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Julian Bond’s

“Troupe Vanish”

Effect: A group of seven girls vanish from a platform surrounded by audience members and immediately reappear at the back of the theatre. What the audience sees: A raised platform sits in the center of the stage. On the platform is a thin box frame with a rolled-up curtain. The audience can see underneath, above and all around the platform. Several randomly selected audience members are led up to the stage and form a line behind the platform, acting as witnesses to the illusion from the rear. The girls, one at a time, take their position on the platform. The curtain is lowered. The magician calls to the girls, “Are you ready?” The girls respond with a collective “Yes!” and tap the curtain from the inside. Immediately, the curtain is pulled away – the girls have all vanished. The magician directs the audience attention to the rear of the theatre, where the girls are assembled, ready to accept applause. 1. Effect 1. What the audience sees 2. Notes about the illusion 3. So how does this crazy trick work?!!! 4. Performance venue 5. Platform 6. Frame and curtain 8. Tying up the curtain 8. Other ways to rig a curtain 9. The “secret prop” 10. The routine 12. Anyone have a spare dance troupe? 13. Volunteer assistants 14. The rehearsal 16. Yes folks – the witnesses are truly random! 18. Sightlines 19. Pacing and timing 21. Patter 21. Music 23. Lights and mist 23. An unfriendly stage 24. One other little detail 25. Vanishing seven audience members 27. Impromptu vanish (3 girls) 30. Concluding thoughts

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Notes about the illusion

I designed this illusion as a finale to a show I performed where I shared the stage with a seven-member dance troupe. I wanted to conclude with an illusion that involved them, and this seemed to be the perfect choice. Through this manuscript I will describe, in detail, every aspect of this illusion: the building, the working, performance notes…and also a number of variations that can be adapted to performing spaces, budget and other factors. The descriptions and methods outlined are based on the way I performed it at the first performance. I have worked on a variety of adaptations since then, and those I will also share as this document progresses. For those of you who have not yet purchased this manuscript and are reading this overview, I understand how frustrating it is to purchase illusion plans with the expectation that you will be performing it at an upcoming show, only to discover when you read through the instructions that you need a hydraulic crane, a $7000 lighting rig and thirty assistants, none of which were mentioned in the pre-purchase description. Well, fear not! This illusion can be assembled for around $70 and operated with as few as three assistants. When I performed this, I had the luxury of five guys to help me plus two female friends who had appeared in other illusions. However – none of them knew the workings of this illusion before the rehearsal and they all learned it from scratch in 20 minutes (and that included the dance troupe, too)! This manuscript will tell you how to teach untrained people to help you run the illusion. There are no mechanical devices involved. You will need to build one “secret prop” which will cost you less than $20. The platform and curtain are replaceable with cheaper alternatives, all of which are described. I am aiming this eBook at both beginners and professionals. It is, first and foremost, an instruction manual for staging and performing a trick. However, I have included many ideas and observations that came to me while I was designing, rehearsing and performing the illusion, from which I hope you can benefit and even build upon. The only requirement is that you are comfortable appearing on stage. This is a very user-friendly illusion, but a very powerful one if performed correctly. You can watch a video of it at www.julianbondmusic.com. I will refer to this clip from time to time. For those of you who have the full manuscript – read on…

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So how does this crazy trick work?!!! Okay, well if you are reading this, then you have either purchased the manuscript or I have given you a free copy. Or you stole it, but let’s not go there. Either way, it means that I can now tell you the secret, the method and all the subtleties which go to make this a cool illusion with which to wow your audience. Firstly, let me tell you that the two main selling points of this illusion are…

1. The fact that the platform is surrounded by truly randomly chosen audience members and that all sides are visible at all times.

2. The speed at which the girls disappear and reappear. They are heard calling from the platform and tapping on the curtain right up until the last second.

However, those are the two main ingredients of the illusion that are not as they appear. Let me explain…

1. Yes, the audience members are random and they are observing the illusion from behind. However, they leave their seats as innocent volunteers, but by the time they arrive onstage, they are accomplices to the trick, and have been briefed by your assistant as to what they should do. There is a section later on which describes the whole process. The rest of the audience is unaware of this, and assume that these “witnesses” are simply there to guard the rear of the platform against any funny business.

2. Now that we know that the rear of the platform is a perfectly viable escape route, and that our “witnesses” will pretend to see nothing, we can get those girls out of there! In fact, those girls will be out of there and backstage within seconds of the curtain coming down (in our performance we executed the escape in seven seconds). So how do we hear them and apparently see them up until the last moment? Naaah…I’ll save that secret for later. It’s a very simple subtlety, but there are several variations which I shall describe when we get there. Let’s not worry about that for now.

However, there is one “prop” that I mentioned earlier. You will need this to get the girls off the platform. We know that the “witnesses” are not really guarding the back of the platform, so the girls are free to walk off. However, they can’t jump off or they will be seen underneath. This is where the Troupe Vanish “Escape Arm” comes into play. It is of fairly simple construction, a kind of “gangplank” which will allow the girls to run off the platform and through the rear curtains. I will describe the construction and operation when we get there.

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So now we know: the witnesses are not really witnesses and the girls are free to run off the platform as soon as the curtain is down. Disappointed? I know…you were hoping that I would describe some intricate method of opening up a secret portal in the universe through which the girls were transported. After all those are the best kind of magic secrets, aren’t they? However, there is so much more to this illusion than a fake audience committee. There are many subtleties which will allow us to perform this routine lightning fast! Let’s start with getting our platform and stage in order and we’ll walk through the illusion in small steps.

Performance venue

The first thing you need to do before assembling props is to check out your performance venue. You should take measurements of the stage (including the space behind the back curtain) and, if possible, photographs. Check the audience seating and see how far to the side the people at the ends of the rows can see. If the audience stretches too far round to the sides, you will need to find out if you can remove chairs. (Refer to the section on sightlines for more information). If you can meet up with the person in charge of the venue, you will be able to ask all the questions you need at this time. Check the rear stage curtain. Does the venue have one? Can they put one up for you? (If not, there are some ways around this I will suggest in a later section). If it does, how much room is there behind it? If you are doing more than one illusion, where will you keep the platform when it’s not being used? Is there enough space in the wings? If there is no wing space, it would be better for you to store the platform to the side of the stage, rather than backstage. You want to avoid drawing attention to the back curtain as being a possible exit. Find a location for the reappearance of the girls. The back of the audience is a good place. Wherever you choose, it should be accessible by a door behind the back row – you don’t want the audience to see the girls running in! Walk the route from the back of the stage to the reappearance location. Is it well-lit? Are there any obstacles along the route? Any doors? They will need to be wedged open. If possible, pick a route that doesn’t involve steps. Try running the route and timing yourself. If you are in no fit condition to run (I am not pointing any fingers…), bring a slender friend to run the course for you (even better if your friend is one of the seven dancers). If you or your friend can do it in fifteen seconds or less, you’re onto a winner! Part of this trick revolves around the illusion of time. To the audience it will seem as if only a few seconds have passed between disappearance and reappearance. However, if you watch our video clip and make a note of the length of time between the curtain falling and

