building blocksby luke jermay. we consider it a real coup to be able to add this superb book by luke...

Building Blocksby Luke Jermay

an alakazam magic publicationwww.alakazam.co.uk and www.readminds.co.uk

- the main secret, of the greatestsecret, of the greatest magician’s

success - lies in the skilful use of

suggestion”Professor Hoffmann - 1911

...the power so to persuade them“

Luke Jermay - 2003

“An examination of suggestion techniques in

combination with classic conjuring methods”

By

Luke Jermay

© Alakazam Magic October 2003Published by Peter Nardi and Alakazam Magic.

First edition October 2003www.alakazam.co.uk

Building Blocks

Books By Luke Jermay

7 DeceptionsBuilding Blocks

Written by Luke Jermay

Edited by Mark Elsdon

Proof read by Kaye Pudney

Illustration & Cover Design by Adrian Gower

Layout, design and page set by Jon Robinson; Agent X Creative

Published by Peter Nardi and Alakazam Magic

www.alakazam.co.uk and www.readminds.co.uk

Building BlocksBuilding BlocksBuilding Blocks

©All copyright owned in its entirity by Peter Nardiand Alakazam Magic, October 2003

No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, storedor transmitted in any form whatsoever without the prior

written consent of the publisher.

From the Publisher

Welcome to Alakazam Magic’s latest publication, ‘Building Blocks’by Luke Jermay. We consider it a real coup to be able to add thissuperb book by Luke to our range in this exciting aspect to ourbusiness. Along with ‘7 Deceptions’, ‘Building Blocks’ is Luke’ssecond written work. Like his first, this book will not disappoint.

With many years of experience in the field of mentalism andmagic, Luke’s work fits right into place within our portfolio and weare proud to be able to put our name alongside his.

Not just a highly talented sleight of hand magician, Luke has adeep understanding of and a tremendous ability in thepsychological techniques and stratagems so important in anincreasingly popular side of our art.

Remember his name.

There will be more to come, of that we are sure.

Peter NardiAlakazam Magic

For more information about Alakazam Magic please visit our websites at: www.alakazam.co.uk and www.readminds.co.uk

Foreword By Steve Banacheck page 9

Introduction By Luke Jermay page 13

Section One First thing first page 16

Section Two Definition is creation page 19

Section Three The power of silence page 23

Section Four The old witch doctor page 27

Section Five Convincers page 33

Section Six The building block technique page 42

Section Seven An essay by Kenton Knepper: page 45

“What are you suggesting by

using suggestion”

Section Eight Mixing magic and mentalism page 51

Section Nine Methodology page 55

Section Ten Effects page 59

1. ‘Divided by hate’ page 622. ‘Stigmata to go please’ page 683. ‘The kats kradle’ page 744. ‘The ernie ball book test’ page 815. ‘The ice man cometh’ page 866. ‘Stuck in a moment’ page 927. ‘A remote castle’ page 1008. ‘Blind sentence’ page 1109. ‘Personality projected’ page 116

10. ‘A safe anchor’ page 12211. ‘Out of (t)his world page 12811. ‘A presentation’ page 13612. ‘A strange garden’ page 14013. ‘Judgement day’ page 14914. ‘Zeroing in’ page 158

Afterword By Peter Nardi page 162

contents

7 Deceptions, this was the title to one of Luke’s previous books.The title itself was deceptive, yet to magicians and “mentalmagicians” the title made sense. Here were seven tricks(deceptions), but to working mentalists it was quickly understoodthat there were certainly more than seven deceptions containedwithin, more like 100. Probably the book should have been titled:7 effects, 100 deceptions.

Some have dismissed much of Luke’s work as “effects that don’talways work.” Others have heralded Luke’s progressive thinking.Why the vast chasm? Again it was and is the difference betweenmental magic and mentalism. Not that there is anything wrongwith mental magic, but THERE IS A DIFFERENCE and Luke clearlyunderstands the difference.

Which brings us to this book; it certainly has a more apt title,Building Blocks….. but I wonder how many will understand whatLuke is really trying to say? Let me, from a personal standpoint, tryto explain. I once wrote a book dedicated to the nuances andpsychological subtleties involved in being a mentalist. In writingthe book I took it for granted that most would understand it wasnot the effects in the book that were important, but the small bitsof business that structured each effect, these were the gems I wastrying share; how you said something, when you said it, what you

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forewordby Steve Banachek

did not say, why you said something and even more important,your attitude when you said something. It was amazing to me howmany people told me they just did not get it.

Yet over time, almost all of these people who “just did not get it”have corresponded with me in some manner telling me that theyhave re-read my work, applied it to their own effects over time andnow thank me profusely. One even re-read the book, looked overthe videotape of his show and made three pages of notes where hecould improve his presentations.

So how does this apply to Luke’s work? Two reasons stick out themost. I have heard a few people say almost the same things aboutLuke’s offerings (“I don’t get it, it does not work all the time.”) buteven better, Luke has broken it down for you, something I wish Ihad done. He has even given you the title to explain it; BuildingBlocks is not about a child’s toy, it is about how to appear to be a“real psychic”.

If you go straight to the effects in this book and skip over the“building blocks” you can count yourself in that elite status ofbeing a magician or one who does “mental magic” and more thanlikely a few of Luke’s effects will not work well for you, or neverwork for you at all. Again, there is nothing wrong with mentalmagic if you are presenting that, but this work is about so muchmore than just magic. Luke gives you powerful TOOLS to workwith, don’t expect these tools to work all the time with everyonebut do expect them to enhance what you already do and do expectthat not only will they enhance what you do, but you will be bettersuited to choose the right individuals to get the job done andmake it work more often than not.

I personally want to thank Luke for taking me back to my roots.In my early days I took chances knowing that usually (not always)I had a way to create a powerful outcome no matter what thereaction of the spectator participating. For example, it is indeed

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powerful to bend a spoon or coin in someone’s hand, but howmuch more impressive is it to have a spectator tell you they feel itbending and moving in their hand? Although Luke does not tellyou specifically how to do this in this book, he does give you thetools to do so; honesty suggestion, heat suggestion, power ofsilence, definition=creation, and the most important thing he givesyou is your attitude or belief something is going to happen. If youbelieve in what you are doing as you do it, it will convey the rightattitude and body language to a spectator, for instance you mightsubconsciously nod your head as you ask the spectator if they feelanything. This subconscious nodding of your own head will indeedcause most spectators to reply in the positive. At first you may notknow why spectators respond the way you want them to, but overtime you will learn the how’s and why’s, but the starting point isthe positive attitude and belief you convey, your attitude willinfluence the spectator more than you could ever imagine.

Since reading Luke’s work I have taken a step back in time and nowno longer rely upon the effect to impress the audience (a trap Ihad fallen into over the years), people again feel the prick of theneedle as it pierces a copy of their hand, they feel the fork bendingin their hand. Every sensation is enhanced and as a result, everyeffect is enhanced. Does it always work, no! But 90 percent of thetime is okay by me if it enables me to be more “real” when I am inthe moment; it is well worth the chance taken.

I challenge you to take these ideas and subtleties and apply themto your own work. If you do, I guaranteed you will not bedisappointed. Thanks Luke for taking me back to my early days.

Having talked about the building blocks, let me briefly talk aboutthe impressive effects in this book. My favourite effect from amagical point is “A Remote Castle”, to me it shows that Luke, asyoung as he is, not only has an understanding of the subtleties ofour art, but can also create a great visual presentation. As with allof Luke’s writings so far, there is much more to his thinking than

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what you see on the surface. With fresh presentations like these,I look forward to the future of our craft.

In thoughts

BanachekSept 27, 2003

page 12

Welcome to my second collection of thoughts focusing on thecombination of suggestion and the classic principles of Mentalismand Conjuring.

In my previous work, “7 Deceptions”, I simply explained effects andtheir wording and spoke of the power of the suggestions they hadbuilt-in. I have tried to move away from that type of writing in thiswork. I have, instead, offered the reader a detailed break down ofthe techniques I use throughout the book, as well as providing anumber of full effects and the full scripting in the second sectionof the book.

The thinking in the book has been heavily influenced by manygreat thinkers. Kenton Knepper, Steve Banachek, Tony Andruzzi,Docc Hilford, Ford Kross, Chan Canasta and many more. I have tosay a massive thank you to each and every one of the abovegentlemen for sharing their thinking with those willing to read andunderstand.

I hope you will be willing to read and understand my work too -and more importantly I hope you will find a thing or two to startyour own mind working. I titled this book Building Blocks for a simple reason. I considerthe methods taught within these pages to be more than exclusive

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introductionby Luke Jermay

to the illusions they accomplish in my performances. Eachmethod is a block that you too can slip into place when buildingyour own routines. They can even be added into the effects youalready perform.

Let us now briefly look at the types of material covered in thisvolume. You will find within these pages a selection of materialthat can more or less fit into three main categories.

The first is sure-fire Mentalism or Bizarre Magick. This needs noreal words of introduction, these effects are sure-fire, tried andtested performance pieces borne from classic principles ofconjuring and Mentalism. The methods employed are simple butlike everything in this volume do require a good strongpresentation in order for their full effect to take place.

You will notice that some of the effects such as The Ice ManCometh and A Remote Castle require a little preparation andstaging or order to achieve the desired effect. To my mind thispreparation is more than rewarded in the long run.

The second and to my mind the most interesting type of materialis that in which a combination of suggestion techniques andmagical methods become as one to aid the deception. In suchmaterial strong and resonate effects are made possible in a waythat could never have been dreamt of without the use ofsuggestion. Effects such as Projected Personality would play wellwithout the suggestion sequence but becomes something morethan the sum of their parts, taking on a new level of strength dueto the combination of suggestion and deception.

Suggestion and deception can bind together like bricks and mortar,making a powerful and bold effect possible. Such routines alsohave the advantage of being able to play with or without thesuggestion sequence. If for some reason the suggestions are nottaken as well as one would have hoped all is not lost. It allows the

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performer the opportunity of honing his suggestion skills withoutthe menacing fear of failure.

The final type of material is that in which nothing but suggestionis employed. This is a style that is both bold and courageous.It opens a new world of adrenaline rushes during performance andis to me the most rewarding when successful. In these routinesthere is nowhere to hide. You must be confident and experiencedwith suggestion. I normally include one or two of these effects in aperformance. They afford us the power of prop-less and powerfulMentalism and help us keep our wits about us, making everyperformance fresh and exciting.

This kind of material could also be said to cover the realm ofpsychological forcing, something I enjoy performing immensely.In effects such as In Thoughts and Words we will see bold andpowerful psychological methods used to provide wonderfullypleasing results.

Let us now begin our journey.

Luke Jermay.

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first thing first......first thing first

section one

First Thing First

This is something that I always find myself stressing in a lecturesituation. We as performers sometimes neglect to understand thatwhen working with suggestion everything we already do has itsown inbuilt suggestion attached to it. It is not simply enough toconcentrate on our scripting alone. The way in which we move andhow each effect is framed and introduced is vital in the success ofa routine that centres around suggestion.

Let me use an example from my own repertoire. The effect withwhich I open my set has nothing to do with suggestion. It is aclassic application of a sure-fire principle. Despite this, I alwaysintroduce it as being something that is all about suggestion and isin fact not very easy for either myself or the spectator taking part.I seem very happy and thank the spectator for their effort andexplain that they really did brilliantly to have been so receptiveduring such a difficult sequence. I then move onto an effect thatdoes work around suggestion and open it with the words:

“Ok let us move onto something a little easier - now you areaccustomed to such things.“

This speaks on many levels. As do I when I state it. I seem morerelaxed and appear more confident with this effect.

The suggestion inheriting within these words and actions whencombined are simple. You are communicating to your audiencethat what you are about to do will work and you appear to have noquestions or doubts in your mind about this.

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There is no other outcome. This will work.

The effect faking suggestion, which precedes an effect thatactually makes use of suggestion which will follow the ‘somethinga little easier'’ line, has been said to be somewhat like a placeboexperiment in which someone was wired up to receive a painfulelectric shock. They would rate the shock 1-10. When the briefshock reached 10, a placebo saline solution would be injected,and the patient would be told that a new wonder painkiller hadbeen given.

The experimenter would then secretly turn down the electric juicea little bit, and re-shock the patient. Only a 7 this time. Thisprocess was repeated three or four times, a lower level of shockbeing given after the placebo injection. Then the patient would beshocked and injected again but this time, when the shock wasgiven after injection, it would be left at its original level yet feltonly as a 5 or a 6, i.e. like the lower amp shocks.

The upshot of this seems to be that by accumulating suggestions,we can make our subsequent deceptions stronger.

I feel this could be used to add some kind of contrast with a one-man show, turning the dial lower every now and again, and thenblasting full at the end. It makes the final effect even stronger.

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definition is creation......definition is creation

section two

Definition is Creation“By the very simple action of defining we create”

This is the first rule I apply when constructing a routine centringon suggestion. It is a simple and yet powerful rule to go by. If westate it in its simplest form it is to say: by hinting to a spectatorwhat they are about to experience you have actually made asuggestion of what will happen. This simple and, when read,somewhat obvious rule is actually one of the most powerful inthe type of work I use. If you tell a spectator what is to happenbut in truth leave the definition open to their own personalinterpretations, they expect something to happen and will findthis ‘something’ themselves. Once this first ‘magical’ event hashappened it is easier to work with more specified suggestions asthey will try to fight it less. Now clearly just coming out andsaying to a spectator, “You will feel the ring heat up” will notonly doom the effect to failure in 99.9% of performances but alsomake you look like you have some problem with social interaction.

With a rule so broad it can be difficult to see exactly how onewould apply it in a real working situation so let us examine itusing the example given of a ring held in the spectator’s handbecoming warmer and warmer.

“Would you mind helping me for a moment? What we are going todo may be a little scary but it is nothing to be worried about; therewill not be any after-effects. It’s just like a little mind game. If youwould not like to help, it is fine.”

These opening statements do several things. They begin by settingthe tone. I have openly stated that something strange will happen.

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I have however not specified what that strange event will be.I have also given some weight to the effect but introducing it withthe ‘no long term after-effects’ statement. This tends to force thespectator into thinking more deeply about whether or not shewould like to help.

I find this very useful when choosing a welcoming and suggestiblespectator and we will cover more on this subject later in thisvolume. It has also pinned an underlying theme of importance tothe effect as something to be taken seriously.

“I would like you to take that ring in your hand and grip it verytightly. In a moment, not yet, something odd will happen, somekind of sensation.” Now these lines are so unspecific that anythingcould qualify as the odd sensation. They will attribute meaning toit in their own way.

They will actually deceive themselves into thinking they felt whatyou had intended to do. This is due to the simple expression ofintent you displayed. You intended for them to feel something,they then felt something.

Obviously they will put this down to you and your magicalprowess. They at this point may not feel a thing. I normallycontinue on a script of this kind with another small but powerfullinguistic trick: ‘The Honesty Suggestion’ as well as the ‘PulseSuggestion’ fully covered in the ‘Convincers’ section coming alittle later.

We will also look more deeply into combining the use of thesetechniques in the ‘Building Block Technique’ section. Anyway, letus continue our examination focusing our attention only on the‘Definition = Creation’ rule.

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“Now when the ring becomes warm I want you to drop it, don’tworry I will catch it, but you have to remember to let go. It is a lothotter than you would think. OK?”

In my experience this simple line combined with two or three ofthe ‘Convincers’ covered later will be enough to push the spectatorover the edge. The reason for asking them to drop the coin issimple. This is stated somewhat more quietly than the rest of thescript, it will make the whole effect seem much more impressive tothe audience at large than it simply warming in the hand.

The moment in which the ring is dropped is a good theatricalfinish to the effect. It also allows me to play up the ring heat. I actas if it is hot and drop it from hand to hand. This physicalsuggestion helps to cement the idea of the ring’s heat. Don’t over-play it. I often finish up by asking another spectator:“Be careful, but can you feel that as well?”

You’ll notice at no time have I directly stated what will happen andyet simply through the definition of what they are to do I havesuggested on many levels what will happen. Clearly this is nostrict model and it can be manipulated to suit whatever you maybe doing. This is the first of the building blocks that whencombined with further techniques such as the ‘Convincers’ willcreate a powerhouse of deception. One need to look no furtherthan Orville Meyers’ classic work “Telepathy in Action” to see justhow powerful this very idea can be and indeed to what extent itcan be used.

My good friend Kenton Knepper also has some very interestingwork on such subjects contained within his priceless “WonderWords.”

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the power of silence......the power of silence

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section three

The Power of Silence

The power of silence is, despite seeming at first glance to benothing more than an oxymoron, a massively powerful techniquewe have at our disposal when it comes to creating strong theatricalroutines which focus on the use of suggestion. Composersunderstand that the pauses between the notes are as important asthe notes themselves. Silence informs what follows it, and it isinformed by what precedes it.

I feel this technique is hugely underused in the performance ofmentalism and bizarre magic, especially by people (like me) whofocus on the wording/scripting of an effect. Maybe sometimes weneed to consider the use of silence as "scripting" in the same waywe do those Wonder Words so close to all our hearts? This use ofsilence could be seen as a use of heightened awareness and theportal of intent. We must use it as such. Think about it. You mustreach the point where you understand what intent is. And, aboveall, you must understand that knowledge cannot be turned intowords. That knowledge is there for everyone. It is there to be felt,to be used, but not to be explained.

With this thinking you create Power within the Silence in yourperformance. It becomes something theatrical and takes on a newlevel of importance not only from a methodological viewpoint butmore importantly from the viewpoint of those watching theperformance.

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I see silence as a powerful theatrical tool. I remember seeing JamyIan Swiss perform a routine in which a ring moves inexplicablyalong a pencil, in which he remains totally silent almostthroughout the whole presentation.

Many magicians assumed that Jamy was lacking a presentation forthe effect, which was in truth the complete opposite to Jamy’s wellthought out and powerful piece. Jamy had the guts to shut thehell up and allow the power of silence, which in itself can be acold, chilling and impressive tool, to add power to his effect,raising the impact in doing so.

A problem with silence is choosing the correct time to allow it tocome into your presentations, and then choosing the correctamount of silence, before it becomes something of a joke.I think that mentalists and bizarrists by their very nature need toallow the power of silence to upon occasion take control and dothe work that is unachievable without it.

To allow the power of silence into your suggestion-driven routinesis a powerful way of allowing the spectator’s own imagination tofill in the blanks and actually begin to experience what you mayhave suggested to them on a deeper and more impressive level.Leaving a suggested idea in the mind of a spectator and thenallowing them to develop it allows for a more powerfulperformance than would be possible otherwise.

