Sankey Shakes It Up!
I recently stumbled upon this “Magic Shake” card trick created by Canadian magician Jay Sankey. What’s interesting is that the video tutorial was posted on his YouTube channel four years ago, but I only found out about it now. With so much magic content being uploaded online these days, even from a single source like Jay Sankey, it can be quite challenging to stay up-to-date.
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| Photo of Jay Sankey. Photo Credit: Jay Sankey via SankeyTalks.com. |
Jay is a highly acclaimed magician in the magic community, renowned for his exceptional creativity. This is one of his most impressive packet tricks, which, despite using only four cards, generates a lot of magic. The trick involves the transformation of four cards into four duplicate Kings, not once, not twice, but three times in a row!
Eventually, one of the Kings is revealed to be in the magician’s pocket, adding to the mystery of the trick. It’s hard to do justice to the trick through words alone, so I highly recommend watching Jay’s video tutorial to fully appreciate the magical power of this simple packet trick. Amazingly, it only uses four ordinary cards!
| Impossible ‘Magic Shake’ Card Trick - Revealed! by Jay Sankey. Video Credit: Jay Sankey via YouTube. |
This particular trick brings to mind two of the most famous packet tricks of all time: Jim Temple’s “Color Monte” and Darwin Ortiz’s “Jumping Gemini”. It uses regular playing cards, just like those two classics, and is definitely worth the time and effort to learn. Especially if you’re a fan of gaffless packet tricks, this one is a must-try!
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I like this trick so much that I’ve developed my own variation. I’ve modified the handling to suit me better and developed a “Perverse Magic” 1 presentation that adds humour to the routine and provides a more theatrically satisfying way to frame the magic.
In it, you begin with four Jokers. Your audience is asked to imagine that they’re the four Kings. One of the Jokers is put in the magician’s pocket but then magically jumps back to his hand. This is repeated a second time. Next, a spectator is invited to name any King; let’s say they choose the King of Hearts. Then, by accident, the four Jokers are transformed into the other three Kings (Clubs, Spades, and Diamonds). Finally, one of the four cards vanishes into thin air and reappears in the magician’s pocket. This card is the same one the spectator named earlier—the King of Hearts.
I present this as an example of “chaotic magic”. The goal is to transform all four Jokers into a named King, but the cards have a mind of their own and do not obey the magician’s commands! This perverse magic introduces conflict between the performer and the four Jokers, making the trick more interesting from a narrative perspective.
My version resembles Jay’s original, but I’ve strengthened the transformation element by starting with four Jokers. I’ve also included another card-to-pocket phase, which echoes the final phase in Jay’s trick. The original also requires the use of equivoque (or magician’s choice), which in itself isn’t a problem. But I prefer to use sleight of hand rather than equivoque when you can access all the possible outcomes (in this case, the four Kings). My handling sidesteps this need by allowing any of the four Kings to end up in the magician’s pocket.
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Would You Rather Be More Entertaining, More Creative or Better at Sleight of Hand?
In the video for the “Magic Shake” tutorial, Jay asks his subscribers to answer the following fascinating question by posting a reply in the comments section:
“If you could be more entertaining, more creative or better at sleight of hand—which one of those three and why.”
I found the question intriguing, so I analysed the comments to determine how many people picked each option. Below are the results in a pie chart:
The results show that 27% of the people who participated wanted to improve their entertainment skills, while 31% wanted to be more creative, and 42% expressed an interest in becoming better at sleight of hand. It should be noted that the sample size was modest (n = 519), although I still think that the results are still significant. These percentages indicate that magicians are primarily focused on improving the technical aspects of their performances, which is necessary for creating illusions and deceiving their audience. Interestingly, more magicians expressed a desire to be more creative (31%) than entertaining (27%), with a difference of 4%. I don’t see this as a problem because increased creativity often leads to greater entertainment value.
These findings also infer that magicians, particularly those influenced by Jay, possess greater confidence in their presentation, creativity, and showmanship skills compared to their dexterity and sleight-of-hand abilities. This makes sense because, even though Jay is no slouch when it comes to sleight of hand, his teaching tends to focus on simple methods and the development of strong theatrical presentations rather than relying on complex sleight of hand.
