I really don\'t have the resources to become an actual performer, and frankly, don\'t have the nerve to become one. I would like to join as an assistant, but unfortunately, I\'m a guy, so I could never be an actual assistant. But I would love to work as some kind of stagehand or crew detail. How do I do so? Who do I inquire?

Start small and work yourself up. Call around your local area to find out if any magicians would like help with assisting at house parties. You will get the feel from a relaxing start. When you get to stage shows you will already had some experience from doing the house shows. You will feel more relaxed to go to a higher level, and the theater magician will be more relaxed in hiring you because you had experience. Maybe being an assistant is easier than you think if you start off with simple experience first.

mattr wrote:

Copperfield actually uses quite a few male assistants, not in the traditional sense, but they help manage audience members that come up on stage etc.

See, I read somewhere that his show has something like 50-100 people work in his show. But since he\'s the biggest name in the business, I figured you have to be experienced or connected to join.

I used to work as an usher and ticket taker at events, and I once worked at a live show of his. In fact I saw a slight exposure slip-up of his Origami performance, but that\'s a whole other story.

Thanks so much for your advice!

Hi P.K.,
and welcome to this forum, btw!

Just out of curiosity: can you perform some magic tricks? Maybe you already have an experience with some little close-up tricks or something...?
Cards, coins, whatever?

I don\'t have an interest in sleight-of-hand or close-up; in fact I haven\'t even tried that since I was a kid.

I would love to help out on stage illusions with big apparatuses. I already know too much on the secrets (but I obviously won\'t share them publicly). I wished I could afford to own such things, so I figured the next best thing would be to help out.

Thanks!