Upon command, the youngster is seemingly hypnotized, the stool is removed and then one of the brooms is removed. The youngster remains in suspension. Then the performer takes hold of the youngster's feet and begins to arc them into a 90 degree angle from the remaining broom. A hoop is passed over youngster and remaining broom. The youngster is then lowered back to the original position, as is the second broom and then the stool. The young assistant is then dehypnotized and steps down from the stool. Everything used in the illusion is then taken down and brought off stage. The performer may then move on to the next miracle.
A nice illusion, but it needs a good deal of showmanship to make it really good. This trick has been done so often, by so many performers that it has become boring. Seldom does the modern audience believe that the assistant is hypnotized. Most people in the audience will be aware that the broom is rigged.
A platform with holes drilled for the two brooms are needed. When the assistant is getting his or her arms over the broom bristles, the assistant will engage the joining points into the ratchet. All the paraphernalia is hidden during there positioning of the assistant onto the brooms by the flowing clothes worn by the assistant. Once in place, neither the stool nor the second broom are needed, but the audience does not know this fact. When the stool is taken away, the assistant is in the air, maintained by the joining point. Then the second broom is moved away.
Because the joining point is a ratchet, the performer merely has to bring the assistant up to the desired angle, the ratchet will lock into place. Then the hoop is passed over the assistant without any sort of magical assistance. Once the trick is complete, the performer
Points to remember: The secret is the ratchet type of mechanism is available from most equipment suppliers. It must be a silent one however, or the audience will hear it clicking into and out of position. The fake broom will be very heavy because it is made of metal. Remember not to let the extra weight show in the way the broom is carried or handled on the stage. The body harness must be made to fit into the broom mechanism very easily. The harness is worn by the assistant under his or her clothing. It is this harness which holds the pin under the assistant's armpit. (the pin which engages the broomstick). This illusion was a mainstay of the modern performer until the early nineteen twenties. It may still be seen in some traveling sideshows.