This is a great and very relevant post. My take on it is this:
IF... a trick can fool and entertain a real life audience then (and only then...)
Restrictions:
They don't make a trick bad. They may make it not for you, but not actually bad
The level of practicality:
You just have to weigh up is it worth the effort and practice to you personally. If it isn't, That doesn't make it a bad trick, it is just makes it not a trick for you.
Simplicity of the method:
This is the big one for me. Sometimes I am disappointed by the simplicity of the method. I have seen an amazing trick and it comes down to something so simple...
I am disappointed because I have seen the impossible but the secret is so possible and dull by comparison.
But... this means that I can recreate that trick by doing something simple. Make the audience see that magic, feel what I felt when I first saw it, by doing something simple. These are the tricks I seek out. These are the tricks that fill me with joy - eventually once I have got over the disappointment!
The first thing we often do when a new trick comes out is ask "what can't we do with it" instead of "what can we achieve with it", so we're already playing a losing game with ourselves, as seen by our drawers full of unused magic.
The audience doesn't know about our trade offs, but you're right, we all have to decide what we value in our own magic.
I don't see this as a paradox. Instead, I refer to it as the "Magician's Curse". If you pursue magic because you enjoy the sense of wonder and amazement it creates within you, you will eventually become disappointed and maybe even disillusioned with the technical side of magic. I'd go so far as to say it's inevitable. Most magical methods are inherently disappointing; you must learn to love them for their simplicity or boldness. Or they're impractical in their complexity, another source of disappointment. Or there are unspecified performance restrictions. Learn to deal with these trade-offs, or find a different hobby or profession.
As you learn the secret techniques and methods behind the tricks, you begin to notice the "tells" of standard methods, such as a double lift, and the magic seems, well, a lot less magical. This may ruin the experience for you forever. However, the upside is that you can still create that sense of wonder and amazement in others by performing magic for them. This is the sacrifice all magicians have to make.
If you genuinely love magic, I'd warn you never to become a magician. And, no, I'm not joking! Put another way, you'll always be a lousy magician if you perform magic for yourself to feed your ego. However, if you perform magic in the service of others, you may well be the next David Devant!
This is a great and very relevant post. My take on it is this:
IF... a trick can fool and entertain a real life audience then (and only then...)
Restrictions:
They don't make a trick bad. They may make it not for you, but not actually bad
The level of practicality:
You just have to weigh up is it worth the effort and practice to you personally. If it isn't, That doesn't make it a bad trick, it is just makes it not a trick for you.
Simplicity of the method:
This is the big one for me. Sometimes I am disappointed by the simplicity of the method. I have seen an amazing trick and it comes down to something so simple...
I am disappointed because I have seen the impossible but the secret is so possible and dull by comparison.
But... this means that I can recreate that trick by doing something simple. Make the audience see that magic, feel what I felt when I first saw it, by doing something simple. These are the tricks I seek out. These are the tricks that fill me with joy - eventually once I have got over the disappointment!
The first thing we often do when a new trick comes out is ask "what can't we do with it" instead of "what can we achieve with it", so we're already playing a losing game with ourselves, as seen by our drawers full of unused magic.
The audience doesn't know about our trade offs, but you're right, we all have to decide what we value in our own magic.
And THIS is why MAGIC chooses whom it does to be an AMBASSADOR for it. The majority of people who call themselves magicians have no right to do so.
I don't see this as a paradox. Instead, I refer to it as the "Magician's Curse". If you pursue magic because you enjoy the sense of wonder and amazement it creates within you, you will eventually become disappointed and maybe even disillusioned with the technical side of magic. I'd go so far as to say it's inevitable. Most magical methods are inherently disappointing; you must learn to love them for their simplicity or boldness. Or they're impractical in their complexity, another source of disappointment. Or there are unspecified performance restrictions. Learn to deal with these trade-offs, or find a different hobby or profession.
As you learn the secret techniques and methods behind the tricks, you begin to notice the "tells" of standard methods, such as a double lift, and the magic seems, well, a lot less magical. This may ruin the experience for you forever. However, the upside is that you can still create that sense of wonder and amazement in others by performing magic for them. This is the sacrifice all magicians have to make.
If you genuinely love magic, I'd warn you never to become a magician. And, no, I'm not joking! Put another way, you'll always be a lousy magician if you perform magic for yourself to feed your ego. However, if you perform magic in the service of others, you may well be the next David Devant!