I've seen a lot of magic. A lifetime of magic, to be exact.
And there's one common thread that I've seen. Every act that I feel is nearly 100% successful has a very solid, memorable character and personality basis for performances.
Now, I'm not saying that you have to dress up like a wizard or wear a pair of big clown glasses. That's not that kind of character that I'm talking about. What I'm referring to is the kind of personality that can be defined very quickly in a show or performance.
I'm thinking of people like Mac King, Dan Sperry, David Blaine, Jeff McBride, Cris Angel, David Copperfield. Whether you like their magic or not, you've got to admit that these magicians have nailed their onstage personalities. From the moment they begin to perform, you know EXACTLY who they are.
One of the serious upsides to having this much of a defined character is that it makes the process of finding material to fit "you" so much easier. Jeff McBride knows for sure that Forgetful Freddie isn't for him (unless he's going to put a serious metaphysical twist on it and that I'd love to see).
So, what are some ways for you to find and develop your onstage persona? I've put together some ideas for you... think of this as a mini character development workshop and use these questions and suggestions as a jumping off point to find the "stage you."
1. What is your offstage personality? What words do friends use to describe you? If you're generally a pretty funny, laid back and clever guy then maybe that's the way to go onstage. I've seen A LOT of performers who are incredibly personable and hysterical offstage go onstage and seem uncomfortable and stilted because they are trying to be something they're not.
Unless you are a great actor, maybe rooting your onstage personality with your offstage personality might be the way to go.
2. What are your performing strengths? Are you great at off the cuff comedy and on the spot one-liners? Are you better performing with no dialogue at all? Don't feel pressured to do it all. Your weaknesses are things that you can work on over time but you need a strong persona right now to get your show really solid and ready for some serious bookings.
3. Use music to your advantage! Make sure that your music enhances your personal style onstage and doesn't take away from it or distract from it. Popular music is, well... popular, in magic performances but sometimes it can distract from the show itself. If contemporary is going to be your style than popular music is a perfect fit, otherwise look elsewhere. Sometimes I like to find more obscure music that the audience might not have heard before and have no preconceived ideas or feels about.
4. The same thing goes for clothing. Please... if you are a husky guy, don't bother to try to pull off the torn up, skin tight jeans that some of your contemporaries might be wearing. Find your own way. Be comfortable. Consider lots of different costume options and, most importantly, be yourself. If it doesn't feel right, it probably doesn't look right either!
5. Finally, look at your performance as a whole. Consider your words, your music choices, your costumes, your assistants (or lack thereof!), your props (or lack thereof!) very seriously. These elements all combine to create "you."
All in all, the person that you present to your audiences might not be completely you... the real you. But a different version of you is easier to pull off than some crazy, way out of line persona. It's all about selling yourself to magic buyers. There are hundreds of options out there for people who want to book a magician for their party, cruise ship, corporate event or theatre. You have to be clear about the character that you are selling so that you can convince them why you're the man, or woman, for the job because they can only buy you from you.
I feel another blog post coming on!
*Photo credit - Mykl Roventine via Flickr Creative Commons
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