Los Angeles mentalist & magicianGive your guests something they’ll never be able to explain.
I’m a mind reader and magician from the Magic Castle in Hollywood. Hire me for a party or a company event and I’ll turn a room full of small talk into a room full of people grabbing each other by the arm. There’s no stage and nothing for you to set up, and your guests will still be bringing it up next month. Sets from $700.
The one thing at your party nobody saw coming
Every party has the same problem. The people who already know each other stay together, and everyone else stands near the food. Somewhere in the second hour the host looks around and wonders whether it’s going well.
That’s where I come in. I move through the room a few guests at a time, and I know things I have no way of knowing. What people are thinking. What they’re about to choose. What they’ve never told anyone. It’s the kind of thing that makes a grown man call his wife over from the other side of the yard. Half an hour in, your college friends and your work friends have something in common, and by the end of the night you’re the host who thought of it.
It’s for adults, it’s clean, and the joke is never on a guest. Anyone who’d rather watch than take part is welcome to.
Shayne
What people book me for
What you don’t have to do
Anything, really. There’s no stage to find room for, no sound check, no table, nothing to plug in. Everything I use fits in my jacket. I show up half an hour early, find you, and ask who the guest of honor is. After that you can go and enjoy your own party, which I’m told hosts almost never get to do.
Two hours covers most parties, and I can work right alongside a band or a DJ, since none of this needs a quiet room. If you’d like one moment where everyone’s watching together, add the short parlor show before the toast.
Sets start at $700. Tell me about the party and I’ll call you with a plan and a price. The form’s here.
What hosts have said
“My father-in-law doesn’t like anything. He followed Shayne around the backyard for half an hour.”
“We had him at our sales offsite. He did something with my coworker’s mind that I still can’t explain and she still won’t stop talking about. He showed up early and didn’t need a single thing from us, which as the person organizing I appreciated more than the magic, honestly.”
“Our photos ran forty minutes over and nobody noticed. People keep telling us cocktail hour was their favorite part of the wedding, which, rude, but I’ll take it.”
“One table was deep in a work conversation and he left them alone and came back later. Small thing. It’s the difference between a pro and somebody doing a bit at people.”
“Hired him as a surprise for my wife’s birthday and figured it’d be a fun twenty minutes. Two hours later people were still trailing him from room to room.”
Things people ask me
So are you a mentalist or a magician?
Both. Mentalism is a kind of magic, the kind where the trick happens in your head and there’s nothing in my hands. It’s most of what I do at parties because adults react to it harder than they react to card tricks. I still carry a deck, and if a group wants to see cards they’ll see cards. I wrote more about the difference here.
What does “strolling” mean?
It means I walk around. You’ll also see it called walkaround or close-up. I go from group to group at your party and spend four or five minutes with each one, so there’s never a point where everybody has to stop talking and watch a show.
How long do I need you for?
Two hours covers most parties. If you want a number to plan with, I get to around forty or fifty people an hour. For a dinner of twelve, an hour is plenty.
What does it cost?
Sets start at $700. After that it depends on the date, how long you want me and how far I’m driving. I’ll give you an exact number on the phone. There’s more on the pricing page.
Do you leave LA?
Happily. Orange County, San Diego and Palm Springs are the usual ones, and I’ve got no problem with Santa Barbara or Temecula.
Is this okay for a work crowd?
Yes. It’s clean, I stay away from politics and religion, and I don’t embarrass people. Your CFO is safe.
Tell me about your party and I’ll call you.
I’d rather talk for ten minutes than trade six emails. I’ll ask about the crowd and the timing, tell you what I’d do, and give you a price before we hang up. You don’t have to decide on the call.
Sets start at $700.