Jay Sankey’s Ten Tips to Access Your Own Unique Creativity
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| Learn how to cultivate your own lightbulb moments. Image Credit: geralt via Pixabay. |
In my personal opinion, most magicians would benefit most from being more creative in their approach to magic. By embracing creativity, you can make your act more unique, interesting, and hence, more memorable and entertaining. Jay Sankey has created an excellent video sharing ten tips on how to become a more creative magician. Check it out below!
| Learn to be more CREATIVE! (10 Magic Creativity Tips!) by Jay Sankey. Video Credit: Jay Sankey via YouTube. |
To help you, I have extracted the ten tips for enhancing creativity from Jay’s video and summarised them below in my own words. However, Jay Sankey deserves all the credit for developing such a valuable set of guidelines. Although these tips are primarily aimed at magicians and performers, they can be applied to any domain that requires creativity. Hopefully, my summary will make it easier for you to utilise these inspirational ideas.
Tip #10: Honour Your Ideas
Tip #9: Forget the New
Instead of focusing on generating new ideas, concentrate on cultivating ideas that are unique to you. Look for ideas that resonate with you and ignite your interest, passion and excitement. Avoid the trap of comparing your ideas with those of others.
Tip #8: Make Time to Create
Accessing your natural creativity requires a conscious effort; it won’t happen on its own. Treat it like a new hobby and invest time in it regularly. Begin by dedicating 30 minutes per week to it, accompanied by a glass of wine or a hot tea. Turn off your phone and focus on your own thoughts. The key is to make a consistent effort over time.
Tip #7: Avoid Overly Defined Goals
Don’t be too specific when setting creative goals. Doing so can limit your thinking and prevent you from exploring other great ideas. Instead, try to guide your thoughts in a more general direction. You can even approach the subject in a casual way. Always keep an open mind and be receptive to new ideas, as this is a key factor in being truly creative.
Tip #6: Track Your Assumptions
When trying to come up with creative solutions, it can be counterproductive to have too many preconceived notions and assumptions. For instance, if you are tasked with designing a hat and assume it must be made of cloth and waterproof, you are limiting your options and stifling your creativity. It is important to keep a watchful eye on these assumptions so that you can approach the problem with an open mind and allow for more innovative ideas.
Tip #5: An Idea is Never Done
Every idea is a work in progress, and it can be adjusted, modified or altered to fit another creative objective. Therefore, while it is crucial to put in the effort to refine and perfect your ideas, try not to become fixated on achieving perfection to the point where you are never content with the final outcome.
Tip #4: Be a Grateful Recipient
Ego is the enemy of creativity. Instead of taking credit for your ingenuity, consider it a gift that you have received. If you approach your ideas with a humble attitude, you will find that you are better able to nurture them. This will allow you to make the most out of your creative potential.
Tip #3: Keep One Foot Inside the Box
When it comes to developing something for practical applications, it can be helpful to keep one foot inside the box, even though people often talk about thinking outside the box. For instance, if you’re working on designing your own version of an umbrella, instead of coming up with many unconventional ideas, it’s more effective to start with variations of already proven designs.
Tip #2: Only Share Your Ideas with Supportive People
Protecting your natural creativity is crucial. When we allow ourselves to be creative, it can sometimes make others feel uncomfortable or even threatened, even those close to us. It is important to safeguard your creativity from negative-minded individuals such as friends and family. Instead, share your creative ideas only with those whom you trust to be supportive.
Tip #1: Adopt the Spirit of an Explorer
Rather than striving to create something, try thoroughly exploring an idea, theme or topic instead. Exploration doesn’t come with any predetermined goals, objectives or deadlines. There are no assumptions or added pressures involved in the process. This creates the perfect psychological and emotional conditions for your imagination to function at its best, allowing you to more easily tap into your innate sense of creativity.
Jay, thank you for sharing these valuable tips to improve our personal creativity when creating and performing magic. Your advice is greatly appreciated! For more insight from Jay Sankey, you can subscribe to his YouTube channel.
Footnotes
- Magical entertainment typically involves performers achieving extraordinary feats through their willpower. They may issue commands, wave wands, or make magical gestures, seemingly defying the very laws of nature. However, in perverse magic, unexpected things happen despite the performer’s influence and, sometimes, without their knowledge.
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