..a lecture by EUGENE BURGER1) _ PRESENTATION The great danger in listening to lectures 4s that we are only Tstening to words, only Vistening to the other fellow talk and show his magic, and not making any real progress of our own => and that, after all, is what is impor- tant; making my" own progress toward ..+ wnat? What are ay goals? What am 1 seeking to accomplish? What results do { wish to attain? If the goal of performing (whether on the trapeze, the guitar, or with a pack of trained Seals) "is to entertain” people, the goal of magical performers ought to be to entertain then through deception. Notice that, the word “enter tain" cones, before ‘the word “deception.” This isn't simply a trick of sentence construct ton or ar play on words; it points to @ prinary fact Fecognized by almost all nagiclans who earn their entire “living" (meaning: "money". fam ) performing magic, Close-up magic as performed by many ama teurs 1s deceptive but not very entertaining. Energy has been put into constructing the decep- tion, but not enough energy and thought and work thas been put into constructing an entertaining resentation within which they might, a5 we Say, NGfoak the Roan.” ‘And, hoaxes, I submit, really ought to be cloaked with something, -3It's more fun that way! Not only for your audiences but, hopefully, for you. Persentation 4s that point where you’ put yourself into your magic. Even if your presentations tend toward the “Now I'm going to do this; now 1 am going to do that" format, your Ifnes must be rehearsed and Spoken as if you were saying sonething impor tant ~~ Something worth the spectator's tine and ‘attention. Consequently, the style of close-up presen. tation wnich I personally least enjoy is one which we see all too often -- and which might be Called: “I'm doing this as a throw-anay so that Ff you catch me it won't be such a big deal." I enjoy this least because (among other reasons) wien one sees t,”1t, dogs not, appear to have been so much consciously chosen by the performer Duty rather, to-be the inevitable result. of too Tittle rehearsal. According to “Burger's First Live!" “Yoovany” performers. practice" the saves BOE forget to rehearse the show You must practice the parts and rehearse the whole. You ust practice the moves, the sletghts, ‘the various physical maneuvers ‘until your fingers can do thes snoothly and without. awkwardness. Now you've learned the trick -- and the work (and, hopefully, the fun) is about to If one is a silent performer, the trick generally must now be choreographed to wusies if She is @ speaking perforears. the trick mist now 0° choreosraghed” to what you will say (your -4e script]. Expecting to be “inspired or the spot" regarding your seript snows very litte nestect for your audences! Much like 2 dance or a dramatic piay, the close-up magical performer's movenents’ and actions are choreographed to the words ne will use n performance. And it 1s this wnich needs to be rehearsed. This interaction of the per- former's actions and handling of his props on the one hand and his words on the other ~~ and the surprises which are thereby generated -- 1s ‘the show. Again, the show must de rekearsed,” st gegurte te closeup perforner's script needs tobe Flesible’ and apen rather ther evand tnd. closed, ~ Trista redetred, because ofthe ineinacy of the. performing situation” wnerets Spectators often will talk to each otter and to Jou In the context of such tatioacy. {have ound the fotYoring £0. bea helpful rule of thino: “If you expect spectstars to be attertive to you, you ust, in turn, be attentive to them, Clotecip’performérs need Go Tisten to what thet spectators ae saying == s0 they con Pespnd to One evening I went on a tour of a few of Chicago's many magic spots with sy friend and former partner in the Spirit Theatre cowany, Dennis Rook. Afterward, Dennis remarked: Quite 2 few of the magicians we saw tonight related to audiences as if they were only technical neces- sities ~- needed to select cards, renenber then, and, say “Great. job!" to the performer at the How true. Yet much of the fun of close-up magic for spectators ts that it is close-up --