Mentalist Prop-aganda
There is this myth that mentalism should be propless, that it should in some way be pure. I guess it came from people answering the question, 'what would it look like if i could really read minds'.
But here is the rub, you can't really read minds and you are an entertainer. Really reading minds would be very dull to watch unless you happened to have a serial killer as a volunteer. This is why I find some mentalists dry, they have cleared the stage so it is bare and then you are relying on just their charisma to draw you in. Unfortunately that level of charm is beyond most and the spectators are left impatiently waiting for a word to be devined or the interval depending on which comes first. If anyone could read minds for real and kept it 'pure', their act would consist of telling a volunteer the word they are thinking of and the volunteer nodding in confirmation.
In truth, if you want to be a successful mentalist you need to be a showman. Fill the stage with a lottery machine for a number prediction, have a dictionary or a bible for a word to be choosen because it adds to the curiosity. The audience will appreciate it believe me. A magic audience is expecting the magician to have some interesting things, it is what they have been doing for decades. And yes, I do consider mentalists to be magicians. There are so many reasons for having props on stage, they aren't just to cheat nor are spectators immediately suspicious of any object.
Mentalism has the power to be the best form of magicial theatre, just remember it is theatre.
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