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the reappearance, you will see it is around 25 seconds (doesn’t seem that long, does it?). That’s a huge amount of time in relation to the general pacing of the routine. So you can comfortably allow 10 seconds to get the girls off the platform and 15 seconds to get them to their destination. A few seconds over this is fine, but remember that the faster you do this, the more impressive it will be. Sit in various seats in the audience and picture the stage set-up in your mind. Turn around and look at the place where the girls will reappear. Can it be seen clearly? You should build a mental image of the routine and how you imagine it will look. It will help you get everything clear in your mind. Platform Time to start putting your props together! Firstly, the platform upon which your girls will stand. It would be unreasonable to expect a magician on a budget to construct an 8’x4’ reinforced aluminum platform on legs…especially one that had to bear the weight of seven people! Well, you don’t have to build this yourself (unless you’re unbelievably wealthy, in which case I would recommend you contact Jim Steinmeyer and get him to build you something really cool). Basically, you need to have a sturdy platform around 8 feet long which will support seven girls. You will also need a second platform or table, about the same height (more about that later). Bear this in mind when you are choosing your platform. Incidentally, before I go on I should point out that the longer the platform, the safer the sightlines will be (more about that later, too). This is the reason I chose seven girls – it justified having a platform that long. Many venues will have what are called “thrusts” or “risers” – 8’x4’ platforms used to extend a stage. That’s exactly what I used. If the venue at which you will be performing has those, you are set. Check before you build your frame. However, there are alternatives…

• If you can find an 8-foot table that is sturdy enough to hold seven people, that would be ideal. Or, two 4-foot tables side-by-side would work equally as well.

• A long bench would also work. However, it would not be very high off the ground - possibly a foot, which does not give a very clear view underneath. This is, after all, part of the effect. The audience should be able to see the legs of the “witnesses” very clearly. So, if a bench is what you use, I would recommend raising it up. A good safe way of doing this would be to use two metal ladders and sliding the bench between the rungs at each end. Make sure everything is properly secured.

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• Another possibility is an 8-foot ladder, folded flat and supported on two trestles. You would have to use a strip of ¾” plywood along the rungs so the girls don’t fall through! Again, make sure everything is properly secured.

So those are just some of the possibilities. The main object is to have the girls at least 3 feet off the ground with a clear view underneath. However – and I can not stress this enough – you must make sure that the platform is uncompromisingly safe. Test it and test it again. If you are in any doubt as to its sturdiness, start over.

Frame and curtain

Let’s start with the frame for an 8’x4’ platform, as seen on the video clip. If you have used one of the alternative platform ideas, you may have to change the operation of the curtain. I have some suggestions for that, which I will describe in a moment.

As I used an 8’x4’ platform, my frame was 7’10” x 3’10” – one inch shorter on each side than the platform top. If you have a different sized platform, you will have to change the width and length of the frame. The height should be about 6’.

The frame is made from 1-inch PVC piping, available at most hardware stores. The corners are joined with three-way corner connectors. You could use metal piping if you wish, but it may be more expensive. Although the PVC may seem to be unstable, it will be secure. I would recommend that you don’t hammer the connectors on fully until you are completely sure you have the dimensions of frame you require. Tip: insert thin wooden

dowels into the pipes that form the top edge of the frame – it will prevent the pipes from bending and sagging. You can fix the frame to the platform using clamps or sandbags. Make sure it is held down well. If you are happy with your frame, you now need to fix up a curtain. Given the amount of material needed (grab a pencil and paper and work it out!), you will want it to be as light as possible. The curtain dimensions will be… Length: (2 x frame width) + (2 x frame

length) + an extra 2 feet Height: frame height plus an extra 1 foot

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The extra 1 or 2 feet allows for some slack. You’ll see why that’s important in a minute. So for an 8’x4’x6’ frame (or just under), we are looking at a 26’x7’ curtain. So you want to keep it as light as possible without spending a bundle on expensive material. Your curtain will be your biggest expense.

Many large retail stores (such as WalMart, Target, etc.) have fabric departments. They will often have a selection of “bargain” fabrics at around 99c per yard, or even less, if you’re lucky. You need a light fabric which is also opaque. Ask if they can do you any special deals – you never know what you can find!

Another option, which may prove cheaper, is to investigate those “everything for a dollar” stores. They often have party supplies, among which are plastic tablecloths. Being inexpensive ($1), they are light and delicate. Perfect! Figure out how many of those you will need and then glue (or sew) them together. Note: if you use glue, use fabric glue – regular household glues are likely to burn through the plastic. Test on a small area first. Gluing then sewing would be the safest option.

Remember, the appearance of the platform, frame and curtain is certainly not the most important thing. Ordinary-looking props can work in your favor.

So, assuming that you are using a PVC frame, you will now need to attach the curtain. The best method for this, I have found, is magnets. I did consider Velcro, but remember you have to be able to rip the whole curtain away with one pull. Velcro, even small amounts, may offer too much resistance in this instance. Your local hardware store will sell rolls of ½ inch magnetic strip. Glue magnetic strip along the top of the frame. Remember, you will want the curtain to hang on the inside of the frame so you can pull the whole thing through for the vanish.

Glue magnetic strip along the outside of the top of the curtain. Make sure the strip has the correct side facing out – the magnetism only works one way round. It would be easiest to hang the curtain as you go to be sure the strips are in exactly the right place. The curtain will be attached to the frame starting in the back at the center, and working around until it ends where it started. You can cut away any overlap. You will need to leave 6” at either end of the curtain without magnets. The girls do not need to waste time trying to find where the curtains part, and these ends will hang free and leave a gap. Also, leave gaps in the curtain’s magnetic strip where it turns the corner of the frame. If there is tension on the corners, make a small vertical cut at the corner to allow some slack.

If you have a very light curtain, it may be sufficient to have intermittent magnets (4” strips every 2 feet, for example), thereby saving you money. However, you run the risk of the curtain falling if one of the strips gives out. That happened to us at the first performance

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(you can see it on the video), but a quick-thinking stagehand grabbed the curtain and held it up manually. So my advice is this: use as much of the magnetic strip as you can afford!

Once you have your curtain prepared (and all glue is dry), you will want to test to make sure it holds correctly and pulls away just as you want it to. Make sure your frame is anchored down firmly – some sandbags should do the trick, or a helpful buddy who happens to be around. Pull the curtain away in one sharp movement. Don’t be timid! You may find it helpful to spin round, giving you that extra few feet of pull. The magnetic strip should pull away easily. If there is too much resistance, your magnetic strip may have too much grip. Lay your curtain out on the floor and slice out a few inches of strip at intervals using a craft knife. Don’t cut out too much – you can always repeat this process until you have exactly the right amount. The gaps in the strip will lessen the resistance slightly.