In my book “7 Deceptions” there is an effect called A Twisted PalmReading in which the lines on a spectators palm appear (to them)to be moving and dashing around on their palm making patternsand shapes that were not on their palm moments earlier. This isan example of a routine in which I have to leave my ego at thedoor.

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I cannot take the credit for this effect - the spectator is the onewho deserves it as they are the person who will ultimately deceivethemselves. I plant the first seeds of suggestion with the scriptingand use the ‘Building Block’ technique (to be covered later), thenallow their mind to fill in the gaps and make the effect even morewild that I could ever imagine. This is done by simply holdingtheir palm firmly and looking somewhat deeply into their eyes.I say nothing. I ask them to describe what is happening. I saynothing more until the very end of the sequence, in which I thankthem for their help. It is a powerful tool, that when wiselyemployed can produce stunning results.

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the old witch doctor......the old witch doctor

section four

The ‘Old Witchdoctor’

This term is taken from Banachek's brilliant “PsychologicalSubtleties” book. It has a massive importance to play within themethodology of the routines you are about to read. If we look at itpurely as an outsider, we see something very different from thestandpoint of the performer.

Basically it is the rule that if you spent so much time and effort inmaking some kind of movement or action, it simply must have aneffect. This is the suggestion it carries anyway. In my book“7 Deceptions” the effect entitled RGM features this and provides agood example of exactly how and what this powerful tool createsand how it does so.

In the aforementioned effect you appear to remove a memory froma spectator’s mind. During the course of the effect, I request thespectator hold their arm fully outstretched with their first fingerextended toward me. I then take a few moments and actuallyclose my eyes, slamming my hands together and gently rubbingthem in a circular motion against one another. I then take a deepbreath and open my eyes. I begin to slowly move my hand towardthe spectator’s. During this slow and gradual meeting of the digitsI begin with another suggestive technique covered later on in thischapter which appears to create a sensation running through thespectator’s finger. I suddenly and unexpectedly move my fingervery quickly toward the spectator’s. I then push the hand towardthem for a few moments. I finally finish by waving my hands for amoment in front of the spectator’s eyes, while I ask them if they

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can remember. They invariably cannot. I then allow my arm to fallunder its own weight and relax myself, taking a few moments toallow the silence to add to the general effectiveness of what hasjust happened.

Just place yourself in the shoes of a spectator for a moment. Askyourself why would the performer possibly go to that effort andspend that amount of time on something that served no purposewhatsoever? The obvious answer is he didn’t. What he did hadsome kind of effect, without it he could not do what he set forthto. This is an extremely powerful suggestion technique. One Imake as much use of as possible. It really helps to drive home thesuggestions and more often than not makes for a visuallyappealing routine.

The secret to this technique is appearing 100% at ease with whatyou are doing, appearing as if you are sure of the outcome.Another example of this, not strictly the same but it can be put togood use when combined with the techniques under discussion, isthe use of a reward. Let me explain. I personally try to avoid theuse of ‘bets’ or ‘wagers’ in my own performances as I feel itencourages the setting up of a challenge attitude in which myspectator is more interested in the effect failing rather than of itssuccess. However, I have no doubt in my mind that someperformers can make stunning use of such things. The very act ofplacing a large amount of money onto the table and tellingsomeone you will give it to them if you fail says a lot withoutsaying anything. The spectator begins to think that you are eitherso good at what you are about to do that there is no way you canfail or that what you are doing has a very slim chance of failure.

Whether or not these are good things to be suggesting to youraudiences I will leave up to you. However, I am sure that in theright hands the use of a ‘wager’ can be a powerful and usefuladdition to your arsenal of presentational gambits. Finally, I muststate that some good acting skills can really be useful here.

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Without wanting to sound too much like a new-age tree-hugginghippy, I could almost be pushed to say that the real work behindthis technique is to simply believe that you can do what you claimto do. If you believe in it, you will communicate this on manylevels without ever attempting to. This will make the whole affairappear with more conviction and make the suggestion a hell of alot stronger.

Many experienced performers have discussed the concept and useof The Silent Script, so I am not going to go into the ins and outsof the subject as I am sure you are already familiar with it. I willhowever cover one notion regarding the use of the Silent Script.

It is my honest opinion that if we do not believe in the materialand that we have this, for the want of a better word - this power,I feel that our performances will not succeed in the way we wantthem to.

Firstly, the notion that everything we do is ‘suggestive’ is verypowerful. I have wondered how far we can take this through theuse of suggestion. How explicit do we have to be about, forinstance, our performing character and its biography? Is itpossible to say more by saying less?

As an example, when we deal with the Witchdoctor effect. I feel ifthe performer doesn't believe in the cure, or you might say theritual, neither will the spectator. This means, therefore, thatsomehow, one's interior attitude is communicated to the audience.That even though we may appear to do the same things,performers can vary widely in the effectiveness, because they havedifferent thoughts and feelings in their head and gut when theyperform.

This is a sobering thought for the dogmatically rational performer.That he or she can't power his or her magic with the fire of belief.

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My good friend Caleb Strange related the following tale that fitsnicely as an example:

“There's a famous case in the medical textbooks - forgive me ifyou're familiar with it. In 1947, in East Grinstead hospital, a noteddermatologist was operating on a boy with what appeared to bemillions of warts over his body. The young registrar said, 'Oh I'vetreated that before with hypnosis'. 'Oh have you', said the surgeonexasperated, 'then I invite you to have a go'. So a few days later,the registrar hypnotises the boy, and within a week all these 'warts'had gone from one arm, though the rest of the body as it wasuntreated, remained as bad as ever. The registrar showed thesurgeon, who was staggered. 'Treat the rest of him,' said thesurgeon, and so the young doctor did, and the boy's skin was clearwithin another week. It was then that the surgeon told the registrarthat what he had mistaken for warts was a congenital, incurableskin condition. That it was actually impossible to treat it. But treatit he had. This was big news all over the world, and the fewunfortunate people who suffered from this rare and fatal condition,flocked to be treated. But the registrar was unable to treat them.Because now he knew that he could not treat them. That somehowhis belief that what had happened was impossible, communicatedit to these other patients, and so they were unable to believethemselves in their own recovery. Circumstances had dictated thatthe registrar had hypnotised the boy erroneously believing that hewould be cured (hypnotism is good for warts), and so he wassuccessful. But when he knew the truth, the young doctor failed”.

I thank Caleb for his trademark thinking on the subject and, as henormally does, he manages to make the points others would needso many more words for.

The Silent Script is something that can rationalise internally whatit is that we as performers do. However I do not use it in the waythat, for example, it is thought that Cardini used it. I do not use itto help my acting skills - instead I use it to covey a feeling of utter

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conviction. I mention in the text for ‘The Witchdoctor’ that thisfeeling of utter conviction and belief has to be something that iscommunicated through your performance. This can becommunicated using many different methods. However I feel theuse of The Silent Script is the most powerful way of doing this. As I said, I do not follow the same kind of internal dialogue as forexample it is thought Cardini used.

However I do follow an internal dialogue that revolves around mebeing able to do what I claim without any problems standing inthe way. This is something that is hard to put into print - howeverI hope I have made myself clear. If you can begin to use thisnotion within the context of suggestion routines, I feel yoursuccess rate will increase massively.

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convincers......convincers

section five

Convincers

Let me introduce the notion of a ‘Convincer’.

A convincer is something I employ after the general seed ofsuggestion has been planted. It helps to fertilize the suggestionand will, in its own right, have some kind of effect of its own.

In this section we will cover:

Convincer one: The Shadow Suggestion

Convincer two: The Honesty Suggestion

Convincer three: The Heat Suggestion

Convincer four: The Pulse Suggestion

Convincer five: Everyday Suggestions

These convincers are very useful in the structure of a suggestionsequence. We will cover the structure I prefer when dealing withsuggestion sequences later in “The Building Block Technique”.

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Convincer one

The Shadow Suggestion.

This also falls under the section of ‘Convincers’. However, by itsself it is still a strong and useful suggestion technique. The reasonthis works is threefold. You will be suggesting whatever you wishin visual, auditory and sensorial ways. The technique basicallyappears as if the performer cast his or her shadow over aspectator’s arm. He asks the spectator to focus their attention onthe shadow and how it makes their skin feel. After this casting of ashadow, the performer will have successfully driven home hissuggestion.

Let us look at this in more detail. As I have said this works onseveral levels, which when combined, make a wonderful trio. Letus imagine that the performer wishes to use this technique tocement the notion of the ring that becomes hot, as spoken aboutearlier. The spectator has already been effectively primed to theidea of the ring becoming hot through the use of the ‘Definition =Creation’ principle:

“Please hold your hand out, the one tightly gripping the ring.Thank you. Now I would like you to just relax, take a few deepbreaths and really allow yourself to concentrate upon the way thering feels in your hand…

I‘m going to simply cast a shadow over your hand. You will beginto experience those feelings, but on a much more intense level…” I then reinforce the suggestion by employing the ‘Power of Silence’principle and slowly move my hand over the spectator’s. I stareintently at the shadow. I then move it slowly along the spectator’s

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arm and then back down to her hand, all the while remainingsilent. I then stare her in the eyes and repeat this action whilestating the following:

“See how that makes your arm feel colder but the ring hotter?Weird isn’t it. Just watch that shadow and feel what it does to you.Take another deep breath for me.”

This is clearly not something you can use in every effect - but whenused in the right context it becomes a very useful ‘Convincer’.

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Convincer two

The Honesty Suggestion.

This is a very interesting and also powerful little technique that Imake use of in almost all my effects. It is interesting for some verysimple reasons. I actually come out and state:

“Don’t lie to make me look good...I mean if you don’t feel anything,you don’t feel anything. It sometimes takes a while, but just waitfor it. It will happen - it is always different with each person aseach person thinks and feels in differing ways.”

This is useful for several reasons. Firstly it will add believabilitywhen the spectator does begin to describe what he or she isfeeling. It also suggests to them, that whatever you claim they willfeel, will happen - it may take a while, but it will happen.

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Convincer three

The Heat Suggestion

This is an effect in its own right. In effect, an object heats inthehand of a spectator. This can be, as with all of thesetechniques, molded to fit whatever sequence you would like it to.You may wish for example to change the heat suggestion frombeing direct, i.e. heating something in their hand is just asymptom of the effect you have set out to cause. For example youcould simply use it to suggest that the spectator will feel a dart ofheat run through them. In the example of my effect RGM youcould employ this technique to cause the spectator to feel asudden dash of heat run through their finger just prior to theforgetting sequence.

Here is the actual model.

“Now I don’t know when you will notice the heat which you willbegin to feel, but sooner or later it will happen. Don’t worry if ittakes a while but all of a sudden it will happen. Just let us knowwhen you feel it.”

Obviously this is a simple suggestion and will need developingfurther if you wish to make it into a single stand-alone effect.However when combined with all the other techniques it proves avery useful method.

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Convincer four

The Pulse Suggestion

This is a very powerful suggestion. In fact I feel this is thestrongest of all the ‘Convincers’ covered here. The main reason forits strength, in my opinion, is the fact that it works almostinstantly in the mind of your spectator. There are many reasonsfor it happening so quickly. The most simple of all is the fact thatwhat you say will happen is actually a natural occurrence, butwhen you place it within the context of a suggestion sequence itappears to be anything but natural. In effect, if we again refer backto our example of the ring becoming hot within a spectator’s hand,it is the simple statement that an object will begin to ‘expand’ and’contract’ within the spectator’s palm, almost as if it were to have apulse.

The actual methodology behind this is so simple it is almostembarrassing. You will simply focus their attention on the objectthat you have asked them to tightly grip. Now the sensation of it“breathing” is utterly natural. It is simply due to the fact that thegrip is tight and the object is being pushed hard into the nerves ofthe palm. All you need do is develop those natural feelings. Thisbears many similarities to the heat suggestion in its structure butalso employs a visual suggestion.

“Would you make sure that you keep a tight grip of your ring.Great - I really want you to focus on the feelings and shape, theline and the curves from your ring.”

Pause for a while allowing the spectator to actually do this. Allowthem enough time to actively think about exactly what they do or

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do not have in their hand.

“I’m not exactly sure when you will begin to notice those weirdfeelings...”

After I state this, I simply look at the spectator’s hand and allow forsome moments of silence. I then regain eye contact and pause fortwo beats before continuing:

“Like I said, I’m not 100% sure when you will notice that kind ofpulsating feeling from the ring, almost as if it were moving in andout, breathing if you like, all by itself. You can feel it right? Howmuch is it moving?”

Notice the wording here. You basically force them into agreeingthat they feel it, which 99% of the time they will anyway. Now Irepeat the wording below while I make a fist in each hand andbring them together so the knuckles of each hand are touching. Ithen move the fingers of each hand away from the palm and backinto the fist shape. This appears to be like a heart beating.

“You will feel it moving in and out, breathing, almost like a pulsewithin the object - correct?”

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Convincer five

The Everyday Suggestion

Finally, let me mention ‘Everyday Suggestion’.

This is a very simple notion and I will not insult you by spendingany more than this paragraph on it. Despite my brevity though,please realize that when used in combination with the othermethods it is very useful. It is the naturally implied suggestion ofcommon objects and what we know to be true about them withouteven having to think about it.

Here is a simple example to stimulate your thinking:

A box is held upside down and nothing falls out. The implicitsuggestion is that the box is empty. But is it?

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the building block technique......the building block technique

section six

The Building Block Technique

Here we will deal with the structure of a suggestion sequence.I have covered a few of the basics needed to successfully performthe suggestion routines covered within this volume. However Iam sure you will want to take these ideas and develop them inyour own ways. In my mind the most important of all thesuggestions to think carefully about are the convincers. They willincrease the impact and if they are chosen correctly, and framedproperly, they will strengthen any effect in which you use them.

I generally use the suggestions pretty much in the order of whichthey are listed opening with some kind of Definition = Creationstatement, then moving onto a few Convincers. I then, if the effectis correct, employ the Power of Silence principle and finish off thesequence with a few more convincers.

Now let us come to something we have not dealt with yet. Thecombination of classic magical methods with those we havecovered. This to my mind is a very potent and wonderful mix, astogether they complement one another and can make for someutterly compelling magic. Now obviously, throwing a few‘suggestions’ into your Run Rabbit Run routine would not be suchcompelling theatre. However, if you can structure your magicroutines to include these elements of suggestion you will have awin - win situation. You have the magical effect to fall back on ifthe suggestions were not as successful as you had hoped, howeverif they were, you have doubled the impact of your routine. All thetime you are risking nothing.

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Take for example the standard Ring Flight. If you were to use theHot Ring effect we have discussed as our example before vanishingthe ring, then you will have actually made the ring vanish in amuch memorable way than a simple false transfer. In the context of mind-reading routines it is very useful to combinethese techniques and for me this is where they are the mostpowerful. Why not attempt to use a suggestion sequence duringyour centre tear routine to actually have the spectator believe theyphysically felt their thought jump from their mind? This very effectis covered in the effect The Burst Bubble. It is something that Ihave enjoyed great success with and I urge you to try it out - I’msure you will enjoy performing it as much as I do.

Your imagination is the only limit facing you. If you are willing tokeep pushing things forward and to try something more daringthan the last every time you perform, you soon will be discoveringthe true power of these techniques. It is with this mind set thatsome of my favorite material has been created and it is this samemind set that I urge the reader to develop when creating their ownmaterial.

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What Are You Suggesting byUsing Suggestion?

What Are You Suggesting byUsing Suggestion?

an essay by Kenton Knepper

section seven

What Are You Suggesting by Using Suggestion?an essay by Kenton Knepper

When I was growing up in magic, I was instructed adamantly tolearn all I could about psychology and human beings. I was told inno uncertain terms that this was a major key to success in magic,and in life. Fortunately, I listened to that instruction somewhat.

Luke asked me to say a little something on the subject of modernsuggestion use, as I have become a major figure in forcingsuggestion back into magical performances. There is no doubtthat there were others before me, please understand. But as thesepeople’s works became dismissed as “mystical” or “difficult”,psychology and suggestion faded from the view of mostperformers. I am delighted I have had such a part to play inbringing such matters back to where they belong - magic.

By “magic” I mean performance magic and 'mentalistic' magic -sometimes oddly renamed “mentalism”, though it is nothing of thesort. Suggestion has never lost sway in actual mentalism or thosewho practice what they consider “real magic”. Suggestion andmentalism is nearly synonymous, for instance. Recently I wasspeaking to a well-known mentalist and magician from anothercountry. He states as a fact that his success and his creativity aredue to nothing other than suggestion.

So, it is strange indeed that if suggestion has such magical powerwithin our minds, we should ignore it in magical and mentalperformance. Houdini, Thurston, Kellar, Blackstone, Orville Meyer,Ormond McGill, Peter Reveen have all used suggestion personallyand professionally. If the famed and talented wonder workers ofour past made use of such concepts, as does our modern day elite,

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then why wouldn’t the rest of us?

I spent a great deal of time on suggestion in Wonder Words. Imade what some believed an outlandish statement back then:“Everything is a suggestion”, if you but use it and become aware.Since then, many others have followed along to support such aclaim.

But what is suggestion? One definition is a “subtle command”.Unfortunately, too many believe a “command” means a “demand”.If you demand something, it is rarely an unconscious doing.Suggestion is more hinting at what you wish to be done. You mustbe prepared that these hints can be missed by the thick-headed orwandering mind. I imagine that is what frightens performers. Theythink that there may be a high rate of failure, and no act can be sounreliable. Such performers forget that fingers fumble, electronicsstop, mechanics break, assistants miss cues, props stick, and so ontoo. These performers suffer from the delusion that the magic theydo is foolproof - when secretly they know it is not.

Let me try and put your mind at rest now. I have taughtperformers how words were used in everyday speech to createassumptions and illusions - normal people do this everyday oftheir lives. I suggested that performers do the same thing - butconsciously be aware of the word illusions when using words.Suggestion is similar. We use suggestion on others and ourselvesdaily. Why not take advantage of this secret influence in ourperformances - just by being consciously aware of that which wealready do.

How do we use suggestion? We consider other ways to makedirect statements. We hint at things we might otherwise say outloud or directly. We know that body movement, words, dailyexperiences, and mental processes all have ways of hinting atthings rather than pointing them out directly. A person need notsay to you “I am upset” as you can see by that person’s movement,

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tone of voice, look in their eyes, how they react and think and soforth that they are not happy. The cues, which give you thisinformation, are one meaning of suggestion. The person does notsay anything directly, but everyone in the room is aware of whatthese hints mean.

