Magic tricks for public speakers: a buyer’s guide

A trick in a talk should serve the talk. Choose something the back row can see, keep it short, and make the reveal carry your point, ideally a word or idea you can write yourself. Rehearse it inside your talk, not on its own, and always have a plan for what you’ll say if it goes wrong.

A well-placed trick can open a talk, wake up a room after lunch or make a key idea stick. It can also eat five minutes and distract from your message. This guide covers how to choose a trick that helps, names four pieces from our shelves that suit a speaker, and points to two free books on patter and presentation.

What makes a trick work in a talk?

• Everyone can see it. A coin trick that looks great across a table disappears on a stage. Choose large props, big gestures or a clear written reveal.
• It makes your point. The best tricks for speakers are metaphors: a choice that was predicted, something broken that is restored, a message that appears.
• It’s short. One to three minutes is usually enough. The talk is the main event.
• It involves the audience. A volunteer or a choice made by the room turns watchers into participants.
• It survives a stage. Lights, a microphone, a lectern and a slide clicker in one hand all change what is practical.

What should you look for when you buy?

Question	Why it matters for a speaker
Can the back row see it?	If they can’t see it, it didn’t happen for them.
Can you customise the reveal?	A reveal you write yourself can be your talk’s key word or idea.
Does it need a volunteer?	Volunteers add energy but need clear instructions and a plan for getting them on and off stage.
What happens if it fails?	Look for routines that include an “out”, or have a line ready that moves the talk on.

Our guide to doing a card trick for a big audience covers how to make small props read in a large room, and our guide to pacing and timing helps you fit a trick into a talk without rushing.

What helps you take it further?

These four come from our shelves and suit a speaker. Every detail below is from the product’s own description.

• Prestige 2.0 Dry Erase (Stage) by Sergey Koller & Hide: A4-size boards (twice the size of the A5 version) where a spectator makes a choice and you reveal what they chose. The example in the description has the chosen board read “PEACE” and the others “WAR”. The boards are dry-erase, so you can write your own words and wipe them clean with the included cloth. The kit comes with a marker, a tutorial, TV rights and its own case.
• How to Control Minds Kit by Peter Turner: a set of mentalism and pseudo-hypnosis routines that need no prior experience. The description says the Knock-Back Induction is meant for getting the attention of the whole room, Insurance works for groups of all sizes, and a bonus section covers the technique used on large stages, TV and social media. A jam session also covers hecklers and less-than-ideal locations. It’s sold for entertainment purposes only.
• Never Vanishing Silk by Quique Marduk: a silk keeps jumping out of your fist as you try to vanish it, finally vanishes, then jumps out of your breast pocket. The description calls it a whole routine for stage and parlour shows, says the silk jumps 20 inches, and suits magicians, clowns and comedians. A light comic moment for a heavy talk.
• WGM Professional Rope Routines: rope routines from six professionals, including Dan Harlan, Michael Finney and Ted Lesley. The description says it includes thick, ultra-white coreless rope and over 1.5 hours of online instruction, and that Harlan’s routine needs only a length of rope and a pair of scissors. Cut and restored rope is an easy metaphor for fixing what’s broken.

For more stage-friendly mind reading, browse our easy mentalism collection. If rope appeals, our guide to the cut and restored rope is a good starting point.

Are there free books that help?

• Our Magic by Nevil Maskelyne and David Devant (1911) is a free 512-page book on the art, theory and practice of magic. Its chapters on presentation, rehearsal, patter, stage manner and personality, and on surprise, repetition and climax, apply to any speaker.
• Conjuring Patter by P. T. Selbit (1904) is a free 38-page booklet on what to say while you perform, with a ready-made opening speech and a chapter on how to construct patter.

Both are public-domain scans of library copies, so expect the odd stain or stamp. See all our free ebooks.

How do you fit a trick into a talk?

1. Start with the point. Decide what idea the trick should carry, then choose the trick.
2. Place it with purpose. An opener grabs attention; a trick after a break resets the room; a closer makes the last idea stick.
3. Write the bridge. Script the one or two sentences that link the trick to your next slide.
4. Rehearse in the full talk. Practise with your clicker, microphone and notes, so the trick fits the flow. Our guide on how to practise magic helps.
5. Plan the out. Know what you’ll say if a volunteer misunderstands or a prop fails, and move on.

What are the common mistakes?

• Choosing close-up magic for a big room. Small props need a camera and a screen, or they’re lost.
• A trick with no link to the talk. It entertains, but the audience remembers the trick and not your point.
• Running long. Every minute on the trick is a minute off your content.
• Making a volunteer look foolish. The room sides with the volunteer. Make them the hero.

Frequently asked questions