Tying up the curtain You will want to tie up the curtain at intervals, starting in the center of each side and working toward the corners. Use a good quality rope with a good grip (not too smooth). The curtain should be tied up so it stays put, but is easily released. Here’s a good way to do it… Cut a strip of rope about 2 feet long. Gather up the curtain, starting at the bottom and working your way up to the top by the magnetic strip. Tie the rope around the bundle and the frame. However, do not complete the knot – just do the first half (as if you were tying a shoelace but stopping before the “bow” part). Pull on both ends of the rope and leave them hanging downwards (that is important). If the rope has sufficient grip, that should hold. You will find that a gentle tug on the curtain will be all it takes to release the rope. Make sure the ends of the curtain meet at the back when it is tied up. You don’t want to advertise the fact that there is a gap back there. A note of caution: when you come to release each “bundle” of curtain, do not just let it drop to the platform (unless you are confident the magnets will hold). You run the risk of allowing the weight of the curtain to pull itself from the frame magnets. Give a gentle tug on the curtain and catch the weight of the material in your hand. Lower it to the platform. You should be able to work your way from rope to rope fairly quickly. Other ways to rig a curtain If you are not using a full PVC frame, you will need another way to rig the curtain. Here are a couple of ways…

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Assemble a rectangle of PVC piping large enough to fit around the platform with a little room to spare. Attach the top edge of the curtain to the PVC. You can use magnetic strip if you wish to “rip away” the curtain, or you can fix it permanently if you are going to simply lower the frame for the reveal (personally, I like the “rip” – it’s more dramatic!). This frame can be raised by two assistants, one either end, standing on chairs. They must ensure that they leave a little curtain dangling below the level of the platform. If you wish, you only need to have a length of PVC piping at each end, where the assistants are. If they pull the curtain taught between them, the long sides will remain supported. However, you will need to attach the ends to each other at the rear. Just sew about 3” at the top where the ends meet, then fold the curtains back at the bottom and fix into place. It will give you the gap for the girls to walk through. Taking this one step further, if you are using a narrow enough platform, and the assistants can reach the corners, you can eliminate the need for PVC piping altogether. Just have the assistants hold up the curtain by the corners. You will have guaranteed support and a clean “rip away” every time! It should also be noted that if you choose not to use magnets, the weight of the curtain will be less of an issue. However, do not underestimate the weight of that much material if you use regular cloth, such as bed sheets. If you have assistants standing on chairs holding a curtain up between them, you may want to try and keep the weight down a bit. Also, the lighter the curtain, the better the “rip”!

The “secret prop” I refer to this as a “secret prop” purely to avoid giving away anything in the index! From now on, I shall call it what it is – the escape arm. This is what the girls will run across as they make their way from the platform to backstage. Before I describe the construction of this prop, I should address the second platform which I referred to earlier. You may recall I mentioned that you would need a second platform or table, about the same height as the first. This will be set just behind the rear stage curtain and will support the escape arm. The diagrams show how everything is set up. It will need to be sturdy, as the girls will be arriving on it. In our performance, we were fortunate enough to have a second “riser” platform behind the curtain, so the girls could really sprint down the escape arm with confidence! Okay – the escape arm. This needs to be sturdy but light enough to lift into place quickly. A width of 18” should be enough. I made mine 8 feet long, but yours can be shorter or longer depending upon how you have your stage set up. I would recommend you measure from the back of the platform to the rear stage curtain and add 2 feet. That gives you a 1-foot overlap at each end.

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For construction I used a strip of ¾ inch plywood braced with a frame made from 2”x4” wood. Use good strong screws. Paint the whole thing black. You should lay two strips of florescent tape along the edges of the top. This will act as a guide for the girls as they run along it (remember, it will be dark and they will be running along a black gangplank!). Fix the tape down with tacks or nails at intervals so it does not pull up with use. This should not cost you too much to make, and you may be able to negotiate some old scraps from your local hardware store for next to nothing. However, the two long pieces of 2”x4” that run the length of the arm must be two complete pieces of quality timber. They provide the main structural support. If you are using a PVC frame on your platform, you will need to add a “lip” at one end of the arm to raise it up so it does not lay flat on the lower back edge of the frame. Make the last “rung” about 3” taller than the rest of the frame. Your assistants will have to lift the arm so the lip goes up and over the PVC. You must test this prop rigorously before you use it. As obvious as this sounds, it bears repeating. Firstly, place it between two sturdy boxes or tables like a bridge to ensure that it does not wobble. Then test it for structural integrity. How you do this is up to you. I had three grown men stand on it and walk around. That’s at least 500 pounds – substantially more than it will need to support. The routine Firstly, this should ideally be the final illusion in your show. There is a good reason for this, which I will explain in a later section. Now you have the props you need, it’s time to think through the routine from start to finish. There are some subtleties which I will describe further on, but the basic “behind the scenes” workings look like this… Audience members are chosen at random by throwing Frisbees, beach balls or something equally as fun into the crowd (once I even used rolls of toilet paper – I made sure they unraveled as they flew). This committee of “witnesses” is led up to the stage. They are prepped as to what is about to happen and become immediate accomplices. Of course, the audience doesn’t see this and later on I describe two ways to achieve this without them ever knowing about it.

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The platform is center stage. Two stagehands (male assistants, probably dressed in black) stand either side waiting to assist with the routine. The witnesses are led into place by your two female assistants (if you do not have two girls to help you, don’t worry – later I’ll describe a way around this). They take half the group each and meet at the back in a line, with the two girls in the middle, either side of the rear stage curtain opening. The dancers take their place on the platform. With a few parting words, the curtain is lowered. You can start to lower the front and your stagehands can take over the sides.

As soon as the sides of the curtain have been lowered, the dancers all turn and face the rear of the platform. At the same time, the escape arm is thread through the rear stage curtain by your assistants backstage. If the second platform backstage is smooth enough it can be slid out. Your two female assistants assist by taking the arm between them and helping to feed it toward the platform. Here’s where timing comes into play. Once the sides have been lowered, your stagehands will naturally go round the back to lower the rear of the curtain. They do not go round the back at the same time, though. Stagehand #1 goes around the back and begins to lower his side of the curtain (which will probably fall down by itself after one tug). As he is doing this, he reaches back and grabs the escape arm and lifts the end into place on the platform. He then immediately goes back around to the side of the platform to “check” the curtain. Stagehand #2 goes round the back a few seconds after stagehand #1. As soon as the escape arm is in place, the girls run along it and through the rear stage curtain as fast as they possibly can. Stagehand #2 has begun to lower his side of the curtain, and as soon as the last girl is out he lifts the arm and slides it backwards, assisted by your female assistants and your helpers backstage, who pull it back offstage. Stagehand #2 comes back round to “check” his side. The whole point of this stagehand choreography is that you really don’t want to see both guys back there at the same time. That would draw

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too much attention to the rear of the platform. You want to have one stagehand in view at the side of the platform at all times. In our video you can see we had a curtain issue, which meant the stagehands were scrambling to save the illusion from being ruined! So you don’t see the exact movements as described above. All this happens incredibly fast. There are some things to help achieve this speed which I shall describe in another section. We timed ourselves at around seven seconds during rehearsal, from the time the sides of the curtain were lowered to the moment all the girls were offstage. Yes folks, you can do this too! Anyway, as the girls arrive backstage, there is a helper lifting them off the second platform. This speeds things up a lot. The girls immediately sprint around to the back of the audience and wait to be revealed. Now here’s one of the cool parts. Just before the vanish, you (the magician) tap the curtain and yell, “Ladies, are you ready?”. Your two female assistants (who are behind the platform in the center) both yell, “Yes!”. With the music going (more about that later) the audience will perceive that response as coming from the girls on the platform. Besides, it has only been a few seconds since the curtain was brought down – they must still be there, right? This is a subtlety, but it is a powerful part of the illusion. It will not really register with the audience that they only heard two voices. There is a second element to this, which is not compulsory but does just add a little visual touch to enhance the illusion that the girls are still there. (This is only possible if all the girls have left the escape arm). One of your backstage helpers needs to have a long pole, which should be fairly light. A piece of PVC piping would be ideal. This pole should be long enough to reach through the stage curtain to the front of the platform curtain. As the girls shout, “Yes!”, the pole is tapped against the front of the platform curtain a couple of times, and then immediately withdrawn to backstage. From the audience perspective, they have apparently heard and seen enough evidence that the girls are still on the platform. You (the magician) should always look busy. Any time you look like you are stalling, that’s exactly how the audience will perceive it. There is a section later on which addresses this issue. Anyone have a spare dance troupe?