Various actions naturally suggest ideas to our minds. A cup with alight steam coming from within it suggests a hot beverage. Ourminds take shortcuts to information. This occurs out of necessity.It would take our mind forever to process something if it could notgo back through our experience and make certain generalisationsand assumptions. This is, in part, how suggestion works. I dumpa deck of cards out of a card case and toss the cards aside. Thesuggestion is that this case is now empty. It need not be, butmost people will now assume that it is. If however, I said directly“The case is empty, so we will put it aside over here” - now I havearoused suspicion! We have been taught not to say, “This is anordinary deck of cards” as it arouses suspicion. What was missedwas the reason this caused such a negative response. Suggestionis most often taken as assumed fact, whereas direct comment andaction are up for conscious and intellectual debate.

Suggestion is not so much about conscious awareness, which iswhy it slips by unnoticed. Ideas sneaked into the minds of anaudience by suggestion are generally accepted, as they are notconsciously, critically, challenged. The same concepts presentedto an audience directly are open to scorn, debate, and ridicule. Aswe would all like to avoid as much of the latter as possible,suggestion is a simple, magical, solution.

I have long taught an arcane formula as applied to performance:

Definition = Creation

That is by defining a thing, we create it as apparent fact.Advertisers and scientists do this constantly. Why not magicians

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and mental performers? By labelling anything, we create certainsuggestions inherent within that label. I have done this in many ofmy works. Luke uses it here in his many presentations. Luke and Icombine this formula with other methods of suggestion, and manyof our friends have followed. This is often the secret behind whatappear to be our miracles.

We also use suggestion by not labelling anything directly. I havetaught, as have others, that silence has its own power and its ownimportance. It also has its own suggestion within it - though thisvaries within the context it is used. Likewise, saying or doingthings that cannot be easily defined suggests something as well.Often it suggests some hidden, occult, power or secret meaning.Luke takes advantage of this, as have I when I first wrote of “non-sense” and later Banachek of “The Old Witchdoctor”. While notoften discussed, it is the suggestion in such acts that make thempowerful.

What has now become labelled “convincers” is of course asuggestion meant to reinforce a previous suggestion. It is alsooften a subtle link between a physical likelihood and a label. Thismethod may also be used to link a suggestion with a visual, audio,or feeling hint. Whatever happens, this is labelled too, so that thefacts reflect the original premise.

I talked about the “Duh” factor in Wonder Words and otherwritings. This is when a suggestion is made - hinted at - basedupon common experiences. Luke uses this notion in many of hiseffects. While what I encouraged in Wonder Words may have leadmany performers to including metaphors in their works, Iespecially enjoy Luke’s rose effect in this book. It is my kind ofenchanting magic, with a message both direct and metaphorical,spoken and symbolic.

One more concept which Luke uses that you might like toconsider: When many things are said or suggested, and one of

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them is acknowledged to be true by a spectator, all the rest willalso be believed to be true, generally. This is not one hundredpercent, as truly outrageous and obviously impossible claims maybe dismissed. But overall, suggestion indicates that if a spectatoranswers in the affirmative, it is all true. This is a portion of my so -called “multiple reality” or “dual reality” principle, as it has beendubbed since Wonder Words, and Luke uses this very well.

Keep in mind how labels create supposed reality by suggestion.Think of how silence and words both can hint at ideas known andunknown. Consider how suggesting ideas to your audienceindirectly could be used rather than relying on direct statements.Ponder how physical motion and meaning can be used to hint atan effect. Dare to try and keep practicing, as one must do in allperforming arts regardless of technique or method. Keep the ideaof indirectly performing as well as directly entertaining. Do thesethings as you read through Luke’s book, and you will betterunderstand the thoughts and principles behind it.

Luke of course first placed some of his material in my manuscript“Miracles of Suggestion”. Later, I was pleased to pen his very firstbooklet for him. Some of his works in these manuscripts havealready become classics. Surely this new book will be viewedmuch the same.

I am thrilled that I have been thought at all a teacher of such finestudents and methods as the last two generations of miracleworkers have produced. To have such influence in these fineperformers and thinkers is indeed a great honour and blessing. Nodoubt how Luke applies these concepts will be a blessing to youand your performances too.

Enjoy the mysterious and indirect ride.

Kenton Knepper2003

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mixing magic and mentalism......mixing magic and mentalism

section eight

Mixing Magic and Mentalism

I personally have issues with the mixture of traditional magic withstrong Mentalism. I feel that to switch from a compellingdemonstration of psychological influence and thought reading to asponge ball routine will raise several unwanted questions aboutyour performance.

However, I do feel able to combine magic and Mentalism if themagic is ‘correct’. Let me explain. You will see in the secondsection of this volume a collection of some ‘magic’ effects. Theyare, however, hinting at a side of magic that a sponge ball routinecouldn’t possibly. I have never exclusively confined myperformances or repertoire solely to Mentalism. The majority ofthe material I have put in print does not actually fall under thestandard definition of Mentalism. The effects that I am mostproud of and draw the best and most resonant reactions from myaudiences are certainly not Mentalism in the traditional sense.

One effect that I include in all of my performances and whichappeared in my book “7 Deceptions” is called For Andruzzi. Ineffect, the pulse of the performer slows and eventually stops. Theperformer then continues and actually appears to stop of the pulseof a spectator! This is in no way traditional Mentalism. It doeshowever seem to fit perfectly within the constraints of a Mentalismset. Another of my effects in which, during the course of a palmreading, the lines of the spectator’s hand begin to wildly dancearound on their palm, is similarly avant garde. Again, however, itfits perfectly in my Mentalism set.

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Clearly, Hippity Hop Rabbits does not fit my style. However, I dofeel able to mix a darker form of magic with Mentalism andSuggestion to make a fresh performance. Some people will throwin the term ‘Bizarre Magick’ when such concepts are spoken of. Ido not class myself as a Bizarre magician. I do feel at times I drawfrom the world of Bizarre Magick in order to create what in mymind is the strongest possible effect but again I do not commitmyself to the strict term Bizarrist. I feel that my performancesactually fall somewhere in-between the two worlds of Mentalismand Bizarre Magick.

I feel that this combination can create such stunning andcompelling presentations that I could not possibly commit myselftotally to just one genre.

In my own performances I have been known to mix many different‘powers’ within one performance, but often my effects have acentral THEME. Here lies the rub.

Some routines in this volume are comprised of several effectswhich on the surface seem unrelated. It is only when a closer lookis taken that these effects tie together. They all revolve either inpresentation or direct effect around emotion.

I do, as those of you who have seen me work or read my otherbooks already know, tend to focus mainly on my ‘SuggestiveMentalism’ set more than other parts of my repertoire. Even whenusing other routines though, I always try to either tie an emotionalhook directly into the presentation or affect a spectatoremotionally via the actual workings of the effect.

I feel that the group you are working for dictates just what you canand cannot do before crossing the line. Upon occasion, if themood is right, I perform an effect in which a scar appears and thenheals itself on my palm. This is an effect that if presented at thewrong time could easily ruin the credibility of the rest of my set.

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I use this as an example of why it is important to stay flexible andbe able, if the mood is right, to push things forward but alwayskeep the performance strong. Rick Maue offers a lovelyassessment of good theatrical performance being like the wind. Itis inexplicable and invisible, moving as it chooses and affecting allin its path. This I feel is a very good mind set to be in and the oneI try to put myself in when constructing new material orperforming. Look at the most successful ‘psychic’ on the planet,Uri Geller. He uses this gambit and probably will for the rest of hislife. A true testament to exactly what is able to be presented withcredibility if the performance is strong. Love him or hate him, noone can deny him of a strong performance. If we look closely atGeller’s performances we can see they each run along a centraltheme also. He almost always tends to shift the “applause andadmiration” toward the spectator - something I am sure helped along way in endearing him early in his career to the public at large.

So for me the mixture of Mentalism and magic, when done withcare, is natural and powerful. I attempt to structure every effectaround a central theme and only select material which I feelcomplements the other effects within the set. I also try to remainflexible. I hope this is clear, as these are not easily achieved goals,but ones which I personally feel are well worth thinking about.Hopefully you feel the same?

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methodology......methodology

section nine

Methodology“A brief look at modern Bizarre Magick”

Bizarre; bi·zarre (b-zär*) adj.

Strikingly unconventional and far-fetched in style or appearance; odd;

fantastic; whimsical; extravagant; grotesque. See Synonyms at fantastic.

The Webster Online Dictionary Definition of the word Bizarre......................

‘Strikingly unconventional’, an interesting definition, but possiblythe curse of Bizarre Magick. I personally feel the lines that definethe very nature of the umbrella term “Bizarre Magick” need to bere-drawn and serious thought given to how Bizarre Magick fits intoa modern performer’s repertoire.

Personally I have very little room for skulls, daggers and robeswithin my professional repertoire. Do not misunderstand me, Iam in no doubt that such a presentational slant can be performedwith style and theatrical grace, one need look no further than RickMaue or the god who is Christian Chelman to see so. I am simplysetting forth my own chosen path and my thinking in an areawhich almost by its very nature is indefinable.

To my mind the Bizarre performer need not steep himself in robesand skulls in order to be strikingly unconventional or indeed to beseen as performing the darker side of Magick. I at present have noeffects within my own “darker” repertoire that involve the use ofanything other than the mind or body of a spectator, or the body ofthe performer and a few simple props, such as a ring, an oldnail, etc.

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I personally feel that people associate skulls and such withchildren at Halloween and not with a person with otherworldlyknowledge or powers.

This is of course an area that needs thought anyway - exactly whatdo you want to communicate to your audience? The answer to thisquestion provides great rewards.

My own goal in the performing of “Bizarre Magick” is quite simple.I wish to present as chilling a performance as is possible. To me,skulls and daggers simply are not at all unsettling to a modernaudience. I actively try to eliminate the “clutter” of props in mypresentations. I prefer to employ simple and unsettling plots withsimple and easy to follow movements without the added “clutter”of ornate props. Also, as you will see in the last item of the book, Ienjoy using a healthy amount of suggestion and with a slightlydarker angle the effect of such suggestion can be very theatrical.The concept of “manipulation of a person’s mind or thoughts” is tome, and in my opinion to modern audiences, far more chillingthan a fake skull with flashing eye sockets.

Allow me to outline this approach further. The above is saidassuming you are not performing in the wondrous surroundings ofyour own “Haunted Chamber” or some such. In those cases, it isvery possible to perform and achieve the very goal I wish toachieve employing all the paraphernalia of such a performance,skulls, dagger, altars etc.

I am approaching and developing material for the performer who isnot afforded the luxury of such surroundings. In my opinion itwould be highly unpractical for the performer hired to entertain inpeople’s homes, at for example a dinner party, to bring along hisown surroundings needed to create the correct type of atmospherethat a “Haunted Chamber” instantly offers.

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To my mind simply removing an old skull and an old book fromwithin a weathered case does not have the same effect on thespectators within their own home that a creatively and artisticallyconstructed “Haunted Chamber” has on its visitors.

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effects......effects

section ten

1. ‘Divided by hate’ page 622. ‘Stigmata to go please’ page 683. ‘The kats kradle’ page 744. ‘The ernie ball book test’ page 815. ‘The ice man cometh’ page 866. ‘Stuck in a moment’ page 927. ‘A remote castle’ page 1008. ‘Blind sentence’ page 1109. ‘Personality projected’ page 11610. ‘A safe anchor’ page 12211. ‘Out of (t)his world page 12812. ‘A presentation’ page 13613. ‘A strange garden’ page 14014. ‘Judgemant day’ page 14915. ‘Zeroing in’ page 158

effects

From Luke

I personally strive for clean and simple methods to accomplishstrikingly unconventional effects

Let us begin our journey with such an effect involving nothingmore than a rose and some daring verbal deception andsuggestions.

I call it Divided By Hate.

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divided by hate......divided by hate

Divided By HateEffect:

A rose is displayed and laid down on the table top. The performerbegins to recount a tale of the delicacy of life, and how hate candivide and conquer all those around it.

The performer passes his hand above the rose, so as to cast ashadow over the bud.

The rose then begins to visibly die. The rose continues to die untilnothing is left other than a shriveled and wilted dead flower. Alasting testament to the power of hatred and its ability to warpbeauty.

Method:

This is an effect I have used in formal settings for a while now. Theeffect is larger than the sum of its parts. I have several versionsand here I will outline the version I use more often than any other.

This version is full of both physical suggestion as well aspsychological suggestions. As so often is the case with BizarreMagick the presentation makes the effect. Do not sell it short.

You will need to go get yourself a rose. Pick a few petals from therose and place these in a refrigerator until they are needed inperformance, thus ensuring they remain ‘alive’.

Simply leave the remaining rose petals and stem lying around. Itwill in a very short time die.

There are hardly any moves in the actual routine. You will,

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however, appear to pick two or three of the petals from the roseand hand them to a lady or casually drop them to the floor. Thereare several presentations open to you - plucking the petals is veryreminiscent of “she loves me, she loves me not” and indeed formsthe basis for one of the presentations detailed, but let’s not runaway with ourselves just yet.

First let’s look at exactly how the effect is accomplished on aphysical level. You will add the ‘alive’ petals to the dead rose, andsimply lay them on top of the rose until the performance. It ispossible to hide this rose within a bunch of roses, then when it isneeded, pluck it from the bunch and continue. However, moreoften than not, I simply have this rose with the live petals restingon top of the dead ones, covering the majority of the dead petalsawaiting me in my performance case.

In performance all that happens is very simple; you will actuallyappear to pluck a few petals from the rose while reciting the “sheloves me, she loves me not” line, when in fact you are simplyremoving the few ‘alive’ petals.

This dead rose is then somewhat hastily placed onto the table, andyou cast a shadow over the rose itself. This is an interesting point.The shadow actually helps to obscure the true state of events. Tothe audience a still living rose has been placed down onto thetable after having a few petals torn from it.

The rest is down to the script and presentation.

You will use many suggestions to actually make some of theaudience believe they can see the rose visibly ‘die’ on the tablewhen you cast your shadow over it.

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Script;

The words in bold are said with either a stronger or lighter tone tothem, depending on what works better for your own performance.

“Hate is a powerful emotion. Almost as powerful as Love.”

(Plucking petals, one for each “me”)

“She hates me, she hates me not, doesn’t really have the same ringto it does it?”

(Drop petals to the table)

“She loves me, she loves me not - ah much better.”

(Plucking the final two ‘live’ petals from the otherwise dead rose)

“The only problem is Love and Hate are emotions that run closelyalongside one another - both powerful emotions with thepossibility to warp and change people, lives, cultures and evenbeliefs. One alive and full of beauty, while the other sleeps lifelessand destroys all in its path. Hate can exist anywhere human lifeexists. It is how we deal with this powerful and destructiveemotion that really tests us…”

(Place the rose onto the table. The bud of the rose has been heldcradled in your palm during the above lines, helping to obscurethe true ‘dead’ nature of the rose)

“She loves me, she loves me not, so often the case. But if Lovehas the power to heal, then Hate must be said to have the powerto hurt.”

(Clench your fist above the tabled rose and then open your handonce again. It should appear as though you are exerting some kind

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of physical effort suggesting something is about to happen)

“For hatred can make something so beautiful rot away until thereis nothing of beauty left. Can you see that?”

(Inquire of a nearby spectator)

“You can see just how powerful Hate can be, destructive in itselfand ultimately deadly. It can turn what was once beautiful into anugly lifeless version of what existed when it was shadowed byLove. If you actually look closely you can see a once beautifulrose, becoming the ugly victim of hate.”

(Here I move my hands closer to the rose on the table)

“Something once shadowed by Love, but now replaced by Hate,twisting and contorting, hatred draining away all the beautyuntil...”

(Make a sharp shaking gesture with your outstretched palm downhand)

“Nothing of its former self exists.”

(Blow on the dead petals. They will now be seen to be dry andbrittle. Remove your hand from shadowing the rose)

“Truly, Hate is a destructive emotion…”

(Hand the dead rose to a spectator to finish)

Added Touches;

It is also possible to attach a length of Invisible Thread to the rose.With a simple movement it will then wiggle around on the tablewhile your hand is above the rose. I use a length of thread running

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from a shirt button to the rose. I attach the thread to the buttonsimply with the use of Magicians Wax after removing the rose frommy case. This little touch increases the visible quality of the effectand really does enhance the routine.

After the rose itself is shown to be dead, it is also possible toperform a simple shuttle pass with the four ‘alive’ petals on thetable, switching them for four dead petals to finish. Personally Ienjoy the contrast they offer between the dead rose and the ‘alive’petals and do not switch them.

It is also interesting to note that a rose can house a “pocket ofscent” much like the free samples that are given in manymagazines. It is possible to simply apply a liberal amount of apleasant scent to a petal, which is then placed directly in contactwith another petal. I then place more of the scent on this newpetal. This is continued until all the ‘alive’ petals are covered in a“rose” scent. The scent is momentary locked within the petals. Ithen apply a less pleasant scent (typically vinegar) to the rest ofthe dead rose.

This is a subtle change in scent and more often than not will notactually be noticed on a conscious level, but does add a littlesomething to the death of the rose.

After reading ‘Divided By Hate ‘Kenton Knepper suggested thefollowing:

“I might crumble the rose once it is dried at the end... While thisdoes not allow the spectator to take home the dried rose, it's nowa "hateful" rose anyway - so not a big loss, I think. Also, crumblingthe rose makes the effect large enough for platform and stand-upshows - if not stage. The crumbling of dried rose visually isshocking, in my opinion at a larger distance.”

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stigmata to go please......stigmata to go please

Stigmata To Go PleaseThis is a truly strong effect - something I actually had one or tworeservations about performing, never mind releasing! I haveactually stopped using this for several reasons - none of which willbe discussed here. I will however leave it to the reader to decidewhether it will fit with their character.

Effect:

The performer after showing both hands removes a book and readsa section detailing accounts of “stigmata”, the spontaneous andprofuse bleeding of the palms.

He suggests he try something - after a moment or two of hardconcentration he becomes a “stigma” victim himself.

Method:

For this you will need to pop along to a theatrical make-upcompany and obtain a product called “Instant Blood Formula”.This product consists of two chemicals that when mixed produce ablood-like substance on whatever they have been applied to.

