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.

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

4.1 / 5 Reviewer

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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…

The post Jamy Ian Swiss – A Masterclass in the Cups and Balls – review appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

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!

The post Cups and Balls – a Bicycle-Cards.co.uk introduction appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

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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Everything but the coffee cup!

Coffee Cup comes with the plasticine and gimmicks you need to make your props. You will, however, need to provide your own coffee cup! There is also a link to the online teaching – just over 20 minutes of explanation.

The routine

As we have said, it is inspired by Rene Lavand’s beautiful routine – but the idea of using a coffee cup and balls is an old one (and they also reference Hugard’s Magic Manual as another source).

The basic routine involves three balls and a cup. Two balls are placed in the cup and one discarded, yet it keeps on returning to the cup. In a final surprise after all three balls are discarded a larger ball appears in the cup. In other words, it’s a bit like two in the hand, one in the pocket, but using a cup. And the cup is handled very cleanly – mainly with only one hand – which appears to eliminate any suspicion of sleight of hand.

The teaching section also include a ‘street’ handling – but this adds very little and doesn’t feel enormously practical.

The pros

Using plasticine balls is a nice idea which aids the handling and the (basic) sleights involved. It also means you can readily replace them if for any reason you need to.

I don’t want to give too much away, but in some ways this is akin to the chop cup – but with a ‘more sophisticated’ gimmick. In can’t quite decide if that adds or removes from the strength of the routine, but it does allow for a very free handling of the props before and after. And it also facilitates the very disarming handling. (Apologies – that is an unfortunate choice of words since it is so reminiscent of Lavand’s 1-handed routine!)

The cons

The method means that you need some set up to perform this. In an ideal world you would be in your own (controlled) formal close up setting. It could be used for table–hopping – but not so easily as many other routines of the kind.

I haven’t actually seen the explanation of Lavand’s routine, but from what I understand Lavand’s is a pure sleight of hand routine which could therefore be done more or less impromptu with fewer constraints.

The verdict

The jury is slightly out for me on this one. I still remember the first time I saw Lavand’s routine – and that is over 20 years ago – it is a beautiful and powerful effect. Coffee Cup is extremely clever, but in bringing this effect into the realm of someone with less technical skill, it somehow feels to lose something.

The explanation/teaching is basic but adequate with plenty to get you started. It is the sort of routine you might want to jazz a bit anyway. There is a useful ‘recap’ video without words to help you learn the routine. A live performance, as ever, would have been much appreciated.

Coffee Cup is available from the Merchant of Magic for £34.99 (at the time of writing)

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

Well done for getting this far. Here is your reward. Rene Lavand’s beautiful masterpiece…

The post Mariano Goni – Coffee Cup – review appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

Such is the glamour of the magic world. This may have sounded like an exotic amorous assignation – especially when I offered to wear a red carnation – but was in fact another outstanding example of Brett Sherwood’s commitment to customer service.

It was a Wednesday. For reasons I won’t bore you with, I was really keen to take a look at his cups and balls before I went away on some travels, but as a professional magician, Brett was off on his next cruise on the Friday. In spite of his own heavy commitments he made the time to meet up with me to show me his wares first thing on a Thursday morning. What a guy.

In the event, much to my disappointment Homebase café was closed, so instead we met in the Harvester next door. I think the waitress was underwhelmed by our ‘breakfast’ orders of a coffee and a tea (guess which was for the Brit and which was for the American) but though it was early we’d both already eaten, and we had some serious chatting to do.

Brett is a delightful guy and I was fascinated by the story of his life in magic and how he has ended up where he is. I felt an instant rapport as soon as we compared first cups and balls sets and discovered we both started with Aluminium Morrisey sets (it took me a while to realise they were the same since he was talking about a “Moor-sey” set!).

With his background in pure sleight of hand, his early graft doing restaurant work in Colon, and a touring gig with an illusion show he learnt the essentials of his trade. And now he is in great demand on the cruise ships – with a very full diary.

And he loves what he does. He radiates enthusiasm as he talks about his art and he recognises a kindred spirit in me as I share his passion for all things magic. And he brings that passion to the props he produces for magicians.

I’d come to see some of his cups – and I wasn’t disappointed. Beautifully spun in a heavy copper, the perfect weight in your hand and never going to be knocked over on your table (alas, the cup of coffee didn’t fare so well). All manner of thought has gone into the detail – from the decorative trims which act as a guide for your fingers to pick the cup up securely every time to the proportions which make all aspects of the routine work smoothly.

My photos here don’t really do justice – but these are beautiful cups – if you visit his site you’ll find some better photos and the different styles. I recently met with a friend with some of the chrome style cups which were equally beautiful. Brett’s cups are endorsed by a whole raft of top pros who know what they’re talking about – and we add our own little stamp of approval to that list!

