"Street Cents" by Andrew Gerard
Suggested Retail USD$25.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

"Street Cents", a mentalism routine by Andrew Gerard, is a captivating, intriguing piece of work that will have experienced performers first dismissing it and then loving it and will have spectators absolutely blown away.

"Street Cents" is a collection of three routines and ideas revolving around a common magic-shop gaff. They are, at once, easy and powerful and, once tried, will become favorite routines.

Let's look at them a little closer.

"Street Cents" is the real meat here and it's worth the price easily. It begins with the performer writing a prediction down on a business card, folding it up, and handing it to a spectator for safekeeping. The performer then borrows a dime and a penny from a spectator and a little game is played where the spectator tries to guess which coin is held in which hand. This is played five times and a score is kept of the times they were right or wrong. The spectator holding the business card is asked to remove it and look at it. It matches the score completely. Talk about something engaging and then jaw-dropping, this is it.

"Non Cents" I didn't like at all. It's simply a watered-down version of a routine I already do religiously (Docc Hilford's "Nightmare Coins") without the nuance or the psychological impact. If you're going to do this one, check out Hilford's handling or Burger's take on it. Having said that... The performer reaches into his pocket and brings out a closed fist, saying it contains three coins and asks the spectator to name one (no force). The coin is named and removed, but when the hand is opened, it's seen to be empty. I have to admit that descriptions hedging a bit (maybe a lot) since I don't want to give too much away here. Still, it's close enough. Now look up the other versions.

"Chair Cents" I really liked and put to work quickly. In this one, five spectators take a seat in separate chairs on the stage, each numbered 1 through 5 on a piece of cardboard, and another spectator given a large pad on which to keep score of the game. The game is played as in "Street Cents", this time once with each of the seated spectators. At the end, the pad is turned around as are the pieces of cardboard numbering the chairs. Needless to say, they all match perfectly. This is a solid piece that plays huge and, while I don't recommend it for large stage settings, for parlor/living room venues, this is a hit.

As to the working of things, all three routines rely on the aforementioned common magic-shop gaff and some very simple handling. Because of that, the usual suspects of methodology aren't used here. There are no hold-outs of any kind used (not even the impromptu variety), you don't have to wear any specific type of clothing, and repeating this -- with different outcomes even -- is a breeze.

In fact, the whole thing is a breeze. All the workings are incredibly simple. And therein lies the whole "thinking like a magician" trap. You see, the gaff is so well-known in our little circle that it will be looked down on here. Gerard's handling is so easy that it will be looked down on as well. I'd wager that more than a few "Street Cents" will end up being opened and put away and never tried because of that.

Works for me. The fewer people doing this one the happier I am because "Street Cents" is a fine, powerful piece of apparently impromptu mentalism that packs small, plays huge, and goes with me everytime I walk out the door. It's just that good.

Now, onto some particulars...

The gaff in question cannot be examined but Gerard's routining, coupled with how common the thing is to a spectator's uninitiated eye, make this barely worth mentioning. Forget the magician's guilt complex and you'll be fine with this one.

Also, the gaff supplied works with US dimes and pennies. While it may be possible to do this with foreign currency (something I'm only vaguely aware of), you'll need to make an extra purchase or two if you're not based in the US, if it's even possible at all. So foreign performers, beware.

Really, at the end of the day, those are the only two things to be aware of when it comes to performing "Street Cents". Everything else falls into the "plus" column and makes "Street Cents" a great piece of work.

If you're looking for an engaging, fun piece of apparently impromptu mentalism, without any baggage to carry with you other than the gaff and Gerard's thinking, then get "Street Cents", forget you're a performer, and try it out. You'll be hooked.

"Street Cents" by Andrew Gerard
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

Practicality: 9
While using a gaff that is, strictly speaking, unexaminable, it's so darned commonplace that there is no heat on it whatsoever. There is no reset or set-up: carry this common gaff in your pocket and Gerard's routine in your head and you're ready to go.

Workmanship: 10
The gaff, while common to anyone who's ever seen a magic shop, is exceptionally well made and should last a long time.

Documentation: 10
Gerard outdid himself here; the documentation is beautifully done and the variety of routines using the gaff is nice. Big thumbs up here.

Effect: 10
Done as a seemingly impromptu mentalism feat, this plays huge, much bigger than it appears when you first read the instructions.

Presentation: 10
Gerard's presentations are wide-open (as they should be so you can create your own), but he wins points here for the structure of the routines and the creative handling he put in place to make this all seem as impromptu, as innocuous, as you can get.

Shane

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