My 3 dogs, Indy, Leo, and Finn …
yesterday …
in my front yard …
if they could talk:
Indy: OK, I’ll lie down & you guys attack me.
(2 minutes later)
Leo: OK. My turn! I’ll lie down & you guys attack me.
(2 minutes later)
Finn: Me! Me!
All of them: Now let’s roll on something dead that smells bad.
Putting aside the part about something that smells bad, if you have ever seen dogs play with each other, that image rings true. That’s how my dogs interact with each other. It’ fun for them and, relevant to this post, it’s fun to watch.
Below are four routines in the Dixon Magic catalog. All four are better when you play them like a happy dog. What’s that mean? Keep reading …
Playing Like A Happy Dog?
Treat audience members respectfully? Of course, but that doesn’t mean you have to be a overly formal and stiff. I respect my friends and they respect me (I hope), but we still kid each other verbally, much like the puppies play with each other physically, and just like the puppies, it’s fun to watch.
All of the routines above take advantage of that. The interaction is the show and it doesn’t have to be stiff and formal. It can be playful, teasing, and still be respectful.
I’m sure there are routines like that in your show …and it’s fun for everyone.
In my Ten Card Deal I’m repeatedly beating a spectator at poker under increasingly impossible conditions …and it’s fun for everyone.
In Maweege I’m gently ribbing the husband of a married couple …and it’s fun for everyone.
In Invisible Knots a man in the front row becomes the comedy anchor …and it’s fun for everyone.
And this kind of interaction is at the core of the routines in Dynamite In A Small Package …and it’s fun for everyone.
Here’s a passage from my book 1997 Everything is Funnier with Monkeys that talks about this:
Two performances.
The first performance features Biff. Biff is so-spoken. He doesn’t go for broad laughs. He addresses all of his audience participants as either “Sir” or “Ma’am.” He presents his well-executed effects in a straightforward manner.
The second performance features Butch. He has a booming voice, that’s at times even loud. He goes for, and scores with, broad sight gags. He addresses his audience participants by their first names. He occasionally teases audience members. Sometimes he screams at them.
From my experience I believe most magicians would describe Biff as genteel. I would agree. Most would say Butch is not. I would also agree. I also think most magicians would describe Biff as sensitive and say Butch is definitely not. My response would be that from the information just provided there is no way you could possibly know.
Webster defines genteel as “affectedly refined, polite.” Biff is definitely that. Butch is definitely not. But what does sensitivity mean? Webster said “very keenly susceptible to stimuli.” And in a performance, from where does this stimuli come? The audience, of course: And in neither of those descriptions did I give any hint at audience reaction.
I’m very similar to Butch. And I have discovered that the more I push the envelope, the less genteel I become and the less “sensitive” I become in the eyes of most magicians — the more sensitive I actually have to be.
******
So be like puppies and play with your audience.
And if you’re looking for some playful routines, pick up one or more of the products above.
Best,
Doc