Brett has some other interesting products in the pipeline – so do check out his website to see when they are available. You can be sure that they will be done with the same attention to detail and passion as the cups. And I hope that one day he’ll finish the book he’s promised – I for one would love to hear more of his thoughts on the how and the why of performing magic.
And if he offers to meet you for coffee in Homebase, take him up on it…

The post Brett Sherwood – extraordinary Cups and Balls appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

What do you get?

A nicely printed book. In fact, two books in one, but more about that later…

Regular readers will know that I am a big fan of written instructions, rather than DVDs and so I am so delighted this has been re-released in this format. The explanation is very good and the book is well illustrated making everything clear.

The routine has been so well thought through and that shows. It can be done in the hands (this was a big selling point for me since I was keen to introduce a chop cup routine into my walkaround set) and makes sense. There are no difficult moves to speak of – though you will need a little practise to get the handling smooth.

The big finish will require an extra something – to enable you to vanish the cup full of liquid at the end – but if you don’t have the necessary or don’t want to use this phase the routine has a strong enough conclusion without it. This is just the icing on the cake.

What’s all this about Cups and Balls?

I hadn’t realised before it arrived that the book contains not just the Micro Chop Cup routine, but also the Loomis Cups and Balls routine. In a slightly quirky way the two thinks have been bound back to back and upside down in one volume.

The Cups and Balls routine, too, is excellent. Again, it is clear that careful thought has gone into the structuring of the routine. Reasons are given for, shock horror, departing from the Vernon way of doing things, and for me they are plausible reasons.

This will certainly take more work than the Chop Cup routine, but again it is clearly explained with clear photographic illustrations showing all the moves. I was slightly amused by the frilly cuffs in evidence in the photos – but that simply dates the original pictures I suppose!

After a detailed description of the whole routine there is a really helpful ‘outline’ of the routine in note form with positional diagrams – which would be really useful for practising the whole routine.

The Verdict?

This has clearly been a labour of love for Jamie – obtaining the rights and then re-publishing these classic routines – but it is not just an exercise in nostalgia. These are brilliant, effective, well-constructed routines.

I am certainly going to add the Chop Cup routine to my walkaround repertoire. I’m not sure whether the Cups and Balls Routine will replace my much loved (and rarely performed) Mendoza routine for a Chop Cup and Balls combination set – but that is more due to me being a little lazy rather than any comment on the quality of the routine which is excellent.

So this comes unreservedly recommended. You can get it directly from Jamie for only $27 (USD) and free shipping anywhere in the world. Many thanks to Jamie for re-releasing this great routine and for supplying us with a review copy.

The post Dennis Loomis Micro Chop Cup – Cups and Balls review appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

What is it?

Using playing cards printed with blue cups and a single red ball, the ball card repeatedly jumps back to the pocket even after being fairly removed. As a final phase all the cups are replaced by assorted vegetables (a la the final loads in a conventional cups and balls routine) including a classic gag to finish!

What do you get?

You get all the necessary cards, including a spare blank card for an alternative ending. The cards handle fine and the photographic printing for the final loads is really good. The cup graphic is a little basic with the ‘highlight’ almost appearing like a misprint, but this is easily overlooked.

My biggest criticism is the printing of the backs of the cards. These are solid colour red or blue backs with a white border – but unfortunately (on my set at least) the borders were quite uneven on different cards. This isn’t a deal breaker by any means – and will probably fly by a spectator (in spite of the move used in the routine) – but it would have been nice for a bit more consistency here. They also feel just a trifle thick – which in the initial packet makes the Elmsley count a little harder. Again, this isn’t a deal breaker, but slightly thinner card stock might have made the first count or two less bold.

You also receive a DVD which contains a couple of performances (one live – hurrah – and one studio), a section on set up, an explanation, an extra ‘runthrough’ for practising purposes – taking you through the moves quickly firstly with minimal explanation and then a second time without any explanation – and a brief explanation of the Elmsley count (which is the only ‘move’ required). Teaching is clear and at a sensible pace. It is no longer than it needs to be but says everything necessary. I found the runthrough section really helpful for getting the routine firmly in my head.

What do we think?

Cup Cards is a fantastic little effect. The routine is very easy to do (if you can do an Elmsley count) and the construction is such that you hardly need to remember anything – you just keep on doing those counts! I like the premise – and although I haven’t properly road tested this yet I see no reason to think that this would be anything other than entertaining for a lay person. Lots of magic happens for a relatively minimal amount of work – and the pun at the end suits my own performance style well – though there are alternatives if that isn’t you.

I’ve even worked out a couple of alternative handlings for the last phase of the routine which didn’t sit quite right with me – that is actually a sign of my desire to use this rather than a criticism of the effect. Anything you’re going to use yourself is worth tweaking.

All in all we like this a lot – and I can see me using this. My only negative point (apart from the minor printing issues mentioned above) would be that re-set will take you a minute – preferably without anyone around. Which means in my usual walkaround setting I could probably only use it once. But I like it enough that I would probably still use it!

Available from Merchant of Magic (with thanks to MagicTao who kindly provided the review copy) – £24.99 at the time of writing.

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