Breaking in the new forum

[Doc & Jasper]

I have a special magic vase that I use. It is a real glass vase that I give the child or even the adult to look in and feel. The next step is I take it back and hand them the rope. After inspecting the vase and rope I put the rope inside the vase and turn the vase upside down. The rope hangs from the vase.

Next I grab the rope and hang the vase from the rope. After the trick is over I take the rope out and hand back the rope and vase to the individuals and challange them to do the trick.

I have a ball watching people try, some have spent 30 minutes straight trying.


I also have my rabbits in the hand trick where I give a child one rabbit and I hold the mate in my hand. Then I have to get my want so I put the other rabbit in the child's hand and tell them not to let them touch. When I return I ask if they touched and I tell them that I think that they let them touch. When they open their hand there are the two adult rabbits and 6 babies.

Great tricks.

P.S. I do sell the glase vase trick to clowns in our troupe.

[Fitzwilly]

Doc, That wouldn't by any chance be one that Ron London talked about a few years back in his lectures is it. I haven't used that one in quite a while. Now I either have to gaff another one or find the first one. Make that the second one. A helper, whom I won't mention since it might embarass my brother, got a little over eager and broke my first vase. At least it was at home and not during a show.

[Fitzwilly]

Welcome aboard "Kleenthis Greece" Thanks for contributing to the forum.

[Fitzwilly]

Originally Posted by tim

A fold and cut with fancy, colored, glittery tissue paper to reveal a star cutout. It goes with a poem I wrote, "Here's a little story, old man moon he told me, many moons ago....". I hand big scissors to the guest of honor which s/he (standing with me) can use to "help" do the magic. At the end I unfold the paper and frame the assitant, concluding the poem with words recognizing the real magic having been to discover within it, "The star of the show!"

Tim, would you elaborate on this for me please? I think I can understand how you would fold the paper. But what about your sick, twisted, I mean beautiful, lilting poem?

[Fitzwilly]

One of my favorites believe it or knot, is a double whammy of "The Knot That's Not a Knot" and "The Professor's Rope Trick." The main reason is not the tricks in themselves but in the storylines that have developed around these two age old tricks. In the first I tell a story about having trouble tying my shoes. And when I do the laces usually end up with knots. (I show a long rope and make a typical bow knot in an untypical manner and then as I pull the ends it forms a knot.) And the knots are always in the way. It would be nice if you could just move them out of the way but that never works. (at which point the knot seems to slide a ways down the rope.) So I have to give the knot to my Mommy or Daddy or my Grandma or Granddad. I think they have a box of knots under their bed because quick as a wink they give my shoelaces back to me and the knot is gone.
I follow this up later by looking for the long rope and finding three short ones the same color. That reminds me that I need to work on this trick because my magician friend who is teaching me magic is a little upset at me for not paying attention and cutting his magic rope into three pieces and they are all different sizes.

[tim]

Originally Posted by Fitzwilly

Tim, would you elaborate on this for me please? I think I can understand how you would fold the paper. But what about your sick, twisted, I mean beautiful, lilting poem?

I'll let people make up their own poems, but simply say that mine creatively tells the story of how the trick unfolds (according to the mystical magic of the moon and it's enchanting sky whose space she inhabits). As I go through each step, the process gets simply explained as part of the poem. In this way, it sort of becomes an extended story form of "magical words".

The trick, itself, is a very simple fold and cut. It was offerred to us at Moosecamp's Clowning 101 by Pricilla Mooseburger and Mark Renfro. They did it with newspaper and handed us instruction copies to keep.

Last year at a local dollar store I saw tissue paper which left me starry eyed. I thought it perfect to framingly reveal, as Trish suggested, "The Star of the Show". They also noted that it's a great way to get your clown self into pictures which will last. So, cameras ready now, the poem notes that what has been magically revealed from deep inside the plain (though delightfully decorated) piece of paper, is (unfold paper and frame guest of honor in the cut out and open starlike space), "The Star of the Show!" (stoop down to get in picture also). Now, if the solid star cutout piece comes out okay, this also can be offerred to the person or parent, with the suggestion that the name of this person be written on it and/or the picture they took be printed out and pasted to it. Thus, creating a lasting memory.

It's all about creating a special experience for everybody involved. This is why the routine is now my show closer.

[Saxlampouxlas]

What about card magic?I perform simple card tricks so they can be understood from the kids ( find a chosen card etc )

[Doc & Jasper]

I am not sure I found it in an old magic book and there are cheaper variations in kids magic kits. I took it and changed the vase to solid glass this makes a better illusion and really stumps the audience.

I have right now about six different vases that I have used. And like I said I have started selling them to other clowns or whoever. I just don't give the instructions till I sell it. Scruffy has one of my vases as do two others in out troupe and they like them.

[Chuckles The Clown]

As for the coloring book, I have a duplicate "blank" one for the child that likes to say "I know how thats done!" You hand it to them and drive them nutso.........

[Fitzwilly]

I picked up my blank one on accident one time and about drove myself nutso trying to talk myself out of a bind until I could get back to my case and casually exchange it for the right book and continue on with the bit.