Object To Impossible Location

Where do the vanished things go?

No, I'm not having an existential breakdown. I'm quoting something my niece said to me when she was a kid. I'll be honest; I forgot she had ever asked that. A few months back, I found it scribbled in an old notebook. I haven't been able to stop thinking about that phrase since.

While I had forgotten I was asked that question, in a weird way, I hadn't stopped working to answer that question. In magic, there are a finite number of tricks and plots to work on. Unfortunately, I'm only truly interested in a handful. So, while I may not have extensive thoughts on oil and water, I have spent the last eight years working on how to vanish objects and make them reappear anywhere I want them to.

So, let's explore where the vanished things can go. Let's explore Object to Impossible Location.

Considering the Methods.

We have a motto here at One Ahead—"the best method is the one that works." As a writer and consultant, I live and die by this motto. Pick a method and move on. But I have a confession: I am a magic nerd. I read books, buy the latest tricks, and have loads of notebooks filled with ideas. While most of those ideas are about presentations, I still do the nerdy thing and spend weeks examining every aspect of a method.

Nate Staniforth is my favorite magician and a person from whom I am constantly learning. In his book Clouds and Kingdoms, he asks if we are willing to make a trick 300 times harder to make it ten percent better. It seems like an insane proposition, and for most tricks, it is.

But not for this trick. This trick has four beats, each of which can hide methods and improve the impossibility. This trick has the potential to be something your audience never forgets. So, how can we better understand this trick?

Let's look at each beat step-by-step.

Make the Object Unique

In any effect where an object disappears and reappears, the audience must be left with the idea that it is the same object. Methodologically, it doesn't have to be, but the trick is ruined if they suspect the object is a duplicate (even if it's not). So, we must find a way to create the impression that the object can't be duplicated.

Firstly, you can use personal objects like rings or keys. They are personal enough that whoever you borrow them from will be able to vouch for their authenticity when the object is later found. The issue with these will become apparent in a later section, but I think they are still good objects to use!

If you are dealing with a paper object, like a banknote or playing card, having it signed or ripped will create the same impression of uniqueness. While you will need to borrow the bill, you can have them select a playing card. It is important to keep in mind that with the playing card, you want them to be given a fair selection—or the appearance of a fair selection.

As a bonus, the bank notes have a serial number. So you can bypass any signing or ripping of the bill and have them just write down the serial number.

The best way to make the object feel unique is to have the trick feel spontaneous. If they assume there is no way you have set this effect up, the object seems less important. This is why I never have things signed. I don't typically have Sharpies with me, and it would make the effect feel more contrived if I had them sign something.

Make It Vanish

Let's face facts: no matter how good your retention vanish looks, most discerning audiences will immediately start looking for a solution. Your other hand is the most obvious answer; unfortunately, it's also the correct one. We probably need to spend more time on this part of the equation than the typical "insert favorite method here" response.

I love a thumb tip and keep one in my backpack, just in case. Although it's been exposed to death, it still will fool even the most competent audiences if used correctly. The issue is when I perform, I usually perform for close friends. I know these people intimately. If I make something vanish as cleanly as that, there is a chance they will grab my hands and pat my sleeves.

Side Note: When performing for strangers, there is a social contract about personal space and their role as a spectator. You can and should use a thumb tip!

When performing for friends casually, you shouldn't even attempt to put them in that frame. Let them be skeptical and check your hands. I will often invite that level of scrutiny.

Why? It makes it less contrived and more casual. It makes the magic more approachable and, thus, more amazing!

Depending on the environment and presentation, I will do "natural vanishes." These are ways of destroying or getting rid of the bill in a way that isn't magical but makes them believe you could never get to it ever again: throwing it into a river, setting it on fire, flushing it down a toilet, tying it to a balloon, eating it, giving it to an exotic dancer, purring acid over it, etc.

A natural vanish allows you to disappear the object without any method. They know that it is gone - even if it wasn't done in the most magical way. If you have selected a method where you need to retain the object, you can still utilize this thinking  - you'll need to find a moment in the routine to add a switch. This is how I have thrown house keys off bridges and tied rings to helium balloons.

Finding the object.

This section could have been an article unto itself. Each person will have their preference and style. I don't have strong opinions on it outside of this: when the object is found, you shouldn't touch it.

Nope. Not even a little. Don't you touch it!

If you need to load it into its location, that's fine. Create space between vanishing, the load, and them taking it out. Yes, you need to let your spectator take it out!

The further away you are from it when it is found, the less you touch it, the better the effect. I've heard of some magicians trying to make a switch after it's located. I'm not saying it won't work; I'm saying it's the worst option. It just clutters the ending and gives them something to cling to when they start searching for a method.

The object can be found in an impossible place or an impossible condition. When thinking about the place, you should focus on its appearance so that it feels like there's no way to have put it there. Inside a sealed water bottle is a great example. If you can load it inside a person's pocket, that's fantastic! Just don't find it in a lemon unless you have a good damn reason to find it in a lemon (a farmer's market might work).

I am a fan of completely impossible conditions: if it's a bill folded in origami, a ring can be frozen in an ice cube, or a playing card could be found in a picture from the 1980s. When it is not only somewhere else - but in a condition they would never expect - that creates memorable magic!

It could be as simple as showing an empty cup, placing it upside down on the table, and having the spectator keep their hand over it, making it appear there.

It can even be as complex as making the object disappear along with an Apple AirTag, using the "find my..." feature, and locating the device a few blocks away. You might even build a picture frame that lets you secretly load things behind it.

You are only limited by your imagination.

Side Note: One thing I have done in the past is use Digital Force Bag to select a location the object would reappear in!

Proving it is the same object!

Let's pause and mention that the needs of a professional performer will be different from those of a casual hobbyist. This statement is obvious, but it does impact what methods each group might want to focus on.

Professional performers usually build the momentum of the trick and don't need to pause it to check if it's the same object. So, the best bet is to have the object signed. It allows for a super fast and clear ending. So, professionals might want to stick with playing cards or bank notes!

But this article isn't written for professional settings. It is for casual performances. We want to slow the momentum so they know—without a doubt—that it is the same object we started with. If I'm using a bill, I'll want the serial number to match. I'll want a torn corner and signature on the playing card. I'll want people to examine the house key or ring before I vanish it and after it is found.

When they think back, I want them to make an audible "huh?" Because any object to an impossible location has a simple solution: a duplicate!  You need - need can not be emphasized enough - need them to know it was the same object. Because once they conclude it is the same object

Closing Thoughts

Magic that feels like it could have been done on a TV show feels super powerful when it is done in real life. But to make it feel like magic, you must start looking at tricks like this. You'll need to consider the strengths and weaknesses, where you can hide methods, and where you need to leave room for the effect to breathe.

Dissecting a trick like this not only helps you make your magic look and feel better, but it is also a creative tool. If you can pull a trick like this apart, could you do the same with an ambitious card or oil and water?

Yeah, magic can be just about learning loads of methods. It can also be about being a problem solver and finding unique solutions.