You’ve probably run the illusion through in your head by this point, and unless you happen to know a seven-member dance troupe, you’ll be trying to think of just who you can make vanish. Remember, I designed this illusion specifically for the dance troupe with whom I was sharing the stage, so this was not an issue. But vanishing seven girls is always more impressive than vanishing just one, so that’s what you will do.

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If you have seven female friends who would be willing to participate in the illusion, that’s great. Remember, they should be able to do the sprint from backstage to behind the audience. If you don’t have such a team to hand, you will have to advertise. You may be able to find seven female volunteers from the performance venue (especially if the venue is a church, school or similar). Alternatively, you could use kids! You would have to make sure there was constant parental supervision and that the kids were responsible and trustworthy. The vanish of seven kids is equally impressive and is always a great crowd pleaser. There is a section later on in which I describe how to vanish seven randomly-chosen audience members. It is not likely to be as quick, but will certainly be as effective. Whoever ends up being your seven-member ensemble, you should not tell them anything about the illusion until the rehearsal. You need not even tell them that it will be a vanish, but you certainly should not tell anyone about the reappearance. Remember – tell people only that which they need to know!

Volunteer assistants Unless you are famous enough to have a regular entourage of highly-trained assistants at your disposal, you are probably going to have to enlist the help of volunteers. You will need several people to help with this illusion. Before you shudder at the thought of putting your entire magical reputation in the hands of a bunch of well-meaning but untrained helpers who may or may not do the right thing at the right time, I can put your mind at rest by assuring you it is not as daunting a prospect as you may think. It is a little unnerving, though – I mean, you don’t know if the trick worked or not until you pull away the curtain. At that point, there’s not much you can do about it! However, with a solid rehearsal and clear communication to your volunteers, all should go well. Choose your volunteers wisely! Just because someone is willing to help with an illusion, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they would be suitable for the job. You may not have an abundance of people to choose from, but you need to make sure you have dependable people helping you. If you can, I would recommend enlisting the following…

• 3 backstage helpers – reasonably strong, good health. • 2 onstage “stagehands” – reasonably strong, good health. They should be

comfortable appearing on stage. • 2 female assistants – also comfortable appearing onstage. At least one of them

should be comfortable giving other people directions.

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You can perform this illusion with as little as three helpers if absolutely necessary – one female assistant, one stagehand and one guy backstage. However, if you can get the full seven volunteers you stand a better chance of having a smooth and lightning fast performance. The rehearsal It is unlikely that you will have the luxury of more than one rehearsal for this illusion, particularly with your full stage set-up and all assistants in attendance. It may well be the case that you do not even meet some of your volunteer assistants until the dress rehearsal. So you will need to have a focused and well-considered rehearsal plan in place. You will need to ensure that everyone knows exactly what they should do and that you know in advance where everything will be set, including the location for the girls’ reappearance and the exact route to get there. A few things to bear in mind…

• Thank your volunteers in advance and let them know how much you appreciate their help. Remember – you are relying on them to make you look good!

• Stress that you are about to reveal closely-guarded secrets of magic and that you would appreciate them not telling anyone outside the rehearsal.

• Make your rehearsal a “closed rehearsal”. That means all the doors are shut and nobody comes in who is not directly involved with the show. Put a clear sign on the outside of every door. This is not an unreasonable expectation. All it takes is one snooper to come in and see you using the escape arm, and your secret is out.

• Talk your helpers through the illusion as the audience will see it. It will help them understand the part they are playing.

• Be very specific about who you want to do what. Give simple instructions. So, you start the rehearsal. Have the platform set up on the stage. Make sure the second platform is directly behind the rear stage curtain and the escape arm is on it, ready to be slid into position. Your three backstage helpers should be backstage. Your two stagehands should be positioned one either side of the platform. Your two female assistants should stand behind the platform, either side of the gap in the rear curtain. (During the routine they would have just led the witnesses on to the stage). You are ready to walk through the vanish. Here are the individual instructions you should give in preparation…

• Troupe: as soon as the curtain front and sides are down, turn to face the back. As soon as the escape arm is in place, sprint across it, out the back and around to your

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appearance location. Do not wait for the person behind you – it’s every girl for herself!

• Stagehand #1: bring down the curtain on your side. Work your way around to the back, continuing to bring down the curtain. As the escape arm is fed through the rear curtain, reach back and pull it up to the platform. Then go back round to your side.

• Stagehand #2: bring down the curtain on your side. Stall a little; pretend to “adjust” it. As soon as the escape arm is in place, work your way around to the back, continuing to lower the curtain. As soon as the last dancer is across the escape arm, lift the end off the platform and push it back towards the rear curtain (the others will take over). Go back round to your side.

• Female assistants: as soon as the front and sides of the curtain are down, get ready to grab the escape arm between you as it comes through the rear curtain. Feed it towards the platform. Do not step forward – your legs can be seen underneath the platform. Help feed the arm back once the dancers have left. When magician asks, “Ladies, are you ready?” – shout “Yes!”

• Backstage helper #1: Peek through the stage curtain so you can see what’s going on. As soon as the front and sides of the platform curtain are down, feed the escape arm through the curtain and push. As the girls reach the end of the escape arm, help them jump off the second platform (work out a preferred technique with the girls – arms around waist, hold their hands as they jump…whatever they find most useful). This will save valuable seconds. As soon as you have helped the last girl down, pull the escape arm back in.

• Backstage helper #2: Assist #1 with the escape arm. If the girls can jump off both sides of the second platform, you can help down every other girl.

• Backstage helper #3: While the “witness” selection is taking place, you should walk the entire length of the route the girls will take. Make sure it is free from obstacles and that any doors they may encounter are firmly wedged open. You should also do this before the show, but this last-minute check is particularly important. After all girls have left the platform, take the long pole (remember the extra visual element I described in the “routine” section?) and feed it through the rear curtain and into the curtain enclosing the platform. As the female assistants shout “Yes!”, tap the front curtain a couple of times with the pole, then immediately pull it backstage.

If everyone does exactly what they should, this sequence should run smoothly. Walk through the routine slowly at first, without using the curtain. Then a few more times, gradually getting faster. Make sure everyone is comfortable with what they have to do, especially the girls of the troupe. They should be comfortable enough to sprint across the escape arm without any worries. Once the sequence is running smoothly, run it through using the curtain and having the girls run the route to their appearance location. Have someone time the routine.

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Here’s something I found helped a little. My female assistants would shout “Go! Go! Go!” as the girls of the troupe were running along the escape arm (not so loud that the audience could hear). It just seemed to provide a little more motivation! I would recommend having someone take video of the rehearsal. You will want to see exactly what the audience sees and make any adjustments as necessary. Also, have someone sit in the audience at the extreme seats either side. You want to be sure that people on the ends of rows can’t see anything they shouldn’t. If there is a sightline issue, remove those seats. If you can’t do that, you may have to move the platform back a little. Read the section on sightlines for more information. Yes folks – the witnesses are truly random!

