Let's go Dutch: Fritz with a Z at Illusions, Day 2

Friday, June 17 of 2011

Dear diary... that sounds very 13 year old. Anyways, after a short night of sleep I woke up very tired. Luckily Mark was there to take me out for a big cup of coffee. Hello caffeine! I hadn’t spoken with him in a while, so it was great to catch up and talk about various subjects. One of the things we spoke about was radio magic, a subject that sparked my interest after I was asked to do magic on a radio show.

Afterwards I had a powernap I took shower and got ready with an energy drink. Douglas was up the first half of the evening. A talented wizard that is very smooth. Later on it was up to me and Rich to wow the crowd. Rich is one of my favourite magicians to see perform. He entertains the crowd at the highest level. I wasn’t feeling all that well after my second set, but the show must go on. I’m so glad that I did because the energy of the audience transformed that bad feeling in a hyperactive magician again! You know you did a good job that after your 25-minute set people want to see more. And the different types of people that see your magic: architects, nurses, amateur magicians, accountants, etc. It’s great because magic transcends any background and therefore everybody experiences the same moment of astonishment.

Although I’ve been into magic quite some time now, I always welcome new learning experiences. Rich gave me an excellent tip if people are not sitting in front of the magic bar. Take out your playing cards and start throwing them at the people. You heard me. Hit the folks with the pasteboards! Go all Ricky Jay on them! Rich continued by saying: “Bring the card to the bar.” Once they’ve arrived he’ll ask if that was the card they were thinking of. Regardless of their answer you’ll say that you can do even better and tadaa, you can start with your set. Also, it was fun to do a trick together with Rich for the audience which was received well.

I always feel very honored when people take time out of their lives to sit down and watch my crazy Dutch magic. That's why my audience deserves a great show and I always try to give more than they expect. I want my audience to leave astonished, entertained, and that they go tell their friends that they left the bar astonished and entertained. If I can make people smile and made them experience wonder for 25 minutes and do let me know their appreciation by clapping, laughing, and a tip, then my mission is accomplished.

After cleaning the magic bar and I had something to eat, I was so tired I got to bed and threw some angry birds at green evil pigs.

Fritz with a Z is a professional magician, residing in the capital of The Netherlands, Amsterdam. He has performed all over the world for lay audiences as well magicians. His specialty is close up magic and you can find him on www.fritzmagic.nl You can wake him up in the middle of the night for chicken nuggets. Don't forget to bring the barbeque sauce!