Cups and Balls Archives - Bicycle Cards

Jamy Ian Swiss – A Masterclass in the Cups and Balls – review

Phil Sweeting — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 00:01:26 +0000

A Masterclass in the Cups and Balls was another DVD I was very keen to look at. Partly because of my Cups and Balls pilgrimage and partly because I have very much enjoyed reading Jamy’s books.

This very reasonably priced one hour long DVD teaches Jamy’s Cups and Balls routine in full. It starts with a live performance – which is always massively helpful in getting the feel for a routine. It’s a long routine (around 12 minutes), which takes its time to get going since there is a 7 minute “introduction”¹. More about that later.

The rest of the DVD is taken up with the explanation. This is very clearly shot in a studio setting (though you do sometimes hear the camera operator laughing!). As you would expect from such a scholar of the magic art, everything is well attributed. And chasing up some of those references would be very profitable.

The teaching covers the structure, the development and the theory of the routine in much more detail than the actual moves. Many are standard cups and balls routines – and references are given if you don’t know them. There is a little bit more work on some of the vanished and on the wand spin, but this is not primarily about teaching technique.

It’s a style thing…

It is based, as so often, on Dai Vernon’s classic routine. There’s a reason The Professor’s is a classic! But it has evolved a fair bit and incorporated ideas from a range of other performers. It concludes with quite an elaborate set of final loads. You’ll have to make a gimmick if you want to do it exactly as he does it with a bonus liquid load at the very end.

The opening sequence is made up of a long and verbose prologue which allows a very comprehensive display of all the properties. In a fascinating article
– which reads like extended ‘sleeve notes’ for the release – he characterizes the style as:

a somewhat ironic approach, that collected some actual facts but presented them in a manner that was simultaneously light-hearted while also somewhat subversive

Perhaps this is a cultural thing, but rather than ironic, I found the patter somewhat pretentious. But this suits his performing style! And he explicitly denies permission to use it. Which again, is what you would expect, for someone who has written so clearly against plagiarism and ‘covering’ other people’s material.

But when you overlook the style, which would not be mine, I really liked his ideas for getting into position with the initial loading of the balls. There’s some great thinking here.

The routine itself

The routine itself flows well and is brilliantly structured. A spectator is invited to join in which is very effective and Swiss argues is absolutely essential to the effect.

Interestingly, at the very end of the whole teaching, his key recommendation is actually to learn the Vernon routine and then make it your own. In other words (as is fairly clear from the article referred to above) I think he sees the whole exercise as more as a reference work on your own journey of exploration than a destination in itself.

For that reason, it is not a work to learn the cups and balls from – it is called a masterclass for a reason. It will definitely repay study, but it is not the place to start.

If you’re on a pilgrimage like me towards developing your own routine then you should definitely invest and reflect (and read the article referenced above!) If you’re just starting out, don’t start here!

But at only £13.50 I would say this is essential viewing for anyone who wants to perform this classic of magic.

You can pick up A Masterclass in Cups and Balls from the Merchant of Magic or any Murphy’s Magic supplier.

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

¹Jamy entered into some private correspondence with me to correct my ‘error’ in initially describing the routine as 18 minutes long. He is firmly of the conviction that the routine itself should be distinguished from the ‘introduction’ or ‘prologue’. Whilst I understand this perspective from the point of view of the magician/performer (and have updated the review to reflect his wishes), I am still of the opinion that to a layperson watching they would not distinguish those two things – since some magic already takes place in the ‘introduction’. So from their perspective the ‘routine’ would actually be 18 or 19 minutes long. However, for the purposes of this review, not a great deal hangs on it…

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Jaque – The Cups and Balls Revolution – review

Phil Sweeting — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 23:01:01 +0000

I was eager to watch The Cups and Balls Revolution since regular readers will know I am on a bit of a cups and balls pilgrimage this year. This is apparently a routine which won 2nd prize in the FISM close up competition some years ago, and has now been released as a standalone item.

This instant download makes a bold claim in its title – could it really be a revolution? Read our review to find out.

The teaching

There are two downloads (or you can stream them). The first is about 3 minutes long and is a simple performance of the whole routine. I guess this enables you to easily watch it again when you’re at the ‘learning’ stage. The second is around 22 minutes long and contains the explanation – though in fact it starts with another (slightly redundant?) performance.