The book used is actually a dummy book which has been fittedwith a ‘Squeeze Bulb’. This bulb is filled with one of the twosubstances. I tend to fill this with the darker red substance. Aswell as the book you will also prepare a box of tissues with asecond ‘Squeeze Bulb’.

The Book:

Begin by finding a nice looking old leather bound book. Cut awaya window from the back of the book and hollow out quite a few ofthe pages. Make sure you hollow enough to allow space for the

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bulb to be glued into the hollowed section. The bulb can now befilled with the chemical using a syringe, and when pressure isapplied to it the bulb will squirt the chemical onto the palm.

The Box:

Is constructed in much the same way - you simply cut a “window”from the box, glue the bulb in place, and then refill the box withtissue. The bulb is filled in the same way with the second of thechemicals.

Details:

Having written the above I am sure you are all way ahead of me.Basically, you will secretly obtain the chemicals and then pushyour palms together during your ‘concentration’ to produce theblood. Let us look at the scripting and exactly how this secretapplication is worked in an elegant and deceptive manner. Thebook and the box of tissues begin in my performance case ready tobe obtained as soon as they are needed. I ensure they are notheld under anything or to apply any pressure onto them as thiscould force the chemicals out.

Script:

“"Stigmata" is a Catholic phenomenon, used to describe theappearance of the wounds of Christ on a pious saint or Christianbeliever. It has long been debated by many who believe thatstigmata are instead a psychosomatic effect brought on by intenseprayer. Stigmatics themselves are the main source of mystery forthousands of Christian believers. Are they really being puncturedby the forces of God? Or are the wounds self-inflicted by thosewho have intense belief? Stigmata can exist in two forms, visibleand invisible. Invisible wounds are those covered by the forces ofGod for the inner comfort of the sufferer. Visible wounds appear on

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the side, palms, feet and head, and often appear and disappear inthe space of a few hours. They can appear in one area alone or allareas at once. Often, intense bleeding accompanies them, and theperiod before they appear is characterized by depression andweakness. Some stigmatics report feeling whips across theirbacks.”

The performer removes from his case an old looking book andleafs through one or two of the pages as if scanning them for someimportant piece of information. He continues reading aloud fromthe book:

“The first recorded case of these wounds was in the year 1222, by aman named Stephen Langton of England. Later, St. Francis ofAssissi, a famous follower of Jesus, experienced wounds in 1224.The wounds can be experienced by both men and women.”

Paging through the book once more he finds another relevantpiece of information and again reads aloud:

“One of the more famous female stigmatics was St. Catherine ofSiena, who experienced invisible wounds on her hands and feet.An interesting fact about stigmata is that it corresponds with thePassion and Death of Christ. Many wounds appear during the LastSupper and the holy days of Easter. They disappear on Easteritself. Stigmatics reportedly speak to visions of Christ and angelsduring their trials, and smell strange scents. There are evenreported cases of the blood types not matching between stigmataand wounds. Stigmata has been reported everywhere fromAmerica to Italy. There are cases in France, Spain, England,Germany and tonight maybe in Outwood Common (insert name ofvenue here).” At this point the performer loudly slams the bookdown onto the table top. It is at this time you will apply a hardpressure to the cut out on the bottom of the dummy book,allowing pressure to be applied to the bulb. This will due to itsconstruction cause the squeeze bulb to spray one of the two

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chemicals needed directly onto the waiting right palm.

At this point you must now appear to be deep in concentration -this is nothing more than a simple ruse to buy time. You want thechemical to soak into your palm as fully as possible. You willreach down and almost as an afterthought remove the box oftissues.

This is where the handling becomes tricky. You need apply thesecond chemical to your left palm without allowing any of it at allto contact your right palm. The best way to do this is to grip thebox with the right hand wrapped around the edge of the box. Withthe right hand, place this box on top of your left palm. Now in theact of placing the box onto the table, you squeeze the box abovethe cut out, causing the bulb to squirt the chemical onto the leftpalm, much as with the book. These actions are carried out duringthe following lines:

“One of the more interesting theories to explain this phenomenonis the idea of ‘theological placebo effects’. According to this line ofthought, stigmatics are so emotionally and physically tied to theirbelief that they experience a state of mind similar to raptures. It isa fact that the immune system can be controlled by the wakingmind, and in some cases, a heartbeat can be consciously slowed. Itis this belief that leads some to think that the wounds of thestigmata are personally, albeit unconsciously, produced. I willhowever leave it to you to make up your own mind.”

You now stay quiet for a good 2 or 3 minutes, allowing the ‘Powerof Silence’ technique to do its work within the performance. Youwill stand still and silent, then suddenly slap your palms togetherwhile taking a deep breath. Rub them against one another andthen move them away holding them with your palms toward thetable. After a suitable pause, display the blood.

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Often I have used this as a finale piece. I would say nothing,remove a tissue and wipe my hands, then leave. Having made animpression that would stay with the spectators for a lifetime…

Like I said.... I will leave it you, the reader, to decide if this is aneffect to fit within your own wonderful performance style.

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the kats kradle......the kats kradle

The Kats KradleDuring the course of a fine evening’s dining the conversation turnsto the more sinister topic of Voodoo and the wishing of ill uponthose who cross your path badly. One of the stranger characterspresent becomes the main focus of the conversation and with atwinkle in his eye he suggests they attempt something unusualtogether. The other guests agree, albeit with an edgy feeling oftrepidation.

The guest dressed impeccably in black removes a pad and a penfrom his weathered leather satchel, whilst explaining that he needstwo assistants - one to be the helper and one to play the ‘victim’…

He draws what appears to be the outline of a body on a sheet ofthe paper. He then asks one of the guests to be the helper andplace themselves in a situation they can recall very vividly whenthey felt engulfed with feelings of hate and anger. They are then toactually imagine all those feelings being sent out to the personwho caused them.

Next, an empty wine bottle is spun on the table top to ‘select’ theunfortunate guest who will play the ‘victim’ and be the outlet forthe hatred and anger! The unlucky ‘victim’ diner is invited to standalong with the helper, who is still firmly placing their mind in thesituation they recall so well.

The ‘victim’ is asked to stand with their eyes firmly closed and toattempt to relax! The helper is then asked to mark the paper witha bold X representing the area of the body they wish to harm. Thissheet of paper is then rolled firmly and placed in full view standingin the neck of the wine bottle, as a new attractive centre-piece -with a soon to be macabre story to accompany it.

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With the ‘victim’ stood with their eyes firmly closed, the dark andsomewhat menacing character who has been overseeing the wholeaffair requests the helper to actually see themselves drawing thatlarge X over and over again, to actually focus upon nothing exceptthose emotions they have in their memory and the drawing of theX. They are also requested that they close their eyes to help focustheir mind upon the feelings and the image they have.

The would-be witch doctor asks both the victim and the helper toopen their eyes. He asks the guest who had the unfortunate strokeof luck to be the ‘victim’ if anything happened?

“I felt two or three sharp prods in my left arm.”

The first guest appears slightly taken aback by this revelation. Theperformer asks the helper where she marked the X. She replies:

“The left arm.”

The mysterious stranger who has overseen the whole thingsuddenly reaches forward and grabs the paper and tears it intoseveral pieces, explaining that to ensure the spell is broken thepaper need be destroyed.

Suddenly, he then grabs the slightly dazed guest who wasresponsible for drawing the X by both wrists with a firmness thatwas not expected. He stares deeply into her eyes and suddenlybegins to describe in detail the time she had been so consumedwith hate. Without warning he allows the charming woman's armsto tumble back to her side and makes a hasty exit.

The other guests all agree that he was definitely not the bestperson to invite to the wake after all…

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Method:

Please excuse the somewhat impassioned write up of this dramaticpiece. I felt it worthy of some kind of theatrical staging in thewriting, as it is such a huge part of the effect – this, without thecorrect performance, will not work - however with a strongperformance delivered with conviction I think this can besomething really quite chilling.

The bare bones of the actual method are surprisingly simple. Youwill obviously have received the position of the X and the eventssurrounding the helper’s unpleasant memory via your favouriteimpression device - currently I use Larry Becker and Lee Earle'swonderful “Kopy Kat” pad.

What makes this effect play is the appearance to the audience atlarge that only an X was written and the information you relaydescribing the event was purely being thought of and had not beenrecorded anywhere. This is in actual fact not true, as on the pagealong with the outline of the body is also a checklist of sortsconsisting of three titles: Where, When, Why. I draw a thick blackline above and below the writing forming something of a box forthe spectator to write within.

The checklist and lines are not written during the performance onlythe body outline is - this is then taken by the impression device.The spectator fills in the X on the page and due to the way youword the presentation they understand they are to fill in thedetails on the page as well.

Obviously the position of the X and the other information is thusknown via the impression device. The reason for tearing the pageat the conclusion is to destroy the evidence of the writteninformation.

How you get the glimpse of the impression is really up to you. I

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simply a use second sheet of paper and during the effect draw theoutline, placing the X on the correct part of the body. It appearsas though you have predicted the position of the X, althoughactually you are only making a prediction in order to get yourglimpse! I hand this out to a member of the group, and then moveonto the revelation of the spectator feeling the taps. I am suremany of you reading are well ahead of me on the method at workhere. It is simply a modified version and new presentation for mygood friend Banachek's wonderful PK Touches. I then close thesequence with the revelation of the information written.

If the X has been drawn on either of the feet obviously Steve’soriginal handling would not work so I came up with the followingto overcome this problem:

The performer touches no one and yet when he asks the spectatorif they have felt anything, they reply;

“Taps.”

The performer enquires;

“How many and where?”

The spectator replies;

“Two on my left foot.”

Method;

This is obviously an outgrowth of Banachek’s PK Touches. Isometimes use this effect after the original PK Touches effect toproduce a powerful sequence.

Under the visible action of tapping a spectator’s foot, you willsecretly tap a different spectator’s foot as well.

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This is accomplished by the larger action covering the smalleraction. This will be a very easy addition to all who already useBanachek’s wonderful effect PK Touches.

Let us first deal with the positioning of the spectator who willsecretly be touched.

Positioning of the spectators:

Spectator One (who has closed eyes throughout the effect) ispositioned facing the audience directly behind (upstage) toyourself. If performing this to follow Banachek’s original thenSpectator Two is positioned to your right and slightly forward ofthe other.

If you are not using the original PK Touches you will not need thesecond spectator, as you will appear to only touch a member ofthe front row of your audience.

You will appear to lean forward, bending at the knees to reachdown and touch a spectator on their foot. You will in fact need tolean all your weight on your left foot, which is positioned slightlymore forward than your right foot. This will naturally allow yourright foot to leave the floor. This is simply a matter of balance.

You will now be bending very slightly at the knees, leaning all yourweight on your left foot. The right foot now leaves the floorslightly as your entire body moves toward the foot of a spectator.The best way to describe this is to imagine you were pickingsomething up from the floor, bending at the waist and slightly atthe knees. One foot takes all the weight, and the other leaves thefloor slightly. This is a very natural position and something thatdoes happen naturally when you bend at the waist and the kneesslightly.

Now come the visual and the hidden touches. You will make a

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large gesture with your right hand, moving your entire right arm,and forming a pointing first finger with your hand. Move this handin a wide arch and in a swooping action come forward and tap thefoot of a spectator sat in the front row.

It is under this cover that the raised right foot contacts the foot ofthe spectator with their eyes closed on stage. It is important youmake a big deal out of the visible tapping with the hand, on thespectator’s foot. The more visual this is, the harder it is for theaudience to think you could have somehow sneakily touched theother spectator’s foot. Which is indeed true, it would be close toimpossible to do without being seen.

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the ernie ball book test......the ernie ball book test

The Ernie Ball Book TestThe pages of a book are riffled in front of a spectator’s eyes and heis asked to merely think of one of the page numbers. They arethen asked to open the book at the page number they have inmind and then tightly close their eyes. They are told to open theireyes and allow their vision to focus on just one word, and thenclose the book.

The performer then asks the spectator to consciously focus on thefeelings they experience from hereon in. He states that:

“You will actually feel the word pop right out of your mind and intomine, it will be kind of weird but it will happen.”

Suddenly the spectator smiles and nods, confirming they felt astrange sensation. The performer then instantly reveals the word.

Method:

This is a really interesting, if somewhat time consuming toprepare, book test. It has roots in Danny Tong’s Mind Scan booktest and in Chan Canastas wonderful approach to the classic booktest as well as Barry Richardson's Newspaper Test as described in“Theatre of the Mind”.

You will need to obtain a cheap paperback book and a goodquality pencil eraser. Using the eraser you will now ‘rub out’ everypage number with the exception of the page you wish to force.

You do not remove the ink completely but rather make it lessvisible. You will find that with little pressure the ink on the pageswill become lighter in tone. I leave one page number untreated.

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If you compare the page numbers that have been treated with theone that has not, it appears as though the untreated page is in“bold” type. Darker and easier to see.

If you riffle the pages of the book you will notice that the “bold”untreated page moves past, it will stand out and be remembered.

This allows you to make use of the well-known psychological cardforce using the book. Most often seen with a pack of cards inwhich you hesitate slightly on one playing card allowing it to beseen for a split second longer than the others, this force is nowpossible with the book. You need no breaks or separations in thepages of the book and there is no need for a long hesitation - avery slight pause will do. The bold and light nature of the pagenumbers, due to the pencil eraser’s effect on them, makes this avery simple and utterly effective way of forcing the page number. Now comes to the forcing of the word. On the untreatednumbered page you need to select a word roughly central in thepage. You will now “treat” all the words on the page with theexception of the force word. One word on the page will stand outas did one page number.

The force of this word is really fairly simple. You will request firstthe spectator remembers one page number as they fly past. “I will just let these pages pass here and I want you to focus yourattention on one page, one that really catches your eye.”

This is said as you riffle the pages of the book at their lower corner.Thanks to the prep work on the book earlier this will be the forcepage. Allow the book to close fully and hand it to the spectator.

“I would like you to turn to the page you saw. Then hold it openand firmly close your eyes. I would then like you to allow yourselfto feel relaxed.”

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I now in my own presentation stand back to back with thespectator with a pad and go on to later reveal the word by writingit on the pad.

“Allow your eyes to pop open and look down at that page. I wouldlike you to see one word that is very clear to you, one that catchesyour attention. Then close the book and drop it onto the floor infront of you.”

Thanks to our treatment this will be the force word. I have thespectator drop the book to ensure they do not look at other pages.All that remains now is to reveal the word in your own choosing.

This is closely linked to Barrie Richardson's thinking in hisnewspaper test as mentioned in the introduction to this effect. Formore information on this kind of force see his book “Theatre of theMind”.

The Burst Bubble Suggestion

Now comes the part of the routine that is really fun to perform.You will actually through the suggestion script make the spectatorfeel the thought “pop out of their head”. This will use almost allthe techniques we have already outlined. It will however takesome work to become fluid for you. However as I have alreadystated you cannot fail in this kind of routine as you still have therevelation of the word to fall back upon.

Script:

Here’s the scripting I use:

“Now in a moment I am going to ask you to really focus yourattention on what you are experiencing, because we are actuallygoing to attempt to move one thought from your head to mine. Iknow that sounds strange and it will actually feel a little odd as

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well. Most people actually feel it go, you probably will too - but ifyou don’t it is ok, don’t worry about it… trust me it will happen.”

I am sure you have already recognized the ‘Don’t Lie’ techniquehere.

“Now please hold your hand out. We are going to make thatthought travel from your mind into mine, but we need to makesome kind of physical contact to do this so just point your fingerat me.”

Here I use the ‘Old Witch Doctor’ method already taught, slowlymoving my hand to theirs. As I touch their hand I state thefollowing:

“Ok now, you feel it yes? How strange is that? It’s hard to explainisn’t it? It just kind of pops right out of your head right?”

That's all there is to it. To the audience it appears as if thespectator actually felt the word go - this will more often than notbe true - the spectator will feel something, however if they do not -you still have the revelation of the word.

Finish by dramatically revealing the word and you’re good to go.

Credits:

Credit must go to a few people for the inspiration for method ofthe book test. Firstly, as stated in the text, Barrie Richardson'sNewspaper Test from the brilliant “Theatre Of The Mind” alongwith Danny Tongs Mind Scan which can be found in “The NewInvocation”, as well as a healthy amount of inspiration from theoutstanding Chan Canasta book test of which supposed detailscan be found in David Britland’s work on the amazing man.

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the ice man cometh......the ice man cometh

The Ice Man ComethEffect:

The performer brings forth an old jewelry box which has a redribbon tied around it. This is placed in the safe keeping of aspectator who takes it to the back of the room, away from theperformer.

The performer explains that at various times in history ice hasbeen a very precious commodity.

He borrows a ring from a spectator and asks a second spectator toexamine the ring and really pay attention to it, because in amoment he will need to be able to recognize it once again.

The performer takes the ring back from the spectator and makes afist around it, recounting a specific tale about the value of ice. Heasks the first spectator to think about the first time she saw herring, then he dramatically opens his hand to reveal the ring hasvanished.

The performer, without going anywhere near the box held by thespectator at the back of the audience, asks him to open it and telleveryone what he finds inside. He tells everyone that it is thevanished ring, but it is sealed in ice!

The spectator breaks apart the ice and confirms it is the very samering he saw. It is then given back to its owner, still icy cold.

Method:

This really is a stunning routine when used in the right setting. Itis a parlour routine and in that context plays perfectly.

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You will actually be making use of a dual reality concept. Inessence you will borrow a ring from a spectator on your right side,and in the action of walking to show the ring to a spectator onyour left side, you will switch the ring for another ring. The ring, ofwhich you already have a duplicate of sealed in the box, is thenexamined thoroughly and remembered by the spectator. When hefinds the ring in the box, as far as he is concerned it is the verysame ring.

Which in truth it is - the ring is the same as the ring he examined.It is, however, not the ring that was lent to you in the first place.

Now let’s look at the staging of the effect because this is where theeffect will either be made or broken. I take no risks when usingthis routine. I borrow a ring from a spectator on the far right of thefirst row. Then I move to the far left of the row and switch the ringand give it to the spectator on the far left of the first row.

This allows me not only plenty of time to switch the ring butplenty of cover to mask the dual reality deception.

The box is handed out at the very beginning of the effect to aspectator at the very back of the audience. I like having thespectator walk to the back of the room as it seems to add impactto the effect - it shows the exact distance that the ring has traveledand obviously you have gone nowhere near the box nor indeedhad the opportunity to.

This is all there is to the method. A routine such as this needs astrong presentation. Let us now look at the one indicated above.

