Mouser:
May I ask; is Magic Week a commercial operation or is it something
that you continue to work on voluntarily from your interest
in magic?
Duncan
Trillo: It is a commercial venture.
Duncan
YinHoNg:
First of all, thank you so much for your time.
What
do you feel about the 'comedic' magicians on t.v. today, who
seem to me, more interested in telling jokes than showing
the beauty and impact of magic.
Duncan
Trillo: Hi YinHoNg,
TV
is a very difficult medium for magic.
David
Blaine understands how to make the most of it and always allows
time for the impact of an effect to really register. (In fact
he's allowing 44 days for his latest effect to register!).
Derren Brown's shows also allow time for the "magic"
to really have impact.
Combining
comedy with magic isn't easy though and, as you say, the impact
of the magic can get lost in the process. Simple things to
highlight the magic can be done even in the middle of a "full
on" comedy stand up set... sometimes just slowing up
the final moments of a routine are all that is needed to focus
the audience for the climax, the magic.
The
current compilation shows are too finely chopped up to have
any real impact magic wise unfortunately, but they're not
doing any harm.
I'd
like to see a show that instead of mimicking everything else
that is already out there i.e. Blaine, Dom Jolly, Jackass,
the Muppets(!) etc... and not quite succeeding, had the courage
to set its own standards and really present some of the world's
finest magic and magicians… not 'clips' but current
world class performers presenting mainly close-up sleight
of hand magic.
All
the best,
Duncan
YinHoNg:
I totally agree. After watching Bill Malone perform on his
DVDs "On the Loose" i really feel that that type
of performance, from that kind of skilled performer would
really work on T.V
Magic
Mike: Hi Duncan I would like to know how many times
per week/month you perform close up given the fact that your
very busy "behind the scenes" so to speak. (Also
I need to send you another pm soon regarding adding another
page to my site.) By the way guys, if you're reading this
and you're looking for a professional web site designer, Duncan's
your man, he's as good at site design as he is at magic!
Duncan
Trillo: Hi Mike,
Actually
I don't do close-up magic at all. My real passion is silent
magic. When I was 18 I worked in Hamleys (pre Marvin's Magic)
so used to do close-up all day and loved it, but never followed
it through. Instead I used that period to work on card fans
and productions for my act. I really enjoy watching great
close-up performers though.
All
the best,
Duncan
Aged
Magician: Duncan, I wonder if you ever encountered
the 'ghost' of a great guy who, many years ago, ran the magic
dept in Hamley's, back in the basement days......Vic Fabian?
Duncan
Trillo: Hi Aged Magician!
No,
but I know the name. I worked for John Henley of the Inzani-Henley
Magic Co.
All
the best,
Duncan
Tor:
I remeber when I was kid, I was watching this magic show wich
was every monday. They showed clips of diffrent magicians.
One time they showed your card manipulation act. I thought
it was so amazing, stil do. Ever since that time I wanted
to learn card manipulations.
Right
now Im practising on card manipulations wich is difficult.
I havent tried out many types of cards. I only use Bee's.
What kinda cards do you recemend? For how long did you practise
your routine? Do you use faning powder?
Im
affraid of becomming a copycat. I'm trying to come up with
my own manipulation sequences wich is going well. I propably
have to do something else to. I cant just do card manipulations.
I want to be original and diffrent. Could I combine card manipulations
with illusions? Like first I do a bunch of illusions then
I go into card manipulations.
Duncan
Trillo: Hi Tor,
I
started out with Bee's also, recommended to me by illusionist
Russ Stevens. They are a great card to work with. I'm now
using my own cards, the "www.manipulationcards.com"
deck, they are super smooth and very thin (10cm for the whole
deck) but still spring like card - not paper! So you can back
palm a whole deck.
I've
always used fanning powder either to make unusable cards work
like Piatnic Fanning Cards for example, or to keep good cards
in top handling condition. I'd recommend applying the powder
to the cards one by one rubbing it in between your thumb and
first finger. Then go through the deck with a tissue removing
any excess powder. I never got on with the old "shake
it in a bag" method.
Learning
a manipulation sequence will always be useful. If you work
illusions then a front of tabs card routine can be used while
illusions are being changed over on stage.
Good
luck with it all,
All
the best,
Duncan
Elwood:
Apart from Rousseau, and young man I saw at Nottingham last
year (I think you also appeared, the Guild of Magician's do),
there don't seem to be many traditional manipulators about.
Do
you feel that the cult of Blaine, and "Nu-Magic"
(Monkey Magic, etc) is killing traditional manip acts off,
or do you sense a return to the physical skill and dexterity
in Magic that was once commonplace in the Music Hall and Vaudeville
era?
Although
what you perform is Magic in the sense of the impossible,
to many younger Magicians I suspect that the time and dedication
needed to develop the skills required by this branch of the
Art are what pushes them towards the Blaine style of quick
tricks and minimal presentaion.
However,
there may come a time when this youngest generation of Magicians
grow tired of the same old, same old, and come back around
to the old way of thinking.
So,
do you see yourself (and your contemporary manip atristes)
as the last in line, a refreshing alternative or (playing
devils's advocate) the Magic equivalent of self-indulgent
Jazz music?!
(As
a disclaimer, I'd just like to add that I am a big fan of
manip artistes, and dove workers especially - Lance Burton's
dove act has always fascinated me, and your own hanky routine
is a particular favourite)
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