Shake It Up

This trick is a spin-off of “Magic Shake”, a clever packet trick by creative Canadian magician Jay Sankey. Jay has generously shared a step-by-step tutorial for “Magic Shake” on his YouTube channel, which I highly recommend watching before reading this explanation. Not only will it make learning my variation easier, but it’s also a perfect opportunity to appreciate Jay’s entertaining performance of the trick and experience his engaging style of teaching (if you haven’t watched one of his instructional videos before).

“Magic Shake” video tutorial. Video Credit: Jay Sankey via YouTube.

This trick is reminiscent of the Emmerson and West classic “Color Monte” by Jim Temple, and is similar in some ways to “Jumping Gemini” by Darwin Ortiz, one of the best four-card tricks ever invented, in my humble opinion.

I have modified the handling to suit me better, and I have also developed a “Perverse Magic” presentation that adds some humour to the routine and provides a more theatrically satisfying way to frame the magic.

I hope you enjoy this variation of “Magic Shake”!

JUMP AHEAD

On This Page

Effect
Background & Credits
Requirements & Preparation
Method & Presentation
Reset
Performance Tips & Additional Ideas
Afterthoughts
Footnotes

Effect

The magician begins by displaying four identical Jokers. He asks a spectator to imagine that these Jokers are the four Kings. The participant is then asked to name one of the Kings, such as the King of Hearts.

The performer then puts one of the Jokers in his pocket, but it mysteriously reappears in his hand. This is repeated a second time.

The magician then announces that he will transform the four Jokers into four copies of the King of Hearts. He shakes the cards, and they begin to change. However, instead of turning into four duplicates of the named King, they turn into four King of Spades. The performer is surprised, but he tries again. This time, the Jokers turn into four King of Diamonds. The magician tries a third time, but this time, the Jokers turn into four King of Clubs.

The performer is now visibly frustrated. He declares that he will make one last attempt to transform the four cards into the King of Hearts. However, something goes wrong, and instead of four cards, there are only three. The King of Spades, King of Diamonds, and King of Clubs are all there, but the King of Hearts is nowhere to be seen.

The magician reaches into his pocket, and to everyone’s surprise, removes the King of Hearts.

Background & Credits

“Shake It Up” is a variation of the “Magic Shake” card trick created by Jay Sankey and shared via his YouTube channel. This trick is fantastic, but it depends on an out. Jay forgets to mention this in the video, but he does provide a solution in a pinned comment: if the King of Spades is named first, you need to skip the first three phases of the trick and reveal that the named King has jumped invisibly to your pocket. While this is still a strong effect, it is a shame that the three transformation sequences are sacrificed as a result.

I also felt it was a missed opportunity that the same King always appeared in the performer’s pocket, despite all four Kings being in play. Although not a major problem, it prevents you from repeating the trick in front of the same audience. This makes the original unsuitable for “mix and mingle” events, such as banquets and cocktail parties, where you might want to repeat the trick for different groups (who are liable to talk to each other and compare notes).

In “Shake It Up”, any of the four Kings can magically appear in your pocket. I’ve accomplished this by adding a preliminary card-to-pocket sequence using four Jokers, which then transform into Kings. While this does change the plot slightly, it is still in keeping with the overall teleportation/transformation theme of the original.

The idea of Perverse Magic seems to have originated with the Australian magician Charles Waller, who described the concept in his 1920’s book Up His Sleeve:

“In the usual form of magical entertainment the most extraordinary things happen, professedly because the performer wills that it should be so. He utters a command, waves his wand, or fires a pistol and every natural law is apparently set at naught. In what I choose to call perverse magic, surprising things happen, despite the influence of the magician, and sometimes without his knowledge.” ¹

Requirements & Preparation

In order to perform “Shake It Up”, you must remove a Joker and the four Kings from a deck of Bicycle playing cards (produced by the United States Playing Card Company) and arrange them in the following order from the top down:

• King of Clubs
• King of Hearts
• King of Spades
• King of Diamonds
• Joker

Please note that the Joker is the face card of the packet. This setup is easy to remember because the Kings are in the well-known CHaSeD order (Clubs, Hearts, Spades and Diamonds).

Put these five cards in a pocket, and you’re ready to perform.

The suggested presentation makes reference to the standard Joker, a King riding a bicycle, included in a deck of Bicycle 808 Standard or Bicycle 807 Rider Back playing cards. If you do not have these cards, you can still perform the trick, but you’ll have to modify the patter accordingly.

Method & Presentation

Remove the cards from your pocket. First, display the five cards as four Jokers by performing a Flushtration Count, keeping the last two cards held as one. As you do this, say, “Here I have one, two, three, four Kings.” As you place the last Joker, a double card, on top of the packet, hold a little finger break beneath it.

