“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.“ – Sophia Loren
How to Embrace Creativity Every Day
Winter is coming, or for some it is already here. This is a great time to work on innovation and creativity. Keeping a playful attitude will help you through the Holidays. Here are some tips that I use in my own life to stay playful, childlike, and creative.
You have to start by acknowledging that you are a creative person capable of incredible thingsSchool, work, life, and “growing up” has pushed some of this out of us. But I truly believe there is greatness in everyone. I know that everyone has genius. And we must first admit to ourselves that we are intelligent creative people who have the ability laugh, learn, grow, and play.
Try doing everyday things in new waysChange the path you take to work. Shop for groceries at a new store. Change where your garbage can sits, (You’ll find yourself throwing trash into the corner where it was). Little changes to your physical space and daily routine will help keep your mind fresh and alive.
Be curious about new thingsBeing curious is the key to creativity. Watch a documentary about something you know nothing about, visit the religious services of different faiths, find an expert in some field and ask them what they are passionate about, or what they wished that everyone knew about their area. Take some time observing instead of talking. Take some time being a child who listens rather than proving what you already know.
Think from different perspectivesI will often pull up photos of 4 famous magicians, philosophers, political leaders or scientists that I have researched and I will move face to face and imagine how I believe each of them would answer a question I put before them. What should I write about in my next newsletter Thomas Edison, Winston Churchill, Emerson, Mark Twain? I look at their faces, I think of their biographies and I try to imagine what each would say.
Books and games I’ve found useful recently to inspire my creativity:
Steal like an artist journal (Guided Diary)
Rory’s Story Cubes (Improvisational Game)
The Imagineering Workout (Book)
Allow yourself to play. This is keySwing on a swing, sing in the rain, sit on the floor. This month I performed in a Planetarium that was rented out by Hewlett-Packard and Intel. They filled it with some of the brightest minds in the Super Computing world. And all of them played with the exhibits, touched, smelled, and crawled through everything. It was spectacular to experience.
One of my favorite creative exercises is to watch a show on Hulu, Netflix, etc with the sound off and imagine what they are saying.Switch from making it funny to dramatic. This is also fun to watch with friends. Take different roles and play different people making up the story.
Try a new artistic process for an afternoonPaint, sculpt, photograph, carve, dance, sing. Look on sites like Meetup and Yelp for opportunities near you.
Really do these thingsMake time to release and play. “Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things.” -Ray Bradbury
When it is time for your group to gather and play, remember that I am available for corporate banquets, trade shows, morning energizer meetings, and events. I’m never too busy for your referrals.
Time to start booking last minute Holliday Parties now.
“Tassion is one great force that unleashes creativity, because if you’re passionate about something, then you’re more willing to take risks.” -Yo-Yo Ma
Upcoming Events
“Beginnings are usually scary, and endings are usually sad, but its everything in between that makes it all worth living.“ -Bob Marley
HP / Intel Event Salt Lake City, Utah November 15th
Ricky Brandon event Provo, Utah December 2nd
Barney Trucking Salina, Utah December 3rd
Private event Las Vegas, Nevada December 24th
Flagship Credit Las Vegas, Nevada January 8th – 10th
Utah Theater Festival St. George, Utah January 12th – 14th
Magic Castle Hollywood, California January 19th – 22nd
Mystique Dining Folsom, California January 23rd – February 3rd
Impossible Theater Reno, California January 27th
Wilcox Theater Wilcox, Arizona February 4th
Winthrop-University Hospital Mineola, New York February 16th
Cortland Repertory Theater Cortland, New York February 18th
Fan X Salt Lake City, Utah March 17th – 18th
Salt Lake Magic Jam Salt Lake City, Utah March 17th – 19th
Weber School District Keynote St. George, Utah May 12th
Is your company having a Holiday Party and you know the name & email address of the person in charge of putting it together? Send them my demo video. Or send me their email. Let’s make some magic together. I always appreciate your referrals.
If you help me to book a Holiday party, I’ll either give them 20% off my normal price or I’ll give you $500 cash. Your choice. Sale good through Dec 24th. (Also good for referrals).
Want to see what others are saying? Check out the Yelp and Linkedin reviews:
Paul Draper 2017: Mentalism, Mystery, Music & Storytelling
Please watch my new DEMO video for 2017 (a few days early). This was edited by magician and editor Chris Oberle. He did a wonderful job! (It has already been viewed over 7,000 times on Facebook). See if you can catch all of the Celebrity appearances!
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.“ – Henry David Thoreau
Sometimes as a magical entertainer you are blessed with beautiful moments of real magic on stage because of amazing audience members and their adorable children. There is no better way to describe the goal of my profession than this image.