Well, if you have read this document from the beginning, you will know that, although these witnesses are truly randomly selected, they will play an important part in helping to make this illusion possible. Make the selection process as fun as possible, while ensuring that it is completely random. Throw something into the audience, such as beach balls. Either “first to catch them” or “whoever has them when the music stops” will work. You should pick 4 or 6 people – make it an even number. If you are in a position where you don’t think you can trust the people in the audience (because they are all kids, they are all drunk, they are all drunk kids…whatever the reason), then I would suggest pre-arranging your witnesses. Don’t just choose anyone; assemble the committee from significant people (that is, people who everyone would know and trust: the president of a company and several board members, for example). Pre-arrange it with them and let them know what they will be doing. Ask them not to tell anyone! If you have to go with this option, you could manage with as little as two witnesses. If that’s the case, have a couple of stools behind the platform for them to sit on. Make them feel special! You should position these as in the diagram. Your female assistants will lead them onto the stage, to their stools and then take their assigned places. Assuming you are able to gather people randomly from the audience (which is the best option), they will need to be prepared before they reach the stage. Have your two female assistants waiting at the back of the audience, at the head of the center aisle. If there is no center aisle, choose either house left or house right. Before you throw things out to the crowd, you need to give specific instructions as to what the lucky “winners” should do. Once the beach balls are flying, you won’t get a word in edgeways! Instruct them to make their way along their row to the appropriate aisle, and then back to where your assistants are waiting. Tell them to leave the beach balls back there, and in a minute they will be

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brought up to the stage as a group. It’s important to have some justification for taking the committee back there. At this point, you need to stall for about 30 seconds. The perfect excuse would be to thank some people, including the volunteers who have helped you (plus lights and sound technicians, and anyone else you can think of). Whoever you thank, in whatever order, you should finish by thanking your two female assistants. Your patter should sound something like: “Finally, I’d like to thank two wonderful girls who have brought some class to this evening, my friends ______ and _______. Hey girls, why don't you join me on stage…and bring your new friends”. They will make their way down the aisle to the stage, and while they are doing so, you finish up your patter, or explain what the witnesses will be doing. While you are handing out thanks, one of your female assistants will be prepping your witnesses. Make sure they are not within hearing range of the back row of the audience. Your assistant should gather them together and say something like, “During this illusion you may be exposed to some secrets of magic. Are you all prepared to keep those secrets to yourselves? Good. Now, whatever you see, please pretend that you don’t see it”. It doesn’t matter if they don’t completely understand – it will make sense soon enough. Don’t tell them what they are about to see, and don’t overdo this part. Make it short and simple and get ready to come up to the stage. Virtually everyone likes to be let in on a secret, especially if they are going to help make a trick work and they will play along. There is an alternative to having the witnesses prepped by your assistants. This alternative has a few benefits visually, but it’s up to you which you choose. If you’re not sure, go with the prepping at the back of the theatre – it’s a little safer. Here’s the alternative: instead of having the beach-ball-catchers meet your assistants at the back, have them come straight up onto the stage. Your assistants can still lead them behind the platform. At this point they are still unaware of what’s about to happen, and the audience will know this. They will be completely innocent up until the curtain is brought down. On the back of the curtain, on either side of the gap, will be written: “Please play along – pretend not to see anything!”. At that moment, they will realize that they are part of the act. Actually, by reading the signs they will be looking at the curtain, not the escape arm. Which ever option you choose, you can be fairly sure that your committee will play along. I even had one guy look under the platform after the girls had disappeared to try and see if he could see where they went, even though he had just seen them walk off the back of the stage! That brought a smile to my face. Nice touch, dude. I mentioned earlier that this illusion should be the last illusion of the show. I have a good reason for recommending this. As soon as you have taken a bow and the curtains have closed, you need to immediately go over to your witnesses and thank them like they just saved your butt. Which is probably what they just did, if the illusion worked! Thank them

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for participating and say something like, “You helped to make this illusion possible. Would you please do me this favor and keep the secret to yourselves?”. You can be fairly sure that they will do that. They may tell their family members or close friends if they ask, but it’s a small price to pay for such a high-impact illusion. Another reason for making this the last illusion of the show is the fact that you can, if need be, hold the witnesses back for a few minutes while everyone else leaves. This is just another way to help protect the secret. Some people will want to immediately return to their family or friends and tell them exactly how the trick worked. The fewer people that are around to witness this grand proclamation, the better! Don’t just hold the witnesses there against their will – think of something to justify their being there. Let your assistants go over and say thanks and shake hands (especially if there are men among the witnesses and you have hot-looking female assistants…right there’s your opportunity to stall for time!). You could even get a group photo with them. If you have anything interesting on the stage (water tank escape, elephant, jumbo jet, etc.), give them a tour of the stage…without showing them how everything’s done, of course. This is not compulsory, and if you feel comfortable letting them back into the main house after you thank them, do so. Most people appreciate a few minutes of your attention and are fascinated by everything on the stage, so they will not be in any hurry to get out of there.

Sightlines You should find that the sightlines for this illusion do not pose any major problems. If your platform is 8’ long, you should be able to position it around 6’ from the rear curtain without the audience seeing anything suspicious. You should definitely check your sightlines when you first visit the performance venue. Put a couple of chairs 8’ apart on the stage and walk around the audience. You should not be able to see the gap in the rear curtain except between the chairs. If you can, move the chairs back and look again. Once you are sure of where the platform needs to be, take some rough measurements – this will determine how long your escape arm needs to be. Remember: the distance from the rear curtain to the platform plus an extra 2ft (1ft at either end). You will certainly want to check the seats at the extreme end of each row. If they are positioned too far around the side of the stage, your first mission would be to see if you can have those seats removed. That’s the easy solution, if your seats are not in a fixed position. In my opinion, that is certainly a better solution than moving the platform back. In fact, the further forward it can be, the better.

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If you are dealing with an auditorium with fixed seating and you need to address end of row sightline issues, you will have to find an alternative method of restricting the view. If the stage is wide enough, you may be able to close the curtain slightly, restricting the view on the end seats. You only need to close it enough to conceal the back side of the platform. Don’t forget, if there are aisles at the extreme sides of the auditorium, stand in them and take a look. You may just have someone wandering in them during your performance.

Your audience seating should form a slight wedge shape leading from the stage, with the seats angled in slightly (see diagram). Not only is this a safe sightline layout, but the inward angle makes it a little more comfortable for your audience. Try sitting on the end of a row, square on to the stage for a whole show and see how your neck feels at the end of it! Pacing and timing

Although these are two different concepts, they actually go hand in hand to make a convincing performance. Generally speaking, pacing is the speed of the illusion as perceived by the audience; timing is the speed of the illusion as perceived by you, the magician. If you can keep control of the two, it will be a smooth and quick performance. Let’s start with pacing. You want to give the impression that this is a fast-paced illusion (which it is, if you’re one of the girls). Once the curtain has come down around the troupe, you must keep busy. If you stall for time, even just for a moment, the audience will notice it. You should give the impression that you want to do the vanish as soon as you can. As you run through the illusion during rehearsal, you will know if you are standing around or not. If you find that you need to squeeze out a few more seconds before the vanish, give yourself something deliberate to do. Incidentally, by way of contrast, you should have the girls mount the platform one at a time, taking their time to do so. You want to leave the impression in the audience’s mind that it takes a long time to get seven girls on (or off!) the platform.

