How would you like all the children in the audience to laugh and have fun? How would you like the parents, or the person who hires you, to be so impressed that they hired you to come back next year and perform? You can have a successful show and repeat performances if you follow my four tips for doing magic for kids.
Children are in a world of their own. To be successful with them, you will need to forget all the sleight of hand you learned. All those funny jokes that worked so well for adults won’t work for kids. Kids don’t want to see all their hocus pocus miracles, they just want to be entertained. With that in mind, here is a list of things you must do to have a successful children’s magic show.
1. Public participation is essential
Kids love being a part of the show. Include them in almost every trick. There are two types of audience participation. Bring in a child from the audience to help with a trick, or ask the audience to stay in their seats and participate by shouting magic words, etc.
2. Use a magic word
Children always love to think that they are creating magic by using a magic word. Now you shouldn’t use just any old word. Most magicians use “Hocus pocus” or “abracadabra”. I’ve had more success using just a random crazy word, like “Penguin” or “I love turtles.” Almost everyone expects some kind of magic phrase, so when you blurt out a random word or phrase, it catches you off guard. Children love nonsense and it is always good to laugh.
I also recommend that you use your sponsor’s name as a magic word. After all, they are paying your salary. Another great phrase to use as a magic word is “Happy Birthday ______”. Insert the name of the birthday boy or girl in the blank.
3. Forget about the adults
At many parties where I performed, there were also many adults. Sometimes almost three to one. Just remember that you are there to do magic tricks for children, not adults. So forget about them and focus on the kids.
4. Use lots of visual jokes
Kids love this more than hocus pocus. You could come in with a shoe untied. You trip over the loose cord. When you bend over to tie your shoelaces, you hear a big ripping sound and everyone thinks you ripped your pants (insert laugh here). You stand up and comically try to look at your butt (more laughter). Joke after joke will make kids laugh. Be sure to sprinkle in some magic tricks for the kids too.
Just by applying these four rules when doing magic tricks for kids, you will make sure everyone is having fun. After all, isn’t that the goal? Time for parents to relax and children to be entertained. So don’t worry about all the fancy talk, go out there and have fun.
