Magic competition helps with overcoming ADD. Focusing on LINES & ROUTINE not TROPHIES.

Well here is an update from my last post. If you haven't read it I suggest you do so you can be up to date with what I'm talking about. Here is the link: http://officialimaginator.blogspot.com/2013/05/preparing-for-magic-competition-music.html

For those that don't feel like reading I'll speed things up a bit.  At a early age I was diagnosed with ADD. Which has been very difficult at times to remember things such as lines or even what trick to do next. It isn't so severe that I can't put on a good show because I can. I will mostly just go with the flow or ab lib. About 10 years ago I was performing with Arthur Trace for the Cary Park District Summer Fest. At the time Arthur wanted some stage time to for his act that would later win him the international competition. Arthur opened up for me with his beautiful art routine. When Art was finished it was time for me to open with my show and what a bomb that was. For some reason my memory went and I found myself forgetting my sponge ball routine that even impressed Arthur only a few days later when we were rehearsing in my studio.

I remember being so pissed of that day. After that I decided that I had to somehow switch my way of thinking and try to work with my ADD handicap and make it easier. For some reason I could practice my ass off and get the whole routine right, but then find myself completely lost with what to say or doing effects out of routine order. I think the ADD has played a very important role in my life as far as being confident in myself and my magic. It took many of years and thinking to find a recipe that will work with my short comings not against them.

After the show with Art I continued on doing shows where I would struggle with lines and routines.

Now I'm going to speed things up a bit. In 2001 I bought my first computer. It was a Mac. The only reason I got a Mac was because I had other hobbies that I have done in my life such as video editing and DJ'ing. In fact at one time I was taught how to hot mix records by one of Chicago's original "Hot Mix 5" WBMX radio Dj's. Scott Silz. I bought the mac because I thought it would help me with my music and video and oh boy did it. I started making my own magic promos, website and photoshop. Then a few years later I was introduced to "Garage Band" which is pretty much software for anything from bands, DJ's to someone that wants to edit music.

One night while practicing my magic I kept having trouble remembering the next move. The music I was using kind of all sounded the same so I would get lost. Then I came up with the idea of what I call "Sound Trigger Points" I started playing around with the software and thought that maybe I could develop a technique for myself that will help me remember my lines and routines better. I started practicing my routine again and then stopped where I kept getting hung up on. I would then call this my "Sound Trigger Point" I would go through the routine again, but this time I would time the routine up to the point that I forget. I would then edit the music up to the end of the routine where I kept getting hung up and I would slowly fade down the song. I would find one part in the same song where the music would get louder, more energetic or slow. I would splice it a drop it under the track that was fading. I got really good at it. You couldn't even tell that I spliced the song.

What this caused was again! a "Sound Trigger Point" this would now help me remember that when the song suddenly changes that I have to do the next move or routine. It started making so much sense to me. Sure many sounds go up and down, but I wanted my music for my magic to be different. I wanted to incorporate my gift of music into my magic.

In essence my magic became music. Every move and effect would become a note. I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting very close.

I still had the slight problem with insecurity or not thinking I'm good enough. The only thing I could think of as to why I'm like that was due to the horrible bullying in my school life. I'm finally healing from it after all these years, but I still find myself at times reflecting back to some of the bullies in high school. Kids can be so cruel and when you have some sort of learning set back it doesn't make it easier. There only goal is to bring you down so they can lift themselves up. Usually they just want to impress their bully friends, but most often they are so week and brittle themselves and would probably break in two if a feather hit them.


So through the years I was focusing on the music and magic. I would enter magic competitions and would sometimes win 2nd or 3rd place other time nothing.
In 2012 I entered into the "Chicago Magic Competition" as my character the "Imaginator"

I didn't place at all. It's not that my magic wasn't good. It just wasn't thought out. I still think the "Imaginator" still has great potential, but I need to work out the kinks in myself before I can be someone else. When I competed as the "Imaginator" I was performing my effect I created called "Butterfly in a BOX" it was a bad decision on my part. Here I am in my super hero Imaginator armor gear doing magic with a butterfly. It just didn't go. I knew I needed to do something, but what?

A year later I get an email that the "Aces Magic Club"  is going to be having a magic competition. I think I was one of the first to jump on it. I filled out the application and was going to enter as the 'Imaginator" but then after about a week I contacted the people running the contest and asked if I could go as myself rather then the "Imaginator"

I was excepted and I was then working on material that I was familiar and confident with. I guess I started to realize that I needed to focus and find myself before I could make people except the "Imaginator" I put four magic effect and routines together and found myself day and night going over my lines and practicing. I got all my music edited and "Sound Trigger Points" all set for my routine. I now felt comfortable with doing a effect with the music I edited. at some points the music would die down and that trigger helped me remember that the next thirty seconds is talking and then after I'm done talking starts the music again.

