Effect:
After placing a piece of paper on the table, the performer invites a participant to play an imagination game which the performer says will leave him with an
impossible object as a souvenir. The game involves three invisible objects - three invisible envelopes actually, a red one, a green one, and a blue one. The participant chooses the red. Next he decides whether to open the invisible envelope with a pair of invisible scissors, an invisible penknife, or an invisible letter-opener. He decides on the scissors. Picking up the piece of paper from the table, the performer mimes tipping it out of the invisible red envelope! He tells the participant that this is obviously just part of the imagination game, since the paper was obviously on the table before any choices were made. Except… the participant is invited to unfold the piece of paper and read what’s written there. It says ‘You will choose to cut open the RED envelope with the SCISSORS!’
F.Y.I.
This is another very odd little performance piece, but one that I absolutely love using. Think for a moment about the premise – an imagination game using invisible props produces an impossible object! What’s not to love?!
Once again it uses my good friend Equivoque, but in a very simplified form. Oh, and sometimes a very simple billet switch, done at a psychologically invisible moment. I say sometimes, as at least 50% of the time you don’t have to do anything. The starting point for ‘The Red Envelope’ was an effect by George Laing called ‘Just Imagine’ (Apocalypse magazine, June 1993). It too featured Equivoque, but unfortunately the approach was rather transparent and obvious. Anytime I read something along the lines of “This just uses the standard ‘magician’s choice’ force”, my heart sinks. That has been remedied here, with a multi-layered, streamlined and motivated use of Equivoque.
Method and Performance:
You need two billet-sized(-ish) pieces of paper. You could use actual billets (made of card) if you wanted, but I think a laymen might think it a bit strange that you are
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carrying items of stationery around for no discernible reason, other than maybe to show them a trick. That kind of goes against the whole ethos of the CAM mentality, so I simply use two pieces of paper. The size isn’t critical, but you do need to be able to fold it up into quarters so that it ends up a size that you are comfortable finger-palming, should the billet switch become necessary.
On one piece write: ‘You will choose to cut open the RED envelope with the
SCISSORS!’ This piece goes into your left jacket or pants pocket. On the other piece write: ‘You will choose to cut open the RED envelope with the PENKNIFE!’ This piece goes into your right jacket or pants pocket, anywhere you can comfortably palm it from later if you need to, after you have apparently taken the invisible scissors and penknife out of that same pocket. All the writing should be done with a pencil or fine pen. It is vital that no one can see that the folded up piece of paper has any writing inside of it.
Just so we’re clear, the ‘invisible’ envelopes which I mime using I imagine to be the same size as a pay envelope, i.e. one that is only slightly larger than a playing card. I will never mention the size during the performance, but it is part of my silent script and I always mime handling them as if they were that size.
To perform, begin by inviting the participant to play the imagination game, and then take the piece of paper from your left pocket and place it casually off to the left-hand side of the table, saying, “I’ll use this later.” Don’t make a big deal about it, and definitely don’t refer to it as a prediction.
Say to him, “This imagination game uses invisible objects, so for it to work you need to, erm… suspend your disbelief a little bit! In other words, don’t think about it too much, just follow what I say and go with the flow…”
Part 1:
Then from the same left pocket, mime pulling out an envelope as you say, “This is a small red envelope, if is made of very thick red card. Mime placing it down on the table to the left of centre.
Again from the same pocket, mime pulling out an envelope as you say, “And this is a small blue envelope. It is made of very shiny blue foil.” Mime placing it down on the table to the right of centre.
Finally, mime pulling a third envelope out of the same pocket as you say “And this is a small green envelope. It is made of dark green recycled paper.” Mime placing it down in the centre, between the first two.
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Point at the invisible envelopes from left to right, recapping, “Red, green, blue”, making sure that they are not too close to one another, so everyone is crystal clear which envelope is where.