What are you doing for Halloween? I will be performing in the jewel box CLOSE-UP GALLERY in Hollywood at The Magic Castle from October 24th – 31st as the Early-Early Performer. The 8 day week will fill up fast, so get your reservations in now. I’ll be presenting 32 performances over the 8 days. So start your evening off right with some fun spooky magic. I’m on from 5pm – 7pm.
This also means that I am available in the evenings in Southern California for your Halloween parties and midnight Séances. I have been an expert on the history of Séance for History Chanel and A&E and last year was the medium for the 89th Official annual Houdini Séance held in a beautiful Vaudeville theater in San Fransisco. Let me know if you would like to add me to your Halloween or Holiday Line up.
The theme of Halloween week at The Magic Castle this year is Dia de los Muertos-the Day of the Dead! (Celebrated on November 1 & 2, but who’s counting).
Here are some Fun and Interesting facts about the Day of the Dead: View Here
Did you Know Halloween may be more Irish than American in origin and trick or treating has only been going on in the US since after WWII? Enjoy your traditional turnip or Potato Jack o’ Lantern. Read Here
Remember that I am in the US the rest of this year and available for corporate banquets, trade shows, morning energizer meetings, and events.
Actor Jim Beaver who plays Bobby Singer in Supernatural and Whitney Ellsworth in Deadwood helps mentalist Paul Draper on stage at Salt Lake Comic in the 5,000 seat Grand Ballroom.
(I made this prop up quickly backstage with spare cardboard, duct tape, markers, and bulldog clips when my friend Glenn Farrington told me that Jim was a fan of mentalism and would love to come out and help.)
Paul Draper interviews Danny Trejo at Salt Lake Comic Con. We talk about Trejo Taco’s, Machete, Jessica Alba, Dusk Until Dawn, and Storks.
“Good judgment comes from experience. And experience comes from poor judgment.” -Will Rodgers
Welcome to August’s “Mysteries of the Mind” monthly newsletter!
“There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn’t mind who gets the credit.“ – A Plaque on Ronald Regan’s Desk
I visited the Ronald Regan Presidential Library and Museum this week and found the above quote very striking. He had it above his door when he was governor and on his desk throughout his presidency. I have certainly found it true in my personal life that It is often worth it to give away the credit and prestige to instead have the joy of success in achieving the goal. The link below gives some history to this insightful quote and the possible originator. Read More Here
The Science of Comedy
Are humans, as Aristotle wrote, the only beings that laugh?
How does comedy play a role in mating rituals and establishing hierarchy?
Men laugh quicker but, women receive more pleasure from laughter, really!
Here are some of my rules of comedy that fall in line with the writings of Plato, Freud, and Kant:
In comedy we are always making fun of someone. We are making fun of ourselves, our relations, society, the audience. People real or imagined are knocked off of a pedestal. And so when we start to develop our own comedy, we must be very clear about who we are making fun of and the implications there in.
People come to comedy shows to forget about the outside world and the struggles they face in life. Comedy is an escape. Give them that opportunity to release. It is about them, and not us.
Comedy, like horror, stems from a balance of expectation and surprise. My standard structure for both are: That’s normal, that fair, normal, SURPRISE!
They must like you to like your comedy. Always return to that. Make a character that the audience would like to hang out with.
Be a character that you like being, you will have to be that person a lot.
Remember that I am in the US the rest of this year and available for corporate banquets, trade shows, morning energizer meetings, and events.
“There is no real ending. It’s just the place where you stop the story.” -Frank Herbert (Author of Dune)
Upcoming Events
“Beginnings are usually scary, and endings are usually sad, but its everything in between that makes it all worth living.“ -Bob Marley
Salt Lake Comic Con
Thursday September 1 at Salt Lake Comic Con. Here are the HUGE names to look for in the Grand Ballroom:
1:00: Mark Hamill 2:00: William Shatner 3:00: Emma Caulfield and Nicholas Brendon 4:00: Katie Cassidy 5:00: The Dukes Of Hazzard Reunion 6:00: Vic Mignogna 7:00: Billy Boyd 8:00: Paul Draper !!!
Please let your friends know. I need to fill 5,000 seats on a Thursday night in Salt Lake City.
LAS VEGAS: Come and see two amazing shows at The Orleans Hotel and Casino – Las Vegas August 26th & 28th that I am producing along with HypnoThoughts Live! Amazing variety acts that you have seen on TV and around the world. Tickets only $30. Two completely different line ups!
This issue features all quotes from famous composers because of my new mini musical made this month and featured at the bottom of the newsletter. It is funny. You will like it.
