Where Has The Mystery Gone In Magic And Mentalism?
May 17, 2009 by Stuart Cumberland
Filed under Mentalism Articles, Mentalism Thoughts
Where has the mystery gone?
Maybe it’s just me. But there’s little to any mystery left today in the presentations of magical performers.
I just came back from an all night graduation party where a magician was performing walk around magic. He was showing a couple of kids some “sleight of hand”.
Sleight of hand?!?!
You aren’t supposed to SEE sleight of hand!! The card is supposed to appear back on the top of the deck with MAGIC… not some invisible sleight of hand move.
Sleight of hand is supposed to be secret!
Oh. And he had a beautiful opening line… “hey, you guys want to see a couple of tricks?”
Tricks?!?!
Good God.
My dog does tricks.
Magicians are supposed to do magic… aren’t they?
Mentalists are no better. They don’t do mindreading anymore. They do “psychological” stuff. Or body “language stuff”. Or they use their “five senses to create the illusion of a sixth” crap.
No mystery. No magic. Nothing.
Where has the mystery gone?
Frankly, I think that mystery has been incestuously removed from magic.
Everyone does what everyone else is doing to the point that everyone is like everyone else and all magicians and mentalists end up… crap.
I think the thing that makes me laugh the most is the delusion that some performers have about not wanting to foster false beliefs.
“I don’t want to make people believe in the supernatural,” they’ll say. Then, they’ll turn around and lie to the person saying it’s psychological! 
Hilarious. So they foster a belief in the person that psychology can do things that psychology can’t.
Putting The Mystery BACK
I’ve got an idea.
Why not put the mystery BACK in magic and mentalism?
Here’s how to do it: become an actor. Like Houdin said so many years ago… “a magician is just an actor playing the part of a magician.”
ACT like one!
PUT the magic back in magic. Put the MYSTERY back in mentalism.
Take a card, place it into the middle of the deck. Stand still. Don’t move. Snap your fingers and say “did you SEE that?” I want you to REALLY SEE the magic happen. Believe it! Have THEM turn over the top card and let them freak out.
The card got to the top by magic. Not sleight of hand. Get it?
Oh. And BE just as amazed as they are. Magic just happened, man! Be amazed!
Are you a mentalist? Grow some balls and READ THEIR MIND! Have them think of a name and concentrate. Concentrate. Concentrate… WAIT until the name appears in your mind… wait until… YOU SEE IT! Then tell them!
And let them freak out.
Sleep Well At Night
Go to bed knowing that you’ve entertained and amazed a few people by putting the MAGIC and MYSTERY back into the art.
And don’t delude yourself. If you think that doing such wondrous acts is going to drastically change a persons belief system then… you’re deluding yourself. Don’t be so pompous!
BE a magician. BE a mentalist.
BE MYSTERIOUS.
Put the mystery back into this dying art.
SC
very well said!
Where has all the magic gone,never mind the mystey?
At one time,magic was a closed shop,all magicians kept the secrets but now…
A quick glimpse at a warez site tells all. Tarbells Complete Course, free to download. All DB’s illusions on youtube, metacafe and the like. Ebooks galore, the masked magician. I could go on…
People aren’t as prepared to suspend disbelief as they used to be whick IMHO has taken away a lot of the mystery. Plus,”psychological” has become the buzz wors thanks to Derren Brown, who’s acting ability is second to none has made the psychological routines as much of a mystery as magic used to be.
I agree with the acting part totally. Not only does it look more convincing if you have rehearsed a rouitine until it is as perfect as you can get it but if you use the method acting technique and actually assume the role of magician, mindreader or whatever, your own belief system improves your performance immeasurably.
When I go on stage I don’t act the part, I become the part of an outrageous hypnotist and people believe in me rather than the things I do. They expect certain things and Mad John over delivers them.
My answer. Don’t learn tricks or routines alone. Learn the “business” side of things to perfection and you will be booked again and again.
I have to agree with John. Back in the “day”, you had to find someone to mentor with, I was lucky Bob Nelson was mine, in order to learn. You had to work (pay the price) to earn the trust and then in Bob’s case, buy the books… and like Stuart says you had to strap on some pretty big ones and go out and actually do the stuff.
