P A compartment of the valise
The Parlour
the living-room show, the birthday routine and the table of tricks
7 notes · latest note 23 September 2026
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Tascabile, brossura, cartonato: how Italian books are made
A plain guide to Italian book formats, print-on-demand, and the thirteen-digit ISBN, for readers who want to know how a book gets made.
6 min
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What singing in an adult vocal ensemble actually asks of you
How an adult vocal ensemble works, where to sing in Washington, D.C., and what the adult voice needs to last. A plain guide for returning and new singers.
6 min
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Why do summer string programmes ask for a pre-formed quartet
Why summer chamber music programmes prefer pre-formed quartets, what applicants should prepare, and how standing groups change the summer experience.
6 min
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When the birthday child won't sit
The note every parlour performer keeps: what to do when the guest of honour will not sit, will not help, or wants to be somewhere else.
6 min
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The running order of a birthday
How a working birthday show is ordered: the gathering opener, the middle where helpers come up, and the trick the party is remembered by.
6 min
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The trick table and what it holds
The small table at the front of the parlour show: what a working magician keeps on it, in it and behind it.
6 min
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The forty-minute parlour show
Why the working birthday magic show settles near forty minutes, what the shape of those minutes looks like, and who decided the length.
6 min
