Jeremy: Teaching, baking, dabbling, and - finally - busking (Part II)

Say hello to Jeremy again!

Yesterday, I started my week-long series of posts on sidewalk magician Jeremy Pitt-Payne. Check out the first post to get a brief introduction to who he is and what he does. This second part is a little bit about how he came to be a street performer. I sat down with him prior to the day's performances, back on April 25th, for a long conversation. One day, I'll try to put up some footage on the whole interview here. In the meantime, enjoy these snippets!

The Early Years: Life before Busking

For Jeremy Pitt-Payne, it all began with some magic shows on tv. From there came birthday requests for magic supplies, magic books, and soon enough, catalogues from magic stores. At the age of fourteen, he wrote to magician Bobby Bernard and soon found himself training formally as a student of magic under his tutelage. At seventeen, he entered a magic competition, made it to the finals, and didn't win. At this point, I'll just let Jeremy tell you his story himself. Just read this out loud with your best British accent:

"Then pretty much after that, life just got in the way."

"I wanted to be a magician. I think maybe not winning that competition deflated my ego and maybe my enthusiasm a little bit. And so I ended up going to college, went to school, and magic took a back seat. I’d do a little bit here and there. And for a while I thought I was going to be a Catholic priest. Went to a seminary. I was there for five years and, you know, did a little bit of magic there occasionally just for like shows that would be put on in the school. And that didn't happen."

"So then I came to the States. That’s where I met my wife. Was just out here for a year, was going to school out in California. We got married and decided to stay here. So by that point it was like the early 90s. In California, dabbled in a little magic again. But never went the whole hog. [...] I was primarily a high school teacher there, did some insurance sales. I was a member of the Magic Castle, went down there a few times. That was a lot of fun. And then we just ended up moving out of California in 2000 and went to the mid-West, Peoria, three hours north of here right in the heart of Illinois. And we were there about five, six years. And I actually had a job there working for the Catholic church due to my theology background."

"Then that came to an end. There were some changes. And I ended up going to culinary school because I wasn't sure what to do next. I got trained as a baker. I did that for a few years. And I had some health issue. I wasn't able to work for a little while, and then I was between jobs."

"And that’s where we got to becoming a street performer."

Becoming a Street Performer

"I was sitting at home with no employment and I thought, That would be fun! I wonder what would happen if I did that! So I found out about what you needed to do to get a street performer license in Chicago and how that worked. And I got some props together, and I hadn't really done any magic for years, but, like, you know, if you've been trained early enough, you've got muscle memory, so all the basic moves and sleights of hand that Bobby had taught me was still in the brain. So I picked it up again and I came down here and I walked around for three hours not having the courage to set up my table 'cause I was kinda kidding myself: I was looking for a good spot, though I had no idea what a good spot is. And eventually I set it up 'cause I said to myself, you know what, if I don’t do this, if I go home now, I’ll feel like such a complete failure I’ll never show my face again."

"So I put my table up and I started. And here I am. That was in May. Like, May 6^th, I think. 2011. And here we are, 2014, and now it’s my full time gig. So. There’s a really long answer to a question."

First Day Out

"I walked around for three hours."

Jeremy, setting up

"I got off the train at Oglesby, and I went to State Street. And State Street is a big street. And I read the guidelines that the city of Chicago gave out. I wasn’t sure what the exact rules were. I knew there were restrictions on Michigan Avenue, so I was kinda very leery of coming over to Michigan Avenue because I didn't want to get in trouble. So I was walking down State Street and eventually that was where I set up my first spot. And I was there for maybe five minutes and these two older guys came up and said ok, what’d you got? And there I was and all of a sudden I had to do my first trick. So I had to do my first trick or two. Don’t remember now what I did, and they gave me a couple of dollars, and I was like ok. Well, I made something. So I stayed in State Street for a little while. It didn’t seem too busy. So I was like, you know what, Michigan Avenue. That’s meant to be the big – I’ll go over there. I’ll set up and if the police say I shouldn’t be there, I’ll say sorry I didn’t know and go away. So I came over to Michigan Avenue and I found a little spot between this real estate office and Starbucks. There’s a space between those two buildings. In some ways, it’s a natural stage. And for me it was a little bit out of the way so I thought maybe they won’t notice me, so I set up there. And I think the police did come by that day and they asked if I had a permit and I showed them and it was fine. So I’m obviously ok to be there."