Alternative 1:
Ask the participant to pick up any two envelopes and hand them to you, naming the colours as he does so. If he hands you the green and the blue, then simply say “Fair enough” and mime tearing the green and blue envelopes (at the same time) into small pieces, mime dropping them back in your pocket and say “The red envelope however, you are going to open”, with slight emphasis on the “open”.
Alternative 2:
Ask the participant to pick up any two envelopes and hand them to you, naming the colours as he does so. If he hands you the red and one of the other envelopes (we’ll say he hands you the red and the green for the purposes of explanation) say to him
“Pick up the blue one and tear it up, obviously we don’t need it.”
Mime holding an envelope in each hand and then ask him, “Take either one from me…” with slight emphasis on the “from”.
If he takes the red one, you mime tearing up the green one (which is only fair, as he has already torn one up) and say “OK. The red envelope however, you are going to open”, with emphasis on the “open”.
If however, he takes the green one, you say “And you know what to do, tear it up.”
(Which is consistent, as he has already torn the first one up.) Continue, “This red envelope however, you are going to open”, with emphasis on the “open”.
Obviously, it would be the same procedure if he handed you the red and the blue.
Either alternative ends with him holding the invisible red envelope.
Part 2:
You now reach into your right hand pocket and mime bringing out the invisible scissors, which you place on the table left of centre, saying “A pair of scissors”.
You again reach into the same pocket and mime bringing out the invisible penknife, which you place on the table right of centre, saying “A penknife”.
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Reach into the pocket a third time and as you start to bring out the invisible letter opener look over at the participant’s hands and say, “You’ve got the red envelope haven’t you? It’s thick card, there is no way the letter opener will open that…” And place the invisible letter opener back in the pocket.
Say, “So your final decision – do you want to open the envelope with the scissors or the penknife?”
Alternative 1:
If he says the scissors, there is no need for the billet switch. Simply hand him the invisible scissors and mime putting away the invisible penknife, saying, “OK, you take the scissors and I’ll keep the penknife”.
Ask him to cut open the envelope, reminding him that it is made of thick card. Pick up the piece of paper (prediction) with your left hand and take the invisible
envelope from him with your right. Mime squeezing the envelope open and tipping something onto your left hand.
Say, “And this is the final act of the imagination game. I want you to imagine that this piece of paper really was inside the envelope all along.”
Place the piece of paper onto one of his hands.
Continue, “I know it’s crazy, since we both know two things: that we’ve only been using imaginary, invisible objects for this game and that we could both see that the paper was there on the table the whole time. But there is something you need to see. Please open up the piece of paper and read aloud what is written inside…”
When he reads it out stunned silence will follow.
Alternative 2:
If he says the penknife, you will need to do the billet switch. The good news is that it is totally covered by what he is doing.
Simply hand him the invisible penknife and mime putting away the invisible scissors, saying, “OK, you take the penknife and I’ll keep the scissors”. Whilst your right hand is in the pocket, finger-palm the ‘PENKNIFE’ piece of paper.
Ask him to cut open the envelope, reminding him that it is made of thick card. As he is doing so, pick up the piece of paper from the table with your left hand and shuttle
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pass it into your right hand. There is no heat on this for two reasons: all attention is on the participant and no one knows what the piece of paper is for anyway.
Drop the paper from your right hand onto whichever one of the participant’s hands is obviously(!) not holding the invisible envelope and pick up that ‘envelope’ with your same right hand. Mime squeezing the envelope open and tipping something onto his hand, right on top of the paper. During this action, depending on your performance situation, there may be time to ditch the finger-palmed paper into your pocket. If not though don’t worry, you can do it in a moment when he reads out what the paper he is holding says.
Say, “And this is the final act of the imagination game. I want you to imagine that this piece of paper really was inside the envelope all along. I know it’s crazy, since we both know two things: that we’ve only been using imaginary, invisible objects and that we could both see that the paper was there on the table the whole time.
But there is something you need to see. Please open up the piece of paper and read what is written inside…”
When he reads it out stunned silence will follow.