The lynch pin of the routine is clever one handed display which allows you to show a cup empty and then produce a ball from it. If you’ll allow me a slight digression, it reminds me of a move I played around with years ago when I got my first Chop Cup (in my childish way I probably thought I invented it – though no doubt someone else got there first)– but without the chop gimmick. I have read that it is similar (the same?) as a move by Ross Bertram but I haven’t been able to check that out yet.

The move is clever – and he has some nice variations on this including a colour change and a mid-air transfer (!). The individual moves are taught silently with the aid of a clear glass to help clarify them. I was able to follow them easily – though the sleight of hand vanish was not quite so clear. But you’ve probably already got one of those – or know where to look.

The most annoying thing about the teaching is his propensity to wink at the end of each segment.

Once all the elements have been taught there is a verbal run through of the whole routine. He speaks in Spanish but there are English subtitles. This is clear but sparse – the version with explanation only lasts a minute or so longer than the straight routine.

A Cups and Balls Revolution?

That really is quite a bold claim. Certainly, it has a different feel to many classic routines which hark back to Vernon. There are some really nice moments. One of my favourite aspects is the way he starts with one cup and very magically the cup multiplies into two later.

The incorporation of a colour change is a welcome addition and the move gives it a different feel. There has been so much literature on the cups and balls over the years that it does feel to be over the top to call it a revolution. But Jaque certainly brings some fresh thinking.

I was left with the following questions. Do I appreciate it because I am a magician and I enjoyed seeing something different – or is there something here which would have a greater impact on lay-people? And I’m not really sure. In some ways it feels like starting with one cup should be less confusing and make the magic clearer – but actually on first watching I felt the routine was a little bit confusing.

On my own particular quest to create my own routine, I’m pleased to have watched this to get new ideas and input. And I think if you watch it and end up incorporating even one move or idea it will have been worth it. At only £12.50 it is a good investment for anyone who wants to work on the cups and balls.

The Cups and Balls Revolution is available from MagicShop.co.uk for £12.50 (at the time of writing).

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

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Cups and Balls – a Bicycle-Cards.co.uk introduction

Phil Sweeting — Thu, 17 May 2018 23:01:56 +0000

Though I’m no master, I love the Cups and Balls. It has spawned so many creative variations over the years, and even when you know the basic methods it is still a joy to see the effect performed well. No less a magician than Professor Hoffman called the cups and balls “the groundwork of all legerdemain” and Houdini apparently commented to the effect that “No one should consider themselves a magician unless they can perform the cups and balls.”

All that being said, I would encourage all aspiring magicians to get familiar with this classic effect. So over the next few months I intend to do some reviews on some materials to help you learn. And I will gather all our Cups and Balls related posts here. Be warned. As you can see from the photo it is very easy for people to get a little obsessive about collecting cups…

First things first, if you want to learn the Cups and Balls you will obviously need a set of cups!

Choosing your cups and balls

Like many things in life, you can spend as much or as little as you like on these. If you take your magic seriously then I would advise that you look beyond the sort of very basic plastic set that looks like something in a child’s magic set. Though if you’re really on a tight budget you can pick up a plastic set for less than £3!

However, if you’re a little more serious about the magic thing, you will probably want to pick up some kind of metal set. They typically come in aluminium, copper or brass.

A good basic set would be this Combo set from Bazar de Magia. A combi set includes one cup which is gaffed as a Chop Cup – which means you can use it for either kind of routine. This makes the set very good value. This set is very similar to my first set though mine was produced by Morrissey, the now defunct Canadian magic company who specialised in lovely metal work.

The slight trouble with an aluminium set is they can feel quite light. I have grown to prefer a heavier cup – so this copper set – which doesn’t include a chop cup – might be more suitable. But it is somewhat more expensive given the current price of copper!

In a similar vein, but to my mind nicer looking cups are the PFD Cups and Balls. They also come with a good selection of balls which is a bonus.

If these feel a little on the expensive side, then I have been told by a friend I trust that the Indian produced cups and balls are very good – but I have never personally handled them.

Finally, if you really want to make a serious investment on some pro quality cups, I would highly recommend the ones produced by Brett Sherwood. These are the bees’ knees. And you can read an account of my encounter with Brett and see some photos of the cups. My working set is a Sherwood combo set.

Resources for learning the Cups and Balls

Daryl’s Master Course in Cups and Balls
Cups and Balls Revolution – a different style of two cup routine.
Jamy Ian Swiss Cups ad Balls Masterclass – Swiss’s take on the Vernon routine. Well worth a look.

