Seven Shades By Steve Murray

It is no secret that we Lizards LOVE bizarre magick and psychic entertainment. In fact, we believe that before we discovered bizarre magick or "regular" magic SUCKED- and it was only about learning about what it takes to present bizarre magic well, that we were able to apply that to our regular magic and take it to a new level.

But, one thing that can be said about bizarre magic… it is seldom practical. Oh, you get hint at it, you can weave a story, but when it comes to really drawing your audience past the veil of doubt and into the realm of "Could Be" all while palming a squid tentacle dyed with purple marker….. well, you get the idea.

So, here is a book that makes a bold claim… That is offers PRACTICAL bizarre and storytelling magic.. and I think, my friends… it does it very well.

Memento Mori- A spectator successfully divines three strange & disturbing modes of death; the last one that they have selected for themselves reveals perhaps more than they bargained for…

"This too shall pass…" A quick and simple tarot card effect which is used to illustrate a traditional tale from Sufism.

Contractual Obligation – A volunteer selects and signs a tarot card, before it is shown to the audience, and signature is seen by them; the card is then plainly and visibly burned – even as it burns, it is shown to the volunteer to ensure that no switch has occurred, yet the signed card then re-appears, with both the audience and volunteer confirming that, impossibly, it is indeed the same card and signature that was seen moments earlier.

Fear of Flying – A feather floats from the hand of the magus, as a short tale of fear, death and angels is told.

Presenting Bizarre Magic to the Paying Public! An Essay.

Kevin the cross-eyed Vampire hunter – Enough said!

"All that is necessary for Evil to triumph…" part I – A spectator has a free choice (sight unseen) of a rune from a full set in the fairest possible manner; it is revealed to be the "Sig" rune, symbolising "Triumph", and matching the ensign of the dreaded "S.S." – predicted beforehand in a non-gimmicked envelope containing both the insignia and a photo of Himmler, Hitler's Occult-obsessed henchman.

"All that is necessary for Evil to triumph…" part II A (fictitious) tale is told based upon the (real) French heroine "Marie-Madeleine Fourcade", whereby the audience correctly name her code word, her place of birth, before seeing evidence of her burning spirit still very active in this world despite her death in 1989!

Scripting & Character – An essay

Lockerbie – A psychometry test is given to an independent member of the audience; 4 other spectators take part in an experiment to choose an envelope, 3 numbers and a finally a place on a map after holding the test envelope. It transpires that they predict the death toll, element and place of the Scottish town of Lockerbie were Pan Am flight 103 was sabotaged on 23 December 1988.

The Collier's Rant – This may be presented as a Tarot card and Telekinetic timber effect, or as a full blown Séance.

Puzzling Spectators – An essay.

The Atheist's Last Test of Faith – A self confessed atheist offers to sell his soul – signing a contract; the contract is burned, but only after that does the 'Agent of Beelzebub' realize he's out of receipts and the contract is returned within the universal symbol of the soul – a boiled egg.

Scene Stealer – A spectator randomly selects a movie title from 10 and is asked to merely think of a memorable scene in the movie, yet the performer picks up a pad and draws the very scene the spectator is thinking of, and may also reveal the title or even let another spectator guess the title from the drawing (depending on art skills, etc!) (May be done entirely impromptu with 10 business cards and a pen).

A Question of Fate – A spectator freely chooses a single tarot card, collecting the rest and putting them in an opaque bag out of sight of the performer and the audience; the performer then gives a reading without seeing the card which is uncannily accurate, before producing a small box which is found to contain a match for the card folded up inside by its self.

And there are some other tid bits you will have to wait to see….