Date: 17 Jun 97 10:40:40 +0500
From: puppetco-AT-thepuppetco.org (Christopher Piper)
Subject: Re: Is it all done by mirrors?


Mark, First my apologies for replying so late, and letting this thread
peter out.  I only get to spend any real time on the net once a week,
and last week my "free time" was wasted on business. :)

I do love hand magic which I consider an art, and have a sick
fascination for Penn and Teller because of their quirky take on the
subject, and the way they can misdirect with their machinations, but...

I confess to being bored with illusionists, and perhaps you have given
me the key as to why.  I want to believe that what the entertainer is
doing is "real magic", and therefore I have to believe that real magic
is possible as I can in the context of a real story.  With David
Copperfield and Doug Henning, the illusions are always more important
than the story.  If they do not want me to believe that what they are
doing is possible, then they want to trick me and put me in an
adversarial position.  If I watch at all, I try to figure out the trick
and ignore the (usually) flimsy storyline wrapped around the illusion.
Maybe this entertains others, but not me.  To each their own, I suppose.


>> At the risk of ticking off any magicians reading this, I suggest that
>> puppetry is the perfect medium for magic.  Audiences watching puppet
>> theater are far more willing to suspend their disbelief than they would
>> be at a magic performance.  When an illusion occurs within a storyline,
>> it is no longer a "trick" but "real magic".  Because puppets can be
>> constructed to be part of the illusion, the effect can be seamless.
>>   * Christopher Piper }P-{>   ||||||||||||   The Puppet Co. Playhouse   
>*

>what strikes me as your essential point -- that narrative or storyline
>contributes to dramatic effect -- is one i agree with.  one of david
>copperfield's contributions to magic was to adapt a format from early part
>of this century and last, in which much magic was told within playlets (as
>opposed to a variety revue or cabaret style of presentation).  doug henning
>brought this to its logical extension about 20 years ago with two broadway
>musical plays with magic tricks as integral to the plotlines.  

>bad (execrable, not evil) magicians who present mere puzzles devoid of
>artistry (what i assume you mean by "trick") are among the worst performers
>around.  but then, so are bad puppeteers;  their version of ineptitude is
>to wiggle a dolly so that there's no suggestion of independent life.  

>however:  a difference between the two arts:  magicians *don't want* the
>audience to suspend disbelief -- for then, there's be no amazement in the
>accomplishment of the magic.  audience must at all times be aware that what
>it's seeing is supposed to be impossible.  as opposed to a non-magic
>performance (puppet play, film, stage show, whatever) where the audience
>does suspend disbelief, accepts all fantasy elements as a given (provided
>the show is competently presented), and doesn't worry about whether it sees
>the mechanisms or not.  but i agree again with your point that puppets can
>be seamlessly integrated as part of a magic illusion -- just as magic, if
>carefully conceived, can be seamlessly integrated into a puppet show.

>mark levenson






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