"Can I Shuffle The Cards?"

Michael Kras · "Can I Shuffle The Cards?"

How do you respond to this? If your deck is stakced or in specific order, how do you gracefully handle spectators that wish to shuffle the cards? That's one problem that I have found difficult to overcome. Any ideas?

BrianMillerMagic

"Yes, feel free." Hand them the deck and let them shuffle. 9 out of 10 if you say "yes" confidently, they won't actually want to shuffle them anyway. What they really want to know is if they "can be shuffled." In the instance that they do shuffle the cards, go into any number of card effects that don't require a stacked deck or setups of any kind. You must know hundreds of them if you're a Sankey fan!

If you want to read some really great thoughts about this subject, get Steven Youell's Weapons of Mass Destruction ebook - read the section about ProActive Control.

Ethan the Emazing

Great tips Brian. I usually just hand them the cards and go into a different routine.

Michael Kras

Great tips!!! I guess the route I will personally go if this happens is to give them the freedom to shuffle. If they do I simply go into a back-up.

Ben Train

"fuck no"

Liam

i play dead till they walk away

Ethan the Emazing

Reuben The Great

Personally, I would just hand the spec the cards and say my pleasure, and like Brian said they usually won't. But, if they do, like you guys have said, go into another routine (maybe some sort of poker deal), using the fact they shuffled to your advantage.

On another note, what if you have returned their card to the top with some shuffles and they ask to shuffle. This is easier for me, as I do a peak of the card and immediately throw the deck to the table for them to mess up as needed. Then spread as you say the deck is throughly shuffled now and that they really did mix those babies up, while I perform a quick cull.

Michael Kras

I will typically cull. However, on occasion (if it is just a single) I will execute a one handed top palm and drop the deck to the table.

teddy

I normally say, "You want to shuffle?", at the same time gesturing by doing an overhand shuffle which controls their card to the bottom, and then do a gambler's cop.

Liam

i actually go onto Emerge Triumphant, telling the story about the last man who I let shuffle. Asuming the deck is stacked somehow i use this effect to show that the cards are really shuffled, and dont you the perfect deck order finally. I just use it as an effect to shuffle the deck in a fair looking way when they want the cards to be shuffled.

Two things,
Mike, i thought you didnt like palming?
And another thing, if i'm doing a select a card, i've never been asked if the can shuffle after i start my patter. If you turn it into something interesting with a nice flow, spectators wont think of shuffling, provided they believe everything is fair to start with.

Michael Kras

I don't... but if I have to, I will.

How about playing mind games?

Spectator- "Can I shuffle the cards?"

Magician- "Umm, you already did."

Spectator- "No I didn't! I think I'd remember if I shuffled the deck!"

Magician- "Are you feeling alright?"

OR:

Spectator- "Can I shuffle the cards?"

Magician- "What cards?"

At this point, the magician will have ditched the deck discreetly, and will now go into Sponge Bunnies or something.

BrianMillerMagic

That........is entertaining. Add that to my 'to do' list.

Jeffrey Tong

If it's just to control one card, you can use the Tempest Concept by Andrew Normansell. And I can easily still control the top card.

Michael Kras

I'm not familiar with that control... is there a source? What is the control done under the guise of? (In the midst of a spread, fan, square-up...?)

Jeffrey Tong

Under nothing, they just shuffle fairly and it's done.

Michael Kras

It sounds like something of Arthur Finely's (at least I THINK it's his) in which you count how many cards are shuffled on top of your top-stock as to reset yourself easily with a shift or cut.

Jeffrey Tong

Haha, something like that.