> what's more interesting and impressive to me is the overall choreography. Yes, I agree. You've described appreciating a magical performance like a magician w

> what's more interesting and impressive to me is the overall choreography. Yes, I agree. You've described appreciating a magical performance like a magician would appreciate the work of another magician. The general public usually focuses on what they perceive as the "trick" part of creating the illusion (such as an object hidden in the hand they are unaware of). Advanced magical skill involves understanding and then perfecting the often subtle surrounding elements that make the effect so deceptive. In the past I've taught sleight of hand magic to relatively novice students and in the beginning they are always puzzled that even when they've learned "the move", a spectator will often just say "it's in your other hand." Yet when I perform the exact same move to similar spectators it never even occurs to anyone that something might be in the other hand. The difference is a dozen subtle things from where my eyes are looking, to the position of my body, to the pacing of my speech. I had to learn these techniques from my mentors and then rigorously practice them until perfected. In a lot of sleight of hand magic, any "move" by itself is not all that deceptive. The context and choreography around the move are what elevate the performance to what seems like real magic.