I am needing to build a Bryce's Screen Illusion in a hurry. I will be making Santa Claus appear at a corporate kids party soon. I have a brick chimney illusion I built about 15 years ago that works great. (It came from an Osborne plan in Genii magazine and uses black art.) The problem is I used it two years ago for this group and I need to do something different.

I had planned on making Santa Appear mostly by misdirection and having him "appear" behind a 6' picture silk but I found out last week that this Santa is a big guy! He's at least 6'3" tall (might actually be 6'5" tall) and weighs more than 300 lbs. That makes him much less mobile than I expected. (Last time, they used a guy who was about 5'8" tall and average build.)

On top of that, I'm pretty short (5'6" tall.) So, not only is my silk too small but I couldn't hold it up high enough to cover him! That's why I decided to build a slightly larger Bryce's Screen. I'd love to buy one of Creative Magic's B Screens but the cost is really prohibitive. (I'm still thinking about it, though.)

Here's the question: how complicated is getting the material sewn up for the Bryce's Screen? My dad has 50 years experience sewing. He currently works doing alterations for a uniform store. I know he can do it but I'm not sure there's enough time for him to do it in the evenings. I really need to have this in my hands by December 1 to get enough practice with it to be comfortable. (I'd like more time but that's all I have.)

My dad's convinced he can get it done pretty quickly but I think he's underestimating how long it will take. So, what's been your experience?

Thanks,
Michael

Well, I went ahead and bought a set of B Screens. It just seemed to make the most sense at this point.

Michael

Where did you end up getting them? I have been considering building my own as well, but may buy a set if the price is right.

Hello Michael. Here's an idea for the future. Last Friday at one of Myrtle Beach's Malls I produced a 370 pound Santa who was 6'2". I had them build two box frames and had them wrap them in Christmas wrapping paper. One box was on the stage and the other was rolled in behind that audience as I did my last illusion. Two stage hands came up and grabbed the box on stage and placed it over the box the had Santa in it. Then the tooked the inner box out and replaced it. The Santa just stood up. They loved it. Very cheap and it looked very professional. Hope this gives you an idea.

Bairefoot

Michael, that's a pretty good idea. It will be useful for the future. I just didn't have enough time this year to build something like that.

Dan,

I bought the B Screens from Creative Magic: http://www.creativemagic.net/stage/bscreens.htm

They are really practical but they are not inexpensive. I like them a lot better than the Abbott's Bryce's Screens. For one thing, they are taller and wider so they will accommodate a larger person. Plus, they are collapsible and fit in a small bag. They look great, too!

Given enough time, I would have made my own but I just didn't want to take the chance that they wouldn't be ready when I needed them. I really have to have rehearsal time. I won't put something in my show without enough rehearsal.

Michael

Michael -

In the Big Black Book (Paul Osborne), there are a number of reprints of ideas / plans from Genii. Several are for making Santa appear.

I have built the chimney illusion and also the sleigh illusion from that book, and have used both for making Santa appear.

I have found the chimney illusion to be a little more practical (I build the sleigh one first), because he can sit on a small stool in the prop. In the sleigh illusion, he has to kneel or sit cross legged. Because most Santa's are older / have some health problems, they had a hard time getting up to make their appearance.

The advantage of both of these illusions is that they are on wheels, so you Santa doesn't have to be loaded in them until the last minute, and he doesn't have to wait in costume during your whole show. The prop can be wheeled in from another part of the room, or another part of the mall, at the right time.

I like the idea of Bryce's Screens for an appearance of Santa, although it has the drawback of him having to wait there a long time. I also like the idea of a double tip over trunk that can be wheeled in.

- Donald

Hello Donald,

I, too, built a chimney from the Osborne plans and it is most practical (except mine doesn't break down so it's huge!) Unfortunately, I had used it for this group recently.

I have used a double tip-over trunk but it doesn't work well with Santa. Even an average size person in a Santa costume has trouble because of all the padding. I used an over-sized double tip-over and it barely worked. It wasn't nearly as smooth as I expected it to be. It's tough for Santa to get into that position with the padding (or if he is a big guy, his own belly!) and the inner trunk tends to catch on the costume after you've shown it empty and are rotating it back. And, it also has a bad overhead view. (My upcoming performance will be in a gym with parents in the bleachers - yuck!)

I had owned a double tip-over for several years and it worked great for making assistants and VIPs appear so I was really disappointed when I found out how impractical it was for Santa! (The friend who owns the over-sized one agrees with me completely. He had one Santa he couldn't even get it to work with!)

Fortunately, I won't have my Santa standing in the B Screens illusion the whole time. (I always avoid that.) The B Screens can be loaded from behind and I will be out in the audience looking for children to assist me while my assistant loads Santa in the screens. There will be some visible movement but she'll continue to adjust the screen from in front to make it look like she was doing all the movement. (That's a tip from Brian Daniel - owner of Creative Magic.) Of course, I'll have to have my regular backdrop behind the B Screens to avoid a view of Santa.