The Flustration Count is one of the less convincing false counts, but it can still be effective when displaying four Jokers or blank-faced cards. When you claim to have four Kings, your audience will feel compelled to correct you by pointing out that they see four Jokers. This is a helpful psychological trick, as they essentially convince themselves that you have four Jokers rather than simply being told so by you. If you were to state this directly, they might not believe you. This verbal deception enhances the count’s effectiveness and clarifies to your audience that all four cards are Jokers when they’re not.

Next, cut the two cards above the break to the bottom of the packet and flip everything over to display the Joker on the face. Continue by saying, “No, they’re Kings. If you look closely, the Joker is a King riding a bicycle!” (This clever presentational idea was taken from Gordon Bean’s fantastic packet trick “Bikers”.) Ensure everyone in your audience can see that the Joker is a cycling monarch. USPCC cards are not common in the UK, so giving people time to look at the Joker is important. Additionally, many people in the US may not even realise that the traditional Joker card depicts a King riding a bicycle.

Flip the packet face down again and instruct a spectator to name any of the four Kings (Clubs, Hearts, Spades or Diamonds). As they do this, establish a little finger break above the bottom card of the packet (the Joker).

If your participant names the King of Spades, slip-cut the top card of the packet into the break. If, however, the King of Hearts is selected, you must complete two slip cuts in this way, one after the other. And similarly, when the King of Clubs is chosen, you must perform three slip cuts in a row.

Here’s a simple way to remember the process. A Spade has a single sharp tip, so a single slip cut is required. A Heart has two curves, indicating that you should perform two slip cuts. A Club has three circles, so you must do three slip cuts. If the King of Diamonds is mentioned, there’s no need to do anything because it’s already in the correct position.

The whole purpose of this displacement is to position the named King directly above the Joker in the packet.

To continue, execute another casual Flustration Count to display four Jokers again. This will leave a double card in your right hand. Show the face of the double to your audience before placing it on top of the packet. Proceed to slide the top card into your pocket, ensuring that you avoid revealing the face of the King as you do so.

Reverse count the cards, holding the last two cards as one, forming a small fan of three cards (actually four). Square up the packet and make some kind of magical gesture—I like to shake the packet as Jay does in the video—and then follow this with another Flustration Count, displaying four cards in your hand and bringing the Joker back to the top of the packet.

Once more, grab the top card of the packet and insert it into your pocket (by sliding it behind the card already there). This time, you can flash its face because it actually is a Joker. Reverse count the three cards to form a fan, square up and then perform another magical gesture. Execute an Elmsley Count, displaying three cards as four, to demonstrate that the Joker has reappeared. However, this time, you won’t be able to show any faces as you’re holding three Kings and no Jokers. 

You can now perform the diminishing lift sequence that Jay Sankey teaches in his video tutorial. To make this explanation easier to understand, let’s assume that your helper has chosen the King of Hearts.

Turn to your participant and say, “Let’s see if we can get the four Jokers to transform into your chosen King. The King of Hearts, right?” You’re now going to transform the four cards into the other three Kings in quick succession, each time getting more frustrated and annoyed that the cards are transforming into the wrong King.

To begin, say “The Jokers are wild. With a little shake, I can make them all look like the King of Hearts.” Perform a double turnover. Look puzzled that the card has turned into the King of Spades and not the King of Hearts as expected. Repeat the turnover, and place the top card on the bottom of the packet. Perform a single turnover to apparently display a second King of Spades as you say, “What! Another Spade!” Turn the King face down again. This time, perform a Pinky Pulldown (or a buckle) to create a break below the top two cards of the packet. The break will allow you to grip the top two cards as one and transfer them to the bottom of the packet. Immediately perform another double turnover to display a third King of Spades on top of the packet. Glare at the card with an exasperated expression on your face. To finish the sequence, turn the double face down and transfer a single card to the bottom of the packet. Flip the top card over to display a fourth duplicate King of Spades. Let out a big sigh as you shrug your shoulders in defeat. Leave the King of Spades face up.

Apologise to your participant by saying, “I’m sorry for my failure. But do not fear, I can fix this. Watch!” Perform a Twirl Change on the entire packet. (Any colour change that turns the packet over will work, such as a Through the Fist Flourish or Shapeshifter Change. I prefer the Twirl Change because it involves shaking the cards, which keeps my magical gesture consistent throughout the trick.) This will transform the face-up King of Spades into the King of Diamonds. You’re now in a position to perform another double turnover and begin the diminishing lift sequence again, but this time displaying four duplicate King of Diamonds. As each King is displayed, you should act increasingly frustrated with yourself.

