PRAISE
“Unless a reviewer has the courage to give you unqualified praise, I say ignore the b*****d!” – So wrote John Steinbeck, author of The Grapes of Wrath and other great books. A wonderful witty comment but how do we view praise?
There is no doubt that for humans praise is important, we thrive on praise, somebody giving us a pat on the back, a simple well done is a boost to our ego. Most of my work involves close-up magic to small groups of people, most often seated at a table. To hear that group clapping and applauding you as your make your exit is a wonderful feeling.
But… praise comes in many forms, from the ‘No way’ through ‘How on earth did you do that’ and ‘Do that again’ to the look of shock that elicits no audible response. This last one being fairly common as the person/people are dumbfounded.
One moment of praise that sticks in my mind happened a few years ago at ‘Bank’ a restaurant in Brindley Place, Birmingham. A corporate affair with 24 guests, Bank has a couple of private dining areas in glass surrounded rooms where the guests are seated at one large table. I’d performed for one group of four men and when the final effect had been completed and I was about to move on, three of the men clapped but one remained silent but thoughtful. I was just about to move further around the table when this man said, ‘Can I have a look at your cards?’. I handed him the cards and explained that they were Bicycle brand,Poker sized cards from America. He examined them and said, ‘So they’re not faked or gimmicked in any way’, I told him that they were just ordinary playing cards (which they were), he looked even more thoughtful and said, ‘So the cards didn’t do that, you actually did it’. I replied ‘Yes’.
With some incredulity he said, ‘That’s absolutely amazing’. The tone and expression in his voice was the ultimate compliment.
I thanked him and moved on and I think moved is the correct word, I was moved by a sincere comment that was not particularly demonstrative, the other guests didn’t hear it, but it remains with me to this day, some people show their appreciation in different ways.
Praise is a wonderful thing indeed.
I’ll be back with an item on criticism.