You had better look quick, to get a glimpse of the likes of Kreskin, no video, no YouTube to watch these few masters over again and again.
You couldn’t just waltz into a magic shop and buy just anything they had, you had to indicate your skill level, no internet to buy from either, or seems like more today, to just download from. I recently was doing some research online as I renew my interest in doing readings after many years of burn out and was shocked that so much was online about cold reading, free for the stealing.
I remember back in my days of Nelson’s having the whole secret would of mentalism (no mental magic) unfold one grand and glorious day when I got invited into the “back room”, literally through the curtained vale and was introduced to what is now called BOR and the now famous Nelson catalog (still have it, although worn to shreds) because I had earned the passage.
- Rick
The Mystery here is, why is there a pic of Freddy Krueger on this post?
I completely agree with you. I try not to sway anyone into any particular belief in what I do, be it supernatural or psychological. I let them fill in the blanks for themselves, then whatever it is they decide, it will be more palatable because THEY came to that conclusion instead of me trying to convince them.
And a word about the “incestuous” nature of things…
Was recently talking to a not-famous but well-respected and thoughtful magician who was telling me about a magic event he recently attended. There was a “close-up show,” of sorts, with several magicians working at their own tables around the room. Viewers would movce from one table to the next at their whim. What he said about walking around the room watching the various magicians at work was, “It was like watching one magician with different heads.”
When I was young, there was a magic shop in Toronto called The Arcade Magic And Novelty Shop. It was owned by Sophie Smith, a wonderful old lady with knowledge of magic like you can’t believe!
She wouldn’t sell you magic!
Seriously. It was crazy! If you went down and walked in and asked to buy the linking rings, she’d quiz you about magic. If she felt you didn’t know enough, you weren’t getting the rings! Period.
She wanted you to know the magic. Not the tricks. The magic.
But I don’t believe that the availability is an issue. We live in an information society. Only those looking for it will find it. For the most part. So, youtube isn’t destroying magic.
Performers are destroying magic.
Dumbing it down.
Turning it into a puzzle to be figured out, rather than magic.
The GOOD NEWS is that by simply focusing on doing the magic, you’ll stand out like a sore thumb. If you read a mind, you’ll stand out. You’ll be “magic”.
SC
I think that most are using the “sleight of hand” approach simply because they would feel stupid if they tried to treat it as magic. Also I think many people would believe a psychological type deal rather than somebody saying it was mind reading. This also prevents them from having people go “Really? What I am thinking of right now.”
This may be the best argument in the endless debate of “Can magic & mentalism be combined?” To our audiences, powerful magic and powerful mentalism are indistinguishable. If it’s powerful, they’re going to assume that, sure, we can do that. If it’s not powerful – if we show weak magic – then they’re just tricks. And mentalism performed weakly is much worse than weak magic.
*jeep!
–Grandpa Chet
I actually think the “psychological” approach could be even more mysterious. For instance, analyze the signature on the front of the business card, and then bury the card in the middle of other business cards, fill out the Tick Sheet Handwriting Analysis, and then proceed to answer their question that was on the back of the card, now in the middle of the other business cards. Of course, they can believe what they want.
Scott
I think in today’s instant gratification internet society, magic has indeed suffered. HOWEVER, there are those who are fighting the good fight and doing magic some justice. However, you never SEE them because they are good and actually WORK for a living.
We just need some good old fashioned, “Weed out the sick and the old” in magic.
I have to say that I agree. Unfortunately, the majority of magic I’ve seen performed in the UK in recent years suffers from these problems. There’s no doubt that many performers all want to ‘do’ the latest ‘trick’ and it’s rare to see a performance which engenders a genuine sense of mystery or wonder in the audience.
AJ
I haven’t been around, so just got to read this posting. Congrats for keeping up the hard fight. You (and I) have been fighting this fight for years. The mystery is being killed, and once lost it will be hard to get it back, if not impossible. As long as performers continue this laissez-faire attitude toward exposures, and continue using disclaimers telling the audience that what they do is fake, the mystery will continue to die.
I don’t know what the answer is. Even with the possibility of defeat, I will continue to fight with you, though I no longer perform, I can still speak and write!
