By now we should have a stage full of hand-locked subjects, say 30. Now we want to whittle them down to a manageable level, 12 is a good maximum although don't worry if you have less than this.
Get them to drop their hands in front of their chests with their elbows bent and keep telling them that their hands are locking together tighter. Now be observant and pick your final subjects carefully as the whole show depends on them. There are obvious 'types' that you really don't need; the things to look for are the effects of:
Drink, Drugs and Fear.
Drunks can pass out or vomit. Drug takers can pass out or vomit. Terrified people can pass out, vomit, burst into tears and spontaneously lose control of their bladder or bowels. If you are not sure get rid of them!
Here are a few obvious things to look for. Smell of alcohol, if you can smell it chances are they have had enough or perhaps too much. Distended pupils and unexpected shaking. You can expect the arms to be shaking, you’ve even suggested they will, but if they appear to be shaking all over this could be caused by fear or by certain drugs. Distended or enlarged pupils especially under bright stage lighting could point to drugs or other physical conditions that you don’t want to have to deal with on stage.
The volunteers I’d go for are those who have a look of happy bafflement about them. They are usually smiling and are looking at their hands and you in a bemused way. Once you’ve seen this
‘look’ up close, you will instantly recognise it. Trust your instincts.
So now you need to find the best subjects. That is those who will readily accept your suggestions and as far as possible make your stage and your show look good. The test for suggestibility is simple. Walk up to a likely subject, being as friendly as possible, smile and say hello nicely, grab their locked hands and while always suggesting they are locking tighter and tighter, try and push your middle finger between their palms. If it goes right through and past them with little or no resistance, you’ve got a faker or someone not really ‘into’ it. Simply shake their hands apart and tell them you’re sorry but they are not in the right mood and would they please return to their seat. Notice, I say tell them. Don’t ask in this situation, you have to have complete control of the stage; it belongs to you. For this reason I would always do this over the microphone so that the audience knows they are not suitable. They won’t dare stay to cause you trouble as they would then look foolish, not you.
If there doesn't appear to be any effects of the three things I mentioned earlier, and it’s virtually impossible to push your finger between their palms, you can use them. If however you can’t easily try their hands with your finger look for pure white knuckles and the forearm ‘shakes’.
They will be easy to work with and will accept suggestions readily and easily. Simply separate the hands of everyone else and tell them they can go back to their seats and enjoy the show.
As far as gender goes I would suggest that you go for a fifty-fifty mix if possible and, depending on the routines you do, the same for ages. Most times leaning towards younger volunteers, as
they tend to be more visual in their interpretation of your suggestions. However there is a lot of mileage in overweight middle-aged men so don’t discount them. Obviously you would not get a very senior person to become a ballet dancer; a broken hip can reduce your reputation somewhat, but if you only have older subjects, change the show as you go along. Remember what I said about being flexible.
Now we come to the part that the audience has really paid to see and your friends on stage have really come to do. We are going to induce hypnosis.
IINDNDUUCCTTIIOONNSS
Now we reach the point where we will appear to lead our volunteers into the state of hypnosis.
And because we have to do this carefully and slowly as so many hypnosis books tells us to do there will now be a lull in proceedings while you do this. I just wish you could see me grinning.
Something should be obvious to you by now but in case you have missed it, I will make it clear.
Stage Hypnosis requires that your friends on stage are using their creative abilities and have, for the moment, put aside any limiting factor supplied by their conscious brain allowing them to accept your suggestions.
You have not stapled their hands together. They are not tied or handcuffed. There is absolutely no reason for them not to be able to loosen and separate their hands. Apart from the fact that they truly believe they can’t.
See it yet?
That’s right. If you have locked their hands together using suggestion and nothing else, then they are already in the mental state you need them to be in.
They are already hypnotised!
Hypnosis, we must remember is a state of mind. Although your audience expects to see people in a state reminiscent of sleep, and your friends on stage expect the same. It is not necessary.
Relaxation has become a part of hypnosis because it is the usual symptom of the state in the therapy room (always suggested by the hypnotist). All very well for therapeutic hypnosis. Stage hypnosis does not need it. Okay so that is what your audience has paid for, and that is what they are going to get. But you as 'THE Hypnotist' must know that it isn’t the cause, merely a symptom. Once they have accepted a suggestion to this degree then they will accept ninety nine percent of all your suggestions.
Induce means to cajole, persuade, to lead. You, my friend, have already done that. Especially if you have a full blown hand-lock! Okay so your audience does not want to see you simply going up to people snapping your fingers and saying sleep! Oh it would work without doubt and in the right circumstances, with the right crowd, you can do just that. Try it; although you’ve been working for ages the audience will believe they witnessed that ideal of all hypnotists INSTANT INDUCTION!
True if they are standing they will instantly become relaxed and probably fall on you, or if you are incredibly unlucky fall off the stage into the orchestra pit or someone’s lap. But besides being dangerous it isn’t what the majority of audiences want. They want at this point to see something dramatic, something astounding, above all they want theatre, and you being an exemplary showman / woman will give them just that. Only you will know that hypnosis as such has already been ‘induced’ and that what you are actually doing now is deepening the state and making yourself look good.
The following induction’s all work splendidly well on stage. I often use a combination of them as this adds light and shade even to this part of your show.