Lance Burton Painting

So here is a painting 2 years in the making. Actually, I started it two years ago, but then didn't touch it until very recently. I think the reason it sat was because I just wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it. There is a very famous LB photo of him with is floating birdcage that I used as the basis for the pose. But I didn't want to birdcage. I wanted something else but I wasn't sure what. For a long time it was just Lance and his hand, and the fingers were posed differently than what was in the photo.

The original artwork had a different background and was not done in blues but in flesh tones. When I decided to go for the blue, I also decided to add the bird. It's got a cool look. Not sure how thrilled I am with it though. But then again, that's the case with all my artwork.

Cesareo Tribute Painting

I painted this cubism style image of my friend Cesareo, performing his linking rings, about two weeks ago now. I had done the original sketch years before but never put the sketch on canvas. Something possessed me to do it and I finally finished it. I sent the image to David at LeGrand David to show Cesareo. I don't know now if that happened or not.

Cesareo passed away this morning at 3:00am. It is a very difficult day for me, and frankly for many people who knew Cesareo. I cannot imagine what my magic family in Beverly are going through right now. My heart goes out to all of them. The magic world has lost an icon, a real giant. But most of all, so many of us have lost a dear friend.

Below is another painting I did of Cesareo presenting the Linking Rings in an impressionistic style.

 

more of my LeGrand David Artwork,

http://artistofmystery.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-le-grand-david-artwork.html

The Magic Road Less Traveled

There is a fantastic commentary in the April 2012 edition of MAGIC Magazine by Gabe Fajuri. It's called "Not Available in Stores" and it's on page 78. In the article, Gabe talks about how the old time pros rarely purchased props at a magic shop but instead had their items specially built.

Reading the article made me think about a complaint I've heard from some bookers that 'magicians all do the same act' and then they list the items that they see every magician do. Funny thing is, they never list the 'classics' anymore. Tops of the list are the Kevin James Bowling Ball Production, Torn & Restored Newspaper, Scott Alexander's Paintball Bullet Catch, the vanishing Ketchup Bottle, the Losander Floating Table, and Snowing. All fantastic tricks sure, but when they are in everybody's act, there is a problem. On top of that, when everyone does them all the same way, more problems.

I guess if I have a pet peeve it's with so many people doing the same material. I avoid popular items like the plague. I feel bad sometimes too because I want to support brick and mortar magic shops, but I can't buy these things, UNLESS I've figured out some way to present them differently. For the record, I don't present any of the above routines. Though, I will admit to using dealer tricks in the past, in fact many times. But in the last few years I've gotten away from it. Instead, I've gone the route of either creating my own effects, or taking much older things and trying to give new life to them. It's a much harder route to go, but I think the rewards are greater in the end.

If you don't feel you are super creative, one method I use is to browse through old magic books and try to just read the effect and then think about how it could be updated. Sometimes, if you find something in an old book, it might not need to be updated. Often, there are gems just waiting to be rediscovered. If you feel the trick does need to be updated, then consider keeping the basic effect, but changing the props or items involved and see what new combination it creates.

Sid Lorraine created a trick called "Lemon Crush" which Bert Douglas altered and turned into "Watch the Lemon". The later routine appeared in the Tarbell Course. Lemon Crush and Watch the Lemon all have a lemon vanishing in some unusual way and turning into lemonade. I stumbled upon this a few years ago and loved the trick but didn't like the props involved. The routine called for several specially prepared props, a tube,  a glass and some lemons. I did not like the tube at all. So I sought out a change of props. I introduced a prop called a Niffon Tube (which is not a tube at all) to provide the finale. A prop that some might think is out of date but it's not when you refer to it as a thermos. This new prop altered the method of the trick so I had to come up with additional methods to do the 'dirty work'. The end result was something I called "Lemon Transpo" and I published it in the KIDabra Journal and also in a set of lecture notes.  It was an incredibly strong trick.

But publishing it in a magazine and then lecture notes meant I was giving away my updated version. The reason I did that was I wanted to try and force myself to create something even better. It took a while and it didn't come together quickly, but I eventually came up with a new routine which I called "Organic Magic". All of the props are different, even the fruit. There is much more magic in the routine than what was in the original "Watch the Lemon" trick. But it was my desire to try and create something unique that took me down the road less traveled and the end result was a signature piece of magic in my show that no one else is doing but me.

Now if you are up for a challenge, I'll tip you off on a great routine that is in Tarbell right now, which I don't think anyone is doing. It's in Volume 5 and it's called "Watch and Geranium". The trick is attributed to Ed Reno, but that's only because he was performing it. I believe the originator of the effect was the Austrian magician, Ludwig Doebler. The patter described in Tarbell needs some serious updating. The method is fantastic however. The effect is a borrowed watch vanishes and reappears tied to the roots of a potted plant. It's a beautiful illusion with simple props and one that is waiting for a smart magician to make his or her own. The trick has issues, the biggest one of all, it's going to be messy. But it's a hidden gem just waiting for someone to reintroduce it to 21st century audiences!

The Next Big Trick

Every magician is searching for that 'next big trick', the trick that will take their act to the next level or help sustain the level they're at. But usually, there is no real 'next big trick'. Truth is, developing material to fit your personality is the best course of action. And I know, that sounds like the same ole thing that is always said. But let me give you an example.

Take the Cups & Balls. You won't find a much older trick than the Cups and Balls. Countless magicians present that effect. Many do the exact same routine, still others vary it slightly, with different sleights and maybe different sequences. Someone like a Tommy Wonder takes the trick and turns it on it's head, with two drastically different interpretations, one for stage and one for close-up. Jason Latimer introduces clear glasses and does things that don't seem humanly possible. Suzanne adds a story to give the routine purpose and drive the action. Penn & Teller added clear cups in an effort to expose the trick and Ricky Jay uses, Cups, Bowls and a Candlestick to illustrate the history of the trick during performance.

All of them are doing the Cups and Balls, but all of those variations are different. THIS is an example of how you take a routine and fit it to who you are. Of course, if you don't know who you are, then it's not magic that you need help with.

I recently added a Jim Steinmeyer trick to my show. I remember mentioning it on Facebook, and I got a number for responses from friends, things like "well he just spent thousands of dollars" and things of that nature. Indeed, I did add a J.S. trick to my show. No, I did not spend thousands of dollars. No, I'm not going to tell you which one. I can tell you, it's probably very overlooked and highly underestimated. I don't think it's a good trick for a beginner because it involves a degree of audience control that a beginner might lack. It's not a perfect trick, in that it has limitations on who can understand it. Yet, it's still a brilliant effect and I figured out how to make it play for me. I consider it a 'work in progress' even though it's been hitting home runs since it's first introduction in my show. WHY would I consider it a 'work in progress' if it's doing so well? Because the process of making it 'mine' is an ongoing thing. The jokes and comedy from the effect are all mine and continue to evolve. The extra bits of business I've added are mine. The completely alternative routine, which was a suggestion of a friend, adds a dimension to the routine not even suggested by Mr. Steinmeyer.

I don't actually like doing tricks created by others. But if I do, I'm going to take the basic effect and change and alter it in anyway I can to make it unique to me. I remember something Teller once said, he said "The person who does a trick the best, OWNS it!". That is something to think about. Years ago, Michael Ammar said something similar, though I forget his exact quote. Basically, the idea was to do a version of the trick so well that it becomes associated with you. If you've done that, then you've definitely made that trick your own and you've more than likely discovered 'the next big trick' for you.


For the record, I'm also developing a different twist on the Cups and Balls :)