A Comedy Magic routine [clown magic]

Comedy Magic Routine – how it differs from Clown magic

This last Saturday, I did a short magic show at the local library, to promote a reading initiative in my community. I’d like to share that entire routine with you, and demonstrate how comedy magic is different from clown magic.

The show began with the librarian reading the children’s book “The Magic Hat” (complete with audience interaction & gestures). This led to my introduction. First, I took off my cape (for this show, I wore a “magic” cape, hat & bow tie). And hung it on a coat hanger on a nearby coat rack. Then I took another hanger off the coat rack, and wrapped it in a sheet of newspaper. While doing that, explaining to the children what they were going to see … That I had no “magic powers” but that magic was making them think they saw something that they didn’t. I then asked the children how many of them saw me wrap a coat hanger in a sheet of newspaper. They all raised their hands, and in response I crumpled the newspaper, showing that the hanger had vanished. (See “Magic Digest” by George Anderson in your local library for the secret of this trick)

I then used a modified version of a magician’s prop called a Square Circle as my “magic hat”. I showed it empty by lifting up & sticking my arm through it. You can read how to make your own version of the Square Circle in Mark Wilson’s Complete Encyclopedia of Magic). And I proceeded to pull out a rubber chicken, a rope, and (finally) a rabbit puppet. With the rabbit (actually Amy from the “Alphabet Pals” series of children’s books. My wife use to sell the Worldbook & Childcraft books, and got the puppets from there). I then used a “svengali coloring book” where the pages were initially blank,