As you are performing an appearance of yourself, say, in a box (whatever method), have a little girl appear right behind you. She should be dressed like a "little girl ghost".
This imagery you can find in movies such as "The Others" and more recently "The Ring". She should be in greyish (almost faded) colour clothing (whatever the outfit) clutching a doll in the same colour. She should not move, rather just stand there looking out into the audience without any expression. You must act like you don't realize she's appeared with you and go on normally with your routine. At the end, perform a normal vanish of whatever in the box and she vanishes together.
The more she looked out of place in the routine and the more you didn't seem to notice her, the better. Imagine the uncomfortable murmur coming from the audience members..
If you dare, try it. whether or not you actually let the audience in on the joke at the end is up to you.

It sounds pretty spooky, but I have to say something here.

In high school I was in a play called "Our Town." It was about the Salem Witch trials. Our director had several people sitting near the back of the stage to represent the entire town "watching" what was happening without the characters' awareness of them. But nobody in the audience understood the point or really cared about it at all. This sounds like it would have to be done extremely carefully performance wise. I'm not saying it isn't a good idea, just be careful about how it is performed.

However IceRaven02, the "little girl ghost" appears and vanishes! She must also look out of place in the whole illusion routine! There you are smiling to your audience after appearing and there's this little girl in somber clothing in your apparatus!
Maybe she even gives a wicked smile before she vanishes!
Hard part would be getting a kid to do this well..

That's not a bad idea. People really get confused and concerned when their expectations of an event doesn't match the reality. Penn and Teller use this quite frequently in their shows.

I assume that this is to be a stage presentation. You might even get away with a "Pepper's Ghost" illusion, which may make it easier to manage the appearance and vanish.

Best thing to do is don't even let on that you know what is happening, and if afterwards someone asks, just pretend you didn't notice and state that was NOT part of your act. Then act a little perplexed.

Legends of ghosts get started like this...

That's true Seance! I remember a restaurant in the south that was featured on "Thats Incredible" a TV show from the 80's. A few stunts like mentioned in Pakar's post. Then you turn off the water at the main, and when a woman enters the restroom you have the water turned on. Looks like our little ghost turned the faucet on again! A few pictures that fall off the wall (ideas can be found in MAGICK by Basom Jones) and a legend is born....if that's the right word?!

Hmmmm, this gives me an additional idea. What if, (mind you, you'd have to be wearing a rather full costume, and/or cape), but what if the girl vanished and appeared each time you walked past the box, coffin, or whatever. You'd need just enough cover for her to slip back and forth. With some good timing and routining, it would be a very strange visual.

Sable

Great idea Seance, just that I was thinking of her appearing with the Magician which makes it a little more tricky as the Magician has to really appear whereas the girl just seems to be there in a translucent form. But hey.., if you can pull it off, might as well make her feet not touch the ground (a suspension) which should be easy if it is a Pepper's set up. There she is "hovering" in the background while you are cheerfully addressing the audience, love it! It's like David Copperfield meets David Blaine! LOL!! And not telling them it was a gag at the end when asked SHOULD start an urban legend! Like.. "Did you hear the one with the Magician and the ghost?" LOL!
I can see it really spooking the audience Magickman! Especially if you play clubs (kinda hard to pull this off in a mall I think..)
Incredible idea, Grammar Host. A coffin appearance of the Magician's ghostly assistant who is a real assistant in costume (NOT the little girl)would play well with this especially if it was supposedly a real coffin. It would seem that the Magician got more than he bargained for. A "real" ghost appeared with his costumed one. Will actually help if the lady assistant's costume is "cheesy" but the little girl's outfit is convincing.
Great replies guys, thanks!!

One little subtlety. Put a blue or red line across the little girl's neck that is visible to the audience. Like that of a "healed wound", if you know what I'm sayin'......
That should spook 'em.....

