I want to share some insights from my creative process on a recent project, particularly how embracing pressure has led to surprising discoveries in my work. If you're someone who loves to dive deep into a topic and explore every nook and cranny, this might resonate with you. - It's a long one today, grab a cuppa and buckle in!
Embracing Pressure: Insights from the Creative Process
😅 There's nothing quite like the fear of an impending performance deadline to get the creative juices flowing! Knowing that something must be ready by a specific date is often the only way I manage to get things done! Currently, I'm facing one of those deadlines, and it's forced me to start earlier than usual. This has led to some unexpected results that I'd like to share with you.
For some context, I began with a piece I created for a one-off performance last year. After performing it another 10 or so times, I saw potential in transforming this "friends with benefits" piece into a more permanent “forever” part of my set. - How romantic!
🔭 The pressure of the deadline has allowed me to revisit this piece with fresh eyes and view it from a greater distance. Here is what I have found…
One of the surprising insights I've gained is the depth of analysis in to the technical details. With more time to breathe, I've been able to analyse footage of my first performance with more scrutiny. This has opened up space for ‘fault finding’ and ‘magic multiplying’, allowing me to fix faults, explore new elements, and discover opportunities for more moments of magic - that I might have missed under a tighter deadline!
🗺️ Having more time has also allowed me to examine each moment in greater depth. Without the stress of an impending outcome, I've been able to work on individual moments more thoroughly. This typically turns my practice sessions into exploration sessions, where I end up diving deep into the moments I'm unhappy with, exploring alternatives in technique, rhythm, pace, timing, and body language. Granted this has always been part of my process, but I've found with less pressure in each session to get to a rehear-sable position I've had the freedom to spend more time obsessing over on each moment.
All of this work has been action-based, with no verbal work or script involved. However, this has highlighted a potential issue; if I continue diving deep into the technicals without a narrative I'll become over committed to the action and will end up having to use a crowbar to force narrative in!
Side Note: To address this, I've been researching storytelling techniques and just finished reading "Save the Cat" - By Blake Snyder. Which has been useful for mapping out a framework on storytelling for movies. My next step is to explore how these same devices are interpreted and used in the context of theatre. - I'll keep you posted!
Trust But Verify
👀 Trust = The eyes
✅ Verify = The body
A significant focus has been on the eyes examining where and when they look. Fundamentally they must look at the props, the action/magical moments, and the audience. There are rules to this! Which I am still exploring. An additional note; there is a rhythm to this, the eyes bouncing between prop, moment, and audience. It makes sense to me that by getting the audience in-tune with this rhythm gives gives me more control over the direction of attention, It's like putting deceptiveness on steroids…just by altering where and when to look!!! #CheatCode
Okay…there is a bit more to it than that!
The secret moves—loads, ditches, switches, vanishes, appearances—are enhanced by a combination of the eyes and body language. The position of the shoulders, hips, and feet plays a crucial role in directing attention. Get these two elements aligned and it's almost impossible to fight against the direction of attention!
- Side note: It's essential to set a benchmark early on for the audience to calibrate my natural state against how I deliver; how I move, how I speak. If I present myself as a smooth concise performer but have moment where I stumble on a word or a sleight which is deemed out of character, this will immediately awaken the audience from my trance raising big fat red flags that scream 'something happened there! Observing the eyes and body, and how they relate to pace, rhythm, and timing has on this occasion, for whatever reason, given me a much more tangible grip on their importance in enhancing deception.
🪄 Enhancing Magical Moments
Magical moments are twofold: There is the process and the result.
The Result is the seeing the face of the signed card, hearing the coin clink in to the glass (coins to glass), counting 13 cards (cards across).
The Process is communicated in the moments before the result happened. It is what caused the result. Snapping my fingers, little wings that allow the coins to fly invisibly, a fully grown man in a bright yellow poncho pretending to be invisible (Mac King's cards across).
Without showing the process I am robbing my audience of fun, wonder, and mystery, and I am robbing myself of my artistic and creative potential. As a magician, I must communicate both the process and the result with clarity. These moments ensure congruence between actions, words, and audience interpretation. It keeps us all on the same page.
Side note: Rules can be broken, if I can make a good case as to why.
👣 My Next Steps
I'm currently absorbing as much as I can about structure, character development, and necessary beats for a full story arc. While I haven't found definitive answers yet, my research continues in a race to find the bloody narrative!
💡 New Discoveries
Though I'm not ready to elaborate on new moves and methods I have been playing with, I can say they're being applied to a classic of magic. This is my take, and I've discovered some things that are brand new to me, which is exciting!
🥡 My Main Take-Away
The main benefit has been the ability to view the piece with more distance, allowing for deeper exploration of small moments. This freedom provides the opportunity to craft the piece with greater precision, striving for perfection rather than settling for "done is better than perfect."
In conclusion, starting earlier than I think I need to has been beneficial. The quality of my technical work within this piece is rapidly increasing. With help from a much finer filter I have eliminated fluff, leaving me with a cleaner more palatable piece of magic.
I hope these insights inspire you in your own creative endeavours.
Until next time.
In a bit,
Matthew
What resonated with you? - 📧 Shoot me an message M@GivingMagic.com
Matthew Le Mottée
💪🏻 Workout plan:
Approach your next practice session as an exploration session.
Start performing the piece and when you find a moment you're not happy with, stop, and play around with how it might be solved.
There are no wrong answers in these sessions, simply ‘play’.
🍎 Magic diet:
Google ‘how to tell stories’.
Spend 3mins snooping around and see how deep you go.
I guarantee those who do will thank themselves later!
Share the accountability - reply to this email with what are you working on, I'd love to hear what's keeping you and your magic dreams ticking right now.
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