Michael

Michael,

Ahhh, the holy grail of illusions! Something that packs small, plays big, will hold a large load (CEO or Santa size) and can be done in bad performance venues!

We had to produce Santa for one of the Mall events we did this past weekend. And though I considered the B-Screens and might pick them up for next year's shows, we ultimately settled on The Great Santa Switch from the Osborne Big Black Book. I didn't think anyone would fall for it, but the response when the banner dropped and Santa was there was incredible!

Consider that production for next year if you have some curtains to work with and then you can switch them up so people don't know what to expect!

Let us know how it goes!!
David

Hi Michael -

I mentioned the chimney illusion because you did. I made my chimney so it does break down into 4 pieces, and I also covered the sides in fake brick paneling (so I didn't have to paint it). It gave great texture, but did add some weight overall.

Creative Illusions has done some great adaptations of the old ideas in the Victory Carton Illusions book. However, they do have some limitations.

I've always thought it might be a neat idea to make a base on casters, to set the jumbo square square onto, or another illusion (victory carton, or Arabian tent illusion). You could even make the prop out of plywood, as opposed to making it out of coreplast or cardboard, or as opposed to buying Brian's adaptation. Even in plywood, it could be built to break down for travel, and doesn't need to be too heavy. The idea is that the prop could be wheeled out, un-nested onto the floor, re-assembled, and then the big feller' could appear. By using the same base, you could change what is on top. You could use either a jumbo square square, or a victory carton, or an Arabian tent, etc. Some of those illusions have more limitations as to angles, though.

BTW, yes, I have seen a jumbo square circle before, that was on a wheeled base. It was a monster. But then again, then stuff he pulled out of it! Wow!

A few years ago, I think someone was selling a version of a victory carton illusion, that came with a dolly that they use for luggage at hotels. That was an interesting idea, too.

- Donald

I actually owned a square sqaure illusion made by Chalet Magic. It was really beautiful! The problem was the overhead view and getting Santa out of it. There's no easy way for Santa to climb out! Especially, if he's a big one. Fortunately, I used average size people in mine.

It also took a long time to assemble! I had to put together three squares. The outside one, the inside one and the "mystery" one! That took forever! I don't have a vehicle large enough to transport it in one piece so I got rid of it.

Michael

I made mine from PVC and then used cloth to cover them. 5 fold screen, then the gimmick. We made a BIG santa appear from it at the mall last week.

What I did was have the kids hold hands in a circle around the screens, so everyone could see around the illusion. folded the screens, turned them around, and poof, santa was there.

Of course Santa became the center of attention LOL, and the lowly magician who brought him to the mall was just a memory. LOL

One thing I was glad I did, when I built my chimney illusion, was that I replaced the pins in the pin hinges.

I took a longer piece of coat hanger wire, and bent it on the end to create a loop out to the side (like a candy cane, but a closed loop). This makes it a lot easier to put the pins in, and remove them. No pliers, hammer or screwdriver needed. Picked this idea up from one of my books, but I can't recall which one (probably one of Paul's).

Another idea I've tried for Santa's Magical Appearance is making a Jumbo Book of Life Illusion. Now that was a monster to transport! But all he had to do, was stand in the thing.

- Donald

The pin hinge idea is great. That's the way Chalet Magic makes their pins for illusions that break down. They use spring steel, which is available at hobby shops.

It is amazing the illusions we could use if we all drove big trucks! Now, that I'm back in a mini van after 18 years driving a cargo van, I'm finding myself trying to figure out how to fit it all in! (Last year, I rented a truck for my biggest show.)

Michael

Michael,
Found this too late to help you out. I used the silk to produce 6 guys for a corporate thing. I used a 90" silk and put loops on the upper edges. Since there was company logo it had to read correctly when produced. I then took three foot on1 inch dowel rods and painted them black and white like wands. The assistants hooked the silk and raised it up easily high and wide to cover everything. I had a done a blendo type thing in a Test Tube Bunny tube. It packed extremely well and worked great.

Your dad could sew your 6' silk centered onto a large piece of thin fabric. This adds cover stage and helps with the backlight problems.

Richard

A great solution for loose pin hinges are R clips or Cotter Pins as they're officially called...they'll stay in place better then a loose piece of wire and pull out just as easily....these are what are used on 90% of all travelling amusement rides!

AC

Video trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWSTa2siEsc

http://www.abbottmagic.com/

Richard,

That's a great idea! Oh well, next time!

Michael

Bryce was a member of my IBM ring. Sadly, he passsed away just a few short months ago. Coming across this thread was a nice holiday reminder of the man. He was one of the kindest (and most creative) souls I ever had the good fortune to meet.

Magiguy: The only invention I have listed on my site in my "Brief Biographies of Magic Inventors" for Bryce Chambers is his production screen. Do you know if he invented other effects that I can add to his bio?

I'm sure he had others, but that's the only widely released commercial item that I'm aware of by name. I can check with the rest of the ring and see what I come up with. He performed at every meeting, right up until the end. The only other personal info I can currently add to your bio is that he was a retired chemical engineer in the aerospace industry.