Five Things I Learned Whilst Writing Shuffled

Throughout November, I’m excited to perform my show, Shuffled, once again at the Rhapsody Theatre in Chicago. I’m in full rehearsal mode, which has also prompted some reflections on how the show came together. Looking back on the show with 60+ performances under my belt, I can see some important lessons I learned along the way:

1. Panic is Part of the Process

The first thing that happened when I agreed to do the show was panic. Real panic. I had six months before the first performance, and for a long time, all I had was a list of tricks that might fit. It wasn’t until I forced myself to sit in an empty room and think (without cards in my hands) that I started to find the show’s heart. Sometimes you just need to stop, stare at the wall, and think. Panic will get you to the wall. Focus will get you past it.

2. Boundaries Create Freedom

The premise of Shuffled is simple: the audience brings their own decks of cards, and I perform magic with them. That single rule changed everything. It made the show unpredictable. It made it harder. And it made it more creative. I learned from books like Piff: The Magic Book that boundaries don’t limit you; they tell you where the rules are, so you know exactly where to break them.

3. You Can’t Outsource Honesty

When I first wrote the script, I shared it with a few friends—people who are much funnier and smarter than I am. For example, the hilarious Harrison Greenbaum wrote some brilliant jokes for me, but when I tried them out, they didn’t work. Not because they weren’t funny, but because they weren’t me.

This show made me realise that you can’t hire someone to be authentic on your behalf. You can get help shaping your voice, but the words have to come from you. The audience can feel the difference between borrowed confidence and real honesty.

4. Filming Yourself Is Awful (and Essential)

I recorded every performance. Watching those videos is torture. For the first twenty minutes, I hate everything about myself: how I sound, how I move, how I look under stage lights. But after that, the learning starts.

A trick I almost cut ended up getting the most significant reaction of the last run. Seeing that from the audience’s perspective changed everything. The camera doesn’t lie: it lets you see the truth, and that’s invaluable.

5. The Show Is Never Finished

Shuffled changes every night. I cut tricks, rewrite stories, and have now swapped the ending completely five or six times. The finale now uses an idea that started as my opener, and it plays stronger than anything I’ve done before.

In this next run, if the show is the same by closing night, I’ve failed. While you're working on it, a show should evolve. Each performance teaches you something new if you’re willing to listen. One day soon, I hope to “lock” the show, but even then, I know I’ll always be looking for one more thing to improve.

Now I’m preparing for the third run, and I’m so glad I pushed through to get the show to where it is. Shuffled is the most personal piece of magic I’ve ever done, and it exists because of all the lessons I learned along the way. I hope to see some of you there in Chicago. Tickets are available for purchase here. But most importantly, I hope this email encourages you to reflect on your own shows.