360: A Magician Prepares

Joshua Stenkamp and Jason Wethington recently authored an unusual and interesting book, "A Magician Prepares - Act One: Interview" that puts a lot of advice from some top professionals in one place. If you enjoy this magic podcast, then you should also enjoy this book because it is like reading a podcast. Even getting into the interview and after the chat is concluded, the authors talk about what they are doing to get to the interview and where they were going afterwards. As an overview of the book, it might best be described by Amazon:

"A Magician Prepares Act One- Interviews" explores the relationship between magic, art, and theatre through intimate conversations with 19 top professionals from the secretive world of magic. Each interview is an unscripted journey of personal stories, unique insights, and valuable advice in creating magical experiences for your audiences.

Magical Entertainer Jason Wethington has fun with the crowd on the Walt Disney World boardwalk. If you want to get more information about booking Jason, you can visit his website at www.jasonwethington.com

In the first part of this podcast, Jason brings us up to date on whatever happened to Kostya Kimlat's "Restaurant Magic Business", what is happening on the Portland, Oregon magic scene, then we get into the importance of working with consultants who bring you and your act to another level. After a while, Joshua jumps in as we talk about the book and their character development that is discussed in the book. The story of collecting the stories behind the book is almost as fascinating as the stories themselves.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of "A Magician Prepares", then please order through Amazon.com and access it through this link below to help support The Magic Word. If you already have an Amazon Prime account or you have a regular account, you will be still be able to use your account AND support The Magic Word by clicking on this link below and using this portal. Thank you for your support.

359: Andrew Goldenhersh - Not A Hare Out Of Place

This podcast with Andrew Goldenhersh was recorded in February 2017 just after he received word about his nomination for "Close-Up Magician of the Year" for the Academy of Magical Arts. Of course, the awards banquet has now come and gone and he did not take home the award. This year it went to Richard Turner.

This podcast has been held back pending the completion of the Las Vegas Chronicles series of podcasts that have been running for the past three months. Andrew has been an influential force in the craft and business of magic, not only as a performer and creator but also as a consultant. He has so much to offer and the advice he offers in this podcast can help you (and me) become a better performer.

Andrew Goldenhersh, award-winning magician from the Magic Castle in Hollywood, performs at Pop Haydn's Shindig in North Hollywood. Aug 18, 2016. http://pophaydn.com http://www.goldenhands.com/

Andrew Goldenhersh, AMA Parlor Magician of the Year, visited Houston and stopped by to record a podcast for The Magic Word. This video was streamed LIVE via Facebook and includes about 15 minutes of additional footage at the end that was not part of the audio podcast.

Andrew Goldenhersh talks about his many years of being a "bridesmaid and never a bride" meaning that he was nominated by the Academy of Magical Arts but it took ten years before he won his first AMA award. He also talks about his influences, scripting, side show stunts, creativity, developing his act and character, and how he came about meeting and working with actor Jason Alexander ""George Castanza" from "Seinfeld").

He goes on to talk about how he learned to perform in Japanese and why he needed to learn another language, but more importantly, how he came to tighten up his script.He also chats about the importance of silence, pauses and taking beats in your act that heightens the performance. His unconventional idea on how to handle hecklers is a real gem, too.

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If you plan to purchase anything through Amazon.com, then please click on this link below to help support The Magic Word. If you already have an Amazon Prime account or you have a regular account, you will be still be able to use your account AND support The Magic Word by clicking on this link below and using this portal. Thank you for your support.

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This book by Raj Madhok was briefly mentioned during the podcast and available for only $15.00 through Vanishing, Inc. Magic. Click on the graphic above for more information..

358: Mat Franco - Magic Reinvented Nightly

Winner of Season 9 of "America's Got Talent [sic]" (AGT). Mat Franco has a successful show on the Las Vegas Strip for the past year and a half in the newly remodeled Linq Casino and Hotel, which was the former Imperial Palace. His show is unlike any other on the Strip and pulls from many of the popular tricks he performed on AGT. The name of his show "Magic Reinvented Nightly" is the perfect title because, without giving away any surprises, every show is different but...oh, darn it, I really can't say any more. But I do recommend the show. It is done with pure skill and personality. The focus is not on the props, dancers or music but focused on the performer himself. And he is riding high on the success of his TV appearances. I know that his show will have "legs" and should remain popular for many years to come.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:04:50 - Mat Franco talks a lot about his experience on America's Got Talent [sic] television show. He obviously had a completely different experience than all the other magicians who preceded him. We also chat about his new show at the Linq Hotel and Casino (which is owned by Caesar's). He also tells about his years performing on the college circuit, his early inspirations, trick selection, timing, nervousness, developing his character, bad decisions along the way, creating his vision of the show, and more.

01:12:46 - Product review of "Matrix Pad Reloaded" by Richard Griffin. Effect: a Post-It notepad is shown. Four spots are drawn in each corner of the pad with a Sharpie. One by one with a rub of the finger, the spots visibly assemble to one corner. The top sheet can be peeled off and given to a spectator. Highly recommended.

Click the graphic above to visit The Linq, get directions, make hotel and show reservations.

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