“Kids’ Entertainment in Libraries & Community Halls”
In 2008 John Breeds released his first book on entertaining children with magic and fun: Howto Create Kids’ Magic And Triple Your Income. Behind that intriguing title lay a blueprint forcommercial success in this field. Immediately upon its release it was widely hailed as a gamechanger,an important contribution to the literature on entertaining children, and it quickly sold out and went on to become judged a modern classic.
Now, 12 years later, John Breeds has observed how much things have changed in a decade; and he realized he had a lot more to say about the nuts and bolts of entertaining children with magic, fun and games. So John has completely revisited and updated his book and added a wealth of new material and advice. He has chosen to release it in the form of six separate booklets, allowing the kids’ performer to select which aspects of the craft to focus on, each at an affordable price. Taken together as a set they comprise a text book on the various aspects that go to make the successful professional children’s entertainer in the 21st century.
Dotted throughout the text are tips and revelations earned from a lifetime of experience on the front line entertaining children for a living: delighting real audiences and dealing with the pitfalls we all encounter on a daily basis. John Breeds clearly knows his stuff, and he’s packed this book full of generous pieces of advice and workable material.
Gain an insight into one of the UK’s great minds in the kids’ magic business; working performers who know a good thing when they see it will snap this series of booklets up.Between them, these titles offer you vital inside information on everything you need to build a business as a professional entertainer of children through magic, fun and games: whether you are starting out on the road to kids’ entertainment or are a busy pro who recognises that developing your act and performance should be a continuous process.
Revered children’s entertainers Silly Billy, David Kaye, Christopher Barnes, John Kimmons and Terry Herbert had this to say about John Breeds’ publications: “This is an excellent work for anyone who wants to entertain children, whether with magic or without. John will take you by the hand and teach you all you need to know, step by step. Enjoy!
“Like many in the industry, I became acquainted with John Breeds’ work via his seminal first book: ‘How to Create Kids’ Magic and Triple Your Income’. It was a real game changer and nothing less than a blueprint for success in children’s entertainment”. “You’re about to take a trip into one of the greatest minds in the kid show magic business!”
Titles In This Series:
1) Selling You! – invaluable sales tips how to get work and ‘sell’ yourself.
2) Open Persuaders – marketing techniques to get more work and earn more in fees.
3) Love Your Audience – how to build a successful working persona and build and structure a professional comedy magic show for kids, including advice on staging,opening and closing your show.
4) Funny Tricks With Clever Bits – John’s professional effects, routines, apparatus, and funny bits of business.
5) Never Out Action Games – the inside secret on adding a new product to your offering:games that will engage and amuse kids of all ages without any of the tedious elimination that kills a kids’ party atmosphere stone-dead. With this offering you can double your fees and work less gigs in a day – a win-win!
John Breeds writes: To my surprise, it appears US magical entertainers have missed out on a super-simple money-spinner for performers. I’m talking about adding Games to your magic show. Before you inwardly groan that this just won’t work, or because you’ve already tried these activities: maybe you’ve never tried ‘Non-Elimination Action Games’. The kids love these, and the title says it all: ‘Action’ means they’re completely participative for the kids, and ‘Non Elimination’ avoids those dead spots when those eliminated in the games early on get bored and make a nuisance of themselves.
Adding Games to your package lifts your status way above the run-of-the-mill 45minshow that other entertainers offer. The Games aspect seems to be a closely guarded secret among US performers. Now is your chance to discover and enjoy true success asa top entertainer, for less effort, doing one entire party a day rather than running around2 or 3!
Towards the end of my long career 95% of my bookings were for my ‘Whole Party Package’ (which included Magic, Games, Dancing and Prizes).
Word soon spread and this led to Christmas bookings for the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough at Blenheim Palace, for their son James Spencer-Churchill, and Princess Diana and her son Prince Harry.
I’m mentioning this not to brag but to emphasize that among important circles my show became known to be different, original and entertaining fun for all. But you too can aspire to finer levels, higher fee income and reputation by aiming to be different rather than just another middle-of-the-road magic man.
6) Even More Funny Tricks With Clever Bits – more of John’s professional routines, props, and funny bits of business.
“Love Your Audience”
In the first release of these eagerly awaited sequels, John shifts focus to perhaps the most important aspect of a successful performance: building a great relationship with your audience.
For professional children’s entertainers, this is an absolute goldmine. ‘Love Your Audience’ covers such a wide range of pro insights, including:
The real secret of how to make kids laugh – Warming up an audience; The Balance of Bits of Business and Strong Magic – Staging Your Show; Developing strong routines – A versatile magic box for all seasons; Building a stunning backdrop – PA and sound – Closing the show; The Real Secret of Success (including The Infamous Red Tongue Trick!)… and so much more.
“FUNNY TRICKS with CLEVER BITS”
FUNNY TRICKS with CLEVER BITS includes the core routines, prop gags and effects from John’s lifetime of entertaining children with laughter.
Starting with the most complete exploration of the classic ‘Silver Sceptre’ ever committed to print; another classic ‘The Miser’s Dream’ gets a complete, refreshed overhaul.
One of John’s standout comedy props when he was a noted dealer, ‘Don’t Ring That Bell’ is here simplified and explained in full, along with a different play-let ‘All Aboard’ that will generate mayhem onstage; in complete contrast there’s the utterly charming ‘I Wish, I Wish Competition’.
Also John’s compete reworking of Kovari’s ‘Dimishing & Enlarging Gloves’; possibly John’s favorite in the booklet is the simplest: his routine for ‘T & R Tissue’; ‘Kids Comic Cuts’ is pure farce with a haircut!
Threaded throughout the material like a skein of gold is every inside track on making these routines REALLY come alive: making the props, handling, ideas, gags and kicker finishes galore.
