Passing It On
Before the recent rise of Swine Flu, I have long thought about the possibility that spectators may hesitate to touch playing cards and other props because of the perception that the props could be carrying and passing viruses and/or germs.
Like lots of people these days, I constantly wash my hands and try to open doors by pulling the parts of the handle that I think others aren't touching. I'm not like Howard Hughes, as portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorcese's "The Aviator," I'm just careful. As a magician, I have always made sure that my hands and fingernails were exceptionally clean, as well as my props. And I'm being extra careful about it these days.
No Props
During the recent holiday season, I was performing walk around at a corporate cocktail party for a medical center. After just a few minutes, I realized that this crowd of medical professionals didn't want to touch my magic props.
While I quickly adapted to the situation, this meant no sponge balls, borrowed rings or even selected playing cards. My concern about viruses and germs had been realized.
Proactive
With Swine Flu on everybody's mind, I decided to be proactive. In my shows this past weekend, after performing a balls from the mouth segment, I went into my spiel to transition to the next trick. But as I did this, I openly pulled out hand sanitizer and applied it to my hands. I didn't make a big deal about it, I just cleaned my hands as I spoke. Interestingly, I received a smattering of applause because of my action.
I think that when most people are caught up in the magic entertainment, they don’t think about the fact that I've been pulling coins and other objects from my mouth (sometimes, it's a complete illusion, the objects haven't actually touched my mouth).
But I think it's best to stay ahead of this game, so the hand sanitizer has become a subtle part of my show. And if I need to cut the trick, I will. Fortunately, the issue hasn't come up in walk around at my restaurant gigs.
Should the Swine Flu situation get worse, I think this topic of spreading germs and viruses through our props can become a real problem. For now, keep those hands and magic props spotless. And if you think it's necessary, don't hesitate to carry hand sanitizer and openly use it.
This means the end of that stupid gag where magicians ask a woman to kiss them on the cheek and quickly turn their heads to receive one on the mouth. I cringe every time I see this. I think it's also the demise of the "long ribbon of paper from mouth" routine where a magician asks a volunteer to place a piece of paper in his or her mouth.
Overkill? I welcome your comments.
Comments
I think that once the “swine flu hysteria” calms down we should be able to go back to normal. The ironic thing is that it’s really not a huge problem, there are only about 300 cases of swine flu worldwide.
I think this thing is being blown way out of proportion. Thousands die every year in America from regular influenza, but we’re not hearing about that. I’ve been doing my regular sets, and no one has once complained or hesitated about touching any of my props. I do agree about the demise of mouth-type props, though, but I rarely perform those.
Well done on the forethought. I agree with Ethan that the hysteria will die down soon, but it keeps the show current and can still bring some giggles.
I agree that we should be able to return to some level of normalcy, but I applaud your proactive approach.
Handwashing has long been recognized as the best way to minimize transmission of disease. So I think it is a good practice to be aware. Keep the sanitizer in the bag. Hopefully we won’t need to stick to the super strict precautions of no contact at all, but it is still a good thing to keep this issue in mind routinely.
Also, I agree with you about the surprise kiss on the mouth. In this day and age, that is pretty forward and inappropriate.
I actually don’t do any trick requiring my mouth. I think it’s something I’ve subconsciously avoided.
I agree on the “blown out of proportion” comments!!
i kind of was hoping your magic could dispel swine flu. now i’m just bored.
Look I know I’ll get some slack, but I think in today’s day and age, it is the only time you could get away with the kiss gag. In the past the forwardness was a problem. Today people are forward all the time, going so far as to, well imagine, after knowing each other for 2 minutes. A stolen kiss is not a huge deal in the eys of most women, especially those that frequent bars, and other such establishments where we may perform.
That being said I don’t condone the act, but I don’t condemn it. To each his own.
Please stop the dumb stealing a kiss gag. I saw it twice at a recent Renaissance fair. (The performers were not magicians). Both times I heard women sitting nearby make disapproving comment. It is very inappropriate.