Basic Template - A5

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(MENTA)LISTS

Alexander May

With presentational ideas by

Warren Thackeray


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Copyright 2013 Alexander May

Original front & back cover images courtesy of:

http://www.sxc.hu/prole/smashy

http://www.sxc.hu/prole/calchan

ll rights reserved. !his book contains material protected under international

copyright laws and treaties. ny unauthori"ed reprint or use of this material is

prohibited. #o part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any

form or by any means$ electronic$ mechanical$ photocopying$ recording$ by any

information storage / retrieval system or otherwise$ without prior written

consent of the author.


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Scene 1 % % % % % %

Scene 2 % % % % % % '

(Menta)Lists % % % % % %

((

CONTENTS


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The Dirty Little Secrets % % % %

()

The Prediction % % % % % *(

The Red Herring % % % % %

*

Full Stage Presentation 1 % % %

% *+

Full Stage Presentation 2 % % %

% ,,

!olunteer "s #entalist % % % %*

Sa$ety Net% % % % % % *

#ore %ord Possi&ilities % % % %

)(

For The Techno Heads % % % %

,'

S'ecial Than(s % % % % % )-


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SCENE 1


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!he mentalist now o9ers the envelope to this last

person$ and he removes the piece of paper that the

mentalist placed inside at the beginning of theroutine.

0e is given the microphone and asked to read it out

loud. t states:

!Tonight "e "ill play the ga#e o$ "ord

a%%ociation& '$ ' "a% ale to read #y a%%i%tant%

correctly a%ed on their an%"er% the la%t

"ord in thi% ga#e "ill e N*TE&+


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he mentalist is hanging out with a group of

people at a party and he suggests they play

a game of word association. 0e states that

he is working on a way to predict the outcome of

this game based on the characteristics of the

individuals playing it.

!

SCENE 2


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0e takes out a bunch of his business cards and

hands everyone a pen and a card. 0e asks that they

write down ten random words on the backs of theircards any random words that they can think of.

Once this is all done$ he gathers all the cards and

looks at all the di9erent words before mixing them

(-.

up. !hen$ he hands one card to each guest at the

table$ and turns to the rst person on his left.

0e asks this person to name a celebrity he would

take with to a desert island.

ased on his answer$ the mentalist writes a word on

the back of another business card$ which he folds up

and leaves in full view on the table.


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0e now asks this person to select any word on the

list he has in his hand$ and to name it out loud.

!hen$ the next person names a word from his listthat he can associate with the rst word selected.

0e might have di;culty to nd one seeing as the

words on the cards are totally random$ but

eventually he settles on a word.

!he next person then associates a word from his list

with that word 6ust selected$ and it continues until

the last person has chosen a word o9 his list$ as an

example we


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(Menta)Listsis a system created that allows the

mentalist to predict the outcome of a game of word

association.

We all know the concept of word association. One

person thinks of a word$ and then the next person

says another word that can be associated with it$

and so it continues. =or example: =rog >reen

pple !ree?3uirrel etc.

Of course$ these associations are pretty obvious. @ou

can also stretch the imagination for more unusualassociations$ which is what makes the game fun.

(*.

started working on the routine after a friend told

me over drinks one evening that he would be very

impressed if a mentalist could ask people to play a

word association game$ and correctly predict the

word named by the nal player.


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4 wanted to have all the words and cards e-a,ina.

&le$ unlike other e9ects where a few seconds of

inspection leaves the method blatantly obvious. also wanted to use only /ordsand not 'hrases.

4 No 0shing for the word or number at which the

word is located.

4 t needed to be a strict 'ure /ord association

ga,e4 somebody thinks of a word$ then the next

person thinks of a word that can be associated with

it. #ot a word that rhymes with it or starts with the

third letter or anything that can compromise this

point.

4 No $orces to start o9 with 4 the volunteers must

really have a $ree choiceof what to write.

fter many trials and errors$ nally came up with

the method you are about to read.


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ime to share. !he main secret lies in the last

two cards that the participants receive. ll

the other cards contain completely randomand unrelated words. @ou will also make use of

clever wording to keep everything on track. 2et


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efore the show$ you will need to prepare two cards

in a very special way. !hese cards will be called the

,-'M'N. CA-/ and the *-CE CA-/.