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Back to the vanish. How do you expend time while looking busy? If you used a step for the girls to get up to the platform, you could move that to the side of the stage (that’s exactly what I did). Do it quickly! Alternatively, you could shout some kind of instruction to the witnesses, such as, “Witnesses – keep your eyes on the platform!” before you ask the girls if they are ready. Whatever you choose to do, make it deliberate and integral to the illusion, i.e. have a reason for doing what you choose to do. Tying your shoelaces or waving your hands magically at the curtain, however quickly you do it, will always look like a stall tactic! Moving a step or telling your witnesses to get ready can look like essential preparation. Even crossing from one side of the stage to the other can earn you an extra 2 or 3 seconds, and if you do it quickly no one will suspect anything. Then there’s timing. This is the real speed of the illusion and the precise interaction between all the elements. Firstly, know how long it takes to get the girls off the platform (including getting the escape arm in place and back). That’s the maximum amount of time you should allow for that. It’s tempting to say, “Well, they can do it in 10 seconds, but we’ll say 15, just to be sure”. Wrong! You don’t need to draw it out any longer than necessary. Seconds count in this illusion. If they can do it in 10, that’s how long it takes. If you have been economical with your timing, you should turn around after removing the curtain and see, at the back of the auditorium, the last girl running into place. That means you have used every second wisely, and only as many as you need. So what happens if you turn around and there are no girls at the reappearance location? Well, one solution is to have one of your assistants bring the car round to the backstage door and keep the engine running. Not the best solution, but it works in cartoons. The more intelligent solution would be to buy a little time without the audience realizing that’s what you’re doing. Now it’s unlikely that there would be literally no girls there – after all, you did time out your rehearsals, so most of the girls should be there. But you may find you need to buy yourself a couple of extra seconds just to let the last girl or two to get into place. There are a few different ways you can do this and it all depends upon how much time you really need to buy. If you only need to buy 1 or 2 seconds, all you would need to do would be to add a few words to the call to the audience to look behind them. For example, if you had planned to say, “Everybody look behind you”, you could say, “Ladies and gentlemen, please turn around and look behind you”. That would buy you about 1 second…a valuable second given that you do not want the audience to see any girls running into place. If you needed to buy a few more seconds, you could add to the drama before the reveal. So you could turn to the witnesses and ask, “Where did they go?” before you finally reveal the girls. If that’s not enough, you could then turn to the audience and ask, “Do you want to see them again? Yes? Well then look behind you!”. That whole scenario buys you

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around 7 seconds – a huge amount of time. However, you should keep the energy flowing and the pacing to a maximum. Don’t wait for applause, don’t hesitate. The audience won’t know you are stalling for time unless you drop the energy. On a serious note, if you do turn around and see no girls back there whatsoever, then someone’s locked a door backstage and you can be fairly certain the girls are not going to reappear! In which case, invite the witnesses to check the platform to make sure they are really gone. Then turn to the audience, thank them and close out the show. If the girls turn up while you are doing this, say, “Look who’s been watching the show!” and point to the girls at the back. However, let’s just hope you never have to do this! It does illustrate the point, though, that you need to have a plan. Know your basic routine and patter, then know what you will do if you have to stall for time. On the video clip, you can see that I turn to the witnesses and give a gesture as if to say, “Where are they?” – it was just enough to allow the last girl to get into place. You can be certain that she was running one second earlier!

Patter

“Patter” (for those of you just starting out in magic) is the technical term given to what you say throughout the routine. Even the most brilliant professional magicians have an outline to their patter…some even have a scriptwriter and have everything they say planned out to the exact word. This is not a bad thing, especially if you are giving information or instructions. Can you imagine David Copperfield ever saying, “Um…er…”? My patter in the video clip was a mixture of ad lib and pre-planning. I love to interact with the audience, so it’s fun to leave some of the dialog to chance. However, when I start to tell the audience about the witnesses and the role they will play, I immediately revert to the script. I want that part to be concise and clear. So it might go something like, “Our witnesses will view this illusion from the back, effectively making this platform completely surrounded. You, the audience, will see underneath and around the sides at all times”. Concise and clear. So, decide what you will “ad lib” and what you will script. Write your patter to suit your personality. Having a solid idea of what you want to say will assist you in keeping a good pace going, too! Music

Music is going to play a huge role in giving your performance drive and energy. If you are musically inclined, you can edit a soundtrack to fit the routine precisely. If you’re not, don’t worry!

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There seems to be two different kinds of musical underscoring used for illusions nowadays: 1) the movie soundtrack that is edited to fit the illusion and 2) the song to which the illusion is choreographed. If you are not comfortable with music editing, the second option may be best for you. Even with an existing song, you may still want to do some minor editing – maybe add or remove a verse, repeat a chorus. You will still need the soundtrack to roughly fit the timing you have established. However, the whole process of selecting and editing music for your performance is not as daunting as it may sound! Firstly, you will need some music editing software. The top-of-the-line software will cost you several hundred (thousand…) dollars. Not a good investment for an illusion that cost you $70 to build! However, there are some free editors out there. One that I particularly recommend is called “Audacity” – do an online search and download it. It can do just about everything you would need, plus a few other tricks. Whatever you use, read the online manual first. It will save you a whole heap of frustration! So, assuming you have your software in place and you have chosen your song or soundtrack, you will want to make sure it fits the illusion. If you’ve chosen a soundtrack, you will want it to fit very closely – a song has a little more flexibility. You should have a rough timing for the vanish and reappearance. Run through the rest of the illusion in your mind…the placement of witnesses, the girls getting on to the platform, etc. and get a rough timing for that too. You should treat the illusion set-up and the vanish as two separate elements. In truth, the illusion does not begin properly until the curtain comes down around the girl – that’s when the pace picks up. So for the illusion set-up you can be easy with the music…or even have none if you wish. If you choose to have music, you will want to get a rough timing of your patter as the witnesses and girls get into place. You will find that repeated trial and error is the best way to get the timing just right. Make a rough edit, then act out your patter while playing it back. Add or remove music as necessary and do it again. Your music edits under patter do not have to be perfectly neat – the audience will be focused on what you have to say. When I edited the soundtrack for my performance, I put it on an iPod and listened to it every day for a month while I did my morning workout (yes, I do try to keep fit…does it show? No? Okay, moving on…). Anyway, I found that I was eventually able to get my patter to fit the music down to the second. Familiarity with the music will pay you big rewards. So you have loaded the girls onto the platform and you are ready to make them vanish. The music should pick up at this point (or start, if you have not used music so far).

