Expert assessments of new tricks, books, gear, and performances.
This groundbreaking creation from Angelo Carbone allows you to make any freely-named card rise from a deck on your command. “Notion of the Motion” is a miracle-level effect that leaves people convinced they've witnessed real magic—even seasoned magicians.
It falls into that delicious category where you’ll ask yourself, “Can it really be that simple?” It can. It’s an elegant solution and after playing with it in the mirror, you will be itching to put it in your show.
Some of the best tricks can be found in the bottom of your drawer, or in the back of an old catalog, or in a recollection of a Saturday afternoon at a magic shop. They’re not forgotten. In fact, you’d be surprised that those tricks are still as good as you thought they were.
If ever there was a magic and mentalism show that speaks to the expansive possibilities and crippling limitations of the human mind, it’s Vinny DePonto’s Mindplay.
A moment by moment description of this FISM-winning act by Markobi. Readers really benefit from the detailed descriptions of the routine approach and construction.
Tobias Dostal’s package of special props is a wonderful variation on his Liquify plot, for the magicians who just can’t get enough of the visual liquify phenomenon.
A solid through solid penetration with some surprises. Everything is visible at all times, and everything is built into a regular card box and the deck inside is a normal deck.
A set of casino-quality poker chips that give the magician an inside edge; a secret hidden in plain sight.
Predict any freely named card with 100% accuracy and no sleight of hand. A neat way of upping your “Invisible Deck” game.
Should you really be tempted to buy four unprepared sponge balls for $35? Well, if anyone asks it like that, it sounds crazy. But these neat sponge balls are perfectly suited for Mario Lopez’s great routine, The Clown’s Nightmare.
Based on the Stewart James Tip-See Milk Bottle, Hocus-Pocus offers a well-made new version of this wonderful effect. It’s perfect for stand-up or stage, but a close-up audience may be too close.
Hughes is very comfortable, likeable, and funny on stage. More important than that, he has developed the ability to tell true personal stories as part of his performance.