"So then I stayed there probably for about three hours. And then packed up and went home. And I don’t know what I made that day. Not very much. But if you’re out of work, you know, that’s better than nothing. So the next day’s a Saturday, so I came down the next day and just never stopped after that."

"And then once I’ve been, I worked that spot for maybe a week or so. And L---, the silver man who sits out in front of the Wrigley Building there. I thought, well, he’s there, so maybe this is an okay area too. So I just went up and introduced myself and asked him if it’s ok to work here. And he pointed me up over to the bridge and said, 'That would be a good place to work. Go up there.' And I was like 'Okay.' So I wandered up there and I set up there by the bridge and that’s pretty much been home for the last three seasons."

And next up: What exactly does Jeremy do? Tomorrow, we'll look into how Jeremy fits into his immediate environment, how he uses it, and what his show is all about.

Busker Profile: Jeremy the Magician from Britain (Part I)

Meet Jeremy:

Chorus*: "Hi Jeremy!"

You can't see it, but the card on his hat also explains who he is. It reads, "Jeremy the Magician from Britain."

It's awesome. Everyone should start carrying little labels on their heads. I've been hanging out with Jeremy since March, and I haven't once forgotten his name. (That's a huge accomplishment, trust me). I also haven't forgotten who he is and what he does.

It's all in the labels.

He also has a white sign with bold black letters in front of him when he performs. Guess what it says?

MAGIC SHOW

It all makes sense, yeah? Jeremy is a magician from Britain who stands at a spot (a spot that I have borrowed before, when he wasn't working - that's his usual spot in my post last week) and does magic shows.

I mean, look at his hat!
Look at his vest!
Oh,.. you can't really see his vest here. This was mid-March in Chicago and, though it was technically spring, it was still really very cold for someone who would have to stand and work outside all day.

But here you go: a picture from April, when it's a little bit warmer:

He even has a British accent!
Though... I guess that's what happens when, you know, you're actually from Britain. You.. get.. a British accent.

Yeah.

The point? Everything about his appearance screams "MAGICIAN."

Jeremy is, in short, a street magician - one whose work I have gotten to know pretty well over the course of my research. So, for my first street performer profile (or busker profile - street performers are also called "buskers"), we're going to learn a little bit about this man, who he is, and what he does.

A Note on Performer Profiles
This will be the first of several performer profiles that I plan on writing. Unlike my regular weekly posts, performer profiles are going to involve a few days of posting. These people are going to show up over and over again in my various posts, so you guys should get to know who they are.

And, well, this is my way of thanking these performers for all the time that they have given me. It's my  belief that the best artists in the world are street performers. Imagine the environment: you're performing for people who don't really want to see you - so you gotta be good enough to get them to stop, get them to stay, and get them to pay. That's the only way they can make a living out of it. They have to be very very good at what they do.

So here we go...

The Snapshot
Performer: Jeremy the "Magician from Britain"
Started busking: May 2011
Location in Chicago: On Chicago's "Magnificent Mile," just north of the Chicago River
His act: Magic

How I met him...
I heard about Jeremy long before I met him. For one, other street performers tended to tell me about him when they found out that I was a magician as well. But it wasn't until the day of the Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Chicago that I first ran into him.

Except I wasn't entirely sure it was him because he wasn't wearing Union Jack vest that I've been told to look for. Instead, he was decked out in green. As he told me, "Everyone's Irish on Saint Paddy's Day."

When and where to find Jeremy
March, April, May: Most likely on Chicago's Magnificent Mile
June, July, August: Definitely on Chicago's Magnificent Mile
Around Mardi Gras: New Orleans

Other times of the year? There is a gap in my research... Maybe he'll make a comment here and fill in those gaps. In 2014, he was, however, "working everyday in February and March."

Stay tuned...
(Cuz this is a TV show, and we're stopping for a commercial break):
Tomorrow, we'll learn a little bit about how Jeremy became a street performer.

*Don't ask where the chorus came from. Where some people imagine theme music for the various activities in their lives, and some imagine an omniscient narrator, I sometimes take on random Greek(?) literary devices. I'm just gonna blame my childhood, Disney and their Hercules movie.

Illusions of Grandeur... and Networking on the Streets of Chicago

So I failed at posting mid-week.

That will NOT be my only failure. Be prepared. For failure.
And that ain't a great way to start, huh?

Anyway- this week, I'm going back in time to a Tuesday afternoon, two weeks ago. I had spent the previous Friday, Saturday, and Sunday street performing. Monday, I took a break, and Tuesday, I was thinking seriously about taking the day off.

