"Pre-show" is essentially anything that takes place before the show begins to enhance the show for the audience as a whole. In the world of television and social media, pre-show has become defined as something done before the main trick that was always intended to hit the cutting room floor.

Magicians rarely discuss pre-show. Perhaps because it feels like cheating or because pre-show is a great way to fool magicians. How can someone spot a method that took place before they even started watching?

Great pre-show is not a forcing tool—it’s a funnelling tool.

More often than not, magicians think of pre-show as a forcing tool. I’m here to tell them that they’re thinking about it wrong. When used correctly, in my opinion, you should think of pre-show as a funnelling tool. Good pre-show is a way to remove variables, reduce risk, and enhance the final outcome.

I think perhaps my simplest example of pre-show was getting a specific coin into a spectators pocket. To do this, we simply pretended to be part of the crew, told the contributor they’d need spare change just before the magician arrived, and after seeing their panicked look, we offered some change from our pockets.

While pre-show can be carried out by the magician, and sometimes should be. More often than not, the more steps removed from the magician, the better. This is why consultants often appear to be members of the crew, sound assistants, and even simply people who work at the location the shoot occurs at—like hairdressers, receptionists, drivers and security.