed here is called "The Amazing Jumping Matches." This is a very simple trick that only takes a little bit of practice to get good at, but will keep people entertained. To start, you will need two wooden matches to perform this trick.

Start by holding your left hand palm up and place one of the matches on your palm with the head, the end that you light, facing to the right and extended out over the palm of your hand hanging in the air. This should only extend about a quarter of an inch or so.

Pick up the other match with your right index finger and thumb. Rub the match on your shirt sleeve or arm and use this as part of the performance. Make up some kind of story that will entertain people to add to the value of your performance.

Bring the two match heads together and with the fingernail of your right middle finger, snap the end of the match in your right hand. This will cause it to make a snapping sound adding to the entertainment value of the trick. This will also cause the head of the match in your right hand to pop the head of the match in your left hand sending it flying in the air.

With practice, you will be able to perform this trick flawlessly. It is a very small sleight of hand and is very visual and entertaining for those watching. Even though it is simple, don't overlook it's effectiveness as one of the street magic tricks revealed here.

Learn Street Magic Guide - How to Approach and Perform Street Magic

Have you ever gone to bed at night and said to yourself, "Tomorrow I am going to go downtown or to the mall to perform street magic for a stranger." You wake up the next morning saying over and over to yourself that today is the day. You arrive at your chosen venue and back out and decided to sip on a cup of coffee instead. Perhaps you even approach someone to say hello and instead of going into your street magic routine.

Most of us have been conditioned to hold strangers at arms length or avoid them all together, and that conditioning is further enforced by the evening news. And street magic performers (strolling street magicians for the purists) we are caught up in the crossfire of this conditioning in two ways. Firstly being that we are conditioned this way, we have to approach a stranger, which clearly goes against this conditioning principle. Secondly, we have to take into account the spectator who must take you into their trust, again violating the stranger conditioning principle. I don't know about you but this seems like double jeopardy to me.

So how do we overcome this? Lets take a look at the Approach first.

You arrive downtown and there are people everywhere and everyone is a potential street magic spectator or as some will affectionately refer to as victims, right? Wrong! What are these people doing? Do they appear to be in a hurry, are they out for a leisurely stroll, are they waiting for a bus, or having a coffee break? How about their mood? Do they look frantic, upset, menacing, lackadaisical, carefree, or happy? I refer to this as an assessment. This assessment should be made when you arrive at your preferred venue and I hope it is obvious by the short list fore mentioned as to who would be a good choice to approach.

Some here prefer to have their cards visible others do not. Personally before I approach someone I have my deck in my hand already in a mechanics grip and depending on the effect a pinky break as well. Rather then asking the person would they like to see some magic or would you like to see something weird or strange, which by the way the words strange and weird will only heighten the stranger conditioning principle. Instead of asking if they would like to see some street magic, I ask them have they ever heard of the Three Card Monte one of the approaches used in "Kard Klub" and go into a Two Card Monte effect. If I am presenting "Here Then There (from Crash Course 1) ", I will say "Hey check this out". As I am saying one or the other I am handing the spectator a card. I am handing the spectator a card because there is also something else that many of us have been conditioned to do and that is to be polite. When I first started approaching strangers I would use the "Would like to see some magic" or "Can I show you something". Sometimes people were receptive other times they were not and I would move onto the next customer. Having learned from these rejections I realized the importance of assessing the situation and using the guerilla tactic of taking advantage of the polite conditioning principle in street magic performances. Some may disagree with me on this guerilla tactic, however I have yet to encounter a negative situation.

The reason I do not like the "Would you like to see some magic?" approach is because It is like I am begging or I feel that I may be perceived as a little to enthusiastic to show them something, almost appearing as if I am needy or begging in a way. Another approach I do not like utilizing is to be excessively courteous or "gushy" by using terms such as sir or ma'am unless I feel that such a proper address is necessary. Rememeber, street magic is informal.I also do not like to appear to be to "bubbly" or "chipper". A simple hello or good morning seems to work best and by laying it on thick could be perceived as not being genuine and the old stranger conditioning principle kicks in.

Eye contact is also important. The eyes are the windows to the soul or so the saying goes. With eye contact you can establish your presence, convey sincerity, as well as misdirect when needed. In making eye contact and establishing your presence, strengthen your presence by speaking clearly from the gut and by opening your mouth. If you talk to fast, slow down. One aspect I had to improve on when I first started doing street magic was to project my voice and to open my mouth since I am prone to be soft spoken and mumble from time to time. By speaking clearly and loud enough to be heard can also help to deal with your nerves as it commits you. Think about it! A hearty "Hello, have you ever heard of the Three Card Monte". I don't know about you but my pride would not allow me to back down after approaching someone in this way. No way but forward now!

And if nerves are really kicking in start off with something simple like a mind reading bit using whatever force you feel comfortable with, then move onto something that will make use of your skills. By the way by saying moving on to something "harder" that should be an indicator that maybe whatever you think is "harder" should be left alone, especially if it is not yet a natural looking movement that can be done in a casual and relaxed manner. Remember simple hits hard with the right presentation.

Getting out there and doing some street magic on the streets will do for you what the mirror and camera cannot it will provide you with experience, teach you how to interact with different people, and pose different situations that you will have to deal with. Start off by going out with one maybe two effects and before you know it a nice little street magic routine will start to develop all on its own because of that experience.

Lastly, remember to be yourself. Draw on your personality, your experiences and the emotions associated with them, to build your character. As Polonius said "This above all to thine own self be true."

Now stop hiding in your bathroom with the mirror and get out there!

Tony Weth has been performing street magic [http://www.learn-street-magic.com] for over 8 years and creator of the site, Learn Street Magic [http://www.learn-street-magic.com].