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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
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On 2012-04-17 18:59, Alan Wheeler wrote: Many of the mental acts I've seen lately are really mental magic acts and not mentalism. Good Thoughts, Bob |
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JamesTalbert New user 42 Posts |
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On 2012-04-17 20:05, mastermindreader wrote: How does one make sure they are performing a mentalism act, and not mental magic? Is it all in presentation or are there other factors? |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
James-
I posted the following excerpt from my "The Art of Mentalism" about three years ago but I don't remember where, so here it is again: On the Presentation of Mentalism [Note: Since this was written, the generally time accepted definition of "mentalism" has expanded a bit. A majority of today's performers present mentalism as a demonstration of known scientific and/or psychological principles. Personally I have stayed with the "mind reader/paranormalist" style of presentation.] Mentalism is the art of presenting seemingly paranormal effects in an entertaining manner. Its essence lies in the performer's ability to successfully suspend the disbelief of his audience. Fortunately, there is already substantial belief among the public in psychic and other paranormal phenomena. But it is a large mistake to assume that the simple public acceptance of the possibility of ESP [or "Psi" as it is generally referred to today] is a sufficient foundation for a successful performance of mentalism. That view, along with the myths that mentalism is easier to do than magic and that it's inherently more entertaining to "intelligent adult audiences," has given birth to many a bad act. So what are the real elements of an effective mental act? There are many, of course, but the main thing is that the performance must be entertaining. Anyone who thinks otherwise and has the nerve to perform a stand-up act in a theatrical selling is a fool-and probably an egotistical fool to boot. If a performer really thinks that the mechanical performance of technically flawless "mental effects" will cause an audience to sit in awe of his "powers" and bring him success, he is sadly mistaken. Now, obviously, entertainment value alone does not make a mental act. But it is very difficult to be entertaining if the audience doesn't like you and whatever it is that you're doing. So we arrive at a very simple rule-to succeed you have got to do everything in your power to be likable. So many mentalists nowadays try to affect a threatening, superman-type image. That sort of thing may intrigue people for a while, but in the long run it puts them off-they may like to go to freak shows on occasion, but they go there to gawk, not to interact. And if a mentalist cannot get people to interact- i.e., to volunteer, to participate- he doesn't have an act. How many times have you heard the complaint "I just can't seem to get people to volunteer?" Those who have that problem would do well to look at their image. Are they presenting likable personalities, or do they pose a threat to their audience? Or, worse yet, are they coming on so strong that people just don't want to be seen on the same stage with them? And that's one of the reasons that mentalism is so difficult to do well. Reading people's minds is inherently threatening. Consider- do people really want to have their minds read? Would you like to have your mind read? For real? Suppose you really could read minds and reveal people's innermost thoughts. Do you think they would like you? Do you think they'd volunteer once they were convinced that you could really do it? Of course not! They'd get away from you as fast as possible, or they'd kill you.But as a mentalist you can't come right out and say you'rejust doing tricks. Then the act is just a puzzle. The inherent fascination is gone. The resolution is really pretty simple-you've got to create the impression that you can only do this stuff sometimes. That it doesn't always work. That it's not minds that you can read, just very clearly defined thoughts- thoughts which a volunteer must focus on to the exclusion of everything else. That's why they must write things down, or make selections within clearly defined parameters. In one stroke you've eliminated the threat and made the secret work of mentalism both possible and plausible. Some basic rules flow naturally from the above premises- rules that I feel form the core of effective mentalism and are the foundation of the effects which I perform. 1. Never use any materials that were obviously purchased at a magic shop. If you use them people will assume you are a magician and you will have destroyed the basic premise of the art- the suspension of disbelief in a paranormal format. In no way do I mean to put down the fine art of magic. Most mentalists, myself included, have a deep love for good conjuring. But it's a different art form- it creates a different impression. If you want to do magic tricks, do fancy and impressive magic. "Mental magic tricks" may be fancy, but they're not very impressive. More often than not, they are simply boring. For the same reason it is generally wise to avoid any mental effects which have become popular with magicians who are in the public eye. 2. You should strive to use an absolute minimum in the way of visible props. It is the performer who should dominate the stage. Don't misunderstand me on this point. I am not talking about visual aids which focus attention on what the performer is doing (and very often provide the modus operandi for a given effect.) I am referring to table loads of props which too often dominate the performing area. You just can't give the impression that you really need all of that stuff to do mentalism. 3. All effects must be clean, direct, and as brief as possible. Your purpose is to entertain, not to bore. Even intelligent audiences don't want to strain to understand what a performer is doing. While they may like to think that what they are seeing is educational, they didn't come to see you with the idea of really getting educated. 