Kids Entertainer Podcast

How is an educational show different from an educationally significant show? Professional kids entertainer and educator Tommy Johns discusses their difference in this podcast and also gives clever, useful tips on creating, offering, and selling magic workshops.

There's a wealth of information in this interview so be sure to download the extended notes to have a copy of the points Tommy enumerates and talks about in this episode.

In this episode we discuss:

• Tommy's market
• What is educational significance (according to Julian Franklin) and an educationally significant show
• 10 qualities of an educationally significant program
• Tips for putting together an educationally significant show
• Tips on kid control
• One-hour magic workshops and how they are an integral part of Tommy's business model
• What does it take to create and offer a basic magic workshop
• Tommy's 60-second pitch that earns him a lot of bookings

In this week's Kids Entertainer Podcast episode, Guinness World Record holder and all-around entertainer Carisa Hendrix graces us with an interview that is positively brimming with insights and advice on how to create empowering children's shows.

Talking in detail about where to draw inspiration, to how to manage different characters and brands, to what is social currency and how to give this to our audience in both our kids and adult shows, Carisa gives us a piece of her brilliant mind in this interview.

In this episode we discuss:

• Carisa's background

• Meaning, significance, and entertainment: How to create and balance these in our kids shows

• Carisa as a fire-eater, glass walker, and kids entertainer: How to effectively manage and market different characters and brands

• Focusing on one niche vs. offering diverse entertainment services

• Where to find inspiration: "Study broadly"

• Carisa's S.C.R.A.T.C.H. system on how to create new children's shows

• Social currency and the value of this to a child

• Forms of social currency

• How to create what Carisa terms as "honest tension" in your show

• Communicating a message of significance in your show without being preachy

How do you turn different tricks and routines into a show that does not feel segmented but instead comes across as whole? The answer, according to long-time performing magician and musician (and dramatist) Nathan Roberts is in the use of openers, transitions, and closers.

Join us in this interview with Nathan and learn not just about these three elements, but also tips from the field of drama that you can apply in your show to make it even more enthralling.

In this episode we discuss:

• What Nathan applied from his drama training to his performances
• Chris Capehart's style of audience interaction
• Recorded openers/intro voice-overs and how Nathan got started making them for performers
• How to cultivate presence
• His experience that led him to create the lecture Don't Let Them Breathe
• The importance of transitions
• The uses of music cues
• Nathan's Uganda story

Sponge balls are simple, versatile, highly effective magic props that kids entertainers of any discipline can use in their act to bring about smiles and please audiences. And we discuss them in this interview with no less than the sponge magic expert, Barry Mitchell.

Hit play and learn how sponge balls are manufactured; how you can insert them in your act whether you're a magician, face painter, or vent; and even how you can add a touch of genius to your shows by tapping into your own creativity.

In this episode we discuss:

• What Barry chose to work with sponge balls
• Barry's philosophy on entertaining
• Why Barry focuses on yellow sponge balls
• Creating a performance routine: script first or trick?
• How sponge balls are made
• The future of sponge magic
• How can face painters and ventriloquists use sponge magic
• How to spark or improve your creativity

In this podcast episode, we take a fresh look at the main target market for many kids entertainers: modern young mothers who need modern children's entertainment. Looking at this through the eyes and experience of Regina Martinez, a young mum, a graphic designer, and a fulltime professional children's entertainer, we gain insight into how to attain a kid-friendly look that appeals to today's bookers—and just how worthy it is of our time to build and market our brand with the perfect colors, captivating images and a quality website.

In this episode we discuss:

• Regina's story: how she got into kids entertaining and graphic design
• How her background in design helped her create and market the right image that appeals to her target market: young mums
• What color palette has worked for Regina in building a brand and image that mums and kids love
• Regina's ingenious transparent business card
• How using quality photos and the right colors made a tremendous difference to Regina's kids entertaining business
• Common problems of kids entertainer websites
• The importance of having a mobile-responsive website
• How Regina has advanced her career and business while being a young mother
• Her experience on entertaining kids and families while pregnant
• The benefits of joining competitions in kids entertainer conventions
• How the Kids Entertainer Podcast and the Kids Entertainer Academy helped Regina take her career to the next level and expand her business

Among the tried and tested ways to make any show outstanding is to add backing tracks. Music and sound effects do make performances livelier, funnier, and more professional, and they even allow you to insert a voice character in your program and prompt your audience to react.

Listen to this interview and get a heap of tips from Mark Beckwith and Obediah Thomas on how to use—and create—your own backing tracks.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why use backing tracks
• How to create or get backing tracks for your show
• What are MIDI tracks and how do they work
• How to work sound into your show
• Using backing tracks to make extra characters in solo shows
• A simple but very effective way of controlling your sound tracks with PowerPoint, a laptop, and a clicker
• Pre-show music and the value it adds to your show
• How music can prompt your audience to applaud and react
• Why it's best to use your own sound equipment
• How to simplify your sound check and listen for any problems
• Dealing with natural or room reverb in large halls and gymnasiums
• Back-up systems and dealing with equipment problems
• Some things to be careful of when using backing tracks
• Tips on buying equipment
• How to start when first using backing tracks in your show

Are you a magician, juggler, or musician who wants to go into the school assembly market? Or perhaps you're a non-entertainer—maybe a teacher—who wants to try your hand at school show performing? If yes, then this episode is something you don't want to miss.

Together with Andrew Ready, experienced school show performer Obediah Thomas discusses how you can make and sell your own school assembly programs and shares why offering them might be the best step you take this year for your career.

In this episode we discuss:

• What led Obediah from standup comedy to school shows
• How you can use the skills and talents you have, even if they don't include or involve magic or puppets, in the school show you want to create
• Obediah's tips for creating school assembly shows and balancing the education and entertainment
• How to get feedback and reviews that you can use to better and even sell your shows (Take note of these. These tips are gold.)
• How you help the entire school community and make a difference with school assembly shows
• How to communicate the value that your school assembly show brings to potential customers
• How to add more value to what you offer and keep more clients
• Where you can learn all you need to know about school assembly shows: Obediah and Mark's school show video course (Great for performers and nonperformers alike.)
• Why the school assembly market is an awesome market and the audience the best audience

Doug Scheer, this time with his wife Heidi, is back with an interview on a very relevant topic: working with special needs children during our shows. In this episode, Doug and Heidi share that kids on the spectrum do not need to be in the sidelines. They can be stars of the show with a little encouragement and understanding from us, and there's no reason for us not to involve them and make others see they're not much different from anybody else.

Hit play and listen to this enlightening, beautiful interview.

In this episode we discuss:

• Tips for involving and interacting with kids with special needs

• Ways to help special needs children keep calm and comfortable during our performances

• What to do in case a child disrupts the show

• Doug's Punctuation Pandemonium, a brand-new, non-magic, hilariously entertaining effect that is perfect even for older kids

Thinking of building your own themed library shows? This episode featuring library show expert and author of multiple magic books Jim Kleefeld covers all the basics you need to know: from how to weave a book into a magic routine, to how to approach a library to offer your show.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why and how Jim got into library shows
• The appeal of themed library programs
• What makes a show particularly suited for libraries
• How Jim weaves a book into a standard magic routine and builds a themed library show
• Considerations before going into the library show market in your area
• Tips on selling and marketing a library show
• Dos and don'ts when performing a library show