!hese two prepared cards are secretly added to the

stack and are the main secret to the e9ect. t

doesn


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THE PRIMING CARDAheld by second last

'artici'antC has two sets of ve words at

alternating positions. !hese words are all related totwo words on the second special card.

THE FORCE CARDAheld by 0nal 'artici'antC

contains two Gforce< words and eight random words.

put force in brackets$ as it is not a hard force$ but

works more on a subliminal linguistic principal.

!he two force words are NOTE and)O%.

!he words on the HDE#> ID1 are all closely

related or synonyms of those two words:

NOTE3Eoney$ Eemo$ Host4t$ Hiano$ Hen.

)O%30air$ Jiolin$ rrow$ end$ rch.

(,.


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MONEYHAIR

MEMOVIOLIN

POST-ITARROW

PIANORIBBON

PENARCH

NUANCEDIFFERENT

SINCENOTE

JUMPINGBOW

DURINGACTUALLY

GUILEPARTLY

Degardless of the word that is chosen from the

HDE#> ID1 the last person should always

associate either )O% orNOTEwith it.

,-'M'N. CA-/ *-CE CA-/

!he other eight words on the =ODI5 ID1 were

carefully selected and are virtually impossible to

associate with any other ones$ as long as you use

the wording correctly.


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Demember to write the two prepared cards in

di9erent handwriting as the two people holding the

(,.

cards are standing right next to each other and

might 6ust catch a glimpse of each other


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s you can see all the words chosen by the rst

couple of spectators have no impact on the e9ect$

as all the work is done by the last two spectators.@ou should always end up with either the word

7)O%8 or 7NOTE.8

(,.

CARDS ACROSS

!he two prepared cards are ready and waiting in an

easily obtainable place. While one of the partici4

pants gathers all the other cards and mixes them$

you secure them in a palmed position. When he is

done mixing$ he gives the cards back to you and you

start handing them out one by one to each person.


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0ere is where the 7move8 comes in. !here is a

classic magic e9ect known as 7Iards cross8 which

you can nd in numerous magic books. !he usuale9ect is that you count ten cards into two

volunteers< hands$ then make three Ly invisibly and

when they are recounted the rst volunteer only

holds seven cards and the other now has thirteen.

We will use the principle here and in the process

ensure that the nal two participants receive the

,-'M'N. CA-/ and the *-CE CA-/as opposed to

the real cards they wrote.

(,.


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s you get the mixed cards back$ you place the two

palmed cards on top of the stack$ with the *-CE

CA-/on top. @ou now start handing out the cardsfrom the end of the line$ meaning the last person in

line receives the *-CE CA-/ the person next to

him gets the ,-'M'N. CA-/$ the person next to him

receives a random card that was written on earlier$

and so forth. s you get to the rst person in line$you simply hand him a card and keep the remaining

two cards hidden in your palm. !hey are easily

ditched in the pocket as you remove a pen or the

like.

=or a more detailed description on exactly how to

perform the 7Iards cross8 refer to !The -oyal -oad

to Card Magic+ by 0ugard and raueM.

The eect o$ thi% procedre i% that "hile e4eryone

el%e ha% a card "ith rando# "ord% on the la%t t"o

people in the line are each holding a %pecially

prepared card&

(,.


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WORDING

Hreparing a proper script for the presentation of this

e9ect is 3uite necessary. s you go from person to

person$ you will be giving them subtle instructions

that will ensure a successful conclusion.

nstead of asking them to associate a word with the

one they 6ust heard$ they are told to associate

SOMETHINGwith the word they 6ust heard.

It 'lays a crucial role5 asyou /ant the, to

thin( o$ a 'hysical o&4ect and not 4ust a /ord*

On the nal card held by the last spectator$ there

are only two real ob6ects listed 4 the other eight are

abstract words. !hese two words are our force

words.

