The Penguin Lectures are just about the best thing to happen to magic in the past decade, but this
is sadly one of the weaker entries in the series.
Colin's performance is a mixture of store
bought tricks and rather heavy handed adjustments to existing methods. The set starts badly with a
rather transparent 50/50 guessing game and goes downhill from there. Colin works as a motivational
speaker for corporations and he carries something of that aura with him - not necessarily a positive
for a mystery performer. On the plus side, the lecture is long and is value for money if you are
already a fan. But those looking for more dynamic, less stolid work would be better looking at the
Peter Turner lecture. Those after more traditional mentalism should check out the Osterlind lecture.
Colin's work sits rather uncomfortably in a no-man's land in the middle.
"...a rather transparent 50/50 guessing game..."
Kind of depends, but the last two times I performed it, that was one of the effects I heard talked about the most (in a good way). I don't think it's transparent.
I found a LOT of value in this video and was glad for more than just "here's a trick, here's another trick." I prefer stage mentalism only, so it's cool to be able to learn from someone who's done a ton of that.
Mystifying
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