VOLITION v2:
This is currently my favorite impromptu business card effect to perform, it's unique, impossible and leaves your participant and spectators with a memorable effect. Three business cards are passed face down to a participant to mix. After deciding which card will go where, your participant's actions where predicted well ahead of time.
Your participant is given complete control of the cards, they are informed before hand that each card will go to a different location. This is as fair as it gets.
This is self contained, no special gimmicks are required, it's impromptu and this leaves your audience with no logical explanation.
Method:
You require five business cards or double sided blank pieces of card. You will have words wrote on the backs of these cards. Three will have the word 'POCKET'. One has the words 'Right hand' and the other has the words 'Left hand'. The card which contains the words reading 'Right hand' will require a marking on the design side of the card. I place a large nail impression on the top left and bottom right corner of the card. That way it's easily located.
SET UP:
Place the cards with the words 'left hand' and 'right hand' in your left trouser pocket with the words facing away from your participant. Place the three 'Pocket' cards in a spare pocket, or an envelope or where ever you want to store them.
PERFORMANCE:
For the duration of this effect you need to stand directly opposite your participant. Remove the three 'pocket' cards and pass them to a participant to mix. Explain 'one card will be placed in your pocket, so pass me the two cards and which ever you're left with place in your pocket'.
Place your left hand out to retrieve the two cards which will not go in your participant's pocket. You will now secretly switch the cards in your left hand for the two in your pocket. This is very easy to do and happens under the guise of an instruction. State to you your participant 'Please place your selected card in your pocket'. You will simultaneously demonstrate placing the card in your pocket which will be the moment to secretly switch the two cards in your hand for the cards in your pocket. As your hand goes in to the pocket simply ditch the two cards and come back out with the alternative cards. Don't draw attention to the fact your hand is in your pocket, focus your attention on your participant's actions.
You will now hand the cards to your participant and state 'You consciously placed that card in your pocket, your next decision will happen any moment. Without looking at the back of the cards please mix the cards and separate the cards once it feels like the right moment.' as you state this final sentence you will simultaneously and casually place both of your hands out in a palm up gesture.
As your participant separates the cards they will be left with one card in each hand. You will now watch for the marked card and if it ends up in your participant's left hand you will proceed by stating. 'Now without changing the order of selection you have made please place the cards on my hands.'
Your participant will now automatically place the card which says right hand into your right hand and the card which reads left hand into your left hand. All you are left to do now is reveal these results.
Here is the script which I use: "Nobody could have known you would have selected this card for my right hand, and this card for my left hand or that card for your pocket. What if you did know all along. In my right hand this card reads right hand and in my left hand it reads left hand. And you placed one of these cards in your pocket, please remove it and read it aloud.'"
Now let's take a look at the alternative scenario, which will leave the right cards in your participant's correct hands. If this is the case casually drop your hands from the upward gesture and state : 'You did all the mixing and you made decisions both consciously and subconsciously. Nobody could have known where these cards would end up wouldn't you agree? What if there is somebody who did know, and that person is you. In your right hand would you please turn the card over and read it aloud. Now, in your left hand please read the card aloud and finally remove the card from your pocket and read that aloud.'
Take your applause.
A nice subtlety is to have the two cards in your pocket ready to switch, but start the effect with three blank cards and a pen. Then tell your participant you are going to write down three surprise predictions, one on each card which will be revealed at the end. You will write the word 'pocket' on each card. However your participant will believe you have wrote three different predictions, this helps strengthen the effect at the end when your participant's try to back track the effect.
ALTERNATE SETUP
Take a stack of business cards and reverse half so that the white is facing both sides of the pack. Then put your 'Right Hand' and 'Left Hand' cards face down on one side so that it now just looks like a stack of cards facing the same direction.
When you perform, you now take the stack and present them as blank business cards. You say you are going to write something on three cards. You are actually writing pocket three times. They choose a card to put in their pocket and the other two cards go back on the stack. You pick up the stack and secretly turn it so that the "Right Hand" and "Left Hand" cards are given to the participant. Proceed normally from there.