2imiting their choice to an actual ob6ect ensures thatthe nal person chooses either of the force words$

and doesn


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M!The -oyal -oad to Card Magic+ y 5ean 6gard 7 rederick 8rae

World ,li%hing Co#pany&


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THE PREDICTION


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s you will understand by now$ you will need

to make two predictions for this e9ect$ as

there are two words that can be chosen.!here are countless books and 1J1


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Once you are on stage you then take a piece of

blank paper and write the prediction for 7#O!58 on

it$ without letting the audience see of course. @oufold it up and slip it inside the envelope$ which is

placed somewhere in full view.

Once the nal word has been selected$ all that is

needed is for you to open the correct side of the

two4way envelope.

@ou can now o9er it to one of the spectators on

stage to remove the paper inside and to check

*,.

that there is nothing else inside. !his is 3uite a nice

way to remain hands4o9 from the prediction.

good idea is to mark one side of the two way

envelope so that you always open the correct sideK

STROLLING & CLOSE-UP


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f you are working in a more intimate setting$ you

may consider writing the prediction on the back of

your business card$ which is folded up and placed onthe table. @ou do of course need another$ similar

folded card already written with the other word

hidden somewhere$ ready for a billet switch.

!he reader no doubt has his own favourite billet

switch and am not about to reinvent the wheel.

!here are numerous books available that describe

ways to switch billets. ust go to the classics of

mentalism like Iorinda


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!his means that if the nal person does choose this

word$ don


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MAn ea%y #ethod to #ake one can e $ond in !,ractical Mental

Magic+ y Theo Anne#ann /o4er ,lication% 'nc&

: !Thirteen 9tep% to Mentali%#+ y Corinda ;oi% Tannen N&&C&

< 5ay 9ankey ,aperclipped

htt'366///*san(ey,agic*co,6detail*as'-7ID89:;


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THE REDHERRIN>


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hile cards are always shown openly to

the audience$ it might be a good idea to

utili"e another bit of misdirection to lead

them down the garden path. !he easiest would be to

throw in a red herring that can send them in the

complete opposite direction should they try to

reverse engineer the e9ect.

W

!he idea is to ask every person taking part in the

game a seemingly random and arbitrary 3uestion$

and then pretending that whatever they say has a

profound inLuence on your prediction.

*Q.

?imple 3uestions like asking them to mention the

day of the week they were born on or which

celebrity they would want to be stranded on an

island with$ will do the trick. Once you have these

answers you act as if they are very interesting$ and

now you are able to make your prediction.


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Dead through the 7?!>5 HD5?5#!!O# R(8

section to see how these 3uestions are used during

the actual performance.

While it has no inLuence on the routine$ if you play it

correctly you can convince the audience that this is

how you were able to achieve the e9ect.

Demember$ the main secret lies in the sets of words

on the last two cards$ so downplay their role and

make a big deal about your 3uestions and the

participants< answers.


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ix people are lined up on the stage to assist

you with your next miracle. !he rst ve all

received an index card earlier in the showand were asked to write down any ten random words

on each.?@ou gather all the cards$ have a 3uick glance at all

the words on them and then give them a 3uick mix.

!hey are now redistributed so that all ve are

holding a list di9erent than their own.

@ou now move to the rst person in line.

7!hank you so much for being willing to take part in

this experiment. need to ask you 6ust one 3uestion$

(,.

and need you to answer as truthfully as possible. s

that a dealB >ood. 0ow old were you when you had

your rst kissB8

70mm% was ( think.8


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7HerfectK !hank you very much. #ow we move on to

you madam. f you can$ please tell us which day of

the week you were born onB8

7On a Wednesday.8

Jery good thank you. @ou sir$ if you could choose

between a holiday on a tropical island or a 5uro4

pean skiing village$ which one would you rather go

toB8

7


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7>reatK have now asked all these people a 3uestion

which has given me enough information about them

to tell me exactly which choices they will maketonight. am going to write down a prediction on

here and place it in this envelope which am going

to give to you sir for safe4keeping.8

5verybody holding a list is told to hold it so that they

can see all the words on their card. !he rst person

chooses any word he wishes from all ten random

words and names it out loud. !he person next to him

then associates a word on her list with the one 6ust

mentioned$ etc.

