Whether you’re hosting a Sweet 16 party, a cocktail party, a picnic lunch for the Red Hat ladies, a business conference, a Bar Mitzvah reception, or a birthday party for an 8 year old boy you might want to hire a magician to help entertain your guests. The magician and what you expect from him/her will change depending on the venue. Below are a few things to consider before calling to talk to him/her.
Who are the guests?
I love doing magic for people, but what I do changes depending on the crowd. If I’m working for a crowd of business people or at a family function, I choose different material than I would if I was hired to work at a Bachelor or Bachelorette party. Likewise, I do not do card tricks for small children. Cards do not mean anything to them. Knowing who I’m performing for helps me define what I’m going to do.
How many guests?
Magic comes in different sizes. There are somethings I can perform for only one or two people at a time. There are other things I can do for a 500 seat theater.
What’s the occasion?
I have different routines to offer if it’s a romantic occasion than if it’s a business function. I’m going to save the off-color material for the bachelor party, and I’ll skip the Gospel magic at the Bar Mitzvah.
How do you want the magician to interact with the crowd?
I can come in and do a stage show for all your guests at once. I can sit at a table in the corner and they can come to me. I can walk around to different tables and mingle with different groups. I can be in a small room off the main room and do scheduled performances for 20 or 40 throughout the evening. I can be a motivational speaker who happens to incorporate magic. I can work as a draw at a tradeshow to get people into your booth. I can act as emcee introducing speakers at a function and providing magical digressions through the evening.
How long do you want the magician there?
If I’m going from table to table at a banquet, you might want me for 2 or 3 hours. If I’m at a birthday party for a five year old, you might only want me to perform for 20 or 30 minutes. If I’m helping out at a tradeshow, you might want me in front of your booth, or at your hospitality suite all day or at scheduled times throughout the day.
Is there anything you have to see the magician do?
If you’ve seen me before, you might have seen my pink strait jacket routine. Do you want to see that again? Do you want to see something different? Do you have any desire or objection to a performer who uses live animals? fire? playing cards?
Last Thoughts
When hiring a magician keep in mind that a professional will need to know a few things before they can quote you a price. That 20 minute show for a group of 9-year olds in your backyard is not same thing as an hour long stage show for 400 guests. I’m not being evasive when I can’t begin by quoting you a price. I really do need to get some more information.
Listen to the magician’s comments and be open minded. I have parents asking me to do hour shows for their six year olds. I recommend a show about 20 minutes for that age. There are sometimes when after hearing the description of your event, I may recommend a different magician for that function. One of my specialties is as a lady magician for little girls’ parties. I have other friends who specialize in gambling themed magic. Still other friends specialize in magic with fire or “extreme magic.” We can all adjust what we do to fit your party, but one of us might be a better fit.
Magic is a wonderful way to entertain your guests. Hiring the right magician for your occasion shouldn’t be a hard trick.
