In the world of theatrical magic,misdirection is an art of deceit that attracts attention of the audience to a certain thing to distract it from something else. Managing audience attention is the aim of all theatre,and is the primary need of any magic act. If the magic is of an “pocket trick” variety or an extensive stage productionthat relies on misdirection,it is the primary secret. The term is used to describe either the effect (the the focus of the observer on an unimportant object) or the sleight of hands or the patter (the magician’s voice) that causes it.
It is difficult to say who was the first person to coin the term,but the first mention of misdirection is found in the writing of a renowned author and performer,Nevil Maskelyne. it is a method of distracting the spectator’s senses,in order to screen from being aware of certain information that require secrecy. The same time,magician,writer,artist and performer Harlan Tarbell noted,Nearly all the art of sleight of hand depends on the art of misdirection.
A few magicians who have studied and evolved techniques for misdirection include Jon Finch,Malini,Derren Brown,Tommy Wonder,Juan Tamariz,Tony Slydini,as well as Dai Vernon.
Henry Hay describes the central act of conjuring as a manipulation of interest.
Many magicians can divert attention from the audience in two primary ways. The first is to make the audience look away for a fleeting moment,so they don’t detect some act or gesture. The other method alters the perception of the audience,lulling them into thinking that something else can be a factor in the accomplishment of the feat when it really has no bearing on the outcome in any way. Fitzkee explains that the true skill of the magician is in the skill of his performance in changing the minds of the viewers. In addition,sometimes,props such as a magic wand aids in the misdirection.
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Misdirection exploits the limitations of human brains to give the wrong picture and memory. The brain of a typical spectator can only focus on one thing at a time. The magician makes use of this to influence the viewers’ thoughts or perceptions of sensory input,leading them to false conclusion.
A few magicians have debated the meaning of the term,misdirection,creating many discussions about the meaning of it and how it functions. The world-class illusionist Jon Finch made a distinction between direction and misdirection. One being a negative term,and the other positive. Ultimately,he equates the two as the same thing. If a performer some method,has influenced the thoughts of his audience to the conclusion that he’s done something which he has not done,he has wrongly guided them into that beliefwhich is why he has misdirected them.
Tommy Wonder has pointed out that it’s more efficient,from a magician’s perspectivein focusing on the goal of directing the audience’s attention. He states that misdirection is an untrue direction. It suggests that attention is diverted from something. When we keep using this termit becomes ingrained in our minds that we might start to perceive misdirection as directing the attention away from instead of toward something.
Tony Slydini said that if the magician believe that,the public will believe it and the magic they can’t perceive. It is true that people accept what the magician says and follow the magician. references
