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Yeah do agree there, bill Malone's version is nicely performed. Also like Dai vernon's very old version, a classic.

Is the Bill Malone one the routine he does with the plastic cups and the poem? If so its the mutts nutts and it only costs about £3.50 for the whole apparatus.

You have 2 problems Aza with the Cups & Balls.

1. The Cups themselves. Different sizes, and especially different weights for each individual magician.
SOLUTION: Do NOT just buy any Cups without handling them yourself.
Go to a Convention-perhaps more than one. Move round the dealer's stalls and if you see any ASK if you can handle them.
Do they feel right for your hands? You do NOT want Cups that are TOO light and could fall over as you replace them on the table.
Are they the right size for your final loads?
When I decided to take up the C & B again,around 1990, after many years of last performing the trick, I went round the British Ring Convention doing just that.
Finally I settled on the Keith Bennett Cups.
Heavy enough, beautifully chromed with black interiors (later Keith chromed the interiors as well) They wer the dumpier Cups, different to my original tall ones
bought in 1949. The KB Cups are now with my son in Portugal and he performs them better than Dad!!

2. The LENGTH of the routine --AND IN THE END IT must BE YOUR ROUTINE. TRY EVERYONE ELSE'S BUT MAKE IT yours EVENTUALLY.
Back in the 80's we had one magician in the Club who was brilliant at C & B, won a competition with his routine --- BUT he kept adding and adding--never taking away
and ended with a routine that last OVER 15 minutes.!!!! After the balls had transposed about 5 times the audience could NOT REMEMBER which ball or balls were
under which cup and perhaps could not even remember how many cups or balls he was using.
THE RULE IS SHORT, MYSTIFYING & ENTERTAINING.

My first Cups were made by Burtini (well know dealer in the 40's & 50's) especially for his metal props. I still have his Chinese Sticks. He was I think then President of the Staffs MS and took me through his own routine personally. I then bought The Burtini Routine-a 4 page manuscript. I had seen him perform it many times. It was even praised in the old Magazine The Magician when he performed it at the Magic Circle.
It was in Burtini's routine that I first saw 3 pieces of fruit as the final load with the addition of a lemon as the final, final surprise.
I believe that the printed routine is still available from Magic Books By Post.

BASICALLY:
The Cups are displayed empty
They are solid. The wand is pushed inside each but apparently penetrates the 3rd. Cup.
They are then thrown through each other, making the audience believe that metal passes through metal.
The 3 Balls are introduced and placed in front of each Cup OR on top of each Cup.
1 Ball, from your left side Cup is covered and passes into the the Cup. on your right.
The Centre Ball is covered and passes again into the cup on your right.
The 3 balls are replaced in front or on top of the Cups.
Now each is vanished and all 3 appear under the centre Cup.
They are vanished again but when the cups are uncovered, ONE BY ONE, & STACKED ON EACH OTHER THE AUDIENCE SEES under each is a piece of fruit.
Finally the stack is lifted and there is a Lemon.

That is a basic routine. MAXIMIUM performing time--3 minutes. FAIRLY quickly & smoothly paced BUT NEVER TOO FAST. The audience must be allowed to KNOW what is happening.
Additions like the Vernon Wand Twirl you add later.

One idea, used by some, I wish I had tried was 2 Cups instead of 3.

Allen Tipton

Allen Tipton wrote:You have 2 problems Aza with the Cups & Balls.

1. The Cups themselves. Different sizes, and especially different weights for each individual magician.
SOLUTION: Do NOT just buy any Cups without handling them yourself.
Go to a Convention-perhaps more than one. Move round the dealer's stalls and if you see any ASK if you can handle them.
Do they feel right for your hands? You do NOT want Cups that are TOO light and could fall over as you replace them on the table.
Are they the right size for your final loads?
When I decided to take up the C & B again, after many years, I went round the British Ring Convention doing just that. Finally settled on the Keith Bennett Cups.
Heavy enough, beautifully chromed with black interiors (later Keith chromed the interiors as well) They wer the dumpier Cups, different to my originaltall ones
bought in 1949. The KB Cups are now with my son in Portugal and he performs them better than Dad!!

2. The LENGTH of the routine --AND IN THE END IT must BE YOUR ROUTINE. TRY EVERYONE ELSE'S BUT MAKE IT yours EVENTUALLY.
Back in the 80's we had one magician in the Club who was brilliant at C & B, won a competition with his routine --- BUT he kept adding and adding--never taking away
and ended with a routine that last OVER 15 minutes.!!!! After the balls had transposed about 5 times the audience could NOT REMEMBER which ball or balls were
under which cup and perhaps could not even remember how many cups or balls he was using.
THE RULE IS SHORT, MYSTIFYING & ENTERTAINING.