"Before the 19th Century, ice was a very valuable commodity. Fromabout 15th C. onwards, an ice cellar was THE household accessory.Built deep underground, and storing great blocks of ice from thewinter, only the very rich could afford them. And ice cream wasmore valuable ounce for ounce, than gold! Into that history

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stepped alchemists, known as ice men, who instead of transmutinglead into gold, turned water into ice."

This, despite being not strictly true, does make a decent theatricalsetting for effect. You continue:

"One such chap turns up in the middle of a sultry August to thecourt of the sun king Louis 14th, when the palace ice stocks wererunning low, with a reputation as an ice man. And he promises toturn the Versailles fountains into ice, for a little gold, for histrouble you understand. He has few bits of equipment and a smallbox, which no one could open. My box will be kept safe at the backof the audience."

During this statement you bring forth the box already loaded withthe duplicate ring, the duplicate of which you have ready andwaiting in finger palm to be switched in. You offer to recreate hisprocess, and say that you too will need a little gold, and borrow aring. This is shown to someone, a glass of wine is also borrowed,and you return to the front and leave the ring in clear sight.

"As the nights sweltered, and the king melted like butter in hisbed, no ice appeared. So, with soldiers he bursts into the ice man’sworkshop and tells him to make ice or else. The ice man takes acup of the king’s wine, and holding its rim against another cup,mutters something and sloshes the liquid between the two cups".

You have placed another wineglass rim-down over the spectator’scup, and have turned them over, so the liquid splashes betweenthe cups.

"Sure enough, the king’s wine starts to become solid and ice isformed in it - but only a small amount".

Small solid chunks of what could be ice have formed in theborrowed wine. Kind of like a Slush Puppy drink. Actually it’s wine

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plus slush powder you hid in the second cup. This is a good useof slush powder and really does look convincing.

"The King is less than impressed - so much gold for a beaker full ofice, so he has the ice man killed."

Continue on,

"I’ve made some ice, and the deal was for gold, so I think this ismine."

Here you will vanish the ring and drop it secretly into a servant onyour table, that is filled with ice. More on this later.

"The king was in a great rage about the ice man and the loss of hisgold, so he trashes the workshop. Eventually he comes across thebox, and it is prised open. Inside, he found a great quantity of ice,and inside the ice, the gold he had paid the alchemist."

This last sentence is said as you reveal that the ring has travelledinto the box. This is actually the duplicate ring embedded in ice.A spectator breaks open the ice and confirms it is the same ring.

Under the cover of this happening you will recover the ring fromyour table servant. The ring is then returned to the originalspectator, switching the true ring back in under the cover ofreturning it, and she confirms it is her ring, and that it is icy cold.Notes:

This version of the effect really is a theatrical piece of BizarreMagick. I must tip a nod to my good friend Caleb Strange forhelping me with the story. Clearly this is a deeply involved routinethat will take much preparation. However I feel it is worth everysecond of preparation.

A word about the servante: personally I use a version of an idea by

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Karrell Fox which appeared in "My Latest Book". He called it "SitOn Servante" however I affix it to the chair I use. I also haveconstructed the actual "bag" section of the servant from waterproofstiff plastic. The ice is not a solid frozen block; it is lots of icecubes packed together. Onto this frozen water I have placed a thinlayer of gauze. This allows the ring to become cold and yet it iseasily accessible and you do not get wet hands in the action ofremoving it. Like I said a lot of work - but I feel it is worth it.

This is obviously related to the classic Himber Linking FingerRings. It does however take the principle in a very differentdirection to the original Linking Finger Rings.

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stuck in a moment......stuck in a moment

Stuck In A MomentEffect;

The performer talks of his days at school - he vividly remembersdesperately watching the clock and seeing the second hand standstill for what seemed like an eternity. Every second that passedseemed like an hour and every hour seemed like a week. Helonged to get out of that small, stuffy classroom, but for somereason every time he looked at the clock the hands just seemed tobe stuck.

A spectator is asked to look at the face of her watch - sure enoughit slows down. Eventually it stops and the spectator is seen to be‘stuck inside of a moment’ not being able to move or even speak.The performer snaps his fingers and brings everything back to apleasurable normality.

“To pass the time I used to actually will the time on the clock tomove - well that, and draw on the table.”

The performer asks for the help of a spectator. They assist theperformer and sit to his right. The performer asks them to glanceat their watch and see if;

“…the second hand seems to be stuck in a moment.”

The spectator replies that they do indeed appear to be stuck therefor some time. The performer explains that when we are put into asituation which makes us nervous or uncomfortable, ourperception of the amount of time we spend there is not necessarilyaccurate. This may be the explanation for his days in schoolseeming so long to him. The performer continues;

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“At school I was not exactly the crayon in the box, so to speak,however I did learn a lot about myself and about people. You see,when people are nervous they seem to act differently.”

The performer asks the spectator to remove his or her watch andjust glance at it once again. They see that the second hand againseems like it is taking longer to move than it should. Theperformer explains that our perception begins to change as hementioned earlier when a person is placed under a stressfulsituation.

“You see the seconds still pass at exactly the same speed as theywould normally, however you are aware of everything around youand everybody for that time. Your nervousness makes the secondseem longer, it isn’t you’re simply paying it more attention thanyou would normally.”

The performer continues explaining that it might even be possibleto say you were stuck inside of a moment. The performer asks thespectator to be totally silent and raise their hand for just onesecond, which they will time on their own watch. The spectator’shand is raised for what seems like an eternity. Finally thespectator’s hand is lowered as they confirm the second has passed.Clearly the spectator has a different perspective of a second thanthe rest of the room. The performer continues:

“You see at school I found myself willing the clock to move to 3.15so I would be able to get out of that small nasty classroom. But Ifound that the more I wished it to move, the more it seemed toslow. At times I even thought I had managed to stop the clock.The time seemed to stand still, I seemed stuck to my chair. Icouldn’t move and neither could the second hand of the clock.”

The performer asks the spectator to focus her attention on thewatch face once again, this time she is to will the time to move,just like the performer once did. However the more she does this,

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again just like the performer, the slower the time seems to pass.In fact eventually the time actually seems to be standing still. Thespectator appears to be stuck rigid to the spot. Just like theperformer as a child, she appears to be stuck inside a moment.

The performer snaps his fingers and the spectator is fine, as is herwatch. She is thanked and returns to her seat.

Method:

This is a strong mixture of suggestions and magical methods. Themajority of the routine is actually suggestion - however the finalephase is simply dressing for the classic feat of PK power, the watchstop.

Any method for the classic watch stop can be used. Let us firstdeal with the routine from a suggestion angle.

The first phase of the routine is all accomplished using the‘Definition = Creation’ technique, however it is not explicitly speltout for the audience. You relate a story of your own school days.However through this, the ‘Definition = Creation’ can still work itswonders. I introduce the effect as follows:

“I vividly remember my school days longing for the bell to ring, so Icould leave that stuffy little classroom. To pass the time I used toactually will the time on the clock to move - well that, and draw onthe table. It seemed however the more I willed the time to movealong, the slower it became. The more I wanted it to move and themore I focused on it, the slower it became.”

I then ask for a spectator to assist. I sit them on my right if theyare wearing their watch on their right arm, or vice versa. I want thewatch to be visible to the audience at large. Here I use aConvincer that the entire routine is built on. Put simply, it is thenotion that if you were to stare at the second hand of a watch face

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it seems to be stuck, it seems to take much longer than a secondto actually move. I am sure we have all had the experience ofglancing at a watch/clock, and for what seems like three or fourseconds, the second hand seems stuck as you look?

I am unsure of the explanation to this, possibly our perception oftime. Or whether the second hand seems stuck because you fail tosee it tick on as you initially focus? That's by the by. I find it works.

This Convincer combined with the first seeds of suggestion youhave already planted in the introduction are more than enough toallow the first phase to happen. You ask the spectator to look atthe face, to keep her hand raised for the same amount of time ittakes for the second hand to move. This will appear strange. Tothe audience it might even look as if the spectator keeps theirhand raised for something like 10 - 15 seconds. This isexaggerated by exploiting The Power of Silence Rule, which wehave already covered. I often follow it up with the simple line:

“…those second hands seem to be stuck in a moment.”

The spectator replies that they do indeed appear to be stuck therefor some time. I normally offer some kind of rational explanationalong the lines of:

“When we are put into a situation which makes us nervous oruncomfortable our perception of the amount of time we spendthere is not necessarily accurate. This may be, explains those daysin school which seemed so long to me. At school I was not exactlythe crayon in the box, so to speak, however I did learn a lot aboutmyself and about people. You see when people are nervous theyseem to act differently.”

The performer asks the spectator to remove his or her watch andjust glance at it once again. They see that the second hand againseem like it is taking longer than it should to move. Here I simply

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reinforce the original convincer covered earlier by doing exactly thesame thing again. I then state the following:

“You see the seconds still pass at exactly the same speed as theywould normally, but since you are aware of everything around youand everybody for that time, your nervousness makes the secondseem longer, it isn’t simply you’re paying it more attention thanyou would normally. It might even be possible to say you werestuck inside of a moment. Please be totally silent and raise yourhand for just one second. Time it on your very own watch.”

The spectator’s hand will be raised for what seems like an eternity.Finally the spectator’s hand is lowered as they confirm the secondhas passed. Clearly the spectator has a different perspective of asecond than the rest of the room. Don’t sell this short, it is astrong moment and will have a deep impact on the spectator. Icontinue:

“You see at school I found myself willing the clock to move to 3.15so I would be able to get out of that small nasty classroom. But Ifound that the more I wished it to move, the more it seemed toslow. At times I even thought I had managed to stop the clock.The time seemed to stand still, I seemed stuck to my chair. Icouldn’t move and neither could the second hand of the clock. Itwas if I were stuck along with the movement of the hand right tomy chair, my hands were rigid and my lips seemed like they wereglued together. The more I tried to move, the more strong Iseemed to bond and fuse with my chair, my hands seemed to meltinto the table and my lips seemed to become super gluedtogether. No matter how hard I fought it, I was stuck along withthe second hand. It was OK though, I know that the moment thatsecond passed I would be able to move, so I didn’t try to fight it.”

I ask the spectator to focus her attention on the watch face onceagain, this time she is asked to:

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“Will the time to move.”

However the more she does this, just like the performer, the slowerthe time seems to pass. In fact eventually the time actually seemsto be standing still.

“As it stands still you will experience exactly what I did, becomingstuck inside that moment. It’s a weird feeling, don‘t try to fight it,just enjoy it.”

The spectator will now appear to be stuck rigid to the spot. Thisworks for several reasons. Thanks to the convincer used in theeffect, when you come to the final phase in which you will actuallystop the watch using your favourite method. None will evensuspect that you have actually stopped the watch. You have alsoused much suggestion all be it indirect. If you re-read thescripting I am sure you will be able to pick out certain rules thatwe have already covered in the book. All that will remain is for youto restart the watch and the spectator will instantly begin to moveagain. If they do not, I simply either touch their forehead or snapmy fingers loudly. This will cause them to move once again.

Notes:

This is a powerful routine that has drawn inspiration from severalsources. Firstly thanks go to Caleb Strange for pointing out theConvincer used to build the rest of the routine. The moment hementioned it, I had wild ideas running around my mind and whatyou have just read was the first of my experiments with thisinteresting Convincer. Thanks also have to go to Orville Meyer’swork which without this routine would not be either as ambitiousor impressive. This routine is also closely linked with the thinkingexpressed in Orville Meyer’s “Telepathy In Action”, a ground-breaking work well ahead of its time. The well read astuteMentalist will instantly see that this effect can provide perfectframing for Bob Cassidy’s work of genius An Experiment In Time -

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in my opinion one of the strongest routines of its kind to ever begraciously shared in print which can be found along with severalother stunning compositions in mind games in Mr. Cassidy’s“Pseudo Mentally Yours”.

Any method you prefer can be used to cause the watch to slow.Several are available on the market, currently I use an unpublishedmethod. I am not at liberty to explain either the marketedversions or the unpublished method, however I am sure the readerwill have his or her own preferred method.

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a remote castle......a remote castle

A Remote CastleMentalism involving playing cards is something of a hot topic. Itseems to be an issue that can divide and conquer mentalists theworld over.

The fraternity seems to be divided into two clear opposing groups.Those who would rather have their fingernails pulled out whilelistening to the hum of a dentist drill than include any kind ofpresentation featuring playing cards. Then we have the opposingviewpoint of those who argue most effectively that there are timesand rationales that can fully justify the use of playing cards in theirperformances.

Each group offers well defined and well argued stances that eachhas their own compelling point of view.

On one side we have those that feel the very presence of a pack ofplaying cards is from the outset implanting a suggestion oftrickery. Those who feel that an instant link will be drawn betweenplaying cards and the world of dodgy card tricks performed by yourleast favourite uncle at Christmas. Belittling their “psychic”flavoured entertainment.

Of the opposing view point, we have those performers whominclude dynamic presentations centering round playing cards.There is no question that a pack of playing cards opens a world ofdeception that allows the performer to present some wonderfullydeceptive and intriguing effects that will and can entertain eventhe most difficult of audiences when handled correctly. Oftenmentalists using playing cards in their performances use theconcept of the playing cards simply being a convenient andportable way of carry fifty-two separate objects that can allowrandom information to be arrived at.

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I offer no answers as to what is best for you. You will need toanswer this question for yourself. I have and am happy with mydecision. I limit the use of playing cards in my performance to nomore than one effect and then that effect has to meet a strong setof stringent requirements.

I feel it is necessary when dealing with playing cards to have aneffect in which the performer is “hands off” from the deck. In otherwords the performer has no physical contact with the deck ofcards. It also has to be strongly mental in theme. I use the effect“A Remote Castle” which follows as something that can be used ina parlour setting and to me fits all the requirements. It is overtlymental in nature and is totally out of the hands of the performer.It is also important to me that the effect be about the revelation ofinformation rather than the antics of the playing cards. As I said inthe previous paragraph, the pack of playing cards simplyrepresents fifty-two separate pieces of information that are easilycarried and easily recognizable by all. It is in this way the pack ofplaying cards is introduced within the structure of this effect.

Let us not dwell any longer on this troublesome topic and moveon to the actual workings of this effect.

Effect:

The performer enters the stage standing in front of a proudstanding structure made entirely from playing cards. A spectatoris asked to help the performer who then joins him on the stage.

“The notion of Remote Viewing is something I am sure some ofyou at least will have heard about. Often we hear amazing tales ofRemote Viewers who can seemingly, without explanations, throwtheir mind thousands of miles to a remote location and describein amazing detail that location - despite having never visited thislocation. It is even thought that the governments and intelligenceservices in both the US and the UK have used Remote Viewing to

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gather intelligence. Whether or not this is true is for you todecide, however I would like to attempt something along the linesof Remote Viewing.”

A spectator named Serranne is asked to join the performeronstage. The performer asks the spectator to push the card castleallowing the cards to tumble and fall according to destiny.

“Now often it is reported that when a person slips into this alteredstate - in order to achieve the ability of remote viewing - both theheart and pulse rate are said to slow. Serranne, would you pleasetake my pulse and move your right arm in accordance with thepulse.”

The performer suddenly takes on a serious persona, slowly takingdeep breaths, his eyes flickering and his body becoming heavy.Serranne’s arm is seen to go from moving at a very regular andspeedy pace to a very slow and irregular pace.

“Ok I think I may be ready, would you be so kind to relax your gripfrom my wrist - I would now like you to take a place behind thetable.”

The spectator moves behind the table, she then pushes the cardswhich fall haphazardly onto the table surface.

“I would like you now to allow your eyes to fix onto the playingcards in front of you. I want you to see all the playing cards - soplease if you would be so kind as to close your eyes firmly. Waitfor just a moment and then open your eyes allowing your vision tofix onto the playing cards you see, allowing them to become fixedin your mind’s eye.”

She closes her eyes as requested and opens them, looking quicklydown and allowing her vision to fix on one of the playing cards. “Excellent - thank you. Now I have to ask you to fix your mind on

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exactly what you see. Perfect, I am seeing a scattering of playingcards, there are exactly 4 red cards facing upward and exactly 6black cards facing upward. There are exactly three picture cards. Ican also see the Joker with the word ‘guarantee’ written across it.Would you please count the Diamond cards for me. Silently inyour head, count each Diamond you can see.”

As the spectator takes a moment to do this, the performer raiseshis hand in a fist and begins to raise fingers stopping with 4 of hisfingers outstretched.

“I can see exactly 4 Diamond Cards - correct?”

The spectator confirms this is indeed correct. The performercontinues:

“I see your eyes being drawn to those picture cards - just relax andallow your eyes to fix on one of them - that's right, I can see youbeing drawn toward the centre of the three - just stare at thatcentre card of those three playing cards. You are looking directlyat the Jack of Diamonds - correct?”

The spectator looking slightly dazed confirms that all theperformer has stated is 100% accurate.

Method:

For this effect you will need to gather a few special cards and youwill need to gather some card castle building skills!

Required:

In order to achieve this deception you will need to construct aspecial deck of playing cards. It consists of 40 double backedplaying cards.

It contains one double faced Joker that shows the Joker on eachpage 104

side. I use the guarantee Joker as it allows me to apparently “see”another element of detail that will add to the impact of theroutine. You will to this combination add the following 10 doublefaced playing cards again showing the same card on both sides ofthe cards:

JD, 7C, 8D, 10S, AD, KH, QS, 3C, 2H, 8H

Due to the nature of the deck these are now the only 10 cards thatare possible to fall face up when the card castle falls onto thetabletop. These 10 cards along with the Joker will later bedescribed to give the impression of Remote Viewing.

Preparation:You will need to build a card castle with the deck. This issomething that is nowhere near as troublesome as you might firstthink. If you find it difficult simply bow the cards short edges inopposite directions allowing each card to act as a support for thelast. Another intelligent move for the working performer is toactually apply a small layer of magicians wax along the short edgesthat rest against one another in the card castle to ensure a furtherstability to the castle when in the performance. The 10 card stackand the Joker will be placed in specific positions in the card castle.4 cards will be placed in the bottom line of 8 cards on the left sideof the inverted pairs of cards; each pair consists of a doublebacked card which is the card on the right of the two and a cardfrom the force stack which is on the left. 3 more of the cards willbe placed in the second row of inverted pair of cards on the leftside of each pair of cards. 2 more cards will be placed in the nextrow again on the left side of the pairs of cards. The last pair of the11 cards, the remaining card from your 10 card stack and the Jokerwill make up the final pair of cards on the very top of the cardcastle.