Kudos to you my friend. If people are upset at you for that posting, then forget them!
Billy
Billy!
Good to hear from you. ALWAYS good hearing your thoughts.
That sad part, imho, is the “dumbing down” that’s occurring. Most don’t realize what they are missing out on because there are so few of us left that subscribe to this thinking. Instead, they do what they other guy does… because he’s doing what the other guy does… and he got it watching Criss Angel… and everybody else is doing it…
I might die, but I don’t intend to let the mystery die. I plan to fight the good fight.
SC
I agree with a lot of what most have to say. I also agree that Youtube isn’t killing magic alone because most lay people won’t bother doing a search for how an effect is done, 9 times out of 10 they will have forgotten what the effect actually was.. how many effects can you describe Paul Daniels doing over the years? He is remebered for his catchphrase ‘Not a lot’ and his corny jokes not his effects even though some were stunning! I get the impression many young magicians who are just starting out want to get to the actual effect (usually a gimmick) as soon as possible and don’t carry a presentation through to very end. So my message to all the ‘modern’ performers is; come on guys bring back the Magic and the Mystery and you may surpise yourselves and, heaven forbid, actually start to enjoy it!
Couldn’t agree more. It’s not a trick, its a mystery. Another problem is those who demand disclaimers from mentalists. They would try to destory any magic or mystery before it evens begins. Dunninger had a clever way of handling it, yes he gave a vague non-disclaimer disclaimer at the end of the show, not the beginning.
I respectfully disagree with the premise that ’supernatural’ equals ‘psycological’ as used in performing mental effects. By definition they are different, and both are valid for a mentalists use.
I quit sleight of hand magic many years ago, I am now a psychic/bizarrist disguised as a mentalist…I now go by Master Psychic kenneth meaux and proceed to do as I wish it to be…REAL magic with a theatrical flair and no one has died from it yet.
Mr. Cumberland,
I value your perspective in this article. As my mind turns towards practical guidance, are there any other resources you might have to recommend on showmanship other than those I might be remembering from ellusionist.com ?
Thank you, and any others who might chime in,
-westgrays
Well, it depends.
There is a great book called “Showmanship For Magicians” by Dariel Fitzkee that is a staple and must-read. You can get it from any good magic shop.
I’d recommend my stuff too, as I tend to focus on presentation over “tricks”. But, that comment would be considered “selling” and I certainly wouldn’t want to be accused of that!
You are very smart to focus on this, as showmanship can take a “trick” and make it into a “miracle”.
Ah, Ken! A breath of fresh air. A guy who does real magic…
Well, here it is almost a year latter, and the subject line of the email Stuart sent still got my attention. I haven’t been around here or anywhere else of late much, except Dean Hankey’s Success Site.
Why?
Well, several reasons actually, time, classes for my doctorate I’m getting but truth be told after nearly fifty years of being involved in “the” business, I’m rather put off, as i was a year ago (see previous post from May 09) with the state this art has become. I have learned from visiting my friend who owns a magic shop in Columbus and seeing a bunch of guys hanging around that their is even a whole group of people who call themselves “move monkeys” they simply learn to do moves and expect it to impress people, Oh, and then they will show anyone what the move is and how cleverly skilled they are. When asked simple questions like, what the story (patter) for the trick, or what other routines do you do… I got a blank star, much like the dear i almost run into all the time.
Hypnosis, magic, mentalism it all has become the same… no showmanship what so ever, I remember (in the day) when a good mental effect would send a chill up your spine and make your hair stand-up, I remember having such a believable story when I did needle-thru-the-arm that people would come-up afterward to check if the assistant in the experiment was OK. Of course they had reason too, she had a bandage wrapped around her arm and just a hint of blood showing through, and this was after the show was well over. Funny no one I know of ever thought it was just a “trick!” it was a real demonstration of yogi hypnosis, so barrow from Elwood, “I wasn’t lying, I just took the liberty to Bu** Sh** them.” or in show business it’s called “showmanship”.
Sorry for the rant, maybe it’s a good thing I don;t come around much anymore. – Rick
Rant on, Rick. Very few have the background that you do, or to have had the privilege of knowing Robert Nelson.