(I will update this as I get round to writing further reviews.)

Chop Cup Reviews

The Chop Cup is, of course, a very different beast from the Cups and Balls. But for the sake of completeness I will include links to some Chop Cup Reviews below, since I have a bit of a thing about chop cups…

Mikek Busby Spirit Measure Chop Cup
Dennis Loomis Micro Chop Cup routine – one of my favourite walkaround routines!

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Daryl – Master Course in Cups and Balls – Review

Phil Sweeting — Mon, 14 May 2018 23:01:48 +0000

The Master Course in Cups and Balls is a 2 DVD (or download) training course featuring the much lamented Daryl. Our review is going to cover both volumes to give you a flavour of the set. The DVDs are dubbed in English, Spanish and Chinese which probably covers a good number of viewers!

First impressions… not the best

I must admit that when I first started watching I felt like the course was a bit confused about its level. Daryl was at pains to point out this was a master course and that you should first watch a ‘basic’ course (presumably this companion disc).

However, in spite of that, the first 20 minutes or so is spent showing you different types of props you could use and even classifying them. It felt slightly pointless and slightly pretentious – but the saving grace is that Daryl is such a good communicator that it isn’t too wearing. And the somewhat portentous cymbal roll for each main title screen made me chuckle!

The definitions section was more obviously useful – since it is helpful to be able accurately to describe moves etc. And the discussion on misdirection was also helpful.

Moves and more

Daryl then takes you through all the basic moves you can imagine: how to load cups, how to palm balls, fake transfers and shuttle passes etc. etc. But it is not just the basic moves – many more advanced techniques are taught and useful moves like the Charlie Miller move. And all the classic bits of business – like cup through cup (and some nice finesses on that) or deeper on the inside than outside, or wand through cup.

The teaching is excellent and clear – with multiple camera angles being used where that is helpful. And at this point I want to suggest that it is actually an excellent starting point in and of itself – there is no need to watch a primer first.

In addition to teaching the moves, there are plenty of tips along the way and it is here that Daryl’s enormous knowledge and research come in to play. There are tips from Slydini and Michael Ammar. Insights on different performing conditions. And many references to routines and performances by other great magicians (Tommy Wonder, David Williamson, Dai Vernon and Jay Marshall to name just a few) – which would give you a ton of further work to research if you are serious about developing your routine.

Daryl’s Routine

The final element on the first DVD is Daryl’s routine. Now although this is a great routine, I was a little disappointed. Because on a DVD titled Master Course in Cups and Balls you might have expected a full on 3 cup routine. But Daryl’s routine is more akin to a Chop Cup routine – with one cup – albeit an ungimmicked one. It is a super routine, but I was looking forward to seeing Daryl’s own unique take on a 3 cup routine. But maybe that’s just me.

The nice thing about his routine is it is more or less impromptu. This is great because with only minimal preparation you can borrow all the key elements. It is well structured and there is some really helpful coverage and reflection on the final loads.

Master Course in Cups and Balls Volume 2

The second disk definitely assumes you have seen the first since it contains less detail on the individual moves and elements. Instead it simply teaches three routines. A nice touch is the way they are taught with see through glasses so you can see what is going on!

First up is Nick Trost’s essentially sleight free routine. I didn’t even know Nick Trost had done a cups and balls routine! If I’m honest it felt a trifle long to me – a few too many phases – but nonetheless it would make a great routine to start with and includes some nice subtleties.

Next up is the big daddy – Dai Vernon’s routine. So many modern routines based on this. There’s a reason it’s a classic. And Daryl performs it beautifully. Everything is clearly explained, again with clear glasses.

In a nice touch there is a second performance after the explanation to help you learn the timing of the thing.

The third routine was new to me – to my shame – since it is apparently in the Stars of Magic book (it is – I just checked my original edition!). It is Dai Vernon’s impromptu routine. It has a certain amount of overlap with his normal routine but some interesting variations.

Again, there are lots of tips on audience interaction and handling – even the type of clothing you should wear! Daryl knows what he’s talking about and so this is full of gems.

At £14.99 a volume these are a very good value introduction to this classic of the magic world which helpfully brings together both the essential moves and some classic routines from different places. The Master Course in Cups and Balls would be an excellent place to start your voyage of discovery and a handy reference even for those who have been performing for a while.

You can purchase the Master Course in Cups and Balls Volume 1 and Volume 2 from our friends at MagicShop.co.uk.

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

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