That's one thing about street performing, especially those who do it as their only source of income: you're your own boss. That means a certain amount of freedom, yes, but it also means a certain degree of discipline. It's one reason I have so much respect for what I call professional street performers - those who work out on the streets, day after day.

One street performer, Jeremy the Magician from Britain, explained to me how his art is a job: "Some days it's more work than fun."
And another performer, a living statue, the "Chicago 10 Man," explained, "I have to treat my work as a career if I am going to make any good money out of it."

Me? I'm still working on getting to this mentality. On Tuesday, August 19th, at 3:21pm, I was struggling to make something out of my day. I wasn't going to go and perform, but then I got a text message from Jeremy:

"So are you going to work?"

That was all the mental push that I needed. I rolled over in my bed (Don't judge. I had just finished writing my Master's thesis. I needed the break), texted back a reply, and grabbed my stuff.

"Yeah. Heading out now. Starting late... But will see how it goes."

I headed to a spot that I knew well on Michigan Avenue. On my way there, I spotted a film crew and proceeded to ignore them. After a year of fieldwork, I had come to know the Magnificent Mile pretty well, and I had come to know just how frequently film crews work in the area. So I was surprised when, not long after I had finished setting up my table, someone from the film crew approached me.

Turns out they were filming for a Canadian TV magic special, Illusions of Grandeur. They're following around magician Zack Mirza as he makes his way through North America. It sounded like a cool show. They also asked to film a little bit of my performance.

Huh.

That was nerve-racking. But then they left, and a passerby asked to see something. I promptly forgot about them and launched into my show. Halfway through was when I noticed the cameras approaching. I finished the show, ending a little weakly on an as yet not-fully developed straight jacket escape. There was a brief interview after the show:

And then... I MET THE MAGICIANS!

I met Enrico de la Vega first, who was very nice, and tried to help me get over any nerves I had in performing for magicians. (Performing magic for magicians is a vastly different experience than performing it for laypeople). I met Lisa de la Vega, who is the first other female magician that I have ever actually spoken to and seen in person. And then I met Daniel Garcia, who is a very familiar face in the magic community. He approached just when I was performing a short routine for the crew. I felt my hands start shaking just when he popped up, but I guess loads of practice performing on the streets helped me get over that moment of stage fright.

I asked for his autograph.
It was a cool moment.
And we took a group picture!

Then - here's how I know these are awesome people - Lisa asked me for my autograph.

And then I asked her for hers.

See? No cheesy jokes. I'm all cool and chill and all that right now. Right. Erm.

The point of all this? Other than sharing my excitement... there's something about hanging out on Michigan Avenue that makes it really easy to run into people. Anyone who visits Chicago will walk down Michigan Avenue at some point. I have run into old college friends that I haven't seen for years, random classmates and their parents, and unwitting aunts and uncles of friends.

And walking down these streets, I know pretty much exactly when and where I will run into Jeremy the Magician from Britain, the Chicago 10 Man, Golden Girl, and a group of acrobats known as the Kings of Michigan Avenue. Just as much as certain street performers are anchored into certain spaces at certain times - just as much as they can be cornerstones of the city - everyone passes through here at some point. As one person looking for a job said to me, she was hanging around Michigan Avenue "to network." Running into people on Michigan Avenue is easy. Of course, convincing random passersby that you're worth their time is a different story altogether (and something that we'll explore in a future post).

A Proper Introduction: Post the Re-introduction

One: I really need to update this blog. I mean - woah! I started this thing in 2007. 2007! This is a blogger.com template from seven years ago. Not that I know how to use anything other than a template... but I'll work on that.

Two: I don't know why I titled last week's post as "A Reintroduction." I mean, I had a new topic and am now committing to weekly updates. Commitment, eh? It's difficult to get me committed... People have tried before. That's how I got my straight jacket. (And I am hereby officially allowed to have at two cheesy jokes per post). And yet, there's very little about who I am and what I do.

So three: Here's a slightly more proper introduction. An introduction post- the reintroduction that.. erm... ok. I will stop now. So the goal of this post is to answer that one question angsty teenagers and twenty-something-year-olds have been struggling with since time immemorial.

Who am I?

Except, you know, not really in that metaphorical/philosophical/abstract way. The answer's going to be relatively simple.

I am Felice.

Tada!

Question is answered!

...