Finally, repeat the same moves to visually transform the King of Diamonds into the King of Clubs. Then perform the entire diminishing lift sequence one last time to display four duplicate King of Clubs. At this point, it can be very assuming for your audience to get irritable and even a little angry with the cards. As the final King is displayed, say, “I hate this four-king trick!” This line should get a good laugh.

To bring the trick to a successful conclusion, perform an Elmsley Count to display the three cards as four as you ask, “And now for your chosen King, the King of Hearts.” Perform another quick Elsmley Count, then hand the packet to your participant as you say, “You do it. This way, if the magic doesn’t work, I can blame you!”

Tell your helper to shake the cards and then turn them over. There are only three cards: the King of Spades, the King of Diamonds and the King of Clubs. The chosen King is missing. Look puzzled as you say, “Hmm, that should have worked.” Look at your helper and then say, “Ah, I know what’s happened!” Go to your pocket, remove the card furthest from your body, and triumpantly dispaly the King of Hearts to your participant. All four Kings can now be examined by your audience.

Reset

To reset for your next performance, arrange the cards in CHaSeD (Club, Heart, Spade and Diamond) order from the top of the packet down, and put them back into your pocket in front of the Joker already in there.

Performance Tips & Additional Ideas

I really like the idea of presenting this effect as a form of Perverse Magic. Gerald Deutsch, an amateur magician who was a student of Slydini, has been discussing the topic online since 2002. His thoughts on the matter are well worth studying, especially in the context of this trick. He organised Perverse Magic into six categories:

1. Something happens without the performer’s knowledge. For example, a card appears in the performer’s pocket, even though he didn’t put it there.
2. The performer announces that he will do something, but something else happens. For example, the performer says he will make a coin disappear, but instead it changes colour.
3. The magic happens by itself. For example, the performer says he will untie a knot in a handkerchief, but the knot magically disappears before he can begin.
4. The performer is caught out, but then both the performer and the audience are surprised by the magic. For example, the performer is caught palming a card. However, it isn’t the chosen card, but a Joker that was previously put in his pocket. The selected card is then found in the magician’s pocket.
5. The audience and the performer are on different planes of reality. For example, the performer holds a Joker in his hand, but the audience sees a different card.
6. The performer explains that something will happen but doesn’t understand why it happens. For example, the performer tells his audience that he will make a coin disappear. The coin disappears but the magician doesn’t actually know how he did it.

These are just a few simple examples of Perverse Magic. The key to this style of magic is to create a sense of confusion and surprise in your audience. You should act baffled and unaware of how the magic is happening, even though you know the secret. When done well, this creates a very entertaining and engaging performance. As a performer, you’re more relatable because of your vulnerability.

The way I’m suggesting you perform “Shake It Up” falls into the first two catergories; the named King appears in your pocket without your knowledge (category 1) and you keep announcing that you’ll transform the four Jokers into the chosen King, but this never actually happens (category 2).

You can read more information on the topic of Perverse Magic on Gerald’s epic thread on the Genii Forum. He also started another one on The Magician’s Forum.

I prefer to work this packet trick from the breast pocket of a suit jacket. However, any pocket will do, so long as you can insert and remove the cards easily. To make the trick even more impressive, try using a Himber Wallet. Simply place the first Joker (which is actually the named King) into one side of the wallet. Open the other side to show that the card has vanished. Then put the second Joker into your pocket as you say, “I can also make the card vanish from my pocket and reappear in my hand.” Continue the routine using an Elmsley Count to display the remaining three Kings as four. To finish, open the Himber Wallet and remove the chosen King. This idea makes the trick less practical, but I think it might be worth exploring. The Himber Wallet enables you to cleanly vanish a “Joker” (?) and produce the named King. Used this way, it also doesn’t interfere with the reset.

Afterthoughts

There’s nothing wrong with the way Jay Sankey performs this trick. If you prefer his original handling, then please perform it instead. You can also perform the Twirl Change with Jay Sankey’s handling but omit the card-to-pocket phase with the four Jokers (?). However, I do think this variation strengthens the trick in four key ways: it enables you to remove any one of the four Kings from your pocket at the conclusion of the routine. It adds a card-to-pocket phase that compliments the existing elements of the trick. There is also an extra transformation of the four Jokers into four duplicate Kings. Finally, the addition of a colour change makes the successive transformation of the cards more visual.

I really like this effect. Despite its simplicity, it is a surprisingly powerful packet trick. Additionally, it ends clean and can be reset in front of an audience, making it a great choice for close-up magicians who perform strolling magic.

Footnotes

1. Charles Waller. Original Creations for Magicians Hitherto Kept “Up His Sleeve”. (Los Angeles: F.G. Thayer, 1920), 8, https://archive.org/details/originalcreation00wallrich/page/8/mode/2up.