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Whether you choose to use a song or a soundtrack, the music should be fast and exciting (like you couldn’t figure that one out, right?!). You should have an idea of how long it takes you get the girls off the platform. Edit the music around this timing. If you are using a soundtrack, find an obvious climax to the music for the reveal. If you are using a song, the exact edit is not so important, so long as the music keeps its intensity at the point of reveal. The reappearance does not really need any musical enhancement – it carries enough of an impact on its own. If you just do not feel that editing music is something with which you are comfortable, don’t worry. You can simply have no music during the platform load (so make sure your patter is interesting!) and then kick in a heavy techno beat when you are ready to pull down the curtain. Get a stack of CD’s of club music and find something that suits your performance. Although the music is important (it helps give the impression that the illusion is moving faster than it may actually be), it is not something you should lose sleep over. It is a good idea to run through the illusion in your head many times while listening to the music. It will help you to visualize the onstage activity as well as get you familiar with the music. One last point – make sure your sound operator for your performance knows exactly where to start the music. Give him a cue sheet detailing the exact moment you want the music to start. If you have music for the load, it may start when the first girl gets on the platform or when the witnesses reach the stage. If you are not starting the music until you are ready to do the vanish, you may want a cue line – something like, “Let’s do this!” or “Say goodnight, girls!”. It’s up to you…but make sure you remember what you are supposed to say to cue the sound operator! Lights and mist I’m not going to say much about this – it all depends what is available to you at the performance venue. However, if you can have some lights at the back of the stage shining forward (not directly into the audience’s eyes, but at an angle), it will make it a little harder to see the rear stage curtain, especially if mixed with a little mist. Have in mind the kind of mood you want to set on stage, but do take advice from the person controlling the lights. They may just have something up their sleeve!

An unfriendly stage

It’s a perfectly valid question: what if the stage has no rear escape route? It is possible that the stage has no rear curtain, or if it does, no space behind it. Well, if you are unable to have even a very basic curtain installed, you are going to have to change things round a

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bit. Specifically, you are going to have to change the locations for the vanish and reappearance. This is a detail you will have discovered during your first visit to the performance venue. You have to be realistic – if you can not see any viable way to get the girls out through the back, and there is no other part of the venue where you could stage this illusion, you may just have to resign yourself to the fact that you can not perform Troupe Vanish in this venue. However, before you admit defeat, have a look around the auditorium and see if there is an alternate location. The sides of the venue may have potential, although you do not want to stage it further back than half way down through the audience. People do not want to have to twist their heads round 180 degrees to see your performance. Sometimes, though, these venues have exits at the ends of the stage, or nearby. If you can hang two curtains over the exit and wedge the doors open, you could assemble your platform right there. Remember, your sightlines will change, so you will have to check them out. Actually, you may find they improve, given the tighter angle. Check to see if there are portable lights you can have set up around your illusion, or at least if the stage lights can be refocused over to your platform location. If you can have it illuminated, it will make the rear curtain harder to see. The reappearance could still take place at the back of the audience, although I would recommend having them show up at the opposite side of the venue from where they vanished. If they vanished from the exit at house right, have them reappear at house left. If you have to set up your platform in a place other than the stage, then make yourself a mini “stage”. Have the platform as far away from the rear curtain as you can get away with. Maybe you could even have the witnesses stand on chairs set around the platform. The more you can do to draw attention away from that rear curtain, the better. The witnesses should help to remove all suspicion that the rear curtain is a viable exit. Remember – if you do not think you can stage and perform this illusion to the best of your ability (due to location, conditions, etc), you should not do it. I designed it to be flexible and performable in most venues, but a mediocre performance will cheat you out of the reputation you deserve as an entertainer. One other little detail This is a little something that occurred to me while I was playing the illusion through in my head. Even though we had a black rear stage curtain and plenty of lights on stage, there

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was a possibility of light bleeding through from backstage when we fed the escape arm through (even though it would be kept very dim back there). Equally as telling, there was the possibility of the audience spotting the curtain flapping around during this move, either below or above the platform. There is a simple solution. You need two clips, such as bulldog clips, to clip the curtains together in two places. One just below the level of the platform and one about 6ft above the level of the escape arm. You may need to do some fine adjustment to the exact positioning of these during rehearsal. Use a piece of glow tape to mark the positions so the clips can be attached when it is dim backstage. Vanishing seven audience members

Let me start by saying that this will not be quite as spectacular as the vanish of seven girls. The main reason for this is that they are not going to move as quickly as the girls. However, after I designed the Troupe Vanish it occurred to me that you could perform this illusion with seven random audience members. There would have to be a few minor modifications made, and these I will describe in performance order. Firstly, you would have no real control over who was chosen for this illusion. So you have to set parameters before you throw the beach balls (or whatever) into the audience. You should specify that you only want people who are in good health to catch the ball. This is a reasonable request and it eliminates the majority of people who are likely to pose a problem through issues of weight or physical dexterity. Not to be unfairly discriminatory or anything, but let’s not forget that there is running involved (as well as crossing that pesky escape arm!). Secondly, increase the odds in your favor. Don’t forget that you will also need a couple of witnesses. So, have nine audience members randomly selected and brought to the stage. From those nine, you can choose the two witnesses. Choose wisely! Watch them all as they come up onto the stage. Is one of them heavier than the rest? Is one slower than the others? Again, this is not an exercise in discrimination, but you do want seven people who can cross the escape arm and run around to the back of the auditorium. As you pull each witness out of the line-up, have your female assistants lead them behind the platform. Have two stools in place for them to sit on. Explain to the audience what the witnesses will be doing (just as in the regular routine). Then have the lucky seven mount the platform. Stand at the side of the step and offer your hand to assist the ladies (there is always room for chivalry…). For a little comic relief you can encourage them to wave goodbye their families and friends before you pull down the curtain.

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Now here’s where the trickery kicks in. On the inside of the front part of the curtain (the part they will all be facing) is written “TURN AROUND”. Hopefully they will. They will see the escape arm being put into place. You need to have someone peer through the rear stage curtain and encourage them to cross the arm. Stagehand #1 can also assist (saying something like, “Come on – it’s safe!” will help). Do not expect them to sprint across the arm, but if your female assistants do their “Go! Go! Go!” bit, they may speed up with each successive person. On the back side of the curtain should be written “Please play along – pretend not to see anything!”. Your two witnesses will get the message. Alternatively, your female assistants could just turn to the witnesses and impart this information themselves. Even a quick finger on the lips as in “Shh!” and a wink may be enough. Whatever the case, they will be well hidden behind the platform and any reaction on their faces won’t be seen. Your helpers backstage should help the people off the second platform, as with the girls. One of your backstage helpers will need to lead the group around to the reappearance location. They should start walking as the first person is off the platform, increasing it to a run once all seven are off. (If your helper sprints off with the first person, there is a risk of leaving someone behind!). Once they have all arrived, your helper should leave, or even just move away from the group and stand elsewhere. What if you get a group of people who aren’t confident about crossing the escape arm? What if they all stand there and freeze like frightened rabbits? Unlikely, but if you want to add a little security to the routine, you may want to consider having a stooge stand in as one of the audience members. Here are two ways to set it up… Have your stooge waiting at the back of the auditorium holding a beach ball, out of view of the audience (maybe in the sound booth or the lobby). Instead of throwing nine beach balls out, you throw eight. Don’t tell the audience you are looking for any specific number of people, just a “bunch”. As they come up to the stage, instruct them to leave the beach balls at the side of the stage (or some other convenient location). As the first few people get up, your stooge should simply walk down the center aisle, carrying the beach ball and join the back of the line. If this is timed just right, the audience won’t even notice the addition from the back. Here’s an alternative method that will work if your stage has wings and there are steps at one or both ends. Have your stooge waiting in the wings at the side of the stage where the audience members will come up. Have the audience members gather in a group by the wings while you thank the various people on your list (remember I discussed that before?). Once you have done that, have your audience members line up in front of the platform for