This situation can be seen clearly in figure 1.

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a remote castle...

...a remote castle

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figure 1

Presentation:

The effect can be presented in any way you desire, however I feel itworks especially well for the theme of Remote Viewing, as due tothe nature of the method it can offer such detailed descriptions ofthe deck’s situation on the table - something that apparently wascontrolled only by destiny. It is a nice theatrical touch to blow thecard castle down. Or allow the spectator to blow the card castledown.

I like the notion of having the castle blow over. It allows manypossible patter routes about the total randomness of the wind anditems that have been blown away resting quietly in a corner totallybeyond the control of any human.

All that remains now is to reveal the cards and describe thesituation that exists at present. The way this is done is a verycarefully planned psychological guiding sequence; the revelation ofthe final card is closely related to a wonderful effect of JustinHigham’s.

The Guiding:

You will appear to allow the spectator to settle on one playingcard, which you will then reveal. In actual fact you will describethe situation, the amount of black and red cards and the amountof picture cards.

Following this you will incorporate a wonderful visual elementwhen you ask the spectator to count the number of Diamonds.You will raise your clenched fist and raise 4 fingers slowly. Thisappears as if you are seeing the cards and counting the cards asthe spectator is. This is a small but all important touch.

The final guiding of the selection is very simple. I state thefollowing:

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“Of those Diamonds I can see you are drawn to the picture cardaren’t you? I want you to allow that card to become clear andbright in your mind - perfect! I can see the Jack of Diamonds.”

As you can see the spectator doesn’t actually settle on a playingcard at all, you simply guide them to thinking of the card you wishto describe. Obviously you can interchange the stack cards anduse any of the cards as the final selection.

Final Notes:

This routine is something that in my mind is far more than thesum of its parts. It makes for a theatrical and compellingdemonstration.The use of the card castle makes the whole effect a nicepresentation piece for either parlour or stage performance. Uponoccasion I use a slightly different introduction to the effect inwhich I talk of the use of Remote Viewing in the Cold War. I time itto the line:

“But sooner than was expected the castle fell.”

I blow the card castle allowing the cards to fall to the table. Thismakes for a theatrical and pleasing visual to introduce the routine.I decided to omit this presentation and leave the effect as neutralas possible allowing you to create what ever presentation will workwith your own wonderful style.

Alternative Method:

It would be possible to do a similar effect without the doublebacked playing cards or the stack - it would lose some of thedetail.

It would however allow you to perform the final revelation of thethought of playing card.

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I for this would simply use a force deck, which would be made upfrom 5 decks - repeating a run of 10 cards.

You could slightly change the presentation. Instead of asking thespectator to allow her eyes to fix over all the cards, you wouldneed to say something along the lines of:

“I would like you only to focus upon one playing card. Tightlyclose your eyes and then allow them to pop open. I would like youto focus your attention on the very first playing card you see, makea large picture and see it brightly and clearly in your mind’s eye.”

You could now move forward in the revelation as per the normalforce deck handling. Fishing, until you discover the full identity ofthe playing card.

Credits:

The idea of slowing the pulse to apparently slip into an alteredstate is in my mind an inspiring and wonderful one. It comes fromLeslie May, a prolific thinker who created a number of wonderfulmental and bizarre effects.

The slowing of the pulse with no gimmicks can be found fullycovered in my effect For Andruzzi which appeared in my first book“7 Deceptions”.

The guiding of the final card selection is related in one way oranother to Justin Higham’s Reverse Mind Reading from his booklet“The Simulation of Miracles”.

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blind sentence......blind sentence

Blind SentenceEffect:

The performer claims to have an unusual ability, namely to be ableto see through his fingertips. This vision, which he callsDermoptic, he goes on to display in a startlingly fair way.

A number of books are resting on a nearby table - the performerasks the spectator to select any book they so wish. He then asksthe spectator to hand the book to him. He riffles the pages of thebook asking the spectator to call stop when he wishes.

The book is opened at this point. The performer runs his fingertipalong the page from top to bottom. He asks the spectator to onceagain call stop at any time.

A paragraph has been randomly selected on a randomly selectedpage from a randomly selected book from many.

Despite this, he with his fingertips ‘reads’ out loud the verysentence the spectator has stopped the performer upon. As akicker the performer begins running his finger wildly through thepages and amazingly begins to relate information about the book’splot and its characters.

Method;

Despite there being little new here, I think all comes together insomething of a neat way. I have used it several times in my ownblindfold routine. It is interesting to note that despite essentiallybeing a blindfold routine, it does not appear to be.

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You shift the focus of this effect away from the notion of thestandard ‘Blindfold’ routine into an area of ‘Seeing with theFingertips’, something that to your audience will appear verydifferent.

This effect is also a very good example of the way I feel any kind of‘Blindfold’ routine can build elements of believability. In thissequence you can actually perform the effect with no sight. You donot need to be able to see through your gimmicked blindfold. Thisallows me to actually close my eyes during the performance of thispiece during my ‘Blindfold’ sequence. This means that for theentire duration of the effect I am actually ‘sightless’. As I havediscussed already, such things do affect the way in which you willcommunicate to your audience without even knowing it.

Let us look at the problems we face in presenting this effect:Firstly, we need to somehow discern which of the pile of books hasbeen handed to you. Secondly, we need to discern exactly whichpage has been selected and finally which paragraph has beenselected. Let us deal with each of these in turn.

Firstly, we have two options open to us in the problem ofdiscerning which book has been selected. We can either secretlymark the books. However, one of stipulations of this effect when Icreated it was to be able to use any book so it would seem thatthis option isn’t available. Another stipulation was that theBlindfold had to be real - this would allow me to perform thiseffect no matter what was thrown at me. A psychological ormechanical force of the book is also open to us. I for one wouldn’twant to be in a position where I do not know if a psychologicalforce has worked effectively or not. I also wouldn’t want to carry amechanical method of forcing with me.

It would seem that both of these options are in no way available tous. However I take advantage of what has been dubbed ‘The VirginState’ by Tony Raven in which you can take advantage of

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differences that are actually naturally occurring within your props.This allows me to use any book at any time. Something that in aneffect such as this is very beneficial to the performer.

I ask you to go to your own splendid collection of literature anddecide on three or four of your favourite titles.

Now run your fingers along the spine and the outer top edge of theclosed book. Repeat this with all your books. I am sure younoticed that each book is already marked by the nature in which ithas been manufactured. Some books are made with a laminatedcover, some a hardback, some are saddle stitched and some aperfect bound. It is unimportant in what way the books are made -all that is important is that you are able to remember how each ofthe books feel to the touch. This allows us to have any bookhanded to us and, simply by the way each book feels to the touch,instantly know which of the books has been selected.This is a very interesting and utterly deceptive method that will notever be questioned. It is also very close to embarrassingly easy toexecute.

Let us now look at the second of our problems - discerning whichof the pages has been selected by the spectator. We need eitherforce a page or peek the page. As I have already stated, theblindfold had to be real so it would seem that to make a peek isout of the question. Forcing a page of a book is a very simplematter and not something that will look out of place in this effectif it is handled correctly.

The force I use more in a formal situation is actually a gimmickedbook - I simply cut one of the pages slightly shorter than the restand then use timing to allow the pages to fall a moment beforethe spectator calls stop allowing all the pages above the shortpage to fly past - thus forcing the page you want. This option ismore than adequate for the effect; however in test conditionsettings I once again take advantage of the ‘Virgin State’ - however

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in a very different way to discern the book’s identity.

Before being blindfolded when the books are presented to me, Iallow myself to patter briefly about each of the books, engagingthe spectator in conversation about the book. If I happen to haveread it I do not mention this. I allow the pages of the books tonaturally fall open. There will be a point in the book of which thespine is broken more than any other. This will be the place thatthe book is more likely than any other to open when pressure isapplied to the outer right corner of the book. I push the corner ofthe book and apply a downward pressure - this will cause the bookto make a break at the place in which the spine was broken. It alsolooks utterly fair. The book is gripped at the very outmost cornerbetween your fingers. I allow the book to open and briefly glancetoward the book while making some relevant comment. I make amental note of the sentence that appears roughly two thirds of theway down the page.

I now insert my pinky (little finger) into this break and transfer it tomy left hand. I am now in a position to do a standard riffle force.The actual transfer sequence I use can be found described in greatdetail in Richard Busch’s “Peek Performances”.

I now riffle force the page upon the spectator. I have so fardiscovered which of the books has been handed to me. I have alsomanaged to force the page of which I remember a sentence duringthe introduction roughly two thirds of the way down the page.

Finally we need to somehow force the sentence we haveremembered. I find the best way to do this is to actually simplyuse a timing force. I run my finger from the top of the page to thebottom asking the spectator to call stop. I time it so my finger isin the right general area. I then push my fingertip deeply into thebook - this will ensure that you have your finger overlapping theforced text.

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I then run my finger along the page, left to right. Now all thatremains is for me to reveal the remembered sentence. I then handthe book to the spectator removing my finger and ask thespectator to:

“Read the line out loud.”

Due to the way you have worded your request, the spectator looksto the area in which you stopped and then for the sentence yousaid out loud - they will then repeat exactly what you have saidmoments before.

As something of a kicker finish, upon occasion I run my fingerthrough the book very quickly and continue this for one or twopages. I then seemingly, in amazing detail, relate the plot to theaudience. This makes use of a concept Kenton Knepper firstintroduced in his work “Miracles of Suggestion” under the title ofThe Subconscious Book Test. To achieve this, during theintroduction after noting the sentence I wish to force, I brieflyabsorb some of the information on the book’s summary whichappears on the back cover. This will provide you with plenty ofinformation to relate back about the story. It will give you thenames of the main characters and the most important moments inthe book.

This is especially good if using borrowed books as the owner canthen confirm that you were accurate in your summary. An optionalkicker that I use upon occasion. I hope you too will find a time inwhich this can fit into your own performance.

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projected personality......projected personality

Projected PersonalityEffect:

The performer introduces his next experiment:

“The aura is said to be a field of energy that is held to surroundthe physical body and which certain sensitive people are said to beable to actually pick up on. A bright band nearer the body with aless defined band further away, with the occasional strong flare ofcolour. It has even been thought that the golden halos seen indepictions of saints in early religious paintings could be anexpression of auras. I wonder would you mind if we were to take abrief look into your aura?”

The spectator agrees to have her aura read and the performerremoves a pad and begins sketching what he sees. He thenexplains what each colour is thought to represent and it seems tofit like a glove the spectator’s own personality. The performer thenclaims that he feels the spectator, with the proper training, couldalso easily pick up on people’s auras. He then asks the spectatorto close her eyes firmly. She is to picture a bright white screenwith nothing else entering her mind.

As the spectator is doing this, the performer lights a candle andleaves it in the centre of the table.

He then asks the spectator to open their eyes, keeping the brilliantwhite screen at the forefront of their mind, and to stare intentlyinto the candle flame.

As the spectator is staring deeply into the flickering flame, theperformer removes an envelope which he places on the table top.

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The performer then explains that all the spectator has to do isimagine that they will actually see colour in a dizzy hazesurrounding the performer’s hand.

The spectator looks toward the performer’s hand and to her ownamazement she can now see a strange colour surrounding thehand of the performer. The performer asks what colour thespectator sees as his own aura.

The spectator replies:

“I saw green with a bit of blue.”

The performer nods and with a knowing smile rips open theenvelope, taking out a card with a drawing much like the sketch hemade earlier. It shows a hand with a green aura surrounding it.The spectator managed to correctly read the performer’s aura.

Method:

This is a very simple but nonetheless pleasing combination ofsuggestion and classic conjuring methodology. Let us deal withthe actual mechanical method first. We need to actually matchwhatever the spectator will name. The actual prediction itself issimply a drawing of the outline of a palm with the coloursurrounding it. I make these up on card stock thick enough toensure that the other side will not become visible under stronglight and to make sure that no ink seeps through the card.

Now this is not as difficult as it might seem at first. I have foundthat when dealing with the notion of reading an aura four maincolours are named. I have found that Purple, Red, Green andYellow are the most commonly named colours. This is somethingthat I observed when I performed only the suggestion sequence

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without the sketch - simply confirming what the spectator saw.

The actual envelope is simply a double envelope. That being oneenvelope stuck back to back with another. This allows me to havetwo separate predictions in the envelope revealing whichever Ineed. I then double this by having the predictions double up oneach side of the card. I have a double faced prediction in eachside of the double envelope. This allows me to simply cover allfour of the required colours with ease.

Now comes the interesting stuff. This is an extremely powerfulsuggestion sequence that I use when doing cold reading incombination with drawing auras. I am sure many of you willrecognize what needs to be done from the first section of this book- however let’s now cover the scripting and the bold methods used.

Let us assume we have joined the performance after the performerhas sketched the spectator’s aura while delivering a cold reading.Now it is the turn of the spectator to read the performer’s.

“OK. Now I would actually like you to attempt to read my aura.This is something I truly believe you could do and something Ithink you could get much enjoyment from. Please let’s begin byjust putting you into the right frame of mind. I would like you toclose your eyes firmly. Really tightly. Keep them as tightly closedas you possibly can. Now picture a massive white surface in frontof you. All you can see is brilliant white.”

If we look at what has been said, I have basically showed my faithin the spectator being able to do what I have asked of her. This isimportant. I have also asks her to close her eyes tightly. This is aninteresting and pivotal element to the effect. Close your eyes now- very tightly. Keep them closed as firmly as you can. Then openyour eyes. This will now actually cause a few small “blots” ofstrange wild colour to almost float across your vision. I have noidea exactly why this occurs but I am sure you know exactly what

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I am referring to and has happened to you like me on severaloccasions.

“I want you to snap your eyes open when I say, until then you keepthem firmly closed just thinking of that white screen. When I bangmy hand on the table I want you to open your eyes and stareintently upon the candle flame you will see directly in front ofyou.”

As the spectator is closing her eyes and picturing the screen, yousimply remove a candle and light it directly in front of her vision. Ihave used this visual induction in another effect in my book ‘7Deceptions’ called The 7th Deception. Basically it will appear toalter the state of the spectator’s mind. It will in actual fact simplybe causing a natural reaction in the vision of the spectator. Again Iinvite you to actually do this yourself. Stare directly at the flameof a candle for some time and see what it makes you feel and see.I am sure many of you will be somewhat surprised at the efficiencyof this method.

“OK, now I would like you to actually stare directly at my palm.You need to visualize colour streaming from my fingertips. If youjust believe you can see it will happen for you. It might take awhile and don’t lie to make me look good but it will happen, takeas long as you need.”

Here you will recognize the Honesty Suggestion from earlier in thebook. Now I allow The Power of Silence to kick in as we havealready talked about. This is now more than enough to cause thespectator to see colours coming from your hand. I then ask thespectator what colour they say and remove the correct prediction.

The actual prediction is not framed in such a way that youpredicted what the spectator would see but instead as a way ofconfirming that the spectator was correct in her reading of youraura. Now we need to allow the spectator to bask in her glory for a

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while. Trust me - in sharing the limelight in the short term you willgain in the long term.

Credits:

This effect was loosely inspired by Richard Webster's “OralReading”. However, this almost works backwards in relation to theWebster effect.

Concerning the first sequence in which you sketch the spectator’saura. I simply use a cold reading while I sketch a few coloursaround an outline of a body. I would recommend Ian Rowland'swonderful “Full Facts on Cold Reading” to anyone wishing to lookinto this powerful technique. I would also recommend thediscerning performer reading up at least to a decent degree ofknowledge on the subject of auras. It is a popular notion andmany spectators will know an alarming amount about such thingsthat a little homework will go a long way in establishing somecredibility.

The actual reading I deliver is a simply short and snappy reading. Ido not feel it is needed to develop a long and detailed reading forsuch an effect. Another good source for those looking for stockreadings is any tabloid newspaper - just turn to the horoscopesection and you will be delivered with 12 shiny new readingseveryday!

It may occur that the spectator will request you to furtherelaborate on the reading in which case I would simply do so butafter the performance away from the audience.

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a safe anchor......a safe anchor

A Safe Anchor

Effect:

Three business cards are shown. On two of the blank sides of thebusiness cards smiley faces are drawn, on the final blank side askull and cross bones is drawn.

The performer explains that the smiley faces represent safety andthe skull and cross bones represents a poison or danger.

The performer explains that it is his task to avoid the skull andcross bones card. The three cards are mixed and spread on thetable. The performer then raises his hand above the spread cardsand selects two for himself. They are turned over revealing thesafe smiley face cards.

He then explains that it is now the turn of the spectator to avoidthe dangerous skull and cross bones card.

He asks the spectator, while holding the two smiley faces, to recalla time in which they felt happy and safe. He then asks thespectator to hold the skull and cross bones card and to recall atime in which they felt in danger or unhappy.

The three cards are mixed face down, no-one knowing which cardis which. Another spectator is asked to push one of the threecards forward.

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The spectator is asked the concentrate on the card and to decidewhether it is safe or the card representing danger. The spectatoranswers:

“Safe.”

The card is turned over and it is indeed the smiley faced safe card.Another spectator pushes one of the remaining two cards forwardand again the spectator is asked to concentrate on the cardmaking their decision between safety and danger. The spectatorreplies:

“Danger.”

The card is pushed forward. The final card is turned over revealingthe final smiley face. Finally the remaining card is turned overrevealing the dangerous skull and cross bones. Thus bringing theeffect to a viable conclusion.

Method;

This effect makes a neat combination of both a classic and simpleprinciple in Mentalism and a psychological forcing procedurerevolving around the notion of anchoring the emotions of thespectator.

The opening phase has nothing more to it than simply marking theback of the danger skull and cross bones card. I do this by simplymaking a nail nick on one of the edges of the card which is visibleto the performer but will remain invisible to the spectators.

I bring out three business cards and on the face of two of the cardsdraw smiley faces. I then draw a skull and cross bones on the finalcard.

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As I do so, I make the nail nick on the left short end of the card. Ithen turn my back, have the cards mixed and spread on the tabletop.

I turn back to face the audience and look for the marked one of thethree business cards lying drawing side down on the table top. Ithen raise my hand above each of the cards. I appear toconcentrate for a moment or two and then select the two businesscards with no marks on them.

I reveal I am “safe” in my selections. I now explain that it is theturn of the spectator to dabble with the poison gamble. This iswhere the real fun begins. We need to anchor the emotions ofboth safety and fear. I often then ask the spectator to think of ahappy memory for safety and an unhappy memory for fear. Sincethe emotions of safety and fear are often hard to recall vividly inthe spectators mind.

