How to Perform the Riffle Revelation

The magician has a spectator choose a card at random and place it back into the deck. He shuffles the cards and then shows the spectator that the chosen card is neither the bottom or top card of the deck. He hands the top card, face down to the spectator and proceeds to riffle through the deck saying that the spectator can use this face-down top card to "find" his chosen card in the deck. After several failed attempts it is revealed that the chosen card has been in the spectator's hands the entire time. Here is how to arrive at this "revelation."

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Ability to double lift
• Great patter

1. Like most other decent card tricks, you will need to know how to both control the shuffle and double lift to perform this mesmerizing trick. For starters, have a spectator randomly pick a card and place it on top of the deck, face down.

2. You will now shuffle a few times, all the while being sure that at the end, the chosen card remains the top card of the face-down deck.

3. Turn the deck face up to show that the chosen card is not the bottom card. Get the spectator to agree that this is correct.

4. Turn the deck face down and double lift the top two cards to show that the "top" card is not his chosen card. In actuality, the top face-down card IS his, but the double lift creates the illusion that it is not.

5. Square the deck up and place the top face-down card, which IS his card but he thinks is something else, in his hand, still face down.

6. Explain that you will riffle through the deck and at any time, he is to poke the deck with the face-down card, and it will be at that spot in the deck that we find the chosen card.

7. After several failed attempts, ask what his chosen card was. Act shocked or embarrassed and say that the reason it didn't work is because he already had his card. Turn it over and he will be amazed.

[HandymanBob]

on 10/27/2008 I'm going to practice this one to amaze my family Thanksgiving dinner ... Thanks!