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Click HERE
for Walt Lees’s review (pdf
file) from Abra
Review of the 2008 Card Capers
by James Stubbs published on MagicWeek
website
Sunday 11 May 2008 saw the first of Paul Gordon’s
annual Card Capers, an 8-hour meet-up for card enthusiasts held in the
function room of a pub in Worthing. Anyone who has seen Paul work will know how deeply he
believes in the impact of good, direct card magic on non-magicians and
how this comes across in both his routining and his presentation. For the 30
or so magicians who attended, this was a golden opportunity to make real
progress in their card work, with much more time than is ever available in a
club lecture or convention to learn, go back, interrupt, clarify and really
understand what is being taught.
The morning lecture took us through a number of Paul’s effects from his books
and DVDs (or more precisely, from his own working repertoire) at a level of
detail which means that I would guess most would now go away and practise
them with a view to actually performing them! Closer examination of nuances and
subtleties were saved for the afternoon session, but throughout the whole day
we were treated to an insight into how good routining and thought-through
handling can be cleverly used to dispel the layman’s explanations before they
can even come up with them. All of the tricks were within reach of the
average card enthusiast prepared to put in some practice and all had the
trademark kicker-ending Paul is well known for. It’s not often you hear
someone who is so passionate about card magic, and who has clearly put so
much time into mastering technique, be so positive about simplifying handling
wherever possible if the effect remains strong. A lesson to us all!
Just as practical as the trick/sleights sections of the day was the Question
& Answer session. Some people had e-mailed
questions through in advance but plenty of time was given for us to ask
questions as they arose and as the discussion sparked further issues. The
size of the group, and the friendly, sociable atmosphere of the whole
event, meant that many felt able to ask important questions which probably
wouldn’t have been asked in a convention setting. A whole range of issues
were considered, including how to get the one-hand top palm right, how to
approach groups in a mix-and-mingle setting, deciding on fees, starting off
with the first table of the evening, getting work in restaurants, and
handling difficult people. Dealing with nerves was an issue of concern to
several people, and Paul dealt with the topic very honestly and practically.
Paul intends for this to become an annual event and he has plans for how he
wants it to develop. At £25 for the day, this was extremely good value.
How many times have I paid that for a 2-hour DVD and been disappointed? Yet
here, over 8 hours, I was taken through material I will certainly work on and
perform, given advice on handling which answered the questions I really
wanted to ask, and highly practical suggestions on the business side of
performing. If you enjoy card magic, and want to spend a day with someone who
really knows his stuff and does it, faultlessly, for Joe Public, Card
Capers comes highly recommended.
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