Steve Faulkner at The Magic Castle. 2025 Cups and Balls. For Magicians only.

The tradition is for some of us who used to be street performers we wear one of these. It used to be just basically so we could keep our stuff in it so nobody stole it when we were performing. It's called a gibbyshare, kind of means bag of tricks. It's a tradition go about hundreds of years. I know it's not really the dress code it's more kangaroo fetish, which as we all know is on Sunday here at the Magic Castle. Let me check how long we've got. Okay we're fine. Because this goes on for about three and a half hours by the way. I've got three balls. There used to be a joke there but times have changed. I'm glad it's a good thing they've changed. That's a very good thing but do have a good look make sure there's nothing hidden in there. Brilliant. Okay so don't worry about it. Right we're going to ease into this predictable but magical. Let's pretend we're kids all right. Let's not be too grown up. This is easy here but in England I really have to squeeze this one out. I make the ball vanish. Everybody go ooh. Ball number one has vanished. So lovely. I know it's silly all right but it's a joyous thing. It's what magic's all about. Ball number two has vanished. Ball number three is very difficult because you're all staring at my hands so I'm going to use an old misdirection technique called boredom. Oh I didn't blow. Ball number three has vanished. There we go. It goes under there really. It's all just in the middle. Oh thank you. What's your name please? Devon. Okay Devon. I'm actually from a place called Devon in England so I'll remember. Yeah very good. It is very beautiful. Devon I'm going to put subliminal messages into your head. I am. More impressive is a man with a list saying the word subliminal. Three years of therapy that was and that last sentence was another two. It's very subtle and actually the more you fight it the more easy it is. You won't go but just just relax. A, B, C. Literally just pick a cup. We do numerically. One, two, three. Any one. Literally any one. Brilliant. Thank you very much. I don't. You can have that one of course but I was just joking. You want it? Going for the reverse psychology are we? It's all right when you weren't looking I took. Okay I'm going to take your ball out the middle cup invisibly put it into your chosen cup balanced on the end of the magic wand. Do you know what I do magic Devon? I'm 51 I'll always do it because only in the middle of a magic trick we get lots of grown educated adults staring at an invisible ball. It's a beautiful thing. I never do kid shows. If there were kids in here they'd be going no this is pathetic there's goes from there to there. And I know some of you are thinking oh whatever you say is a way of me making it look like it goes that way. Look it doesn't explain this. If you'd have gone over here which I was hoping you would I'd go from there to there leaving one over there and that's cool. Some people think it's magnets okay it's just mine it's not my favorite bit no wall either. They are a bit faulty though they do uh you kind of melt through each other like this. Some people think there's a big hole in the bottom of the cup Devon. They think surely surely there must be a hole. It's good from there doesn't it. It's the same thing I don't know no idea right so no friends free. I'll show you how it's oh thank you so much thank you. I'm going to show you how a little bit of this is done and how misdirection works it's not how people think. Let me just check that I'm not going to overrun it because I'm completely time blind. So we're going to make it look like the balls vanish using no difficult sleight of hand. People think you've got to spend hours learning sleight of hand it's just about confidence and things like knowing etiquette when you ask a question what happens and what happens in someone's mind when you do that and you can make it look like miracles happen. Where are you from Devon? That isn't how you do it. That is how you do it of course it isn't I can't get you to look away but what it can get you to do and this is really fascinating is get you to think away. It's not about looking away you know where the trick's happening and if you do look away you'll go well it must have been when I looked away. You know I could make a big firework go off over there and I could walk an elephant in but it wouldn't be very magical. So I've got to get and what I mean by that really is called inattentional blindness. You know when you're looking for the ketchup say in the refrigerator cupboard actually but let's not go there no it's vinegar based so so you look for it in a refrigerator for the ketchup and you don't see it and you say it's not in there and someone says I just bought some I just put it in there and you open it and it's like it appears and it's so frustrating that's because the first time you look at it you don't think you have to concentrate on it because it's such an easy thing so you're thinking about other things and that's why this is kind of working like that your eyes see it but your brain doesn't process it. It's a beautiful thing and the fact that this is hundreds of years old before people understood that is great. So what happens is I'm talking talking talking talking you're trying to listen follow it you don't see what's happening and then I mix a little bit of something else and that is you losing the will to live and just as you start switching off I had a bit of sort of confusion look a bit all over the place so you sort of don't know what's happening leaves one there but look that one's come back again yeah and it's that confusing bit right you're and then add a bit of not even slight of hand all I'm doing is holding up this isn't a magic move I'm not giving away anything I'm literally not doing anything but isn't it great that you kind of make because your brain is conditioned to think it's magic so even though I just hold on to it you think that people have reported they've done scientific studies on this that people see the ball vanishing around here all right so if I pretend to put it away there and put it in there I've got it in my hand the way I make it look like there's a ball under here is I just lift the cup up and put it under at the same time it's a lovely illusion goes in there I just do that and I roll it under just like that and there it is yeah it's good eh but this time I'll take I'll do it in slow motion some of you still taking this a bit too seriously by the way I'm 51 this is my job this this got me from England to America this if I put that in there if I put that in there hopefully I've misdirected you and you'll know it's not just about the cups and the walls all the bits of paper anything it's about something way more organic and special as we've experienced how much how many should there be under the middle cup one two or three actually yes but great great and you should get it right but I don't want you to get it right the end that's not a big finale is it so let's see if I get it let's see if I can get it this time it's not about fooling you or anything like that it's just about understanding the flaws in our minds how many should there be under the middle cup one two they should be but there's an orange okay and there's another one there's another one and there's another one what do you want what do you want a grapefruit there's the grapefruit thank you very much thank you thank you so much thank you thank you thank you thank you have a great one my name is Steve Faulkner you'll see my Instagram and stuff on the program um have a brilliant one I'll be there to say goodbye to you and I really enjoyed your company you've made it a very special experience for me thank you very much thank you the best I've ever seen in the world that's fantastic that means an awful lot that is that means an awful lot thank you so much thank you