In the world of theatrical magic,misdirection is a method of deceit that is able to draw attention of the audience to one object to divert attention from another. Managing audience attention is the main goal of any theatre,and is the primary requirement of all magic acts. If the magic is of the “pocket trick” variety or an extensive stage production,misdirection is the central secret. The term describes either the result (the observer’s focus on the unimportant object) or the sleight of hand and patter (the magician’s voice) that creates the illusion.
It is difficult to say who coined the phrase,however the first reference to misdirection can be found in the writings of an influential magician and author,Nevil Maskelyne: Admittedly,it consists of misleading the viewer’s senses to block out from being aware of certain information that require secrecy. The same time,magicianand artist Tarbell noted,Nearly all the art of illusions is based on the art of misdirection.
A few magicians who have researched and developed techniques for misdirection includes Malini,Derren Brown,Tamariz,Tony Slydini,Tommy Wonder,along with Dai Vernon.
Henry Hay describes the chief act of conjuring as a manipulating interest.
Many magicians misdirect audience attention by using two fundamental ways. One leads the audience to turn their attention away for a short moment,so they do not notice a sleight or move. Another approach alters the viewers’ perceptions,leading them to believe that some other factor is a significant factor in the performance when it really has no bearing on the result in any way. Fitzkee explains that the true skill of the magician is in the skill he exhibits in influencing the mind of the audience. In addition,sometimes,props like a magic wand aids in misdirection.
In the absence of misdirection,even the most proficient sleight of hand or mechanical device is unlikely to produce an illusion of convincing magic. To be sure,misdirection is the keystone of nearly all effective illusions.
Misdirection uses the limits of human brains to give the wrong picture and memory. The brain of a typical spectator can only focus on one thing at the time. The magician makes use of this to influence the audience’s ideas or perceptions of sensory inputwhich leads them to incorrect conclusions.
Many magicians have debated over the usage of the term,misdirection,causing a great deal of discussion about what it is and how it functions. The superb magician Jon Finch identified a difference between direction and misdirection. The first is a negative phraseas opposed to the other,positive. Ultimately,he equates the two as one thing. If a performer,through some method,has influenced the mind of the viewers to believe that he has done something he hasn’t done,he has wrongly guided them into that belief; hence,misdirection.
Tommy Wonder has pointed out that it is much more effective,from a magician’s viewpoint,to concentrate on the purpose of directing the audience’s attention. He writes that misdirection implies the wrong direction. It implies that attention is directed away towards something. By constantly using this termthe idea eventually becomes ingrained in our minds that we might start to think that misdirection is directing our attention away from rather than toward something.
Slydini said that if a magician believes it,the audience will believe it and the magic they can’t see. It is true that people believe what the magician does and then follows the magician. resource on misdirection