So You Want To Be A Wedding Magician?
“He that would have fruit must climb the tree.”
Well, before you just jump right into it, there are a lot of considerations to think about before investing the time, energy, and money necessary in becoming a wedding magician.
SOME QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
Do you have the ability to handle difficult situations tactfully and gracefully without panicking or stressing out?
Do people generally like you and your attitude? Are you pleasant to be around?
Are you ALWAYS on time and punctual?
Do you follow through with what you say you will deliver?
Do you have a strong sense of customer service?
Are you selfless and can you put other people’s needs above your own?
Are you organized?
Do you have business savvy and the ability to ‘think outside the box’?
Do you have the eloquence and charisma to motivate and influence people in the right way?
Are you able to groom and dress yourself appropriately for such a formal affair?
Can you be clean-shaven and not have bad breath? Can you look good in a tuxedo?
What would you do if you have 300 guests and the electricity goes out?
As a wedding magician, you must also be able to handle all walks of life, including kids. As we offer a rare and unique service, we get hired by many people from all different backgrounds, religions, skin color, values, etc. Will you be able to entertain EVERYONE? Do you bring some magic for the kids that will be there? Some parents will have their kids present and want to get rid of them so they tell them to go and hang out with the magician. Yikes! Can you be a baby sitter and perform at the same time?
What will you do if the banquet manager wants you to park your car across the parking lot where the reception will take place?
How will you handle drunk, obnoxious and belligerent people heckling you? How about bratty kids?
What do you do when the bride asks you on the day of the wedding to not do card tricks anymore? How will you handle that? Did you bring some back-up effects?
Are you able to handle all these situations? How about all these situations all at once?
There are many difficult situations that may arise. You have to be witty, think fast, improvise, be quick on your feet, and be able to handle crisis situations. If you can’t handle the pressure, you better not pursue becoming a wedding magician.
CAN YOU BE A WEDDING PROFESSIONAL?
Aside from dealing with the guests at a wedding reception, maybe even more paramount is the ability to deal with other wedding professionals such as photographers, videographers, caterers, wait staff, wedding consultants, banquet managers, singers, musicians, and ministers. Other than the bride and groom, these people are the people magicians work with the most – some are spectacular, some are imbeciles. But, you absolutely CANNOT let personality conflicts affect the wedding!!! Compromise, NOT confrontation, is the rule among professionals.
PERSONALITY
To be a wedding magician you have to have a certain personality, have to be able to adapt and improvise, be able to handle adversity well, and have to be able to control the atmosphere and mood of the event. You have to be able to read the audience and play to the crowd. You cannot be the type of entertainer who will freak out and crack under pressure!
As a wedding entertainer you have to be very organized; if you are not organized, it will definitely be evident to the client extremely quickly. If you are not organized, you will never convince anyone of choosing you for their most important gig: their wedding! Be completely prepared before initial contact is made.
You need to find out from the bride and groom what kind of magician they are looking for and be that person. Do they want someone who is really interactive with the audience and who uses the microphone often, or someone who just stays in the shadows and strictly dos magic? I ask my clients using a rating system of 1 to 10, 1 being quiet, having no interaction with the guests, and being in the shadows, and 10 being the center of attention, leading the party, getting people involved, and heavy interaction with the crowd.
The bride and groom want to be comfortable on their wedding day. The last thing they need is to worry about paying you, or problems that you are having. You have to show them that everything is under control and make them as relaxed as possible. Make them confident in you, and don’t let them worry – they have enough things to worry about.
EQUIPMENT
Do you already own enough routines / tricks to perform at a wedding? Are you willing to spend more? Are your effects reliable and can be easily reset?
Are you able to transport your own equipment? If performing on stage, do you have the ability to lift and carry the equipment? If not, do you have the personnel to help you?
Do you need voice amplification?
Many situations can arise and problems can and will happen. What will you do in a bind? Can you improvise? I don’t normally bring my own table. What will you do when you aren’t provided a meal to eat, although your client said there would be one available for you? Did you pack food for yourself just in case?
Your equipment and props must be of good to excellent quality, and most importantly, be reliable. Remember, a wedding is supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime event (at least, most people start out hoping that will be the case!). There are no second chances if you choose to enter the wedding arena with equipment or props that is less than reliable. And by all means, do not forget any props either!
REWARDS
I have listed a lot of the problems and pitfalls that can happen, but I have not yet listed the rewards of being a wedding magician. After all, this is why I have chosen to be one!
The rewards are ten times better than the problems. You get a lot of immediate gratification, when everyone praises you about how well you have performed. Maybe the father of the bride will thank you for making this the happiest day of his daughter’s life. Perhaps other people attending will ask you to perform their wedding receptions or other events. You might be introduced to famous, powerful, prestigious people and even gain their business; and you may even get even better introductions and phone numbers – use your imagination here ; )
Some even more immediate rewards are when people are having such a wonderful time and the people paying you don’t want to stop the party and you get overtime bonus pay and tips.
If you are good, you will get compliments, get business referrals, meet important people, and just have an overall good time. There have been innumerable occasions where I was having such a good time I would think to myself, “Wow, I’m getting paid to do this!”
ARE YOU CUT OUT TO BE A WEDDING MAGICIAN?
I have offered a lot of the pros and cons to being a wedding magician. It’s up to you to decide if you have what it takes to succeed in the wedding market. All too often, magicians take on weddings who are not qualified or prepared for the job, because the money is great. This has a negative impact to the clients who hire the magician expecting a good quality performance, and a professional level of service. Let’s face it, performing at weddings isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. In contrast, if you feel that you have what it takes to be a wedding magician, I think you will find them to be both fun and profitable.
Kobi








