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Hey all! My name is Justin, and I am about to enter some advanced psychology programs at big name Universities in the States. I remember having an interest in magic when I was younger, and my study of psychology has caused that interest to resurface in an interesting way...mentalism. By that I mean those performances which use psychological principals for theatrical purposes. Of course, a lot of them use stage magic as well. I espcially like Derren Brown because, on top of doing some amazing tricks, he is always up front about what he does, emphasizing the fact that he does not have supernatural powers and that what the results that he gets are simply manifestations of normal psychological reactions to stimuli.

Anyway, I am also into the study of memory and recall and things of that sort (for example, the ability to do complex math rapidly in ones head, and recall large lists of items with little effort...I've seen where some mentalists do this as part of their shows.)

Anyway...I was wondering if you could recommend some good materials for the begining studies of performance "mentalism." Someday I'd like to travel and give seminars on memory methods and math methods and things of that sort, and I really think that a good performance aspect would really add to my message.

I've seen a million books on this topic, but I'm not sure which are legitimate and which aren't really worth the money.

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.

I thank you all!

=J=

Is this Deja Vu?

Read this first >http://www.online-visions.com/krystal/0409kenton.html

Know that Derren & the gang invested 15-20 years of their lives cultivating their skills to get where they are. More so than magic, mentalism takes years of direct experience to learn to do right. Showmanship is only learned by doing it and listening to those that came before you so that you can refine things.

Thanks for the info. I will read that link ASAP. I must say that I didn't quiet get the Deja Vu bit, except to assume that a post like mine may have been just recently posted.

I will tell you all that I have a very sincere interest in the mind and both exploring its potential and entertaining people with its ability. I have committed the rest of my life to the study of psychology and fully intend to include the acts of mentalists as part of that research.

All of that being said...I have no desire to Derren Brown. I fully understand that I will never achieve his unique and sometimes unfathomable skill, nor do I have any dreams of performing on TV, or even making my living as a mentalist.

I do however, see my chosen profession as one who studies the mind, and the acts of mentalism to go hand in hand, and I am certainyl willing to begin a long road to what will hopefully become an interesting and entertaining although not fiscally profitable hobby.

=Justin=

By the way, I love your comment on showmanship, and I should point out that, it is for that guidance that I registered on this site.

I just wanted to thank you again. That was an amazing article. I'd like to comment on it tomorrow. I am really glad you sent me that to read.

Thanks again!

=Justin=

You're sounding like the kind of individual that may just have a fighting chance down the road when it comes to this stuff.

Many younger folks jumpt into this kind of thing with the thought that they can become a star over night and that just don't happen. Even some of the bigger name "pros" out there retain a day job, and when it comes to Mentalism, many of them work in the Mental Health field.

Enjoy the slow boat ride and allow it to open the doors that the others will miss out on.

Thanks for your vote of confidence. I do want to make sure that everyone on here fully understands why I'm interested in heading down this path.

In the article you sent me, Knepper talks about magicians hoping around from specialty to specialty depending on what happens to be popular at the moment. I am not a magician, and I have no desire to make a living as a professional stage performer. My real passion lies in the study of psychology and the depths and powers of the human mind. Mentalism, while not the only type of magic that I find entertaining, is the only type that I wish to pursue.

In essence I wish to study mentalism so that I can can study the human mind, not so that I can make big money doing tricks on TV shows. I'm really not even into spoon bending and things like that because those types of things are tricks done with props, and not psychological experimentation.

Knepper says "So what does it take to honestly be a mentalist? It takes a love for the improbable yet hope for its possibility. It takes a desire to feed an audience their secret dreams of more inner power. It takes heart, not just the intellectualization of life."

I really feel like that describes who I am. He follows that up by talkign about how mentalists need more than just a goody bag of tricks; they need to study psychology and the power of suggestion and all of these things.

Well the fact of the matter remains that whether or not I become any decent at mental magic, I will still study psychology...that is my passion, and that is where I find my happiness.

All of that being siad I was wondering where a good place to start might be. Obviously my psychological education will continue regardless, but where can I start learnign to convert psychological techniques into mentalist magic?

I've found a whole host of articles you wrote on that on-line visions website, and I'll be tackleing them one at a time (although I suspect it'll take the the beter part of a month to finnish.)

Anywhere else I should be looking?

Thanks again,

=Justin=

p.s. Are you still in Mass? I SHOULD be in Cambridge in the fall of '07

Welcome

hello and welcome to tm

Thank you to you both...nice to be here!

Welcome to talkmagic. Sounds like u are a person with a true passion for psychology! You almost make me wanna start studying psychology/mentalism . But I guess I just stick to my physic studies...once again, welcome!

I don't mean to come off as THAT transparent, but I can say for sure that the most interesting thing in the world to me is the human mind. I think it might be the most facinating undiscovered country that we could ever investigate. I'm not a strong believer in REAL magic (things paranormal that aren't parlor tricks or psychological tricks) by I DO believe that we as humans are FAR more capable than we make ourselves out to be.

I'm excited about psychology, and every day I become increasingly more excited about mentalism. Now if I could only get some reading recommendations!

Thank you for the welcome!

=J=

There are plenty of reading recommendations that are directed solely at mentalism but you will need to use the Search function above or trawl through the reviews section to find them.

Happy hunting

Hi and welcome to TM