4. Avoid effects which require the audience to do mathematics, counting lines in books, etc. The reason should be obvious. More than likely they will make a mistake. People tend to get nervous when doing even the simplest tasks before a large group. Always make things as easy as possible for your volunteers. Carefully phrase all instructions to avoid any ambiguity. 5. Always understand the effect you are doing or you shouldn't be doing it. I'm not referring to methods or effect from the performer's point of view. Rather I am concerned with the effect as it is perceived by the audience. Failure to understand that can result in audience realization that what they are seeing is merely a trick. For example, ask yourself this question-What is the effect of Annemann's "Pseudo Psychometry?" Too often the performer will simply create the impression that he is able to discover the owners of various personal objects which have been sealed in envelopes. Presented in that manner, it is all too easy for an audience to accidentally stumble onto the actual method employed-marked envelopes. The effect is far more impressive if the performer appears to reveal things about the owners of the objects. Not what they look like, but what they are like. Preshow work and some good cold reading is what creates this effect. Real psychometry is the apparent ability to reveal things about people by receiving vibrations from articles which have been in their possession. But even those people who believe that psychometry exists will find it hard to believe that an object's vibrations will reveal the color of its owner's dress. That's why you can't be convincing in this business unless you have some plausible theory to explain what you are doing. Which leads us to the next rule: 6. Don't claim too much. How many times have you seen mental acts presented in a format where the performer explains all of the various forms of paranormal phenomena and then proceeds to demonstrate each one of them? It just doesn't work. You may get them to believe that you are clairvoyant, or that you are telepathic, or that you are precognitive, or that you can move objects with your mind-but not that you can really do all of these things. Your claims must have consistency. There must be an inner logic behind what you are doing. It is very important, therefore, that you carefully examine the claims you make during an act. What is it that you are doing and how do you do it? Given the abilities you claim to possess, are your effects consistent with the claim? Now, realize, I am not advocating that you come right out and make any claims at all to paranormal abilities-at least not verbally. But the performance of successful mentalism creates implied claims and those claims must be consistent. In my own act I create the impression that I can do three things- I can receive thoughts if they are properly projected to me on sort of a mental movie screen, I can send thoughts if you let me project them onto your mental screen, and I can sometimes make you do things by projecting a thought into your mind. I don't want to claim the ability to predict the future, it's just too hard to sustain. So when I do an effect where I am apparently able to predict a spectator's actions-what name he will select from a phone book or what time he will set on a watch-I give the impression that I have mentally caused him to make the selection I wanted him to make-that I have given him a subconscious mental command. It's entirely consistent with the abilities I have impliedly claimed-that I can send and receive thoughts. No more and no less. Sure, at other shows I may demonstrate a few other abilities, such as super memory or apparent PK, but I would never exhibit more than a few mental faculties in any given show. It's just too hard for an audience to swallow-they are likely to condude that there is trickery at work. 7. Use humor effectively. Believe it or not, even a mentalist is allowed to smile and make humorous remarks. As I've already indicated, the humorless superman approach is not very entertaining. It's important, I think, that you don't create the impression of taking yourself too seriously. When an audience can laugh with you (not at you, as is likely if you refuse to accept the fact that you are primarily an entertainer) they start to like you and feel comfortable with you. When that happens you start to become commercial-and when you've done that you're on the verge of being a successful entertainer. Good thoughts, Bob |
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Neil Elite user 486 Posts |
This is interesting.
I wonder what percentage of any given audience ever really believes what they are seeing is real. I'm a lifelong skeptic and rationalist so I don't ever remember believing any kind of mental act was real so that might warp my view as to the credulousness of the average spectator, although I MIGHT have slightly believed some of Derren Brown's "it's all just psychological/influencing" schtick when he first emerged. If people don't really believe this stuff surely it's mental magic to them no matter how you present it? |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
"Mental magic" and "mentalism" are words of art that have specific meanings within our profession. They direct relate to the illusion of reality created during performance.
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Dreadnought Special user Athens, Georgia 836 Posts |
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On 2012-04-18 06:26, Neil wrote: For the last year and a half I have billed myself as a Paranormalist and I been performing at a theater every Saturday and Sunday. On those nights, I see people who actually believe I made contact with the dead, have read their mind or predicted the future. The two strongest are the mind reading and contacting the dead, the latter I think because of the rash of shows on television like Ghost Hunters, Ghost Hunters International, Destination Truth etc - yeah I'm a SyFy channel junkie. I always ask the audience if they believe in Ghost and then move into a one of a variety of different routines. But when I ask the question, about 2/3 of the audience raise their hand. When I perform my mind reading routine, I get a mixture of skeptics and believers in telepathy. The believers walk away with more ammunition and the skeptics, some are converted and believe, but regardless, they all walk away scratching their heads in disbelief. Peace and Godspeed.