Ok. Fine... A little bit more information, without being too narcissistic (key word being "too." I'm writing a blog. There's gotta be a degree of narcissism in believing that someone out there in the deep empty void is actually interested in reading what I write. I am, of course, also a magician. Which means I tell people to "see what I can do!" whenever I try and perform something. I justify all this by claiming that my audiences are getting something out of it as well (entertainment or maybe the experience of astonishment). 

I am 26 years old. I am just about to graduate with my MA in social sciences. I spent the last year stalking - I mean, researching - various Chicago street performers. I spent a lot of time just observing their shows, interviewing them, and generally, just chilling with them. "Chilling" in this case is quite literal. I mean, a lot of my observations took place in the middle of the winter where the term "polar vortex" found its way into colloquial English.

I do anthropology, I do magic, and I write. In the middle of doing anthropology, I ended up learning a lot about street performers and my own magic. After my research for my MA thesis was officially done, I ended up hitting the streets and working on my own street show - where I learned a lot about myself (there I go with the narc..iss.. ism.. again. Spelling is hard), about magic, and about city spaces in general.

In this blog, I aim to share a little bit of what I learned.

I will:

1. Once granted permission, write up some profiles of various street performers.

2. Write a little bit about random experiences/anecdotes that have been drawn from my performances on the street and otherwise.

3. Philosophize (every so often).

4. Talk about the more nitty-gritty details of performance and performing magic.

5. Make corny jokes.

6. Try and add pictures in every so often. Cuz, you know, visuals are cool.

7. Respond to all of y'allz comments.

8. Post at least once a week. And since this isn't really a post about stuff, I'll try and post something else this week as well. Something pretty exciting happened last week while I was busking. I want to share that with you guys later this week.

But for now, I guess all I'm really saying is Hi! Nice to meet you (again maybe).

A Reintroduction: What is magic for?

It was in Memphis.

At an iHop or an Olive Garden or maybe just a local mid-sized restaurant with dim lighting and square tables pushed and woven together with a plastic tablecloth. I'm not entirely sure. Those aren't the details that stick - especially not when more than three years have already come and gone.

But I had gone to a local meeting of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. I was the only female magician there. There were others, of course, and I asked about them, but they weren't there in Memphis when I was. I never met them.

It didn't matter too much. I rarely ever had the chance to hang out with other magicians before. It was thrilling to get the chance to speak with older magicians - people with way more experience than I, who had great insights on my performances when I asked for advice, and who knew so much about magic in general.

That particular evening, after the meeting was done and we were all relaxing over dinner, some of the younger magicians (those who were closer to my age) were showing each other tricks. An informal magic jamming session, as they call it. It was at this moment that one of the other magicians, a young man who was only slightly older than me, asked me to perform a trick.

I nodded slowly and agreed. Even though I had practiced and performed magic for as long as I can remember, I had only just started to find other magicians, only just started hanging around them. Remembering my background as a street performer, he made a comment that has stuck with me to this day.

"You seem to do magic that's designed for laypeople to watch."

Not in quite those words. I can't remember the exact words, but the meaning they conveyed was clear.
My response at the time was silence. I just nodded. My tongue was tied, as usual.
In my head, though, I knew what I wanted to say.

"What other kind of magic is there?"
What is magic for?

And why am I thinking about this question again now?

I have started street performing again, after a two year hiatus. It's too bad that fall is almost upon us, but I'll do my best to keep it up, somehow, someway. Out on the streets of Chicago, I have found help and guidance from two amazing street magicians. Other street performers have helped me out as well. They may not know magic, but they're some of the best performers I know. They know how to stop a crowd, they know how to keep them, and they know how to convince their audiences that something valuable is happening.

They've made me think a lot about magic and magicians and why we do what we do.

(I've also just finished reading Lev Grossman's Magicians trilogy. Quentin, its protagonist, also asks the same question at some point. What is the purpose of magic? Their magic is, of course, entirely different from the kind of magic I'm writing about here).

Magicians are awesome people. I have a lot of respect for the magicians that I meet in magic clubs and elsewhere, and I'm giddy with excitement every time I meet one of them.

At the same time, I get nervous when I am performing for them. Sure, as a female magician, I sometimes do feel like I have to prove myself. And that's on me, something that I have to work through in my head, especially since so many of the other performers are so supportive.

But the root of this problem is in the purpose of magic itself. Performing for magicians is different from performing for laypeople. In the second case, the goal is to amaze, to entertain. In the first, the aim is (I think) entirely different - to show off a set of skills. It becomes less of a magic show and more of a juggling act. I'm not sure.

