An Intimate Mentalism Session in Madrid: a Live Show With No Stage

In short: this video captures the first of a series of intimate mentalism sessions at Estupenda Bar in Madrid. No stage and no distance: a small group of strangers around a table, most of them seeing live mentalism for the first time. During the session I name cards that exist only in someone else’s head, reveal names nobody said out loud and influence decisions before they are made.

I do not read minds and I have no powers. I use suggestion, psychology and an indecent amount of trickery. Knowing that does not stop it from working, and that is exactly the point.

Why an intimate format

On a big stage, the audience watches. At a table, the audience takes part. There is nowhere to hide behind lights or a screen: every reaction is seen up close, including the skeptics’ (that night I had two, and I loved it). It is the format closest to what happens at a company dinner or a private celebration.

What happened in the session

• Randomly chosen numbers. Each participant thought of a two-digit number, and we used it to look up a celebrity and a food in my lists. At the end I uncovered a picture that had been in the room all night: it was the celebrity who came up.
• An imaginary die. Several participants pictured a many-sided die in full detail and “rolled” it on the table. Those numbers, together with the ones from the real die rolled earlier, matched a lottery ticket I had kept in my wallet since before the show started.
• Live micro-expressions. I asked the audience to spot who was lying about the color of their card. Then I did it myself: color, number and suit.
• Names of loved ones. Several guests thought of someone important in their life, and I named them one by one without anyone telling me.
• Fate and decisions. To close, envelopes numbered 1 to 12 that the audience shuffled however they liked, calling “switch” whenever they wanted. The final result was already written.

The interesting part is not that it works, but how little it takes for it to work.

If you have never seen live mentalism, start here

This session is the best way to see how I work when the audience is a meter away. My advice: watch the spectators’ faces more than mine. That is where the show is.

If street experiments are more your thing, have a look at How private are your thoughts? or the Madrid Book Fair.

Frequently asked questions

How long is an intimate mentalism session?

This session lasted about an hour. At events it adapts: from 20-30 minutes during a dinner to a full show.

How many people does this format work for?

It works best with small groups, from a handful of people to a couple of dozen. For larger audiences there are stage formats and roaming mentalism between tables.

Can I book it for a company dinner or a private celebration?

Yes. It is one of the formats I am asked for most at company dinners and private events. Tell me what you have in mind.