I begin by asking the spectator to recall a time in which they felthappy or safe. This is where the first anchor will take place. Let usnow look at this anchor in more detail.

Let us first explain exactly what the notion of an anchor is. Theonly type of anchor which we need to concern ourselves with inthis performance is a visual and auditory anchor.

I ask the spectator to recall vividly a time in which they felt happy.I then hold the smiley face card up in my left hand leaning towardthe left. As I ask the spectator think of their happy memory I alsoplace my right hand on my chin. I often appear to scratch my facewith my first finger. I then, as I say the following, allow my hand tomove sharply away from my face toward the table.

“Ok so that's the happy and safe memory.”

I now mirror what I just did for the unhappy or dangerous anchor.

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I display the card in my right hand and instead of raising my lefthand to my chin instead rest it on my left arm. I then repeat thehand moving away from the face sharply to the table as I say;

“So that's the unhappy memory.”

Now let us look at the way in which we will use these anchors. Thecards are mixed on the table top. I keep track of the markedbusiness card and make a mental note of its position. I then askanother spectator to push any of the three cards forward. If it isthe marked “danger” card I will perform the same actions as I didwhen anchoring the dangerous or unhappy memory earlier. If it isthe smiley face card I will do the same actions as I did whenanchoring happy or safe memory earlier.

Obviously if the danger card is the first selected there is only theneed to anchor the unhappy memory then simply reveal the othertwo safe cards.

If the danger card is last again theatrically the effect is strong. Isimply anchor the first two cards using the happy memory anchors,revealing the danger card as the finale.

If the danger card is the second card selected I then reveal thehappy smiley face card revealing the danger card as the finale.

Notes:

This is a fun effect to perform. Let me make some commentsabout the way in which it is needed to have the card selected. Youmust make it clear that the spectator is to think about the cardafter it has been selected. If they make a predetermined decisionthe anchors will not work. I also make the spectator look me flatlyin the eyes as they make their mental decision.

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Another element can be brought into play with this effect. Manyyears ago, Paul Wilson pointed out to me that one of the strongestforms of misdirection was to look someone in the face and raiseyour eyebrows. This sounds weird but it really does work. Iincorporate this into the happy anchor. I also use the idea of voicestressing. I state things in a similar tone when the happy cardshave been selected, as I also state things in a similar tone whenthe unhappy card has been selected, attempting to make my voicesound as it did when anchoring in the first place.

This is an effect I have used exclusively for some time. I haveperformed it regularly for the last two years and have had verypleasing results. I am sure if the reader takes this to his audiencehe too will enjoy a similar success.

I am sure the astute corporate performer could easily replace theidea of safety and danger images on the cards to “Product X” andthe product you are booked to promote, allowing for apresentation with the spectator always choosing the correctproduct, with instant first impressions.

Obviously the markings can be replaced with any of your existingmarking methods. I personally prefer the use of the nail nick butanother method I used for a while was simply the Lee Earle andLarry Becker method of replacing numbers on the face of thebusiness card allowing each card to be numbered. I simply numberthe danger card differently to the other two cards in use.

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out of t(his) world......out of t(his) world

Out of T(his) World

I will flatly state that this is the hardest item in the book, possiblythe most challenging of all the effects I have ever put in print. I donot have 100% success with this and if I am honest I can’t see itever being 100%.

Now many of you have turned the page I will continue. This effectwas born out of a desire to perform a version of Out of This Worldin which you actually did what you claimed. Namely influencedthe spectator into correctly guessing which of the cards were redand which were black.

This is a natural if somewhat ambitious outgrowth of A SafeAnchor using many of the same methodological approaches.

If we take a very basic overview of the effect, the performer willbasically suggest through the use of language and some anchoringwhich colour each of the cards are. Now obviously it would not bepractical to use such a method for an entire deck of cards. I useroughly a third of the deck. To me this is enough to effectivelyconvey the power of the effect but also keep the method workable.

I at times open this effect with a sure-fire small packet version ofOut of This World using only six cards. I will detail this sure-firemethod to begin, then move onto the more challenging versionafterward.

Effect:

The performer displays six cards - three of which are red and threeof which are black. The cards are shuffled and spread on the tabletop.

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A spectator is asked to place all their concentration on the coloursof the cards and slide three of the six cards toward himself. Hehimself then picks up the card and turns them over - they are thethree red cards. You turn the remaining three over to display theseparated black cards.

Method:

This is a basic card effect dressed up to make a neat introductionto the more exciting version that follows. Some basic cardhandling skills will be required but nothing more than somesimple multiple switches are needed.

You will actually be making use of nine playing cards rather thanthe six that the audience will be aware of.

I begin by arranging the following cards in the following order onthe face of the deck.

Any three middle black spot cards followed by any six middle spotred cards. These cards are left on the face of the deck. I thendisplay the six cards that the audience will be aware of, the threered and the three black.

I also spread past the six cards allowing me to obtain a breakbelow the entire packet of nine cards.

I then lift these nine cards up from the face of the deck and turnthe deck face down. I then flip the packet of nine playing cardsover face down on the top of the deck.

I then spread the top six playing cards over and place the rest ofthe deck onto the table. I now shuffle the six card packet whichthe spectator believes contains three red cards and three blackcards. However in truth all the cards in the packet are red.

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I now spread the cards on the table top. I allow the spectator topush three cards forward. They can then pick these cards up. Inthe action of moving the deck from the table in order to allowspace for spreading the packet on the table, I pinky count threecards obtaining a break below the top three cards of the deck.

I ask:

“Which do you prefer - the red or the black?”

Regardless of their answer I will always end up with the black cardsand the spectator the red. I handle this as follows:

If the spectator replies “Red” then I say:

“Fine, you need to attempt to separate the red cards for yourself.”

However if they respond “Black” you say:

“OK I want you to focus your attention on the black cards, slidingforward the red ones and eliminating them.”

Either way the spectator will end up sliding three red cardsforward. This is simply unavoidable as they can only touch redcards as there are no black cards in the spread packet.

The spectator slides forward three cards. I pick up the remainingthree cards, and square them holding them in a Biddle grip inpreparation for a Paul Le Paul ‘Multiple Top Change’.

I then allow the spectator to look at the cards they either chose forthemselves or eliminated. Under the cover of this action I performthe multiple top change. This move switches the three red cardsfor the three black cards. Everything appears as it should. Thisentire sequence is a short, sharp and snappy effect.

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However this is not the method that I feel you will be mostinterested in. I am sure you all have your own personal favouritemethod using your own personal favourite sleights. However, as Istated, this effect was born out of wishing to abandon the need forsleight of hand in this effect.

Let us now tackle the more interesting method. I begin with anormal shuffled deck of playing cards that can even be borrowed.

We need, much like in A Safe Anchor, to perform a set of separateactions that will register in the subconscious mind of yourspectator and that will allow the performer to recall thesubconscious instructions without the spectator knowing.Effectively you will invisibly influence the spectator into separatingeach of the colours.

The actions I use in the introduction to the effect are those whichwill serve the purpose of our anchor. Let us deal with each colourseparately.

The Red Cards:

I begin by asking the spectator to focus their attention on the faceof any red card, which I hold in my left hand with my entire bodyleaning toward the left. I also flick the card with my right fingers. Ialso state the following:

“Now I want you to remember this colour and the feelings youhave right at this moment. In a moment I will ask you to begin tovisualize the colours of the cards. I want you now to turn thecolour of this card up as brightly as possible. Keep it bright andvivid in your mind.”

As I say this, with the spectator focused on what I am saying, Iactually bring my right hand close to my face upon occasion I

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appear to “scratch” my cheek while doing this. This acts as afurther anchor.

The Black Cards:

Here I basically mirror the actions of the red anchor. I hold theblack card in my right hand leaning my body to the right. I do notflick the card. However I do raise my hand to my face, but insteadof touching my face, I then drop it sharply to the table. Again hereI ask the spectator to vividly focus their attention on the card. Ialso state the following:

“OK, now the black cards. Again I would like you to think aboutthe way this feels. It’s simple. In a moment we will work togetherto create something amazing. Hopefully we will understand eachother and you’re going to really impress all your friends here thisevening.”

This simply sets up the notion of working together to createsomething amazing. Hopefully the spectator will now be awarethat they are working with you to make this effect happen.

Now all that remains is the combination of the method and thepresentation. After I have performed the above Anchoring actionsand the introduction statement I move on picking cards from thetop of the shuffled deck, glancing at the face of the card. If it is redI continue as follows:

“OK visualize a big screen. Now turn the colour up very brightly.Vividly picture all that colour rushing in. You will see the colourbrightly filling the screen. It is simple - just go with what feelsright, don’t try to fight it or trick me or this won’t work, simplyfollow your gut instinct, your first impressions. Is the card red orblack?”

This is how I handle the first few cards, obviously as the routine

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moves forward the process becomes quicker. However it is worthworking slowly for the first few cards. As I say “is the card red orblack”, on the “red” I move my hand to my face, then make a smallfacial movement - more often than not I raise my eyebrows. Allthe above is delivered as I repeat the actions used during theinitial Anchoring procedure. Leaning my body to the left, the handmovements as covered at the beginning of the explanation.

If the top card was black I would then say the following:

“OK, concentrate on the colour. Imagine it filling the table top.Now work it out, what colour is it? Make your mind black.”

The word black should be said in such a way that it seems as if yousaid blank. This is a common method employed with suchpsychological forces and is often applied to card forces.

Now again, as all the above is delivered, I repeat the actionscovered at the beginning of this explanation when I anchored theblack cards.

Now comes another important point. If we had, say, laid down ared card and the spectator correctly guessed it was red, thespectator has to be reinforced with praise. I praise what they aredoing as being “perfect and to keep it up” or some such.

Another important point is how to deal with the colours in theirorder. Let me explain - say for example we have laid a red carddown, the spectator has correctly guessed. We next look at the topcard of the deck and it too is red. This now allows us to make astatement that will again help with the success rate.

“OK now just as you did. Do it again.”

This is delivered as the actions for the red Anchor are repeated. Itbasically underlines the idea that the card is another red card.

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Now let us look at the way I handle the times in which the coloursswitch from red to black or black to red:

“OK, now I want you to really re-focus your attention, almost thinkas if you are starting a new sheet, something totally new anddifferent to you.”

Again all this is said as the Anchored actions for the desired cardsare performed. Now let us look at the way in which I deal with thetimes in which the spectator misses the card guessing incorrectly.

I do not make a big point of acting negative toward the actions.However I do state the following:

“OK I think we might need to relax a little and regain our attention.This is something very difficult and really needs all your attentionas well as mine. So take a deep breath and let’s begin again.”

Notes:

This is clearly a very difficult effect to perform. It will however bevery rewarding when you begin to gain favourable results. To me itis the most startling and exciting version of Out of This World.

Many have suggested that this could be used as a way to lead intoa number of effects. I have in the past used this before performingIan Rowland’s “Sense of Touch” and a friend who I first shared thiswith now uses it to lead into his own version of Out Of This Worldusing traditional card magic techniques.

It is at first read a scary concept - however when you gain theconfidence to try it out in performance for the first time you willsee it is nowhere near as scary as it first seemed. All that remainsis for me to offer you the best of luck with it!

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a presentation......a presentation

A PresentationIt has been said that the art of Mentalism is all about theperformance and presentation, not the method. This is somethingI could not agree with more.

As they say the devil is in the details. I will now offer apresentation of the classic psychological 1 - 10 number force. Ifind it plays especially well for couples. I have only ever performedit in such a way, I would not wish to use such a presentation whendealing with two strangers.

“It is thought that up to 90% of our thinking is down to oursubconscious mind - something we have no control over. If this istrue it would appear that seemingly random actions are not sorandom after all. Madam, would you mind if I asked you to simply,without thinking in your conscious mind, just to think of a numberbetween 1 and 10. The first number that comes to yourmind…now.”

The performer hurries the spectator by snapping his fingers as hesays “now” and continues on.

“OK sir, I also would like you to think of a number between 1 and10. Again, without thinking, just get a number in yourmind…now.”

Again, the performer snaps his fingers rushing the spectator’sthinking.

“You may have noticed I was rushing your thought processsomewhat. This is simply because I want you to make a totallysubconscious decision rather than a laboured and consciousdecision. As we were speaking of earlier, the subconscious is

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thought to control much of our thinking. One theory says that thesubconscious actually assigns a number to our self in our mindbetween 1 and 10 rating our own attractiveness to others. It isthought that we actually seek and find people with the samenumber rated in their mind as to our own most attractive. Forexample, someone thinking of the number three could secretly besearching for another three. ”

This is actually a true theory. However ludicrous it may firstappear, many spectators will have already have heard of this, itoften features in many glossy women’s ‘lifestyle’ magazines. I findthat presentations born from such theories and stories seem to hithome much stronger with female spectators than male. Howeverthe effect at the finish will still impress both the male and femalespectators. It also makes the man feel important and moreimportantly removes any feeling of threat. As Banachek pointedout in his lecture notes, a good-looking, young performerdisplaying a set of unusual skills can at times be a threat to certainmale spectators when we tend to focus our attentions toward theirfemale partner. I feel it makes sense to actively attempt to buildup the male spectator to his partner and generally make them feelproud of their relationship. I avoid any kind of flirtatiousperformances when in such situations and I would suggest thereader do also.

The performer continues:

“Now I am sure both of you are wonderful together, and maybeyour subconscious sought one another out using the numberrating idea we were speaking of. Please tell me what number didyou think of?”

The spectator will almost unquestionably respond:

“I thought of the number 7.”

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In the opening sequence I try to rule out the second most likelynumber, 3, by mentioning it openly in the scripting. The performer then turns and asks the gentleman:

“And you sir, your number?”

The spectator responds:

“I was also thinking of 7!”

This is nothing more than a simple presentation of a classic force.It is very important that you have the spectator think of thenumber before introducing the premise of the attractivenesstheory. If handled the other way it is very possible that the forcewill not work as desired. However if you handle it all as written itwill work wonderfully.

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a strange garden......a strange garden

A Strange Garden

Effect:

The performer, after spending a delightful late autumn afternoon inMr. Helise’s garden, is invited to perform for the assembled guests.The guests have been told about the performer’s strange talentsand wait patiently as the sun begins to set and a cold chillimposes its presence.

The performer graciously accepts the invitation and begins toexplain that:

“Often the notion of reading someone’s mind may seem like anunnatural talent. This could not be further from the truth. It was atalent that grew with me, maturing from an early age - my constantcompanion throughout the troubling times of teenage years andbecoming a faithful friend. It is at times however as much of acurse as it is a blessing.”

The performer takes on a more somber tone and seems to bereflecting over the long years he has spent with his “natural” abilityto read thoughts.

The performer removes from his wallet a battered and worn Tarotcard. It can be seen through the age and wear to depict a malefigure standing at a table.

“The Magician.”

The performer explains. With a knowing look taking control of hisface, he continues:

“The figure this card represents is a travelling entertainer- apage 141

showman, a common character in medieval Europe. Partmountebank, part wise man, and at times a pick pocket. Themagician or sorcerer lived on the fringe of society and law. He wasregarded with both fascination and suspicion. The magician wasat the time thought to be in league with some dark force thatallowed him to work his miracles. He was regarded with suchsuspicion due to his intimate knowledge of herbal medicines andthe ways of the natural world that surrounded him. Above all herespected nature and in turn nature respected him. This card, apresent from a dear friend, has become something of a good luckcharm to me. He also represents a powerful way of living.”

The performer reaches down and picks up a fallen leaf turned awondrous shade of brown, a state afforded by the time of year.

“Things that seem beyond our level of understanding surround usall the time. Right now we are sat in a wonderful gardensurrounded by amazing feats of nature that could be said to bemore amazing than anything man has ever created with his infinitewisdom. A simple leaf it would seem?”

The performer hands the leaf to a spectator who is instructed tohold the leaf on her flat outstretched palm.

“The magician had an uncanny link to the natural world aroundhim and understood that at times, if we simply look deeply intowhat surrounded us, our problems would seem insignificantagainst the greater whole.”

The performer explains he wishes to attempt to demonstrate thatlink. He asks a spectator to look intently into the centre of theleaf. He asks the spectator to describe exactly what they see. Forseveral moments the spectator remains totally silent, transfixed bywhat appears to be happening in front of her very eyes. Theperformer asks the spectator exactly what she saw happen. Sheresponds:

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“The leaf’s centre began to move in swirls. It was circling.”

The performer explains that:

“This is only the beginning. I would like you to remain totallysilent while I talk to you. I would like you to observe everythingyou see. In a moment the leaf will begin to move again only thistime you will see the pattern form into two simple shapes. Oneinside of the other.”

Again the performer and the spectator remain silent. Thespectator seems clearly affected by what is happening in front ofher very eyes. Finally the performer asks:

“Would you mind telling us the shapes you saw one inside of theother?”

The spectator replies:

“I saw a circle inside of a triangle.”

The performer smiles a knowing glance toward the table Tarot cardof the Magician. He reaches slowly and deliberately, turning thecard over to reveal boldly across the card’s back scorched into thesurface, a circle inside of a triangle.

“The link is almost uncanny…”

The leaf and the card are given as presents and the performerleaves a wonderful memory of the amazing qualities of the naturalworld.

Method:

This is actually not as hard as you might imagine upon reading thelaboured description of the effect. It is an effect that was an

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outgrowth of one of my own effects which appeared in my book “7Deceptions” under the name A Twisted Palm Reading in which aspectator believes they see the lines on their palm move wildly.The second source of inspiration comes from the ever amazingBanachek who in a conversation suggested that it could bepossible to handle a psychological force after the “Twisted PalmReading” by having the spectator visualize the lines on their palmmoving to form the name of a playing card. This was a trulyinspired thought.

It was this thought that set my mind racing and through severalunsuccessful performances, I eventually ended up with the routinethat follows. Obviously the leaf can be replaced with another itemif you so desire but personally I only perform this effect whenactually in a garden and I find the notion of the link between theMagician and the natural world a pleasing presentational hook.

You will need to obtain a tarot card depicting the Magician. I thenage this card, or better yet, see if it is possible to find a genuinelyaged card from a dealer in such items. Personally I used the triedand tested schoolboy method of a light baking in the ovenfollowed by some liberal smudging of dampened tea bags. Thiswas more than adequate in my opinion. I then scorched the imageof the circle inside of the triangle onto the back using some heatedshaped wire. Be careful not to fall into the same trap as me,ensure you wear gloves and avoid the burns that I didn’t!

