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].
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