"Play-Time" by Rodger Lovins
Suggested Retail USD$20.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

"Play-Time", a two-card revelation by Rodger Lovins, is a wonderful piece of comedy-magic where the laughs turn to shock in as quick and stunning a manner as you can ask for.

The routine is very straightforward, but the fun is in the details (click here for a demo video). Two cards are selected from a deck. The performer brings out a small picture of himself (or herself -- the photo is quite generic) to show how long he's been doing magic. The photo shows a baby. The performer states that, on the back of that photo, is another photo of him holding a single face-up playing card. The spectator reveals their card and, upon turning the photo over, the child is seen holding the same playing card. The photo is placed on the table, showing just the baby again, and the second spectator reveals their card. The spectator turns over the photo, and the single playing card held by the child has changed to match their chosen card.

It's a quick routine, a fun and cute one, and so clean that when the magic hits it's eye-popping. Through in the fact that "Play-Time" is a delightfully different sort of card revelation and you've got a winner.

Let's hit the details. First, yes, a force is required (Lovins' gives one if you're lacking). The photo itself is business card size, printed in glossy black and white, and looks great. The work itself is almost a non-sleight, easily within the grasp of most performers. There is no switching involved; just the one photo is used. The set-up is very minor, as is the reset (although, at first, you'll likely need to get a little privacy, but that goes away when you get used to things). You could repeat it, but be careful there (for obvious reasons, considering the first thing I listed in this paragraph). All in all, this is one sweet idea.

And it's a sweet routine. The premise of a photo prediction has been around for ages, sure, as have been routines where the photo has changed. But "Play-Time" is very open, very clean, and that makes it just that more magical. That cleanliness, coupled with the transformation, gets the reactions we want every time. I lay that at the feet of the routine's structure. It begins as an arguably bad comedy bit, then becomes a mild trick, then moves into magic -- the spectators are caught entirely off-guard with this one, and that works wonders when it comes to jaw-dropping entertainment.

Another check in the plus column for "Play-Time" is its flexibility. Lovins' gives three routines, plus another from John Rogers. Two of these are takes on the "magician's mistake" theme, one as a bit of faux hypnotism, and one which is pure gold and the only way I perform "Play-Time": as a weird transposition of cards from the spectator's hand to the photo. All four routines show various ways of presenting this and will spur more ideas as you play with them.

I've become a big fan of Rodger Lovins' thinking. His thinking is clever, his routines thoughtfully constructed, and his props great pieces of work. I said that to say this: "Play-Time" is probably his best work to date. This is a piece I genuinely love.

"Play-Time" by Rodger Lovins
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Practicality: 10
A quick and simple set-up, a single card/photo (in a vinyl wallet, for safety's sake), a regular deck of card, and you're good to go. At first, the reset might require a trip to the bathroom, but after a while you'll find you can do it quickly enough not to worry about such things. All in all, this is extremely practical.

Workmanship: 10
The photo/card and the accompanying gimmick (of which two are supplied) are very well done and will last a long time with proper care.

Documentation: 10
This is usually Lovins' weak point, but here? He does a great job of outlining the work (which is very minor) and gets a big thumbs-up for the included alternate ideas and routines.

Effect: 10
What starts off as a comedy bit becomes very magical very quickly and very unexpectedly. This one plays as solid as you could want; expect jaws to drop.

Presentation: 10
The basic idea -- a prediction of events when you were a child coming true as an adult -- is a fun one; throwing in the unexpected and clean change makes it magical. Add the two and you've got an entertaining card revelation that is wonderfully different.

Shane

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