In my stage show, I particularly enjoy performing Paul Gertner’s Bill in Hourglass on special occasions. A borrowed, marked banknote vanishes and reappears inside the glass chamber of a sealed hourglass. There is certainly no shortage of approaches for transporting a borrowed bill from one location to another, for example the classic appearances inside a cigarette or a piece of fruit. The hourglass, however, has always held a special fascination for me. The bill appears in full view inside a hermetically sealed chamber from which not even a single grain of sand could escape.
The hourglass itself is a beautiful prop, made even more dramatic by the fact that it must ultimately be smashed to retrieve the bill. I can assure you that this effect leaves a lasting impression on an audience.