Last Minute Changes

I recently traveled to Louisville to perform at a private event. I love traveling and am lucky to have a job that allows me to perform for audiences nationwide. The show was set for Saturday night, and I arrived Friday morning. I went straight to the venue from the airport in order to meet my clients and check out the performance space. I was impressed both by the hospitality of my clients and the venue itself. But, I quickly realized that I had prepared parts of my show for a smaller venue, and audiences in the back seats were not going to be able to see everything clearly. [spacer height=”20px”]

I went back to my hotel room and began to brainstorm ideas of how to fill approximately five to ten minutes of magic. I explored the hotel room for different objects that could inspire a magic routine. I also had a briefcase full of props for my show, and some objects I took from the airplane, including a magazine and barf bag. [spacer height=”20px”]

I eventually settled upon a cutting board, knife and napkin from the hotel room kitchenette. Combined with a deck of cards and a Sharpie, I made an impromptu routine in which I stab randomly selected and signed cards from a shuffled deck, all while blindfolded. I had performed a version of this classic routine many years ago, and was able to bring back my old script and add new-and-improved lines. This would add about six minutes to the show![spacer height=”20px”]

Finally, I grabbed a glass from the bathroom and the barf bag from the airplane, (which I guess came in handy after all). I practiced producing the glass, filled to the brim, from the empty bag. Since a majority of the audience was drinking during the show, this would fit perfectly with the evening’s environment. The appearing glass routine added about two minutes to the show.[spacer height=”20px”]

And that was it. I rehearsed the entire show, paying careful attention to the two newly added routines. The new pieces had great reactions, and I filmed the entire show to analyze potential improvements. While I hope this last-minute routining does not become a regular occurrence, it certainly helped to get my creative juices flowing. The next day, I performed the new routines again at a different event in Chicago.

Check out the results of this experience in the video below.