My first Cups were made by Burtini (well know dealer in the 40's & 50's) especially for his metal props. I still have his Chinese Sticks. He was I think then President of the Staffs MS and took me through his own routine personally. I then bought The Burtini Routine-a 4 page manuscript. I had seen him perform it many times. It was even praised in the old Magazine The Magician when he performed it at the Magic Circle.
It was in Burtini's routine that I first saw 3 pieces of fruit as the final load with the addition of a lemon as the final, final surprise.
I believe that the printed routine is still available from Magic Books By Post.

BASICALLY:
The Cups are displayed empty
They are solid. The wand is pushed inside each but apparently penetrates the 3rd. Cup.
They are then thrown through each other, making the audience believe that metal passes through metal.
The 3 Balls are introduced and placed in front of each Cup OR on top of each Cup.
1 Ball, from your left side Cup is covered and passes into the the Cup. on your right.
The Centre Ball is covered and passes again into the cup on your right.
The 3 balls are replaced in front or on top of the Cups.
Now each is vanished and all 3 appear under the centre Cup.
They are vanished again but when the cups are uncovered, ONE BY ONE, & STACKED ON EACH OTHER THE AUDIENCE SEES under each is a piece of fruit.
Finally the stack is lifted and there is a Lemon.

That is a basic routine. MAXIMIUM performing time--3 minutes. FAIRLY quickly & smoothly paced BUT NEVER TOO FAST. The audience must be allowed to KNOW what is happening.
Additions like the Vernon Wand Twirl you add later.

One idea, used by some, I wish I had tried was 2 Cups instead of 3.

Allen Tipton

Thank you very much for this Mr Tipton!!

I shall use that as my template for basic routine and then work in extra's as i become more confident in performing it!

I do believe the phrase you're not a real magician until you can do the Cups & Balls....

Much love

Aza

The thing with Cups & Balls Aza is:

It teaches you to steal, load, palm and use misdirection. Mystify and entertain (keep it short and well paced)

Good lessons for every magician.

Allen Tipton

Allen Tipton wrote:The thing with Cups & Balls Aza is:

It teaches you to steal, load, palm and use misdirection. Mystify and entertain (keep it short and well paced)

Good lessons for every magician.

Allen Tipton

That was my feelings exactly, if it improves my misdirection then it is a worthwhile venture

Thanks again for your input sir!

Much love

Aza

I know you have had to seen this, but just in case. The best of the best.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hgm4wZCACYg

Forgot about this performance. Soooo smooth!! Regards Garry.

So a little update and i am slowly improving my routine, i think i move too fast, but isn't that kind of the idea? Like i want the audience to lose track? I've watched so many different performances and want mine to be as unique as possible, which it is, as it's the first Aaron cups and balls!

I'm also trying to write my own patter on the history of the cups and balls, like the Ricky Jay version, but making it my own.....

I'll try and get a video up soon

Much love

Aza

There is so much written on the history of the cups and balls that you don't want to make one up. If you do somebody may eventually call you on it. And then what?

Has anybody got any ideas for weird final loads?

Much love

Aza

Fake small body parts, real small body parts, a live mouse or gerbil, another smaller cup, a filled shot glass or sherry glass, a sock, a snow globe, a signed pound coin inside a grape inside a walnut inside an egg inside a lemon inside an orange, a shrunken head, a mouse trap, a small leggo door (which could be a 'reveal' as the secret trap door), a large insect, a hand mirror, a small lit candle, a spinning top (that's already spinning), a rubix cube, a small cut out man or a leggo man, a pile of rice, a frog, a dolls head, some lipstick a ball gag and tights, a box of tic tacs, a miniature book or bible, a small deck of cards, a toy car, a fire cracker, a cupcake with a sparkler in it.

Basically anything you can fit in a cup that people aren't expecting. That's the reason the final fruit load is so popular is because it's known as the cups and balls not cups balls and fruit. The fruit is a surprise so it get's a stronger reaction than a ball.

Some people on here know how to apparently produce something that's larger than the cup it supposedly came out of, if you can learn to do that the sky's the limit. Full bottles of wine, magazines, blow up dolls, a seemingly endless stream of water, a football, a trophy cup, etc etc.

I quite often use giant sponge bunnies, they get a really good reaction esp from the kiddies.