So why do we do magic?

For community? To show off our skills? To juggle cards and coins? To entertain? To astonish? All of those reasons are valid. There isn't one reason that is superior than any others. I'm just curious. What's your reason for taking up this art form?

That question, along with recent interactions with other magicians and street performers, have drawn me back into writing this blog. My goal, now, is to update this blog weekly. I'll make a post every Monday evening. If all goes well, maybe I'll go for a bi-weekly blog... but I'm going to stick with baby steps.

Let's try a weekly blog first. And if you guys are out there, and if you guys happen to read this, please feel free to comment. I would love to hear your thoughts.

And I'm baaaaack!

...Not that anyone is listening.

But I am back! Really. In the physical sense as well as in the virtual sense. After a two year hiatus (teaching English in China), I am back in the United States. I DID perform magic over there... once at the beginning of each semester for each of my classes, once at the end, and once as the intermission of a school-wide English speech contest for non-English majors.

All that was good fun.

I even got to try out that use-a-clothes-hanger-as-a-microphone-holder trick that I picked up from somewhere. I can't remember where I got that idea from, but it worked wonders, and everyone just got a big laugh out of it. So thanks.

(To the nameless person. I speak to voices in my own head sometimes, so it's not weird at all to speak to nameless people).

Anyway - back in the USA. And after what was essentially a two-year hiatus, I brought my show back onto the streets of Philadelphia. I performed today for two hours at Rittenhouse Square (and I really really REALLY need to find someone who can take pictures for me, otherwise I'll just bore you guys my random ramblings and musings).

When I was hunting for a spot to perform in, I ran into another magician. !!!! I was very excited (just in case you can't tell from my exclamation marks). I watched him for a little bit, but I didn't stay for too long. One: I had my own hat on (which I promptly took off as soon as I noticed that he was trying to build a crowd); and two: I had my table, my straight jacket, and all my gear with me. I really didn't want to distract him, and I really didn't want to distract his audience. Not that I would. I think he knew exactly what he was doing.

So I watched (very briefly) and wandered off on my own way through the park. I finally settled at a spot at a different entrance from the main one, where I spotted the first guy (who later introduced himself to me as Sonny Holliday).

And there I dove back into my busking act. It was slow going at first. It took a while before anyone decided to stop... and when they did stop, they only had time for a short effect or so. A couple people did stick around for a little bit longer, but I never gathered a large enough crowd to start my actual fifteen minute act. And since the groups were so small, I never felt comfortable using my hat lines - which was a shame, because the people who did stop were great audience members. They had fun, they laughed, and we had an all around good time. Still, hat line or no - because we had such a great time, I got a few tips from them.

After an hour, I left the area to add money to the meter (for parking... though my dad told me later that parking might have been free on Sundays. Oops). I put all my stuff away. And I wandered back to the front entrance.

At that point it was 4:00pm, and he was packing up. I introduced myself, and he passed me his card as he packed up the last of his stuff. There was a lady with him who asked me for my email address. She wanted to know when I would be performing again. And then they were off.

I watched for a little bit, excited - curiosity not at all satiated.

Then resolved to stay out for one more hour. This time, I set up in the spot that Sonny Holliday had just - and like magic, people came up to me and asked to see me perform. Before, I was saying "hello" and introducing myself to everyone I saw, even though they were trying their best to ignore me. Now, people walked right up.

It was an amazing spot.

And on I went with the show.
I got through it ok. Did only one show... but, looking back, I think I'm way out of practice. My lines aren't as smooth as they used to be - and there were some points in the show when I was sure what I should say. My audience wasn't as responsive. Not as much laughing or joking around as before... not as much applause, and - even though I DID get my hat line in this time - not as much tips.

Also, even though I only technically did just one big show, my voice was squeaking by the end of that show. I need to learn how to project my voice so that people can hear me better.

...So. Yes. At the end of the day, I pretty much broke even. I made up in tips what I ended up paying for in parking and tolls for driving into Philadelphia.

Still.
It's great to be back.

New Blog....

I'm going to China next week to teach English abroad.

I will, of course, be performing whenever I can there... But, as this blog is primarily for magic - feel free to keep up with my exploits abroad here:

To Record in Astonishment...

Yes. The title of that blog is about astonishment. In that particular instance, it means the astonishment a person gets when they experience life in a different culture.

We here aren't unfamiliar with that emotion. Astonishment is, after all, what our art is about...