The Illusion of Combat

by Anthony Middleton

Anthony Middleton

‘Mis-direction’ is a term familiar to all magicians. It is a principle that could date back as far as Egyptian times, as some magicians argue that the famous ‘cups and balls’ trick is depicted in the hieroglyphics of The Pyramids. Perhaps the first consideration of the principle in writing in England is the publication The Discoverie of Witchcraft by Reginald Scot, published in 1584.

But defining its origin is perhaps beside the point, because its involvement with the performance of magic is almost inseparable.

The term literally means – taking the audiences attention away (in order to hide what you are actually doing).

The late Tommy Wonder, a famous magician (and also actor), re-defined it in his own work as ‘re-direction’. To me this makes much more sense. What magicians really do is force you to concentrate or look somewhere particular – so that you are not focusing on the bit they don’t want you to see.

For me, this principle of ‘re-direction’ can be directly applied to the ‘knap’ in stage combat. When the actor makes a ‘knap’ (a sound that mimics the impact of an attack) – it is of utmost importance that the audience does not see it, or the illusion is lost.

A common mistake for the actor/combatant is to prepare the knap too early (which shows they are trying to think ahead in the fight rather than take each moment as it comes). And another easy mistake is to leave the knapping hand in view after the impact (rather than letting their body fall away naturally).

Both of these are an example of ‘re-directing’ the audience’s attention to what you do not want them to see. (The opposite of what you are trying to achieve).

To re-direct the audience’s attention properly – you must ‘show’ them what you want them to see. In the case of fighting – perhaps the pull back with a fist before executing a punch. And, the victim should show acknowledgement of this as well – so the audience are compelled to watch the fist as it travels to the target. The knap then comes as a by product of the true action. In magic – the secret moves too, the secret actions are often done underneath the covering action.

There is one other important way that I see ‘re-direction’ being implemented in stage combat.

To further protect the audience seeing a knap – I choreograph unexpected changes in a fight.

If, for example, the fight includes a head being smacked on to a table (an instance where the knap of the hand could be anticipated by the audience), I would direct the audience’s attention away from the table in the preceding moves – so they are not expecting the action. If the action surprises them, then there is no time to think (and therefore no time to work it out). This is how I use ‘re-direction’ to “lead the audience up the garden path”.

Tony Middleton, known in the magic business as ‘Sonic’ is a top level close-up magician, fight director and theatre director. Further information regarding his company and their work can be found at www.sonicmagic.co.uk

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