ix people are lined up on the stage to assist you with your next miracle. The first five all received an index card earlier in the show and were asked to write down any ten random words on each.
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You gather all the cards, have a quick glance at all the words on them and then give them a quick mix. They are now redistributed so that all five are
holding a list different than their own. You now move to the first person in line.
“Thank you so much for being willing to take part in this experiment. I need to ask you just one question, 13. and I need you to answer as truthfully as possible. Is that a deal? Good. How old were you when you had your first kiss?”
“Perfect! Thank you very much. Now we move on to you madam. If you can, please tell us which day of the week you were born on?”
“On a Wednesday.”
Very good thank you. You sir, if you could choose between a holiday on a tropical island or a Euro- pean skiing village, which one would you rather go to?”
“I’d go for the tropical island!”
“Perfect. Madam, if you could please tell us, what is the colour of the car you are currently driving?” “Blue.”
13. “Thank you. And finally sir, if you had to buy your wife an anniversary present, would you go for diamond earrings, or a pearl necklace?”
“Great! I have now asked all these people a question which has given me enough information about them to tell me exactly which choices they will make tonight. I am going to write down a prediction on here and place it in this envelope which I am going to give to you sir for safe-keeping.”
Everybody holding a list is told to hold it so that they can see all the words on their card. The first person chooses any word he wishes from all ten random words and names it out loud. The person next to him then associates a word on her list with the one just mentioned, etc.
Once the final word is chosen and named out loud, you can write it on a big white board for all to see. As an example, let’s say the last word is “NOTE.” 13. You move your attention back to the gentleman holding the envelope.
“Sir, you have been holding on to my prediction that I made before we got started. Would you please be so kind as to read what I have predicted?”
Of course, the prediction contains only one word, “NOTE.”
Thanks to the two prepared cards you secretly added, the wording you used, and of course the double envelope your prediction matches perfectly. The rest is all theatrics and showmanship, hiding the real method behind the smoke and mirrors of the questions being asked – inferring that the answers will lead you to the right word.
erforming (Menta)Lists on a stage or plat- form is going to require you to bring a certain number of people on stage. Here is an idea to make use of this fact and turn it into a full stage routine.
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If you can blend two good effects into one flowing routine, you can get a good amount of stage time and entertainment value in one go.
STAGE PRESENTATION
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What is described here is just one concept that the reader may find useful, or may inspire other routines featuring (Menta)Lists.
13.
In this routine, the lists are already made and they will not write their own words. While this might take away the impromptu feeling of the original routine, you will make up for it by adding more layers of deception.
Eight people are invited to join you on stage. They are lined up to fill the stage from left to right. The person on the far left is asked to mix up eight big envelopes that each has a large question mark on the front.
While he is busy with that, you ask each of the other participants to name any celebrity they would like to invite to dinner. You now make a prediction based on their answers, which is sealed in another envelope and placed in full view on a table.
You return to the person mixing the eight envelopes. Once he is satisfied that they are all mixed up, he hands every other person on stage an envelope, keeping one for himself.
13. Everyone now opens their envelopes and is
instructed to remove its contents. Inside they find one large laminated paper containing random words. The reverse side of each list is also a different
You now start with the first person in the line on stage and instruct him to select ANY one of the random words on the list he is holding. Once he names it, you turn to the next person in line, asking him to associate any word on his list with the word just mentioned.
This goes on down the line, until the final person has chosen a word off her list. Hold the mic to her and ask her to name it out loud. She says, “NOTE.” You now point to the prediction envelope that has been in full view on the table the entire time. The contents are removed and the lady is asked to read what it says.
13.
“Tonight, [insert your name here] will attempt a dazzling feat of mind reading and prediction of human behaviour on not one, but eight different individuals. If he is successful, a random game of word association will end with the word NOTE!
Not only that, but he will also have influenced the random mixture of envelopes in such a way that the order on stage will be, from left to right: Green, yellow, red, blue, purple, orange, white and black.”
The eight people on stage hold up their lists with the colour side showing, and would you believe it – all eight colours in perfect order as predicted!
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The working is pretty straight-forward and allows you to concentrate on your presentation. The (Menta)Lists part is still more or less the same as
13. described earlier, only dressed up and paired with another great routine.
Obviously there is no need to secretly add the two prepared cards anymore, as they are in play right from the start.
The mixing procedure followed by the person shuffling is obviously controlled. In other words, regardless of how well the envelopes are seemingly mixed, the outcome is always the same.
The classic books of card magic are full of these false shuffles and counts, which can easily be adapted to envelopes.
One very practical example would be the Swindle Switch by Paul Curry (often referred to as Deal or Switch). It can be found in Paul Curry’s Worlds Beyond¹ and there are also a number of other routines available that uses the principle. Another very convincing technique of apparently mixing 13. envelopes is published in Doug Dyment’s Stimula- cra².
As you can see from the above description,
(Menta)Lists can be used as a stand-alone effect, but also work well as part of a bigger presentation. You probably already have other ideas for your own routines!
¹ “Paul Curry’s Worlds Beyond” by Paul Curry, Hermetic Press.
f you are a fan of the “Spectator as Mind Reader” ploy you can easily adapt (Menta)Lists and fry their brains a bit more. Instead of you as
performer predicting the final word, you can have one of the audience members make the correct prediction!
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Now you are only the facilitator in the experiment and you are endowing them with insane powers. Think of Derren Brown standing on the sidewalk with a sign reading, “Be a mind reader for 10p” in one of his first TV shows.