Non-card worker using cards needs advice

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Guest

Non-card worker using cards needs advice

Postby Guest » September 12th, 2006, 9:39 am

Right now I'm doing birthday parties. I don't do card work in the sense of sleights. (Not even a false shuffle - a cross-cut force is about it!) But I do have an Invisible Deck, giant B'Wave, and In A Flash. I also like to include a couple of other tricks - a signed card turns over in the deck (the only one I use with kids under 10, and I use a Rugrats or other picture deck), Do As I Do, and a prediction where the volunteer does everything.

No, these aren't the only things I have for a show. I do like these, and get good reactions. But I'm switching decks like mad! This is cumbersome, and with kids especially gives the "you're just using a trick deck!" letdown.

In a 45-60 minute show for 10-13 year olds, how many card tricks would you do? All the ones above have totally different plots and endings (except that you're revealing a card).

And how do you keep all the decks straight without making it obvious you're going for a different set-up?

Ed

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Re: Non-card worker using cards needs advice

Postby Jeff Haas » September 12th, 2006, 5:24 pm

I would not do too many card tricks in one show for that age group, especially if you're going to use all gaffed decks. If you have a lot of skill, then it's a different situation, but even then, you want to make sure to hit as many different themes as possible.

However, David Regal disagrees...you should check out one of his older videos, I think it was called, "Enough With The Tricks Already!" and he swapped gaffed decks constantly. He also explained his strategies for doing so.

Guest

Re: Non-card worker using cards needs advice

Postby Guest » September 12th, 2006, 7:58 pm

There are two TERRIFIC card tricks for kids of any age (up to 90): Edward Victor's Eleven Card trick, and Cards across. If they are old enough to count, these trics go over really well.

John R

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Re: Non-card worker using cards needs advice

Postby Richard Kaufman » September 12th, 2006, 8:37 pm

Ed, card tricks for that age group is a tough way to perform.

Doing the Victor 11-card trick with bills, like Fred Kaps, might be better.

There's a version of Cards Across using envelopes in The Complete Works of Derek Dingle that's pretty easy to do and might work well for them.

How about doing CardWarp with Jumbo cards the way Eugene Burger does? (I think the handling is published in "The Experience of Magic.)
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Guest

Re: Non-card worker using cards needs advice

Postby Guest » September 15th, 2006, 7:11 am

My deepest thanks to all who replied. As you can no doubt tell, I'm trying to move beyond perfroming a disjointed collection of assorted tricks into presenting an entertaining series of ever-more magical events. What I have to start with, though, is my assorted tricks.

With great thanks to Brian Scott Ambrosch, the Invisible Deck has turned into what I hope will be a great opener. I usually like to follow my opener with the Jumbo B'Wave - the three-layer ending is always a jaw dropper.

I also thinking of using a series of three tricks with regular cards:
> Do As I Do - two decks, and we both come up with the same card,
> let him sign that card and do the card revelation where it turns over in the deck,
> then acknowlege that my touching the cards looks suspicious, so I let him handle the cards - and it comes back to his signed card.

The stongest closer I have right now is probably Tag (although I'm going to try to get In A Flash in there whnever I get permission to use fire).

Is this too much use of cards?
Ed


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