(Photo of Paul and Jerry Springer)
Just a few days ago: Jerry Springer and I after the The Price Is Right Live – Stage Show at the Ho-Chunk Casino in the Wisconsin Dells! It is a great joy to open for this experience! He is quite polite in person, not what his television show would lead you to believe.
I have been very lucky in my career to be able to work with and interview a lot of celebrities on TV and in shows like Comic Con and Anime Expo. Earlier this month I performed at a private event and the Band Big Bad Voodoo Daddies, who I have seen in concert, were my opening act!
Currently I’m working on a new video to showcase some of my best moments with celebrities. Working with celebrities like this seems to make it easier for clients who have never met me before to value and differentiate my work from local amateurs. It is currently an 8-minute rough cut. It will be cut down to about 3 minutes. But here are some clips you might enjoy with Micky Dolenz, Danny Glover, Robbie Amell, Paris Themmen, Ronda Rousey, Sean Astin, Tim Kang, Cristina Ferreira, Mark Steines and more.
Now for a bit of advice I shared on Facebook that was quite popular among my friends so I thought you might like to read it as well. To friends who call me and say “I’m thinking of becoming a freelancer (Magician, Musician, Consultant, Actor etc.)”
Remember that time you lost your job and had to write a resume, get references, schedule lots of interviews, fill out tons of paperwork, and face constant rejection… If you really love that experience, become a freelance artist. You will be doing that 30 hours a week.
Except for those few shining and beautiful moments when friends step up and give you references, referrals, and inside info to help you land gigs with their contacts and companies.
Lesson: Being an Entrepreneur is hard. Make lots of friends, and be a good friend to them.
Friends make all the difference. Please let me know how I can be a better friend to you. I am so very grateful for your friendship.
Let me know if I can help facilitate fun at your trade shows, parties, or brighten your meetings this year, lets create days your guests will remember for years to come.
Amazing Show
LAS VEGAS: Come and see two amazing shows at The Orleans Hotel and Casino – Las Vegas August 26th & 28th that I am producing along with HypnoThoughts Live! Amazing variety acts that you have seen on TV and around the world. Tickets only $30. Two completely different line ups! HypnoThoughts Live The Orleans Hotel and Casino
“Tender” – The Musical
48hr Film Fest Salt Lake City, Utah June 3rd – 5th
Musical Theater fans!!! Watch this great mini musical about online dating. Completely written, shot, edited, and turned in within 48 hours. (I was writer, director, producer, lyricist)Watch Here
“There are no happy endings. Endings are the saddest part, So just give me a happy middle And a very happy start.“ – Shel Silverstein
I was having a discussion with my uncle about life and he pointed out that he has found that for him, beginnings are happy and endings are sad.
I took this idea and rolled it around in my head for a while, thinking about theatrical structure, leadership, and life. Some have said that a tragedy is a story where the character’s end in a predestined way due to their own inability to change. They end poorly, no matter how good of a beginning or middle they experience. In many of the Tragedies of Shakespeare, everyone we care about dies in the end. A Drama has a sad conclusion when the primary character ends with revenge, fails at their mission, dies, or gives in.
But a happy ending is often a door closing that opens a window. A happy ending is a beginning. We end with a marriage, with a birth, a new job, a new opportunity, or simply the phrase “and they lived happily ever after”. Magically transforming an ending into new beginning that is filled with possibilities. In modern movie culture these new beginnings are often inserted to create the desire for a sequel.
I have often been told by peer to dress like I am “going somewhere better later”. In essence, dress as if there is a new beginning about to happen. In my corporate workshops I teach that a leader should always have a vision for the future of how things will be. And that vision is most powerful when we are included in that better tomorrow. A vision of a new and brighter beginning. Every day is a new opportunity, and spring in particular gives us all of the messages of a fresh start and a new life springing from the cold death of winter.
This is our time to change our future, avoid the tragedy and find happiness in the optimism of a new beginning. Start today. The best place to start is where you are, with what you have.
Let me know if I can help facilitate fun at your trade shows, parties, or brighten your meetings this year, lets create days your guests will remember for years to come.
X Files stars Mitch Pileggi (Skinner) and William B. Davis (CSM) talk with Paul Draper about “The Masked Magician”, “Skepticism”, “Moon Landing Denial”, “The Magic Castle” and more in front of an audience of 5,000 fans at Salt Lake Comic Con FanX. Watch Mitch squirm.
Trade show crowd gathering and performing at the “ISC West” Security Conference at the Sands Convention Center at The Venetian, Las Vegas. Bending a spoon for a Russian engineer in the Dahua Technology booth. Watch Here
Lions roar at sanctuary near Las Vegas, but visitors are few. Make sure to stop in on your next trip. Read More
