TRICS Convention

We just returned from the TRICS Convention in North Carolina. For those who don't know, this is a small gathering (91 registrants) of close up magicians, who get together for 3 days of lectures and sessions. Scott Robinson does a great job of making this a sharing experience with plenty of time for sessioning. The schedule is full of great lectures but not so full that you get tired of sitting in the lecture room. This year, the lecturers were Andi Gladwin, Rick Merril, Ray Kosby, Meir Yedid, David Regal, Terry Hedges, David Corsaro, and Doug Conn.
    Ray Kosby started the convention with Thursday night's 9:00 PM lecture. Ray is an incredible sleight of hand performer and he shared some great routines. If you don't have his DVDs, you are missing out on some of the best versions of some classic card plots. Highlights of the lecture included his Oil & Water routine which is done in the spectator's hands. This is one I will be looking up, as it just might be the best version out there. He taught a repeat torn and restored movie ticket effect that is practical and fits in your pocket. Of course, he taught his Raise, Rise move in which a card visually rises through the deck while out jogged. This isn't an easy move but in his hands, it looks like real magic.
    Each year, Scott brings in someone less known for a new comer lecture. These are always great and this year's performer was no exception. Terry Hedges entertained us with an hour full of commercial card magic. He has some great presentations for some classic card plots which bring them from simple card tricks to performance pieces. His collector's routine ends with the appearance of four famous detectives from TV and Literature. He had a great idea for the overdone routine of a spectator picking the same card over and over again. I am looking forward to more ideas from Terry.
     David Corsaro was up next and wow, what a lecture! David's lecture was one of the most professional looking lectures I have ever seen. With the use of a PowerPoint presentation, David taught us some incredible routines as well as great marketing tips. I picked up a lot from this lecture including the idea of using social media more in growing your brand. (Hence this blog post!) The tricks he taught were excellent. His "Getting to Know You" is a real baffler in which the emphasis is placed on the spectator. "Mallrats" is a great routine that fooled a lot of people in the room. "Can I Call You Sometime" was my favorite version of the telephone number production with tons of room for comedy. If you ever have a chance to see David lecture, don't miss it. It is one of the best I have seen.
     Meir Yedid lectured after the dinner break. He fooled me with an add a number routine that I will be buying in the future. His 10 card repeat routine done with bills had a great kicker ending. My favorite routine was FadeOut which has a spectator naming a card from a deck that has been shown face up and face down. The card is removed and the rest of the cards become blank. This fooled me and I look forward to adding this to my collection as well.
     The last lecture of the day was a treat for everyone present. In his first lecture in 8 years, Doug Conn fooled the crowd with his incredible brand of close up magic. He had a great touch for his coins across routine that I will be adding to my own. His chink a chink done with scrabble tiles is a modern day classic and a routine that has the best ending of any chink a chink routine. A color changing deck fooled the room, as well it should. This is one of my favorite items from his book which can be found on our website. Doug has a DVD coming out that you will enjoy watching. The DVD is well produced and the tricks are straight from Doug's working repertoire.
     Well, that was the first day of lectures. I will talk more about the last day, including the closing public show in another post.