I have an idea as to how you could even visiblly walk THROUGH the ghost in your show. PM if anyone is interested. I don't want to give the secret away on a public forum.

-jlareau
:bluebikes:

IceRaven02,

"Our Town," by Thornton Wilder, is not about the Salem witch trials. "The Crucible," by Arthur Miller, is.

Been a long time since high school for me too.

Sid

I love the idea in theory.

In practice, I could almost see such an appearance becoming comical very quickly.

Such an apparition would have to be produced with a certain finesse.

Perhaps the apparition is seen as a faint, almost hallucinatory figure. Anything else can either be asking for trouble, or a loss of credibility (that is if you intend your show to be on the "heavy" side).

I am a true advocate of the credo: "Less is More".

pete the creeper, I can almost see what you're saying but imo it would work ESPECIALLY if the show wasn't heavy as it would look totally "out of place," if you know what I'm saying.
If it was a bizarre show, this idea might be cheesy. But it is a normal illusion show, so what's happening doesn't look at all like a part of the show's program. Plus, you don't acknowledge it happening at all even when asked.
Feel free to disagree though...

I see what you're saying. I tend to work "heavy," so I guess I'm a little biased. Full Physical Manifestations really are a matter of taste between performers and shows. There isn't a wrong way, or a right way.

It's a neat idea! Don't get me wrong. With proper handling, again with finesse, it can be a creepy effect.

Perhaps if the apparition appeared and was suddenly "dispelled" with light. Like many ghost stories when someone turns around, the ghost is never there.
There are several methods in which this could be achieved... <IMG SRC="/forums/images/smiles/pumpking.gif">

I like that idea pete the creeper.

"Like many ghost stories when someone turns around, the ghost is never there."

It's like the Magician is the only one left out of the whole thing.

You could have the girl symbolize something.

You don't know she's there, but she always appears when you are talking about something completely unrelated. Or, if you end your show with a "death-defying" piece, she could appear throughout the show whenever something goes wrong. Then, when she appears at the end, the audience might get scared and think you're going to fail (but you don't!).

If you did this, you would have to be very careful not to overdo it. I really like the idea of the girl though.

For spookiness, I'd pretend that you never knew that the ghost was on stage.... Even better if you can factor in a instant photograph being taken during the performance and a faint ghost lingering in the background. I'd have the girl ghost holding only a doll's head for added effect.

This would take some working, and the right routine to run alongside, but lets just assume the following:
1. You have some money, just hanging aroud the house, waiting to be used
2. You have an old full-length mirror onstage (even better, several of different sizes)
3. You have good lighting.
If all those things are miraculously true, Imagine this:

The magician walks onstage, and begins his performance. He walks past an old, dirty mirror, glances at himself. As he turns away, the faint reflection of a gray girl, with a vacant look in eye and a dusty doll in hand is seen in the mirror. As the preformance continues, the reflection strengthens, but no such girl is seen onstage. As the lights fade, the girl's reflection remains lit just a second too long in an aura of blueish light, then it too fades. The magician never notices her.

If you could get such an effect with every mirror onstage, just, just, there, almost out of sight, and let your patter silently introduce them, my god, would that be creepy, especially if you could continually avoid the spot at which the ghostly girl stands.

The mirror is again, a little expensive for my taste, but not half as much as many more blunt illusions.

Excellent ideas, all.

Anybody see "The Ring?"

I saw "The Ring" but got the idea for the little girl ghost mainly from "The Others."

The ring was EXCELENT! but before trying this idea, think about what made the ring so good and not so cheesy. The Ring had self control; it built up tension and then released it in one short amazing storyboarded scene. I think you should take that into consideration before attempting anything with as much potential scare factor and cheese factor as this idea. I love this idea. I can't even begin to discribe how cool it is but seriously, it's going to take a lot of careful planning to make it work. Once again this will either scare the pants off someone or make them laugh and go "what the?"
:bat: jonathan

I agree wholeheartedly.....