Cell Phones

[mcstone71]

Thanks for the advice

Thanks for the feedback. Those of you who jumped all on my case about being a condescending, pretentious prick:
A: You haven't seen my act, so I don't take it personally
B I agree, I was using a weak line, WHICH IS WHY I POSTED THE THREAD FOR FEEDBACK
B": There are different performing styles. There's the Magic Gentleman (Leigpzig, Vernon, Burger, Gertner) and the magic
mad man (Max Malini, Amazing Johnathon, Joel Bauer). Can you imagine, in 100 years, Eugene Burger grapping someones cell phone and turning it off? I saw Joel Bauer do just that and practically died with laughter -but that doesn't mean it would suit me or my performing style.

Mick

[Doctor Eric]

RRAWR!

So, you ask for feedback, ask if you are being a prick, get your answers, and then jump on the defensive because of it? Then, on top of that, you claim you didn't take it personally?

"Calm down, honey..."
"I AM !@#?ING CALM!"

A good rule to follow when asking for criticism, or just performing for a live audience, is to shut up and listen.

We are all here aware that each and every person is as unique as a tiny snowflake, we are aware of the wonderous rainbow of diversity in the variety arts community. The line still sucks, and is still rude, condescending, as well as idiotic. No one needs to see you perform to know that. The advice that you wound up with, which I think is quite good, has nothing to do with performing "style" (or lack thereof), and it consisted of a very simple idea: if you are going to inconvenience someone, like make them get off of their phone, then there had better be a pay off, like a big laugh. If you can't sell the jokes or bits that were offered up here, then work on writing something that you can sell. Take the time to think about it, like it seems you haven't done yet, and you will probably answer your own question.

By the way, the numbering system in your post is pure genius.

[Doctor Eric]

here it comes...

[mcstone71]

Dr Eric...

Hey -you're online now. Anyway to IM you?

[Doctor Eric]

!@#? no, if there was, I would be flooded with half-assed magicians asking me how to wipe their asses in their street shows.

Heh, alright, pm me through p.net (oooh, that souds so very dirty...), I grant thee permutation.

[mcstone71]

The context

I'm just having trouble adjusting to this whole street performing thing. I performed restaurant magic for years, quit and got a "real" job, spent three years bored out of my mind, and I'm just getting back into the swing of things again. It's amazing how much like riding a bike it is re-learning all my old routines. But don't ever try it. So far I've only managed to relearn the stongest ten, so I've been KILLING at the restaurant. But the tricks play small, some of my stongest routines you really have to be right up on them to see and I'm not used to hyping them up, i.e. making a big deal of it when I choose a vollunteer (at the restaurant, its as simple as: take a card please). Gee, maybe street performance actually requires PRACTICE and REHEARSAL to get good at it.

How to handle cell phones is a mystery to me, because if I turned off a customers cell phone at the restaurant, that would be my last night. After all, I'm approaching THEIR space in a restaurant. In fact, just tonite, two cell phones went off while I was performing table magic: I ignored it and they were on just long enough to tell the guy to call back later. Seemed to work fine for me.

Anyway, Eugene Burger has been a HUGE influence on me. If you're not familiar with him, go check out magicbeard.com. Eric, alot of what you say squares with his philosophy. "Got a problem with your act? Try THINKING about it for YOURSELF for a change!!" (maybe this is just the philosophy of common sense) And honestly, I don't think I gave the matter five minutes contemplation before logging on to the internet so I could ask a bunch of complete and utter strangers their opinion. So yeah, I asked for it.

Mick

[Doctor Eric]

Alright, alright...

Don't ever tell me I was right, it only encourages me, and don't defend yourself, if any of us mattered, do you think we'd have the time to wank all over our keyboards in this digital slum? No offense, Jim.

[mcstone71]

??

OK walk me through this: how do we IM on p.net?

[Doctor Eric]

It's private, not instant, it's like email, but slightly less annoying, there is a pm button underneath every post on pnet

[Doctor Eric]

AAAHHH... You're not street performing, you're doing restaraunt magic, here's how you do it, put on some blackface, and every time someone answers their phone, scream "No, don' cawl the massa on me, DON' CAWL THE MASSA!"

Or, get a job at a restaurant where they cut off your !@#?in' hands for talking on the phone. I don't know where a place like this is, but if you find one and tell me, I'll eat there EVERY !@#?in' DAY.

[mcstone71]

Noooo, I AM street performing, too. But I'm making the transition from restaurant magic. I've noticed that magician's who can entertain a hundred people at once tend to do better financially than close up magicians who can entertain a dozen or so.

I like the black face idea. But I don't know how it would go over in Atlanta. Actually, that's not true. I know EXACTLY how it would go over in Atlanta.

Mick