Saturday, February 23, 2019

ESP Alive And Well At NYC Mentalism Shows

By Henry Green


When it comes to practices of the occult, psychic powers are often at the top of the list. Whereas, mentalists whom perform at NYC Mentalism Shows often share these gifts. While this is the case, there are other mentalists whom work with natural abilities through reading minds by using subliminal control or reading body language.

These types of shows can include a number of different areas of the supernatural. For example, a number include hypnosis, clairvoyance, telepathy, psychokinesis, mind control, mediumship, memory feats, rapid mathematics, deduction, precognition and divination. While some performers are considered to have psychic powers, this is not always the case. Whereas, there are also psychic readers and bizzarists which reside outside the realms of magic or mentalism.

The majority of performances which mentalists provide can be traced back to the 19th century and tests conducted by individuals whom were believed to have supernatural powers such as mediums and spiritualists. Whereas, the history of the practice dates back to the days of Moses and the Old Testament. For, there are scholars whom have suggested that Old Testament scriptures relate to mentalism as being part and parcel to various prophecies.

Among professional magicians, the mentalists are generally considered one of the earliest to perform with the earliest performance being provided by Girolamo Scotto, a sleight-of-hand magician in 1572. While some suggest that mentalism can be learned, others attribute the skills to psychic or supernatural powers. In either case, these individuals have astounded and entertained audiences for centuries.

While some mentalists are believed to be psychic, others perform acts through psychological and subliminal suggestion and mind control. Whereas, mentalists whom perform on streets and in town squares often include audiences in various acts. For, most street performers attempt to make audiences aware that everything included in such acts are merely illusions.

While some performers have no problem lying to a crowd that some aspects of magic are real, others tend to disagree. At the same time, magicians whom only reveal a portion of how a trick is created are drawing a thin line between a mentalist whom tries to make an audience believe an act is real. In either case, the real magic behind an act being performed is whether or not the audience can tell the difference between reality and theatrics.

Most mentalists prefer not to use the term or be called magicians. For, most believe that mentalism and magic are two distinct performance art forms. In addition, mentalists often do not use props or the trickery used by most magicians. While this is the case, there are also magicians whom practice mentalism as part of a larger performance whom prefer the term magician over mentalist.

The argument that mentalists invoke beliefs which if presented appropriately can appear as reality versus being endowed with psychic abilities is an interesting though complex one. For, while some mentalists may actually be endowed with these powers, there are still a number of skeptics. As a result, most mentalists who are psychic tend to play on the senses and perception of the audiences. Whereas, magicians often perform acts of illusion which can often seem as real as a mentalist providing a mind reading. As such, magicians and mentalists both use deception as a means of entertainment.




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