Magic Skills

Magic Skills — page 1 — that's IMPOSSIBLE If you want to amaze your friends and family show them a few fantastic magic tricks Professional magicians spend years learning fiendishly tricky moves but there are all kinds of simple magic skills that you can learn with a little practice Some magicians use trick props such as rings that look solid but link together Hints and warnings Boxes with a light bulb symbol contain handy hints for improving your skills Look out for the exclamation marks too these boxes give safety warnings and other important advice You’d need fancy equipment to be able to stage spectacular tricks like this Types of Magic There are many types of magic Some stage magicians use big lavish props to create incredible illusions such as levitation or making entire buildings disappear Other magicians prefer close-up magic such as making coins appear or disappear in front of you Some magicians pretend to read minds instead

Magic Skills — page 2 — Three Golden Rules If you want to be a great magician remember these three golden rules 1 Never perform a trick until you're ready If you're not sure what to do or don't feel confident the trick may not work properly 2 Never do a trick twice People will be looking harder the second time and may figure out your method 3 Never reveal how a trick is done It spoils all the mystery Also because many tricks are really very simple people may be disappointed once they hear the secret A A magician performs eye catching Japanese magic tricks at a festival Outdoor magic like this is called street magic SUPER FACTS One famous magician was the French conjuror Jean Eugène Robert Houdin 1805 71 He created his own props and performed stunning shows with all kinds of spectacular illusions Magicians who join magic societies must promise never to reveal secrets of magic to non magicians Some modern magicians such as Penn and Teller tease the audience by pretending to show how tricks are done before adding new twists that leave people even more baffled

Magic Skills — page 3 — Complex prop tricks rely on misdirecting the audience’s attention MAGIC BASICS There are two kinds of tricks self-working tricks which work every time as long as you do things in a certain way and sleight-of hand tricks sleights for short which involve learning sneaky moves You need the same basic skills for both Look at This Not at That One vital magic skill is misdirection in other words deliberately drawing the audience’s attention away from things you don’t want them to notice or think too much about This way you can make them think something impossible has happened You can misdirect using what you say called patter and body language Try this misdirection In a café with a friend take a sugar packet and toss it casually in front of you close to the edge of the table Start to scoop up the packet but slide it toward you and let it fall in your lap Misdirect your friend’s attention by talking and looking at your fist as if you are holding the sugar Blow on your fist and open it to reveal that the sugar has disappeared Do you want more sugar You don’t OK then I’ll get rid of it for you 6

Magic Skills — page 4 — Go for It You need confidence to do magic You may worry that a trick is so simple that people will spot the secret right away but remember they don’t know as much as you If you practice beforehand misdirect attention and act confidently your tricks will be really effective Make Em Laugh Don’t forget that humor helps to entertain people For example you could alter the vanishing sugar trick and pretend to push the packet into your ear If a trick goes wrong laugh it off and do another Don’t get downhearted and never give up While you’re misdirecting attention to your ear sneakily pick up the sugar packet and hide it in your other hand Now cough into the hand and open it to reveal the sugar Short and Sweet As a beginner it’s a good idea to perform just one or two tricks at once Do them casually for example while at a bus stop or waiting for a class to start This way people will be more surprised and impressed than if you make a big fuss of wanting

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