An out for when prop-less Mentalism goes wrong!
The following technique was originally published in my e-book Absurd About Astrology
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I like Prop-less Mentalism that can be carefully crafted to be fully self-contained, meaning that in the event of the effect’s failure, a smaller, but worthwhile, effect is still offered to those I’m performing for. For my performance preferences, a lot of these prop-less effects tend to be reading-based, and the mechanics of these effects allow for the moment of revelation to be a complete shock to the audience. As a direct example, my Ring of Light prop-less Date of Birth Divination makes use of a simple mathematical sequence and is completely justified around the intent of offering people Numerology readings. Via the mechanics of the method, when I was first road-testing this effect and wasn’t nearly as good at decoding the participant’s birthday, the promise of getting a reading allowed me to not even worry about having to divine the birthday if, at any moment, I got stuck.
However, it’s my opinion that some prop-less methods are less palatable with the scripting and justifications of offering a reading, meaning that it’s more apparent to laymen when we have failed. Typically, these are prop-less effects that are better framed and justified under the intent of showcasing direct mind-reading, rather than the moment of revelation being more subtle. At the top of my head, effects like Pete Turner’s Phantom Dictionary Test and most prop-less Name Divinations come to mind.
Now, I want to be clear and mention that I am a fan of failing in Mentalism. I could give two shits about having my close-up set being 100% filled with sure-fire material. However, I want as much control as possible in my performances so that I can better gauge when a moment of failure will either reinforce or weaken my audience’s perception of my abilities. To make it quick, as I’ve mentioned this type of thinking in previous blog posts, but I’m of the belief that opening with something so prone to being seen as a direct failure isn’t bold but reckless. More time after that failure is spent trying to convince people that you aren’t a bull-shitter. Therefore, I’m quite a fan of safety nets; techniques and subtleties that allow for performers to quickly re-frame an objective failure into a moment of Magic for those participating.
As I’ve mentioned, I’m a massive fan of the safety net of justifying mechanics of prop-less not as an attempt at direct mind-reading, but as a ritual to offer a reading. This is the one I use a lot, and allows for prop-less material to have a worthy spot in the professional mentalist’s arsenal. However, there are times when I feel like performing something that is seen as direct mind-reading, and trying to disguise the failure as a reading simply won’t cut it. For example, Pete Turner’s Phantom Dictionary Test is simply stunning as a prop-less Word Divination. Most recently, I’ve been experimenting with Nico Heinrich’s Cocaine– and for those who know, this is quite a bold piece of work.
Therefore, for effects such as these, I needed a safety net that was congruent with my preferences. Out there on the market, there are a number of wonderful safety nets to cover the worst-case scenarios of a lot of prop-less mechanics, but they simply don’t fit my style.
Bluntly stating, after a direct failure, “that’s everything I need to know about you,” doesn’t cut it for me…especially if you’re using this after opening with a prop-less piece that obviously failed in front of laymen. To me, it comes across as a half-assed excuse rather than a minor blemish in your psychic powers.
While fantastic safety nets, I’m not a big fan of predictions, so planting multiple outs underneath napkins, chairs, and beer mats is also a big “no-no” for me, too.
I also have certain requirements for when a demonstration of Spectator as Mind-Reader is best shared with laymen; therefore, Pete Turner’s excellent Nifty Introduction also isn’t the right fit for my performance preferences.
Where does this leave me? Well, once again, my obsession with Sun Sign Divinations has gifted me with a nice bit of gold that allows me to perform bolder pieces of Prop-less Mentalism without the fear of having to “save face.”
Rather than divining a sun sign you’ve harvested from a participant mere seconds after learning it, save it for later. I’m a fan of methods such as Deceptive Numerology, Additional Information Billets, and Covert Observation. When, during your performances, you’ve mentally prepared yourself to personally road-test that risky (and pricey, no doubt) Prop-less Name/Country/Word Divination, proceed as taught below:
Let’s say your series of Hanging Statements and Fishing has led you to believe that your participant is thinking of the name, Steve. However, at the moment of truth… the participant says aloud that they were thinking of their father’s name, Mikey. Rather than spew your ten-minute tangent on how “mind-reading doesn’t work on everyone” (if you’re gonna use this excuse, shouldn’t you be able to have figured that out BEFORE you invited this person into a telepathic experience? tsk tsk tsk), I would suggest keeping your cool, pausing for a moment, and saying,
“It’s interesting that I couldn’t pick up on the fact that your dad’s name is Mikey. I don’t want to make tasteless excuses, but there is one group of people I simply can’t read. I should have asked you this question before we began this demonstration; however, based on the fact that I couldn’t read your mind, there’s no doubt as to how you would have answered. Peyton, be honest with me… You are a Capricorn!”
From this point on, you can now easily and comfortably segue into any sure-fire routine you’ve prepared for the group!
Some things to mention! First, don’t phrase the divination of the sign the way many mentalists do- with some vague phrasing like, “you’re not a Capricorn, are you?” What makes this safety net hit hard is the fact that you don’t ask your participant for confirmation on whether the sign you name is correct or not- you need to look them dead in the eye and TELL THEM.
The logic at play here (assuming you used a method like Numerology) is that while this person is fine to deliver a fun personality reading to, this person is not compatible with something as intimate as direct mind-reading. The fact that you got the name/country/word WRONG is proof to you that they belong to a group of people that your powers can’t telepathically “bridge” with. The divination of the sign is proof to everyone else that your claim- and excuse- is a legitimate one.
From this point on, you could poll the rest of the audience for those who have the same sign and avoid them for the rest of the performance.
This out can also be used to not only make the divination of the sign a bit more punchy, but also bring into play a Billet for something like an AN peek. Deliver the line of saying there’s one group of people you can’t read, take out a Billet, “test” the pen on the lower left quadrant by doing a few scribbles, write the sign on the upper left and right quadrants, fold, and put on the table. Have the participant name their sign and ask them to unfold and show your impression. After the reaction, you can hand the Billet to another person and they have to write down whatever you ask them to on the lower right quadrant… the only spot that is, conveniently, the only one with blank space.
I hope you enjoy this nice safety net for prop-less effects! I do have a variant of The Red Dwarf that can be used when a prop-less effect fails one person, but you secretly know the sign of another person in the group. If this is of interest to you, you can buy my e-book Absurd About Astrology over at PenguinMagic.com:
https://www.penguinmagic.com/p/20876
Best Wishes,
Christopher Parrish, Sept.8th, 2025
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