Learning Objectives • Bonus • Course Design • Challenges • Safe space • Workload • Contributions • Venue • Satisfaction • Extra events • Teachers • Expectations • Value • Changes • Future • Final comments
Challenges and stimulation
The course’s design, content and implementation stimulated me and/or challenged my previous knowledge in a constructive manner, and have had a positive effect on my artistic research & explorations.
1: I do not agree at all / 10: I agree completely
Comments
Many small performances. Challenging for me, but it helped and was a lot of fun in the end.
I think the greatest thing I learned was how to create my own magic because of the material presented. In my final presentation, while still clearly at the beginner level, the entire set was created using stuff I found in my bathroom (with the exception of a thumb tip). This I could not do before the course. A new path has been set for me.
I think I have a quite good basic knowledge and understanding in magic and magic theory, so I came to conjuring to gain deeper understanding in magic. And that I really got! I got tools that I can apply to my old routines to make them better and also lots of tools and especially courage to go and create my own stuff.
After course I’ve been really motivated and enthusiastic about magic and how to improve my magic an me as a performer.
I wholeheartedly agree that the comfort zone pushing challenge of the course, activities and material have had a positive impact on my performance and broadened the depth of my knowledge more than I could have achieved on my own.
After the course, when I create a work, I now think in terms that I didn’t use before.
It’s interesting how little our prior knowledge mattered during the course. Participants without previous experience in more complex sleight of hand just did it, as if by magic. Of course, having a lot of experience was an advantage, but at the same time, it held me back in this environment where I wanted to quickly absorb as much as possible.
For sure yes. What we went through during the week in Sigtuna prompted me to explore new topics or topics that I had not sufficiently considered in the past.
Absolutely. I like dance, teather, pantomime, etc and I want to integrate them with Magic. To use teathrical tools in the workshop convinced me that I want to continue on that direction and there is so much to explore yet. Much more to learn and practice. Misdirection techniques, callbacks, one-ahead, one-behind. Also the creativity exercises were so stimulating. I want to team with friends back at home and try this work line
As someone primarily focused on mentalism, I found that the course provided a mix of directly applicable content and inspirational material outside my usual area of expertise. While some of the sleight of hand techniques weren’t directly aligned with my primary interests, they still proved valuable in sparking new ideas and broadening my perspective on the art of magic as a whole.
The sections taught by Leif were particularly impactful. These sessions were challenging, pushing me out of my comfort zone, but they were exactly the kind of training I was hoping for to elevate my performance skills. The difficulty of these parts of the course served as a constructive challenge, forcing me to grow and adapt in ways that will undoubtedly make me a better performer.
Even though not all content was directly related to mentalism, the course’s diverse approach stimulated my creativity and encouraged me to explore new artistic directions. It challenged my preconceptions and previous knowledge in a way that has positively influenced my artistic research and explorations. The exposure to various aspects of magic has given me a more holistic understanding of the craft, which I believe will enhance my mentalism performances in unexpected ways.
Overall, the course struck a good balance between providing specialized knowledge and encouraging broader artistic growth, making it a stimulating and valuable experience for my development as a performer.
Yes, I think so! You were forced to take in new ideas and be creative in pressured, but fun, tasks.
That is really the case. Sometimes it works better with some exercises less well. This worked particularly well in the exercise with the vectors (perhaps also because it didn’t require any magic technique otherwise, so you didn’t have to master any basic moves to get a good result, but could concentrate fully on the task)
This was the best thing I could have done for my performance skills as a performance artist in general, and incredibly inspirational to me in regards to magic specifically. It hit many birds with one (tom) stone.
Session A, last year, was very challenging and in some ways quite frustrating due to my lack of formal magical training. This year, the class was very challenging and since it built on the basis established in the A class, exercises were easier to understand (although no less difficult to complete). As a result of Session A, I was able to improve many of my routines and learn new ones. This year (Session B) I was better prepared with effects to work on and I had a better idea of what tools to bring for the sessions. In discussions with my local magic affiliations, I have been able to explain and discuss magical issues with better clarity and context.
Yes – I however needed a short recap of some fundamentals as e.g. amodal completion, crossing the gaze etc. I very much appreciated Leifs class with the masks
yes, the courses are stimulating and challenging and help me think in new ways.
I have participated in your previous courses and studied these topics a lot independently, so this didn’t give me much new to think about. But that’s perfectly fine!
Absolutely! Some of the material opened my eyes to solutions to problems I thought were out of reach. Many issues can be solved by crossing the gaze or simply cutting a hole in it.
I left the course really motivated and excited to pursue my artistic ambitions beyond my previous level.
It felt easier than last year
The course has made me think about what I need to do to implement what I have learnt within the last 2 years. It feels like building a new act from scratch is no longer something that other people do and that I do have ideas which are valid and can be put into action.
Yes. Here is my experience of the flip side of growing as an artist: I faced a lot of emotional distress and “friction” during the week, which probably is a symptom of growing as an artist, as I poured much passion and energy into the lessons and exercises. I feel the comparison between my own (group’s) result of an exercise to another group’s is hard to avoid, and I feel it is counterproductive and contributed to the distress I felt.
Yes! Again, my perception of magic and life changed.
It has indeed challenged me when it comes to applying theory and putting it into practice. I really appreciate the theoretical parts, explaining “why” certain things works etc, and then getting to apply it. I think it builds in a good way on previous courses as well. I feel very stimulated, full av ideas and inspiration after the course.
It was a good idea to refresh everything from the last two courses with the group. I think every student should take time to revisit what was discussed in the previous course.
Many of the topics this year was already familiar to mee. But still going thru those made the studying ever deeper. We went deeper to the details and ideas. I also learned something I could use instantly in my presentations. Like the things we built in the prop building day. So the effect was really positive for me this year.