Shell game Vol. 1 by School For Scoundrels DVD
Posted: May 7th, '08, 12:54
Here's what they Say
In November of 2004, Bob Sheets, Whit Haydn and Chef Anton combined their original methods for the ancient swindle, the Shell Game, and taught this new system to the School for Scoundrels class at the Magic Castle.
This DVD is far more than an introduction to the game, it is an introduction to a whole new way of looking at the shell game, and a new system for performing the game that is rock solid, unassailable, and easy to learn. In this, the first installment of a series of DVDs on the shell game.
The beginning student is taught an entertaining beginning routine with patter, the basic moves and approaches to the game that make up the system, and given everything necessary to move from complete beginner to an intermediary proficiency in the shell game.
But this is not just for the beginner. Experienced shell game performers will learn invaluable material from this and the following DVDs in this series.
These lessons are not just a rehash of what has been published before, but new and unpublished moves, ruses, and strategies that will change the way the game is played far into the future.
There is over an hour and fifteen minutes of video instruction and over 80 pages of historical information, routines, advanced moves and maneuvers, illustrations and study aids
Cost
$35 from the school for Scoundrels website
Difficulty
As it is a DVd this ranges from the very simple to the slightly more advanced. The shell game is all about sleights
Review
We all know how the shell games works don't we? Well I thought so until I saw this Dvd. I always presumed that the basic moves I had learnt from the Sal Piacente DVD pretty much covered most of the work on the shell game but, boy, was I wrong. This dvd and hopefully its sequels (this is just vol. 1 afterall) will show how deep and involved this game can truely be for the operator.
The amount of material covered in this dvd is very good for a $35 dvd (about £17 in real money) with the explaination of a basic 3 stage routine to get you going, followed by several more advanced moves, an introduction to the props and what to look out for and a lecture in the fineries of performance.
I think you'll find that's quite good value for money but I'm not finished yet. If you put the dvd into your computer then you have access to several files which contain even more information which are incredibly informative and give you even more ideas and show more depth to this hustle. These are almost worth the price alone and are not to be ignored as "junk added to bulk it up".
The production qualities of the dvd are fine enough and the teaching is clear and concise.
Anyone thinking of getting involved with the shell game must see this dvd as their first port of call and anyone with (like me) a little knowledge will surely have their mind opened to all the possiblities that the game can offer. Having ownedthe Street Shells Sal Piacente dvd I can catagorically state that this dvd is miles and miles above and beyond anything offered on that and would heartily recommend this first chapter of this to anyone with an interest. As more volumes are released I can see this becoming the Shell Game bible.