Peace
"Ave Maria gratia plena Dominus tecum..." Scott Would you do anything for the person you love? |
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Neil Elite user 486 Posts |
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On 2012-04-18 11:10, mastermindreader wrote: I know what the terms refer to but what exactly do you mean by "illusion of reality"? To me mental magic is when someone performs a mental, rather than physical effect, but offers no convincing explanation other than it is a clever trick. Mentalism implies supernatural or superhuman abilities. Is Derren Brown a mentalist? Yes, people believe he has unfeasible mental skills and his persona and act all convey this perfectly. Richard Osterlind is billed as a Mentalist but to me appears to be performing mental magic. |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
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On 2012-04-18 11:49, Neil wrote: I think you answered the question perfectly in your last paragraph. It shows that you DO see the difference between mentalism and mental magic. Apparent mental skills vs what appears to be trickery. Good thoughts, Bob |
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Neil Elite user 486 Posts |
I do see the difference. What I was sort of alluding to before was how much believability performers actually have. I've seen plenty of TV, corporate and other gigging "mentalists" with (in my opinion) very little believability. Sometimes it's poor presentation/persona but also due to the fact that it's hard to get anyone to believe you can really read minds. However reading some of the posts here I could well be wrong. I guess given the popularity of ghost hunting and mediumship shows on TV maybe that public credulousness isn't lacking afterall.
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mrkmarik Regular user New York 185 Posts |
Mentalist Shmentalist who cares??? Do what you gotta do just be entertaining!
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
Public interest (a more neutral term than "credulous" IMO) in the paranormal in general and parapsychology in particular have never been lacking. Keep in mind that the modern presentation of mentalism basically was inspired by the early work of Dr. Rhine.
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innercirclewannabe Inner circle Ireland 1597 Posts |
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On 2012-04-18 12:56, mrkmarik wrote: Join the circus so, and be a clown!
Tá sé ach cleas má dhéanann tú sé cuma mhaith ar cheann.
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
Singer shminger. Who cares? Just pander to the crowd and amuse them! Do whatever ya gotta do to get the bucks!
Which, of course, raises the question - what is the difference between an artist and a hack? Good thoughts, Bob |
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Dreadnought Special user Athens, Georgia 836 Posts |
A brass pole.
Peace and Godspeed.
Peace
"Ave Maria gratia plena Dominus tecum..." Scott Would you do anything for the person you love? |
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magicusb Inner circle 1135 Posts |
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On 2012-04-18 12:58, mastermindreader wrote: Bob; Wouldn't you say much of the "modern presentation of mentalism" dates back to the mid and late 1800's? Dick Brokz
Check out http://HoudiniOpoly.com
Houdini Museum Tour & Magic Show. Only building in the world dedicated to Houdini. http://Houdini.org http://HoudiniDisplays.com http://PsychicTheater.com Scranton, Pa (570) 342-5555 "The truth shall make you free, but first it will make you angry." -Robert Ingersoll-Atheist (on the mind of Houdini when he died.) We are thrilled we were able to bring The Grim Game to the world! Thanks TCM. |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts |
I have always divided modern mentalism into three "eras." In the first, from the mid 19th Century through the early 20th, presentation was largely influenced by the popularity of Spiritualism, Theosophy and eastern mysticism.
The second era begins with the public interest in the scientific study of ESP popularized by the highly publicized work of JB Rhine. The third began with Geller in the 1970's in which mentalism, again reflecting popular culture, became an amalgam of science, New Age thought and the counter cultural revolution. In my previous post I was referring to the Rhine era. Best- Bob |
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magicusb Inner circle 1135 Posts |
Bob;
Great breakdown. Thanks. Dick Brookz & Dorothy Dietrich
Check out http://HoudiniOpoly.com
Houdini Museum Tour & Magic Show. Only building in the world dedicated to Houdini. http://Houdini.org http://HoudiniDisplays.com http://PsychicTheater.com Scranton, Pa (570) 342-5555 "The truth shall make you free, but first it will make you angry." -Robert Ingersoll-Atheist (on the mind of Houdini when he died.) We are thrilled we were able to bring The Grim Game to the world! Thanks TCM. |
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