Ebook - Christopher Parrish - Reading Minds Like a Coin Magician (Digital Download)
Description & Effect
Christopher Parrish, a respected voice in the Mentalism community, presents 'Reading Minds Like a Coin Magician,' a profound 44-page ebook designed to redefine your approach to deceptive methods. This release kicks off the 'Esse' series, a collection of deep dives into the principles of performance, methodological design, and a critical examination of inherited 'knowledge' within the art form. Inspired by philosophical discourse, Parrish challenges practitioners to think beyond the conventional.
A New Philosophy for Deceptive Methods
In a marketplace often driven by 'easy to use methods,' Parrish argues for a more discerning selection process. He asserts that methods should be chosen not for their simplicity, but for how effectively they serve your theatrical framework and enhance the audience's aesthetic experience. This ebook is a call to elevate your artistry, pushing you to consider the nuanced decisions that truly impact perception and engagement. You'll explore how mentalists often relate to deceptive methods in ways that may not truly serve the magic they wish to share with modern audiences.
Expert Insights and Practical Application
Parrish doesn't just theorize; he provides a compelling case backed by evidence from Cognitive Psychology, the art of coin magic, and memory experts. Within these pages, you'll discover two meticulously crafted performance pieces that bring this theory to life.
Featured Routines: Real-World Power
Experience 'Pseudo-Telepathy,' a powerful routine perfect for surrounded performances, like conversations with strangers or journalists. Imagine divining intimate details – names, dates, concerns, or personality traits – about a freely chosen stranger in a coffee shop, only for the spectator to confirm these details directly with the individual! This is confirmation that transcends mere belief.
Then, delve into 'Noppera-BŌ,' a simple, prop-less name guess that acts as a potent 'mini-routine.' Ideal for integrating into group performances or casual close-up sets, this accidental discovery has become a steady tool in Parrish's professional arsenal due to the incredible reactions it consistently generates.
'Reading Minds Like a Coin Magician' is more than just an ebook; it's an invitation to critically rethink, refine, and revolutionize your mentalism, empowering you to create truly unforgettable experiences.
Original Specs
Christopher Parrish - Reading Minds Like a Coin Magician ( Instant Download )
In the two years I've spent deciding to share and publish my material for the Mentalism community, the biggest blessing that came from this decision came in coming into contact with powerful mentalists from all over the world!
Since then, friendships blossomed with mentalists who contacted me as fans of my work, or as skeptics to my performance style and methodological preferences. Reflecting on the way the community has treated me in 2024, I am honored that many mentalists have contacted me to act as consultant in their close-up and stage work; whether that be to design book covers, share my thoughts on a method and/or routine they created, and to help write beautiful presentations and design aesthetically pleasing (plus deceptive!) methods for their professional work!
Meeting all different kinds of mentalists have also had an impact on the way I think and perform Mentalism. Inspired by how 19th and 20th century poets and philosophers refined their thoughts and corresponded with each other, the Esse series was born! A set of releases that dig deep into my thoughts and reflections regarding various aspects of this truly unique art-form: principles of performance, methodological design, and questioning blindly accepted inherited "knowledge."
When need be, I express my worldview in a way that some may see as brutally honest; but this is because I deeply care about the way lay audiences perceive Magic. I care about the way Magic practitioners carry themselves in public. Laymen are not just forming impressions about the performer right in front of them, they're also forming impressions about the art-form when they come into contact with one of us. In my opinion, the potential for genuine critical thinking is lost when artists are too polite to state what they truly think about the current state of their art-form.
To begin 2025, I proudly present "Reading Minds Like a Coin Magician," a 44-page book exploring the relationship mentalists (and magicians) have with deceptive methods. In a world, and marketplace, that thrives off "easy to use methods" and pushes this truism to their customers, I feel that some of the nuanced decisions of choosing deceptive methods are lost.
Put simply, I don't believe for one second that we should be picking methods based on how "easy" they are; but based on how methods best serve our theatrical framework and the audience's aesthetic experience.
Besides sharing two of my performance pieces that put the theory into practice, I also cite evidence from Cognitive Psychology, coin magicians, and memory experts to present my case of how mentalists have a relationship with deceptive methods that are likely not in true service to the Magic they wish to share with modern day laymen.
Pseudo-Telepathy: While in conversation with a stranger, friend, or journalist (I use this when journalists interview me after parlor shows), the mentalist offers to demonstrate how telepathy works when surrounded by people. The spectator points to a random person in a coffee shop, bookstore, park, hotel lobby, etc. and with a single billet, can divine intimate details about the freely chosen stranger. This can be names, dates, concerns, and personality traits. Rather than just blindly believing the mentalist, the spectator approaches the chosen stranger and confirms the details written on the billet! The spectator could even grab a business card from the café/bookstore/hotel lobby, and the mentalist can still perform this routine!
Noppera-BŌ: This is something I consider a “mini-routine,” meaning that it’s one of those potential powerful moments you can integrate into your group performances. This is a simple, prop-less, name guess which you can use anytime people decide to join mid-way through your performance! In my development as a performer, this is something that came along by accident, but the reactions it creates makes it a steady tool in my casual and professional close-up sets!
