Epilogue (Mike Caveney)
The true Die Fertigen Fingerexperience is not something that can
be transmitted through a printed page. Oh, you can learn the secrets
to their devilishly clever magic by studying this book but the biggest thrill
that these talented Germans have to offer can only be experienced by
witnessing one of their lectures/performances live.
After seeing them for the first time at the 1997 FISM congress in Dresden,
Germany, I remember thinking: the fact that their individual magic effects
are great, is really just a bonus. It was their unique presentations that
made their lecture so memorable. in reviewing this congress for MAGIC
magazine, I wrote,"...ten young Germans performed a carefully scripted
show that made you forget you were actually listening to a magic lecture.
Hilariously funny and brilliantly entertaining. All fine magicians individually,
but as a group, an absolute knockout."
Die Fertigen Finger is a classic example of synergy: a group whose total
is greater than its individual parts. Each member of this diverse group is
certainly a talented magician but each one also brings to the table his
own specific strengths.
These strengths include creativity, acting skills, a fully developed character or perhaps just a great pair of hands. And
with ten people contributing to this formidable team, Die Fertigen Finger
can attack an audience from virtually any direction. From the moment
you enter the room and are frisked by a nonsense guard, to that far-
from-shy, yet slightly slow audience member, spectators find themselves
in the middle of the action.
You will learn routines by eavesdropping on
a table-hopping magician who gets unmercifully busted by a couple of
loud drunks in a pub, by listening to two sports announcers commenting
on the fine points of a nut-off-rope routine and by sitting through a mock
airline safety demonstration that somehow manages to teach a coin routine.
So sure, you will have enjoyed this book and the fine magic that it contains
but just be forewarned: the greatest thrill that Die Fertigen Finger have to
offer is yet ahead. And that can only happen when their collective talents
are unleashed on a room full of magicians and you are there to experience it.