I am sure that every reader will be aware of the significance of thetwo shapes. They are of course the classic shapes used bymentalists the world over for psychological forces. However I feelthis is a new framing for such a force.

Many of the techniques covered in the first section of this volumewill be employed through this effect. Make use of them well andthey will reward you generously.

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You will open the effect with the introduction given in thedescription of the effect. It is during this introduction thatunbeknown to the spectators you will introduce the prediction orthe link in the form of the Magician tarot card. This to meovercomes some of the problems I see as being inherent in thepresentation of standard prediction effects. If we look at astandard prediction effect in which a prediction is handed out atthe outset and introduced as such, to me the focus of the effectnow shifts from the surprise afforded in magic to the stringentconditions needed to give weight to the prediction. The effect inmy mind shifts from something magical to a strict governing ofprocedures to ensure all is fair and above board in the selection ofthe information that will be revealed in the prediction. This is notalways a bad thing and many entertaining routines can be builtworking from that premise. It was however not the route I wishedto follow with this effect.

I introduce the effect with the covert introduction of the predictionwhich is left on the table top throughout all that follows.

You can pluck a leaf from a nearby plant or if you are lucky enoughto have one upon the floor then take this to your advantage.

I then ask the spectator to hold the leaf upon their palm. I now, asI am sure you already know, make use of The Power of Silence. Iallow the spectator to simply stare at the leaf while we bothremain in total silence.

I then move forward with the scripting that differs somewhat fromthe effect mentioned in the opening comments of the explanation,but still fits the same model.

“I would like you to notice all that you see; I want you to form asimilar bond with nature as we spoke about. Just wait and seewhat happens. I know I was surprised the first time I simply staredinto the centre of the leaf.”

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I now again remain silent for some time. I then continue with thefollowing:

“OK, I want you to notice those textures and patterns that youhave become aware of.”

The spectator will actually now be aware of the subtle textures andshades of the leaf. This is simply because the spectator has beenlook intently into the leaf’s centre. Often they will have alreadyseen the textures and patterns moving. We will now develop thissuggestion using many of the techniques already taught.

“OK, now I don’t want you to lie to make me look good. Just inyour own time you let me know when you see the textures and thepatterns begin to shift, almost as if they had a life of their own.”

This is often enough to push the spectator over the edge. I nowsimply develop this further.

“Its weird isn’t it? I know how strange it felt when I first saw it, butdon’t worry you’re doing the right thing. You can see it can’t you?”

Here you will take as much or little time as is needed for thesuggestions to take effectively. I will now move on as I feel thereader has an understanding of the techniques needed to do this.Let us now look at the way in which we will frame thepsychological force of the shapes. To the audience at large it willappear that the shapes made themselves present upon the leaf. Itmay or may not happen. However the force will still be handledcomfortably and work with great success.

“Now I want you to see all the patterns forming two simple shapesone inside of the other. Let them form in your mind.”

I then, as I deliver the above, make two simple gestures with myhands forming the shapes of the circle and the triangle in the air.

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This is standard methodology in the force and I am sure you willknow and understand exactly how to handle this force. I will nownot cover this force any further as it is well documented in print innumerous places. An especially good source is Banachek’swonderful “Psychological Subtleties”.

This force takes place as if you were simply forcing the shapes in anormal sequence. It will be framed in such a way as the routinecomes to a close that will make it appear as if the spectator sawthe shapes form on the leaf. To do this I simply state thefollowing:

“It’s amazing how you see the patterns on the leaf move and thoseshapes form. Tell us what shapes did you see?”

The spectator will respond with the desired force objects and allthat remains is to reveal the prediction or link on the back of thetarot card.

Alternative Method:

This could actually be titled an occasional method rather than analternative. It is not something that conditions will always allow.However on the occasions that do, it is worth having in reserve.It is an alternative method for forcing the shapes on the spectator.They can be more detailed and can be different every time you usethis method. It is actually fairly regularly that the chance t use thismethod will arise - however I still use the method of forcingoutlined above to create the same effect with a little less work.I offer it here for completeness.

Basically when I am referring to “occasional” what I mean by this isyou will need to have the fortune of certain conditions.

These conditions are by no means hard to find here in the UK -however those readers in a slightly more welcoming climate may

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find this difficult.

If you happen to have a damp leaf nearby, simply draw the shapesyou wish to force with your fingernail. This will leave a white linein the shapes of the desired force.

Now during the opening sequence it is actually almost impossibleto see this line. However when you begin to actually bring up theidea of shapes appearing you will find that suddenly the forceshapes stand out massively.

I simply use the following wording:

“Now I want you to get two simple shapes one inside the other.They could appear to form on the leaf - often the more creativepeople instantly see these shapes, the more analytic person tendsto have them form. Either way, two shapes will make themselvesclear to you…yes?”

Now on the face of this you might fall into the trap of seeing thisas an instant stooge method and in a way it is. However the majordifference here is the fact that the spectator does not actually seethe shapes until they are told to. To them, after they haveexperienced the pattern’s moving, the shapes suddenly appear.

Like I said, in order to achieve the best results from this is to seekto a slightly dampened leaf. Give it a go and you might justsurprise yourself.

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judgement day......judgement day

Judgement DayIn Thoughts and Words...

This is a strong routine. I will offer each force independently,however it is possible to string each force together to create asimulation of the original ESP card test with no gimmicks, noangle restrictions and totally examinable cards. I have at timesused the back of business cards to simply draw the designs on.This can add an element of spontaneity and also allows you toperform this with little preparation which can be done right infront of the spectator’s eyes in a matter of minutes giving you astrong anywhere, anytime demonstration.

This is a very simple verbal force of an ESP symbol. For those ofyou who consider such things as mere nonsense, I assure these aretried and tested, they work. Trust me.

I begin by arranging the ESP cards (star, wavy lines, circle, squareand cross) in a known order from the top of the packet. In my ownsequence a spectator is given their own packet to use and thenyou have your own; the force happens as you apparently explainwhat the designs are as follows:

I begin by going through the well known patter about Dr. Rhineand his legendary tests for extra sensory perception and then goon to explain the designs/symbols:

“We have a group of simple designs. The star (briefly flash the faceof the star and drop it to the table), the square (flash the face ofthe next card in our example the wavy lines and then correctyourself) ....er, wavy lines.”

The above should be delivered as if it were a genuine mistake on

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your part - you simply messed up on the order of the cards. Youcorrect yourself in the way you would correct any normal “slip ofthe tongue” and continue:

“Circle, the square and lastly, the cross.”

Notice the repetition of the same words (the square). The wordsin bold type should be said with either a lighter or stronger tone ofvoice to the other words (depending on which works best for theindividual - personally a stronger tone seems to suit my style andworks better) and maintaining eye contact as they are said.

The wording ‘simple designs’ will be used in much the same way ina moment when it comes to their selection of designs. It alsopushes the spectator away from the designs such as the star(generally in my experience the favourite with female spectators),pushing them ever so slightly toward the square or the circle. Thisis good.

“Now I want you to get the simple design in your mind now”

This is said with an air of urgency which is underlined with a snapof the fingers - this will cause the spectator to rush the thoughtprocess and they will in my experience plump for the repeateddesign (in our example, the square). It is important that therepeated design be said once at the beginning and once near theend, this solidifies the design in the spectator’s mind.

Notice the use once again of repetition of phrasing - this is tofurther direct the spectator in the right direction.

I know, it’s a lot of effort for only the first selection process in anESP card sequence, but it is one of the most direct and startlingopenings for such sequences that I have ever performed. Itworks...it works very well.

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For those interested I would suggest that 70 - 80 % of the time thenext selection will be the star, especially when using a femalespectator. I usually ask them to picture “their favourite picture”which is exactly the force that comes next if you were to use all theforces together to form a routine. Using each force one after theother allows us the knowledge of which cards are likely to beselected immediately after which. This was something I noticedwhen I only used the In Thoughts and Words force to open a one-ahead style routine. However I noticed that the overwhelmingmajority of women would next select the star. I then built thefollowing wording to encourage this probability even further.

My Favourite Picture Force…

“OK, now it begins to get difficult.”

This is only said if used to immediately follow a previous force. Iattempt to suggest the notion that with each card we place to thetable the next selection becomes more difficult for me to mentallydivine. This is not only fun for the performer when he can statethis knowing full well things actually become dramatically easierfor him, but is also theatrically sound.

“I would like you to picture an empty picture frame. I want you toimagine all the lines of one of the design coming together insideof the frame making a nice little picture. If you like you couldpicture it with further detail around making it into a moredeveloped image- however we will just deal with the actualsymbol.”

This will also open up another possibility to show how accurateour apparent mind reading skills are. The selection will almostalways be the star. This allows us to play with the images that goalong with a star during the “divination” sequence. Again here inmy own sequence I ask the spectator to remove the card they’repicturing. I then reveal it in the following manner:

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“OK I think you did actually go a step further with the image, didyou not?”

If the spectator replies in the negative, then you have lost nothingas you can simply commend them on the clear and focusedconcentration as the image came through to you wonderfully.Then remove the star card and you’re ready to move onto the nextforce. However the majority of the time the spectator will gofurther and create some kind of image. This will now allow forsome general common sense to add an extra layer of deception tothe force.

“In fact I am seeing something very shiny but it is not bright. Myfirst impression is almost wrapping paper but I know that’s notwhat I am seeing, it is dark and I can clearly see a reflection ofsome kind…oh perfect.”

It is in this way I apparently divine the symbol the spectator has inmind and apparently hit on what image they have focused upon.Simple common sense allows for an extra step of mind reading inthis force. If you were to use all the forces together I would thenmove onto the…

Blink Force...

If using this force in the sequence you will only have three cards inthe spread. This will actually make this almost child’s play. I willdescribe it as if you were to use all the five of the ESP symbolsalong with an interesting out that can be combined with it.However in my own sequence I use this force with three cards, sothe Star would already have gone.

I obviously omit the out covered here, which is included for thosepeople who wish to use the forces independently of one another.

This one has been getting me excited ever since first playing with

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it. In effect you fan a packet of cards in front of the face of aspectator (in my own routine ESP symbols). Ask them to closetheir eyes and then to open them once again, then to retain theimage of the first one they came to see. You then, with no fishing,gaze deeply into their eyes and name the chosen design.

This one (in my own opinion) has lots of potential.

“Victorian arm-chair scientists loved the idea of the capturedimage. In fact they so believed in this they thought you couldcatch the culprit of a murder simply by gazing into the eyes of thevictim. The murderer would be the last person the victim saw andthus, according to the arm-chair theory, his would be the retainedimage. A naive and humbling concept, I think you would agree.But we will try it anyway. I would like you to close your eyes firmly.Then open them but do not let them circle around, simply retainthe image of the first design that comes to your vision.”

By using the phrase “do not let your eyes circle around” you willhave, unbeknownst to our sweet-hearts, firmly elbowed them awayfrom the circle.

The circle itself has importance in the positioning of the fannedcards. Place it directly behind the star, which is the middle card ofall. When fanning these cards allow the star to be on show slightlymore than the others. Balance here is the key, too much and thewhole thing becomes a joke. This is an obvious variant of the oldchestnut - the fan force.

By encouraging them to close their eyes tightly their vision will bemomentarily blurred upon opening them.

Ask them to open their eyes, accompanied with a sharp snappingof the fingers, and then move the fan toward them slightly. Ask ifthey have a design (notice the use of the word design rather thanshape - design sounds much more complex than shape thus

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helping to eliminate the circle, cross etc)

Square the fan. Look intently into their eyes and smile a knowingnod. Remove the star, ask them to hold their hands out and state:

“You didn’t happen to go for the wavy lines did you?”

If they say yes, this may happen as the wavy lines are instantlyrecognisable even with blurred vision. You simply state:

“Thought so” or “I knew it!”

Pick up the card from their palm and replace it onto the packet.

If they say no, you state:

“No you didn’t, that's why I put the star on your hand.”

(Obviously, if using this as a continuation of the earlier two parts,it would be the Cross on their hand.)

This sequence is a veritable balancing act of management anddirection. It draws inspiration from (obviously) Wonder Words, athink a card routine by Dan Garret who places one of two possiblecards on the table and uses the “you didn’t” line and finally aneffect of Ken Krenzel where he places a gimmicked card onto thespectator’s hand and simply trust them with it. This is a verystrong tactic when concealing something - give it to them,suddenly they are not so interested. Just make sure they areresponsive and helpful spectators.

As I stated at the outset of this description, when using this in asequence I simply force the middle of the ESP cards. Then moveonto the next force. This is the easiest force of all and in a way isnot actual verbal but it fits very well onto the end of the Blinkforce.

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The Heavy Arm Force…

This is a force especially suited to follow the Blink force. Due tothe Blink force, I know the positioning of the ESP cards thespectator has resting on the table. If you are using this in asequence you may need to discover this in another way - howeverif using it as written, everything flows perfectly.

I ask the spectator to hold each of their palms flat out. I then pickup the first of their ESP cards which remain and lay it face downon their outstretched palm. I already know which of the symbolsthis is due to me glimpsing the positions of the cards during theBlink force sequence. I now mirror the actions of the spectator byplacing my remaining two cards on each of my outstretched palms.

I know the positions of these cards as I simply look at each one asI place it onto my palm. Do not stare; a simple glimpse will do thejob perfectly. I then use the next suggestion script to cause one ofthe spectator’s arms to feel heavier. It is in this way the spectatorchooses her symbol. I then simply close my eyes and act as if thehand which holds the matching ESP card is becoming heavy andthen I place this card onto the table.

“Ok I want you to relax and allow this to happen. Instead of simplymaking your decision by whichever card you may like the most, Iwant you to pay attention to what your body is telling you. In amoment you will feel one of your arms falling to the table, it mightfeel drastically heavier or just a subtle change. However you willfeel it, sometimes it takes longer than others. Please do not lie tomake me look good, just wait for it to start happening.”

I am sure you recognised all the techniques from the earliersection of the book. I now simply as stated fake my arm becomingheavier - I ensure that I drop the arm holding the same symbol asthe spectator.

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No force is needed for the final card so I simply flip over what Ihave remaining and display that both the spectator and I am leftwith the same symbol. All that remains is to reveal the otherforced cards to match.

Notes:

This is obviously not a sequence everyone will want to use.However each force has been offered independently of one anotherand in that they can be used. However if you take the plunge andgo all out, I am sure you will find it very rewarding.

Both the In Thoughts and In Words force and the Blink Force firstappeared in the pages of Kenton Knepper’s “Miracles ofSuggestion” as a guest contribution. I urge the reader to trackdown a copy of this work as it contains some wonderful gems ofthinking.

This is the first time all the forces have appeared in print togetherand as a sequence.

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zeroing in......zeroing in

Zeroing In

I have chosen to leave this section until last for several reasons.Firstly it is something that is very difficult to put into words, as inmy own experience it is something that I feel is heavily reliantupon your own hunches. That said there are some points that Ifeel are important to consider before attempting suggestionsequences upon spectators.

Before performing any kind of suggestion sequence, I alwaysperform a good, strong stand alone theatrical piece of Mentalism.I hope to set the tone for the rest of the show, as I have covered inthe ‘First Thing First’ section. It will instantly either live up to theexpectations of the audience, or break their negativepreconceptions. Either way you are moving in the right direction.This alone however is not enough.

I often use another idea, something that many hypnotists andsuggestion artists have used to great effect in the past and fits wellwithin my own performances. It also singles out a good spectatorfor suggestion type routines.

I will home in on three or maybe four spectators who I feel willrespond well to my suggestions - I normally end up with a youngmildly attractive female spectator with self-confidence. A personalpreference, but I tend to end up with a young blonde woman withself-confidence. As I said, a matter of personal preference.However at the risk of sounding like a male chauvinistic pig, Iactually feel my material works best with someone I find attractive.I tend to perform with more conviction and passion. This issomething I have always done - however I find this tends to spurmy performance on further.

From the two or three, I then attempt a quick sequence with apage 159

pendulum. I borrow some items from each of the spectators. I laythem onto the table. I then explain the notion of the pendulumand use it as a way of making the rest of the performance morebelievable. I talk of the subtle body movements we all have, butmay or may not be aware of.

I then allow each person to hold the pendulum and hold it aboveeach object telling them that the pendulum will remain still untilthey come to their object, which they must focus upon. Due to thenature of the pendulum this will happen. I allow each of the threeto do this. During this, I watch for which spectator made thependulum move the most. I then follow this up with one finalsequence, which wraps up the pendulum sequence well and alsoreassures me in my decision.

I have the spectator focus upon one of the objects, telling themthey can think of any of the objects they see in front of them. Ithen explain that the pendulum will remain still until it is heldover the object they are focusing upon. This will happen. I willnot cover the workings of this in detail as I am sure all of you arealready familiar with it.

I now have zeroed in from the three spectators I felt were the mostlikely to respond to my suggestions to the one I feel will respondbest, all under the guise of an effect - an effect that actually playsvery well.

You are now free to move on into further test to build suggestionor continue on with your pendulum routine and move forward withyour suggestion effects later in the set.

This approach has served me well in the zeroing in on a spectator Ifeel able to work well with. There is nothing new here; it is simplythe way I pull it all together to make it into an effect, so nothingneed be done pre-show. That said it also makes for a compellingand useful demonstration.

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afterword......afterword

by Peter Nardi

afterwordby Peter Nardi

From myself Peter Nardi as the publisher and on behalf of myteam at Alakazam Magic, I would like to take this opportunityof thanking everyone involved in the creation of this publicationincluding you, the reader, for your purchase and, of course, Lukefor his fantastic and inspiring work in the first place.

We were particularly proud also to have been able to includeKenton Knepper’s essay on the subject of ‘suggestion’ as part ofthe first volume of this publication. Along with a forewordby Steve Banachek, not to mention the ‘rave’ reviews this bookhas been given internationally, we are sure that you will treasureand value this book and that Luke’s work will inspire you toachieve even greater heights in this truly fascinating andincreasingly popular branch of the magic arts.

For details of our other and forthcoming publications, pleasecontact us at [email protected], or see our web sitewww.alakazam.co.uk

We also run a unique and popular site for all those interested inmentalism. This can be found at www.readminds.co.uk

We look forward to being of help to you.

www.alakazam.co.ukwww.readminds.co.uk

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building blocksby luke jermay. we consider it a real coup to be able to add this superb book by luke...

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