Once the nal word is chosen and named out loud$

you can write it on a big white board for all to see.

s an example$ let


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erforming (Menta)Lists on a stage or plat4

form is going to re3uire you to bring a certain

number of people on stage. 0ere is an idea to

make use of this fact and turn it into a full stage

routine.

Hf you can blend two good e9ects into one Lowing

routine$ you can get a good amount of stage time

and entertainment value in one go.

ST">E PRESENT"TION2


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What is described here is 6ust one concept that the

reader may nd useful$ or may inspire other routines

featuring (Menta)Lists.

(,.

n this routine$ the lists are already made and they

will not write their own words. While this might take

away the impromptu feeling of the original routine$

you will make up for it by adding more layers of

deception.

5ight people are invited to 6oin you on stage. !hey

are lined up to ll the stage from left to right. !he

person on the far left is asked to mix up eight big

envelopes that each has a large 3uestion mark on

the front.


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While he is busy with that$ you ask each of the other

participants to name any celebrity they would like to

invite to dinner. @ou now make a prediction based ontheir answers$ which is sealed in another envelope

and placed in full view on a table.

@ou return to the person mixing the eight envelopes.

Once he is satised that they are all mixed up$ he

hands every other person on stage an envelope$

keeping one for himself.

(,.

5veryone now opens their envelopes and is

instructed to remove its contents. nside they nd

one large laminated paper containing random words.

The re4er%e %ide o$ each li%t i% al%o a dierent

color to di%tingi%h the#&


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@ou now start with the rst person in the line on

stage and instruct him to select #@ one of the

random words on the list he is holding. Once henames it$ you turn to the next person in line$ asking

him to associate any word on his list with the word

6ust mentioned.

!his goes on down the line$ until the nal person has

chosen a word o9 her list. 0old the mic to her and

ask her to name it out loud. ?he says$ 7#O!5.8

@ou now point to the prediction envelope that has

been in full view on the table the entire time. !he

contents are removed and the lady is asked to read

what it says.

(,.

!Tonight =insert your name here> "ill atte#pt a

da??ling $eat o$ #ind reading and prediction o$

h#an eha4ior on not one t eight dierent

indi4idal%& '$ he i% %cce%%$l a rando# ga#e o$

"ord a%%ociation "ill end "ith the "ord N*TE@


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Not only that t he "ill al%o ha4e inenced

the rando# #ixtre o$ en4elope% in %ch a "ay

that the order on %tage "ill e $ro# le$t to rightB

.reen yello" red le prple orange "hite

and lack&+

!he eight people on stage hold up their lists with the

colour side showing$ and would you believe it all

eight colours in perfect order as predictedK

S S S

!he working is pretty straight4forward and allows

you to concentrate on your presentation. !he

(Menta)Lists part is still more or less the same as

(,.

described earlier$ only dressed up and paired with

another great routine.

Obviously there is no need to secretly add the two

prepared cards anymore$ as they are in play right

from the start.


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!he mixing procedure followed by the person

shuTing is obviously controlled. n other words$

regardless of how well the envelopes are seeminglymixed$ the outcome is always the same.

!he classic books of card magic are full of these

false shuTes and counts$ which can easily be

adapted to envelopes.

One very practical example would be the 9"indle

9"itchby Haul Iurry Aoften referred to as /eal or

9"itchC. t can be found in Haul Iurry


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f you are a fan of the 7?pectator as Eind Deader8

ploy you can easily adapt (Menta)Listsand fry

their brains a bit more. nstead of you as

performer predicting the nal word$ you can have

one of the audience members make the correct

predictionK#ow you are only the facilitator in the experiment

and you are endowing them with insane powers.

!hink of 1erren rown standing on the sidewalk with

a sign reading$ 78e a #ind reader $or 10p8 in one of

his rst !J shows.

!OL?NTEER "S#ENT"LIST


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(,.

!he market place is full with books and e9ects that

can make you achieve this. !he principles of dual

reality or instant stooging are used most of the time$

and as a mentalist you will undoubtedly have your

favourite ways of doing this. While am not about to

give away other people


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(,.

f you go back to ?tage Hresentation R( on page BB

you can also try the following variation which will

turn a member of the audience into a mind reader.

