One line that really sticks with me comes from Bill Simon’s Card Magic for Amateurs and Professionals (the reprint of Simon’s Effective Card Magic) is this one:

Don’t do tricks “to” your audience; do tricks “for” them.

This, to me, points out an important distinction between spectator and participant in magic.

Spectators are passive in the act, and they have the work done to them. This usually manifests when you see someone performing magic as close to the script as possible. When performing for spectators, if one thing goes wrong – the chosen card wasn’t the Eight of Diamonds; the thumb tip is seen; the shell coin flips over – the illusion is over, usually accompanied with visible  frustration and resentment. How dare this spectator ruin my beautiful trick?

Performances for participants, though, are far more engaging. The audience is active and  involved. If things go wrong, there is an acceptance of humanity, and a laugh is had, and we move on. Oh well, just trying to have some fun. How about this…

The literature is rife with this terminology of ‘spectator’. A quick look through the shelves has Simon, Fitzkee, Tamariz and Hugard using the term. I can understand how there are really a limited amount of words one could use to describe the person or persons who are involved on the non-performing end of a routine, but the next time you see the word, try translating it to ‘participant’.

The important thing to remember is that lacking the engagement of a participant, you may as well be locked in your room practising for your mirror. You need a participant to come along with you on the journey, to feel something magical happen. Otherwise, what’s the point?

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