This is a blog about street magic and illusions. It will focus on what makes an illusion believable, and how we can use that to our advantage in our daily lives.
There are many different types of magic and illusion, including sleight of hand, card tricks, coin tricks, close-up magic and street magic. The latter is perhaps the most interesting to watch because it involves a reaction from the audience, which is typically surprise. The performance must be planned in such a way that it gets the audience’s attention and then causes them to be surprised by something unexpected or unique.
One common trick is the mirror box, where the magician uses mirrors to make their audience believe that they are seeing through a door or window when in fact they are not. This is often done by having someone stand behind a mirror with their back facing towards it so that when viewed from either side there appears to be nothing blocking their view of what’s on the other side (e.g., another person standing in front). This effect can also work if there are two mirrors angled slightly differently so that when you look at one you see yourself reflected back into its reflection off another nearby object like an apple or orange peel; however this requires more skill than just using one mirror because firstly there’s
I love the idea of a magician making people believe that a mirror is actually a door.
A few weeks ago I gave a lecture at the Magic Castle in Hollywood, CA. My lecture was on creating your own magic tricks. One of the examples I used was this “mirror door” illusion. It’s a really fun trick to make and very easy to do.
I’ve decided to post it on here so that you can make one too!
One of the most popular illusions performed in street magic is the Mirror Door Illusion. In this illusion the magician makes his audience believe that a mirror is in fact a door. There are several variations on this illusion, from subtle to over the top, but they all accomplish the same goal.
The basic illusion consists of a sheet of clear glass or plastic attached to a frame. A second sheet of mirror glass is attached to the other side of the same frame. This creates two identical frames with a sheet of plastic or glass in between them. The magician then installs two hinges on one side and two handles on the other side.
Now, when the magician performs this illusion he first shows that both sides are made of mirror by placing it behind his back and looking into it like a mirror. Then, while holding onto one handle, he moves his free hand across the surface of the mirror pretending to open a door. The audience can’t see anything because it’s all mirrors, but they take his word for it and laugh along with him as he disappears behind his own reflection.
The Mirror Door Illusion was invented by John Mulholland in 1927 and popularized by Harry Blackstone Sr., who used it as part of his famous “disappearing bird cage” trick
I recently performed a street magic show for a group of people in a park in Southern California. In the final illusion of my set I make a mirror look like it’s a door that I can walk through. This is always a crowd pleaser and it gets lots of applause.
The effect is very simple: the performer stands facing an audience in front of what appears to be a large, freestanding mirror. He approaches the mirror and puts his hand out to touch it, then he simply walks right into the mirror as if it were an actual door. The audience applauds wildly when they see this happen, because they know that he didn’t just walk around behind the mirror, but actually walked through it!
I’ve been performing this magic trick for over twenty years now and I’ve made some improvements to the props and patter over time. Nowadays I use a modern Plexiglas mirror instead of plain glass because it’s less likely to break if someone accidentally touches it or bumps into it during my show.
Another thing I’ve done is added some patter to describe what the audience should expect to see when I do the trick. Sometimes people are confused about where I go after walking through the mirror, so now as I approach it from the side to
I’ve mentioned before that I prefer to perform close-up magic on the street, often with a mirror as a prop. It’s an easy way to get people interested in what I’m doing; they want to know how it works.
The most common trick I use is this. The mirror is propped up at a slight angle against something, usually my case or a trash can. I place my hand through the mirror and wave at the audience. Then I take it out and ask someone from the audience if they’d like to come up and wave through the mirror too. They put their hand in, look confused and then start laughing when they realize that what looks like an opening in the mirror is actually just a reflection of the sidewalk behind them.
It’s a simple trick and very easy to perform, but people love it because it’s visually striking. There are several posts about it on Reddit, for example.
I’m still amazed at the simple, dramatic illusion of walking through a mirror as an opening for a magic show.
It’s funny how such a simple trick can make such an impact. It seems everyone who sees it performed is mesmerized by the simplicity and effectiveness of this illusion. Even the explanation seems to be strangely compelling. The fact that this trick has remained popular for so long is testament to its power and effectiveness.
The original mirror illusion was created by Harry Houdini during his time on Vaudeville in the early 1900s. The effect was that Houdini performed a series of escapes from a locked cabinet, supposedly tucked away behind a curtain on stage. The cabinet would be pushed against the curtain, leaving just enough room for Houdini to squeeze through and escape. Once he had escaped he would stand behind the curtain talking to the audience while still hidden from view. The next thing you know, he would magically appear on stage again, having slipped back through what appeared to be a solid curtain!
The secret as you probably know by now, was that Houdini was standing behind a two-way mirror or what’s known as a “Pepper’s Ghost” setup which allowed him to see out but not be seen by the audience
Most of us have seen magicians create the illusion of a door where there is none. Once you know how it is done, this is easy to do. But it is still fun to perform.
The trick is simple. A black cloth is draped over a doorway. Metal brackets are used to hold up the cloth so that it hangs straight down from the top of the doorway. The brackets are nailed into the sides of the doorway, with one on each side.
Before hanging the cloth, tape across the back of it to create a vertical line down the center at about waist level for most people standing in front of it. Then hang the drape so that this line runs vertical down the center between the two brackets.
From a distance, or in dim light, this looks just like a door frame with a door hanging open in front of it. When you pass through it and behind it, you will be hidden from sight unless your audience shines a flashlight through from their side.
The illusion can be enhanced by walking through an invisible door as if you are entering another room, or even get into your car and drive away without ever coming back out!