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Effect: A packet of cards seems to grow in number while a spectator counts them in his own hands.
Preparation: Count fifteen cards face down into your hand or onto the table. Reverse the four bottom cards, face up, of the fifteen-card packet (FIG. 1). Square the packet. Bow the length of the packet by squeezing the cards end to end so that the packet arches upward (FIG. 2). Place the packet on top of the balance of the deck. Put the cards into their box, and you are ready to begin. Bowing the fifteen cards makes it possible to cut the packet with ease from the top of the deck. You may need to practice bowing and cutting the cards until you get the hang of it. If you do not feel comfortable cutting the bowed packet from the deck, then hold a break below the prepared fifteen card packet as you begin the routine (FIG. 3). Now you can cut the cards at the break and arrive at the same result. Routine: Remove the cards from their box and give the deck a couple of false cuts. Place the deck into your left hand and hold it in the Dealer’s Grip. Looking at the length of the deck, you will notice the bow of the fifteen card packet (FIG. 4). Obviously, if you can see the bowed packet, so can your audience. This is why you should hold the deck in the Dealer’s Grip to conceal the long sides of the deck. The front of the deck should already be facing your audience. Cut off the fifteen-card packet from the top of the deck and hand it to a spectator. Continue to hold the balance of the deck in your left hand. Without spreading the cards, have the spectator guess how many he is holding. The spectator will usually guess around fifteen cards. Exclaim, "I’m guessing that there are twenty-one cards in your hand." Say to the spectator, "Count the cards by flipping the top card face up, placing it at the bottom of the packet. Count each of them out loud until you are done." (FIG. 5) Stopping at the count of eleven, the spectator will be holding a face-up stack of cards in his hands. At this point say, "Well, it appears that you were more accurate in your guess than I, but eleven cards just doesn’t seem right to me. If you would, count the cards face down, one at a time, onto the table." As the spectator starts counting, all attention will be on him and the cards he is holding. During this moment, discreetly thumb off the six cards from the top of the deck into your left hand (FIG. 6). Square the six cards and secretly palm them in your right hand (FIG. 7). Whether you are standing or sitting, allow your right arm to relax naturally and place the balance of the deck in your left hand on the table. Do not look at your hands as you count off and palm the cards. All of your attention should appear to be focused on the spectator while he is counting the cards. Once the spectator arrives at the count of fifteen cards, the audience will be surprised. With your right hand, push the stack of fifteen cards toward the spectator, loading the palmed six cards onto the stack. As you back away from the table say, "Hmm? Fifteen cards, huh? I am not sure that’s right, either. Will someone please count the cards out loud once more?" Someone will now count the cards, revealing a total of twenty-one cards, to everyone’s amazement. Smirk as you say, "O.K., that sounds right."
In print this routine may appear to be condescending to the spectator. However, only your demeanor toward the audience would convey that message. I choose not to belittle anyone during this routine. I simply suggest, "Why don’t you try again?", in a light-hearted manner. Believe me when I say it is the conviction of the spectators that they can count correctly that makes this effect seem magical. Remember, audiences always enjoy being fooled by a gentleman. The best thing about the Mathemagic routine is that all of the magic seems to take place in the spectator's hands. Any close-up magician will tell you that the best effects happen in the audience's hands. Try to work audience participation into all of your effects to make the magic moment more memorable for them. When you stand before a group and perform without their assistance, your effects are merely "bubble gum for their eyes." |
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