There is this kid at my school, and whenever I do a trick, he says,"There's no such thing as magic." And please don't say to not perform at school, I don't anymore. He says this even if I take out a deck of cards.

i just say thats your opinion



theres probaly a totally better thing to say but o well thats what i say

Tell him "You're right. I don't do magic. I do tricks." (It's from Penn and Teller.)

in my opinion thats the worst thing possible to say, whether or not your style suggests that you do real "magic" its never smart to say you do "tricks". that sounds like the sort of "Uncle Joe who knows some card tricks" stereotype. It also suggests that magicians are only out there to "trick" or "fool" people, which is another stereotype that is very damaging to magic these days. thats why many people dont like to watch magic. they think we are just out there to make them look stupid. When people tell theres no such thing as magic, i just ask them "how do you know"? then walk away. but it really depends on your style. if you are lighthearted and funny, find a funny line to say, but if you are more serious. say something sort of vague and mysterious. it works wonders with people.

Spectator: "There's no such thing as magic."

Magician: "Well you see, I consider magic to be the art of imagination. And clearly you don't have enough to understand it. I'm very sorry."

I've had quite a few people say "There's no such things as magic" and the only response you need is "I know." If you don't claim what you're doing is magic, they can't disclaim it.

I prefer Exodus' advice. I never pretend to be able to put "real magic" into practice when I perform. Personally I think it's silly to do that. Magicians such as Uri Geller make me laugh becasue of their claims.

Alex

ya everybody thinks Uri Geller is just a lonely disturbed old man

lol yeah. just to clarify what i said, i dont either try to play it off as real magic, but i never "confirm or deny" it. i will rarely directly say i dont do magic, but i will never say i do. i just like to keep that mystery there. makes you more interesting i think.

There could be just about anything going on with this kid, from being a religious fanatic to just being told that there isn't a Santa. The fact of the matter is that movies aren't real, but people line up to see them. This kid is just stating the obvious and is looked upon as a jerk by everyone else. Magic is theatrical - meant to make a person FEEL like they've seen some real magic. Anyone who doesn't get that concept is simply ignorant.

Whenever I have heard, "magic isn't real", I tend to respond with, "then don't watch". I don't get angry, or get an attitude with the person, I simply explain that some of us are trying to have a little fun and if he's not interested then he should simply not watch. If you say it in a nice manner it usually solves all your problems. I never suggest getting upset when someone says something like that, because they're not exactly wrong either.

My favorite line for this situation(don't remember where I got it):

"If magic were real, I wouldn't be standing here entertaining you people."

You should always of course change a few words to match your style.

Tell them this: Magic isn't about deception. It's about perception.

That's sad to hear.



My answer to anyone who says that magic isn't real, or mind-reading isn't real, or that what I'm doing is a 'trick';

"Of course it's not real magic. What I do is to create the illusion of magic."

hum...It seems as if no one would agree with me, but I just say "yes there is" and tht it IS real magic what they are watching (I also try to give a "scientifical" explanation b4 I do a trick, like saying "it is possible to melt a quarter if you rub it hard enough"), and they will try to go on with "no there isn't," after tht point I would try to ignore the person if they say tht again. I would do some SMALL/EASY tricks for him/her, they will deff try to ruin it, and if thts the case I would point out tht he/she is juss ruining the fun for the rest of us, but I never deny tht I do real magic...and btw, the answer I give to "how did you do tht?" is "Magic"