A minimalist storytelling mentalism card routine.
"This is a truly thoughtful and beautiful presentation - the sort of thing that really warms my heart. The presentation here is the thing. And what's really nice about it, is that it is easily adaptable to other effects if one so desires. I love it!" - Sudo Nimh
A special competition was underway at a famous monastery and all the monks were quite eager to do well. The Master had pointed out a very special tree that lived in the woods surrounding the monastery grounds and the monks had been asked to write a story about this tree. The winner would be the one who wrote the best story. This tree was indeed very special. You see, winter had just left the lands, and spring was in the air and this great tree was in full bloom. The radiance of its green was stunning, magical, so vivid, nearly translucent, with palpable energy radiating from it. It was simply breathtaking ...
So begins Listen and It Will Speak, a minimalist storytelling mentalism gem. An enlightening playing card routine with a kicker ending that quietly demonstrates the point of the whole thing. At the beginning of the routine after an initial mix and cut of the deck you place the cards down and that's it, you never touch the cards again, you don't do anything. Yet you ... Listen and It Will Speak!
A joy to perform, a baffling mystery, and audiences love it.
- A routine you'll be remembered for
- Incredibly easy to do
- No procedures
- Simple and direct
- No sleight of hand
- A solid opener
1st edition 2022, PDF 6 pages.
word count: 2179 which is equivalent to 8 standard pages of text
Reviewed by John Kauth (confirmed purchase)
★★★★★ Date Added: Wednesday 27 September, 2023I am a 74-year-old Buddhist and amateur mentalist who mainly performs for older audiences. Sometimes, I give talks on Buddhism and incorporate a little mentalism if appropriate. Other times I perform a 30-minute or so mentalism routine. My performance persona when doing a mentalism routine is what you would expect from a Buddhist doing mentalism. Low key in a Max Maven sort of way. Mentalism does not rely on flashiness or card flourishes, or sleight-of-hand skills. Most mentalism relies on simple methods. Presentation is far more important than method. Listen and It Will Speak is 100% presentation. If you are not an excellent storyteller, this effect is not for you. If your mentalism style is not the quiet presentation style of a Max Maven, this effect is not for you. But if you are that rare individual who can act and tell an interesting story, then this may be a good opening effect. At its heart, it is a simple card revelation, simple and really nothing but add the story to it, and it really becomes something. In addition to the script, a few interesting false cuts are explained that may give this some extra value.
Reviewed by Marc Rehula (confirmed purchase)
★★★★★ Date Added: Wednesday 07 June, 2023This is primarily a script, a story, that ends with a card revelation as a natural outcome. The success of the routine will depend on your ability as a storyteller, and how well you can connect with a person, rather than manual dexterity. The story is good so the only question is whether it's worth the price ...
Reviewed by Gary Howard (confirmed purchase)
★★★★★ Date Added: Sunday 10 April, 2022I have no idea what this routine is supposed to achieve. If it's just a card reveal then I can think of lots of better ones.
