Magician falls off stage

[Nathan Allen]

I just wanted to share my stupidity with you folks.
Figured at least a few of you would get a kick out of it.

Video: "Magician Falls Off Stage"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AFRwMp4Ye8

Yup, it's real. Yup, it hurt. Yup, it was embarrassing.
...But it was just too funny to not share.

The moral of the story? If you're ever onstage and want to briefly lean on the wall behind you, you'd better be darn sure that the curtain is actually flat up against that wall like you THINK it is (and not, as in this case, 3 feet away).

The bruise is almost gone.

[Diego]

Nathan,
You have nothing over the late George Marquis, whose love for the bottle was legendary...so much so...while during his entrance he would stride to the front of the stage with his impressive persona, but be so schickered-up, he would trip over the footlights and into the orchestra pit!

[Bill Palmer]

When the TAOM convention was held in Tyler, Texas a few years back, MarcoM was supposed to MC the first evening show. He gave the stagehands notes as to where the microphone was to be placed, etc. But the stagehands missed their cue, and forgot to put the microphone downstage center where it belonged.

They announced MarcoM, the curtains parted, and he strode to the area where his microphone stand was supposed to be. Lacking the microphone stand, he kept walking...directly off the stage, where he disappeared!

He had fallen into the orchestra pit.

A voice from the audience shouted "Get a doctor! Is there a doctor in the house!"

And from the orchestra pit, came MarcoM's voice "I AM a Doctor! Get someone to pick me up!"

After they got him backstage, he told me that he had fallen directly between the two rails that were on either side of the conductor's stand. Had he veered to the right or the left, he would have become a castrato.

[Nathan Allen]

Haha... Glad to know I'm in good company!

[Timothy Hyde]

"I'll now take questions from the floor"

[Terry]

As a stage hand for Ring 198's Unconventional Convention, one of my responsibilities is to make sure no one gets too near the wing/back curtains.

This past Nov, one of the performers tried to lean back against a wing curtain while his partner did his part of the act. I placed my hand slowly against his back and whispered, "Don't move back anymore." I felt his weight shift forward at that point.

[Paul Gordon]

I once saw a magician fall off stage during a talent contest. The quick-witted compere remarked, "That's the biggest break he'll ever get!" Funny line!

Paul Gordon

[T Baxter]

I was in the audience on the opening night of SPELLBOUND, Doug Henning's first large theater show in Toronto (later to morph into THE MAGIC SHOW in NYC). Blinded by an over-enthusiastic flash pot explosion set for his flash appearance at the very top of the show, Doug walked forward and off the stage, falling into the orchestra pit.

He was unhurt, and climbed out to continue the show. Didn't hurt his career much.

T. Baxter

[Jonathan Townsend]

T., What was the opening of Spellbound?
The show, when it came to NYC, opened with him in a small curtain front box a couple of feet behind the bottle for the Ralph Adams Dancing Hanks.

[mai-ling]

any of these would qualify for book two of
"Magicians Most Embarrassing Moments"

[T Baxter]

Jonathan:

The original opening for Spellbound had a reveal of the band on stage and then a black-art flash appearance of Doug in a Mephisto's Portal type of setup.

Spellbound was a very different show than The Magic Show, book-wise.

T. Baxter

[Pete Biro]

My dad was in vaudeville and did a skating act. He once fell into the orchestra pit and went through the base drum.

Doing a TV show in Tokyo on of our acts fell off the back of an elevated stage. Luckily he was not hurt and the show was being TAPED so they cut it out.