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you to choose your witnesses. As they make their way from the side of the stage, your stooge can just join the back of the line. Which ever method you use (and you may have a better one in mind!), there is a reason you want your stooge at the back of the line. Have the first three audience members mount the platform and stand on the left half. The second three should stand on the right. Your stooge should stand in the center. Don’t make it obvious that’s how you are dividing them; just show them where to stand. You could even ask them their names as they take their place. Now your stooge is in the middle, he should be the first to cross the escape arm. It would help for him to say, “Come on guys, it’s totally safe!” before he crosses – it will install some confidence in the others. Your stooge will be able to lead the way to the appearance location. Then there’s the little matter of the group calling from behind the curtain at the last second. This is no problem. Your female assistants can shout their “Yes!” from where they are, just as in the original version. However, your group will probably contain men. So your helpers backstage will also have to join in. Make sure they call through the gap in the rear stage curtain, otherwise it will be muffled. Given that this routine will take a little longer than the original (for reasons I outlined earlier), you should not use music edited to a specific timing. In fact, you will not really be able to predict how long the vanish will take, or how long it will take the group to run around to the rear of the auditorium. A repetitive club-style track would work well, starting when you are ready to lower the curtain. This will keep the energy going, without the worry of having to fit your performance to specifically-timed music. Reflecting on something I mentioned before: if you have an audience full of kids, you’ re on to a winner. As I said earlier, the vanish of seven kids is always a crowd pleaser. However, you absolutely have to use a kid stooge. Find a kid who you can trust, who is at least as old as the oldest kids in the audience. Once the curtain comes down you need to know that there is at least one responsible person on that platform! Impromptu vanish (3 girls) Well, when I say “impromptu”, I am really referring to a version that uses minimal props with virtually no set up. I can’t think of what kind of situation in which you would find yourself whereby someone would say, “Here’s a seven-member dance troupe – do a trick with them”. However, this version is ideal for an occasion where you need an inexpensive illusion at short notice that plays big.

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For this you will need the following…

• Four bed sheets

• Three girls

• Three chairs

• Safety pins

• Paper and a marker pen

• Two stagehands

• One female assistant (height should be less than width of bed sheet) To prepare for this routine, you need to join two pairs of bed sheets. Take two of them and, using the safety pins, join two short ends together. Do the same with the other pair. Make two paper signs that say, “Please play along – pretend not to see anything!” (sound

familiar?). Attach them with safety pins to one of the pairs of bed sheets as shown… You need to perform this somewhere where the girls can leave out the back. A stage with a rear curtain would be ideal, but in front of a doorway would also work. Or possibly in front of some large objects that

the girls could run between and then behind. Every venue will be different, and you’ll have to use a little imagination and some common sense when deciding where to stage this. Don’t forget to check your sightlines! As long as they can escape out through the back without being seen, then you should be good to go. Set up the three chairs in a row, with enough room between to allow the girls through (one at a time). Stretch out the sheet with the signs attached to form a wall about 1ft behind the chairs (long edges parallel to the ground and signs facing the back). Lower it to the ground and make sure the sign is concealed in the folds. Stretch out the other sheet in the same way in front of the chairs, leaving about 2ft between chair and sheets. That’s it - you are ready to go! You have two audience members selected at random as witnesses (W). (If you are able to prepare them at the back as in the original, you can do this as a substitute for the signs). They are brought up to the performing area by your female assistant (F); she stands in the center about 3ft behind the rear sheet with the witnesses positioned about 4ft either side of her. You, the magician, explain that the

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witnesses are there to guard the illusion from behind. Tell the witnesses to keep an eye on the back of the illusion. Tell your female assistant to keep an eye on the witnesses (to “make sure they don’t cause trouble!”). Your three girls take their seats. Have them sit in identical poses with legs crossed. They should look comfortable and relaxed. Your two stagehands (S) take their positions between the ends of the sheets. They reach down and pick up the ends, one in each hand. They lift the rear sheet to full height, concealing the witnesses, but they hold the ends of the front sheet down by their sides so the girls can still be seen.

You give a little wave to the girls; they wave back. Your assistants raise the front sheet. Immediately, the girls stand up (be sure that their heads are not seen above the front sheet) and make their way between the chairs to escape out the back. At the same time, your female assistant steps forward, grabs the bottom edge of the rear

sheet at the center and raises it up just enough for the girls to run through. She should stand slightly to the side to allow them to pass. Note: all this happens at the same time, as soon as the front sheet is raised. As soon as the girls are out, your female assistant enters through the rear sheet. With her left hand she continues to hold up the center of the rear sheet. She stands between the two chairs on her right and turns to face the left. You ask the girls (through the sheet), “Are you comfortable?”. Your female assistant now has to do two things simultaneously…

• With her right hand she waves over the top of the front sheet (as if it is the center girl);

• With her right foot she reaches back behind her and taps the sheet (as if it is the girl on the right - that is, the audience’s left).

The wave should not be rushed - you still want to give the impression the girls are relaxed in the chairs. She only does this briefly, then quickly exits through the back and releases the rear sheet. You whip away the front sheet as soon as you can without exposing the assistant’s exit. The onstage assistants lower the rear sheet to the ground. The girls can run around to the back of the audience and reappear, if you wish. You will need music playing during the routine to cover the sound of people moving behind the curtain. However, given the casual nature of the illusion, you do not have to have a high-

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impact soundtrack or song. It will sound out of place. Something lively and fun will compliment the performance perfectly. Similarly, your performance style should be fairly casual. The all-black look with shades and laser beams will just look silly. You are using bed sheets, for crying out loud! So make this fun and the audience will enjoy it with you. Concluding thoughts When I first performed this illusion in July 2006, one of the most frequent comments that came my way from audience members was, “I can’t believe how fast they got back there!” Speed (or at least, the illusion of speed) is the factor that gives this routine its impact. Really, your girls will run from the platform to the back of the auditorium just as quickly as anyone else could (well, anyone else in the same physical condition). However, you are giving the impression that the girls are still on the platform seconds before you remove the curtain, despite their exit some time before that. If you can sell this to the audience, their perception of time will be vastly distorted. Needless to say, the faster you can perform this, the better! The witnesses add an extra level to this illusion. Make sure your audience knows what they are doing behind the platform and point out the fact that the illusion is being watched from every side. Don’t overplay this fact, though – if you try too hard to point out how difficult it would be to leave through the back, your audience will start to think too much in that direction. If a magician spends 20 minutes trying to prove to you that the box is empty…you know that the box is not empty! Please have fun performing this illusion, but PLEASE BE SAFE! There is no substitute for testing your props and testing them again. Do not take any unnecessary risks just to shave a second or two off the vanish. I hope that this eBook has been valuable to you. If you are a beginner, I hope that this has taken you a little further into the world of illusion and shown you that “big stage magic” doesn’t always have to cost a fortune. If you are a professional, I hope that you can take the ideas contained herein and run with them. If you have any questions or suggestions, I’d love to hear them. You may contact me at julian@julianbondmusic.com - I’ll reply when I can! Good luck, Julian Bond

© 2006 Julian Bond. Unauthorized copying or distribution is illegal and deprives the author of his livelihood!