I practiced this for weeks and hours a day. May 21st the date of the competition was creeping up on me and now finally here it was. the day I've been waiting for. The contest was at H.O.M.E ( House of Music and Entertainment" 
The contest was supposed to start at 7. I got there at 4:30 and started unloading my magic table I just modified out of a kitchen island portable table.

For some reason I thought it would be cool to pimp out this kitchen cart. Here is what the kitchen cart looked like before.






Here is the Kitchen portable cart afterwards.

When I was unloading the car and pushing the new magic table to the club entrance I felt a little bump. I looked down a noticed a wheel had come off the cart. I calmly rested the wheel on top of the table and continued on, and then! I felt another thud. I look down and another wheel had fallen off. I'm now thinking "What the HELL am I going to do now? How am I going to get this fixed in time for the magic competition?"

 I then collected my thoughts and was trying to figure out this slight setback that could cause me some contest time if O have to wheel a busted up table on stage. I reminded myself that this is why I come to shows earlier. It's for this purpose. To allow ample time for any mishaps. I decided to go to the hardware store down the street and get the necessary supplies I needed to repair the wheels on my magic table. In know time I was back and hammering away. I got the table back to working and I wheeled the cart up the ramp and onto the staging area. Whew! that was one problem out of the way.


I got my table and props set and I still had two hours before the show even started. My next goal was to keep practicing my lines. From that pint on my only goal and focus was to not think about trying to win the trophy or metal, but to remember my lines, slights and order or my routines. The whole time that's all I was doing is standing in the corner of the room and rehearsing my lines and going over and over and over and...... again. I am starting to realize that if I go a long time without going over my lines that when I do go over them I have to practice a few times before I get it to the point where there is no mess ups. so in this case this was my strategy for myself. My goal was not to win, but to finish a show with no mishaps, hic-ups or forgetting lines, slights or routines.

As I was practicing my lines on the side of the theatre I saw Eugen Burger walk by me. My mouth about dropped. I guess he shows up at a lot of these magic events to show support. It turns out that one of the judges that was supposed to judge couldn't make it so the people running the competition asked Eugen if he could judge. I remember being nervous, but at the same time thinking "You know what? this could work out to my advantage. Eugene could recognize the slights magicians due and the practice and time that goes into it" this could actually help work to my advantage since the other judges are lay people.

It was now time for the contest to start. There was 11 magicians all together. I was nervous as heck, but I just kept going over my lines, over my lines, over.... as I was practicing I could here the large thunderous applause and laughter coming from the audience. I remember thinking. I don't know how this is going to go for me. I don't have many jokes or even interaction. One thing I was concerned about in my act was my "Spike" effect. In other performances I would call people up and have them examine the cups, mix them up while my back is turned and then I would smash the cups.
For the contest I choose not to pick any audience members because I didn't want it to suck up time. Also in a competition it could be a gamble when picking a participant. You could get someone that will interact with you great or you can get a dud and next thing you know your show is ruined.

So I decided to not use a audience participant and instead use a lazy Susan to mix up the cups.
 It was now time for me to go on stage and do my magic. Again! my only focus was to just do a clean show and not forget anything. I remember feeling right on the mark with everything. The music started and I just did everything that the music was telling me to do. this was what I was exactly training for. I was contestant number eight. My magic effects consisted of all original material. I opened with a thimble routine then Butterfly in a BOX, Zone Zero (With a twist) and last "Spike"

After me was a few more contestants and then it was time to tally the judges scores. the contest committee had all the contestants line up on the side of the stage as they opened up the envelopes. I was just standing there. I was actually eyeballing some of the contestants that I thought was going to win 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. The MC "Bill Cook"

opened the envelopes and called out the winners. They started with calling out third place first. They opened up the envelope and called out "Mark Presley"
 I was shocked! I really wasn't counting on placing anything. I think my focus was so much on remembering lines that I forgot the rest. I felt like I had overcome a huge obstacle and setback in my life. getting third place out of 10 isn't bad at all. My formula of " Sound Trigger Cues" has helped me out tremendously and placing third in the contest has increased my confidence even more.

I plan on entering even more contests in the future and my BIG GOAL is to one day shoot for international. I have come a long way from the Arthur Trace days. I now feel more grounded and confident on my lines, slights and routine. It just goes to show you that magic in a lot of aspects is MAGIC. It does more then entertain. It brings people together and I think in most cases brings out the best in all of us. Congratulations on the rest of the contestants it was great to be able to perform with you and I wish you the best of luck in the future.

I highly recommend any magician out there who has never entered into a magic competition before to give it a try. It is truly a remarkable learning experience.

Here is the video footage of my contest.