Copperfield Laser Illusion

Since i've gotten so many responses I decided to post this on my blog. That way I won't have to respond to all of you individually.

Copperfield Laser Illusion Explanation, written tutorial.

here is the basics, it involves much practice and perfection, but the pants he uses have holes behind the knee area where his legs come out. He then has wire or cardboard to fill in the top of his pants so they look as if they are being filled by him but in fact he is standing behind the top part of the pants, he does the same with his shirt. If you pause it when he separates his waste and lifts it in the air, you notice his chest is bubbly and fake looking, that is because it's propped with wire (think hanger wire but special for magicians). the head comes out of the top of the shirt and arms also but his body is behind the shirt and the shirt has wire, (think a hanger wire). So basically his feet and shins are in the pants we see, and his head and arms are going through the holes. anyway so his whole body is behind the pants and shirt that we can see. What he does is he strategically bend his body to make it look cool. He uses the sheet at first because the stuff he's doing would clearly give the magic away because you'd be able to see his mid section. If you watch the amateurs (the kids) doing this trick they give it away, because you can clearly see them walking and moving behind the clothes, when copperfield does it it's flawless because he has practiced and perfected it. It sounds complicated but believe me if you try it in front of a mirror you'll be surprised at some of the cool stuff you can do. Copperfield also has an incredibly designed wardrobe so he can tuck it in and untuck it with ease.

Sorry if it's confusing I tried to explain it in words as best as I could.
Rob

Update, when he’s sitting on the chair, remember it is the shirt that is hanging down over his twisted side and it makes him look as if he’s sitting straight but he’s sitting on his side with his feet positioned straight and his had bent to look straight. The hanging shirt is covering up his real stance and position.

Someone asked me these questions…..

Thanks a lot!!! I only have a few questions... So, you cant do the rest of your show with this clothes, you only can do this trick with them? And from the lateral side people can see your middle body coming out of the clothes? And if the fake clothes are larger than your body it will be better to hide the body behind it right? Thanks!!!

My response

Yes that's true from the lateral side people will be able to see your body coming out of the clothes, this trick is only 2 dimensional, it has to be done from straight on. Copperfield has a little bit of leeway with this because of the professional lighting set up. The lighting is a very important part of making this trick look so great. The lights are set up in a way that you are not seeing any shadowing or revealing of what's behind the wardrobe. And yes you will have to change up your clothes, copperfield has perfected this by creating a wardrobe double, and he's constantly going on and off stage, or standing behind something so the audience can't tell what he's preparing for his next trick. And lastly yes if the fake clothes are a bit bigger than the trick will work better. For example, you can literally see the amateur kids' body behind the wardrobe throughout the whole youtube video. But don't make the clothes too big, then the audience will suspect something. Like I said this trick takes much practice, and really the bending of the body part isn't hard, it's keeping your body behind the wardrobe unseen that's hard. After you practice you'll develop your own tips on how to make this trick look good, example, changing into the clothes quickly and practicing in front of a mirror to continue making it better and better.

Any questions? leave a comment and i'll respond