Thi% #ethod doe% notin4ol4e either dal reality or

in%tant %toogingif you are someone who is not a fan

of these principles.

Variation to Sta! Pr!"!ntation #$

s all the people who wrote a list 6oin you on stage$

you ask another audience member to come up as

well. !his person does not have a word list$ but you

explain that he will actually be the mentalist in this

game.

On the table in front of him are (- numbered pay

envelopes. n a few moments$ he will have to pick up

one of those envelopes. ut before he does so$ you

are going to ask each of the other participants a

3uestion and you explain that you want him to listen

very carefully to their answers.

(,.


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fter everyone has answered$ you move back to

apprentice mentalist$ who you now instruct to keep

all the answers he heard in mind$ and then pick upany one of the ten numbered envelopes in front of

him. !his is a free choice and he can really pick any

one he wishes. 0e is instructed to hold on to this

until the end of the game.

!he game of word association is played as normal

and once the nal word has been selected you move

your attention back to the person holding the

prediction envelope.

7?ir$ you heard all the answers these people gave

and based on that chose envelope number ,. 1id

you ever feel forced to do so or were you free to

choose any one you wantedB8

7 believe it was a free choice.8

7 would like to show you something very interesting

regarding the other nine envelopes left on the

table.8

(,.


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@ou proceed to open all the other envelopes left on

the table and show that they are all 5EH!@ there is

nothing inside any of them. @ou open the envelopethat the participant selected$ and inside there is one

folded piece of paper with only one word written on

it. @ou hand it to the participant to read$ and it is of

course the word 7#O!5.8

S S S

!his utili"es the old 7ank #ight8 principle$ which

can be found in books like 1arwin


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!ear open the top of his selected envelope$ stick

your thumb and index nger inside and take the slip

from the thumb tip. !he thumb tip remains insidethe envelope which you can crumple up and place in

your pocket.


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M!101 Th# Tip Trick%+ y .ary /ar"in 7 .eno Mnari 6odiniD%

Magic 9hop ,re%%&


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0owever$ if you are not somebody who likes to stare

fear in the face and laugh or simply someone who

(,.

does not like e9ects that are not (--U guaranteed$

there are remedies available to ensure your

prediction will 2W@? be correct$ regardless of

whether they choose the force words or not.

One method is to use a pocket index$ where you

substitute billets for the cards. Eany magic shops

sell these and you can also nd instructions on how

to construct your own in the book 7,ractical Mental

Magic8 by !heo nnemannM.

t would be a very simple matter to obtain the

correct billet from the index and switch it out with

the original prediction via a billet switch.

Haul rook also has an e9ect called GFnderhanded31iamond$ 1oorbell$ !elephone$ ?phere$

ewelry.

ROC@3oulder$ Ioncert$ Eeteorite$ >uitar$ Hebble.

ROPE3not$ #oose$ ?kip$ #ylon$ 2ine.

While wouldn


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FOR THE TECHNOHE"DS


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f you are a fan of using technology in your

perfor4mances$ the following idea might be of

interest to you.


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nstead of having the prediction written on the back

of a business card or the like$ why not have it

printed as a XD Iode on your cardB

Once the last person has selected a word$ some4

body scans the XD Iode that has been in full view

the entire time$ which redirects to a dedicated page

on your Ahopefully mobile friendlyC website. On that

page they will nd the word as chosen by the last

(,.

person% perhaps even a short video of you making

the predictionK

!here are a bunch of free XD Iode >enerators

available on the net$ so once you have your

prediction ready simply type it in there and you are

sorted.


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CREDITS


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SPECI"LTH"N@S


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big thank you to everyone who assisted in

the creation of the e9ect$ especially Warren

!hackeray who very generously contributed

his ideas. word of thanks as well to ubrey de Wet

and of course to everyone else have bugged whileironing out the e9ect.

Hlease do get in touch and share your thoughts and

ideas regarding (Menta)Lists with me. Ey inbox is

always openK

lexander Eay

ale-anderAale-ander.,ay*co,
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


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