Stage Hypnosis: The Art of Suggestion and Spectacle

Stage hypnosis is an interesting combination of psychology, performance, and the power of suggestion. It impresses audiences because it creates an illusion of the volunteers being in its control, though it only actually works through volunteer participation and the responsiveness to suggestion. Although dramatic in presentation, stage hypnosis is also based on very valid techniques of hypnosis but adapted for entertainment rather than therapy.

The Basics of Hypnosis

Hypnosis is a state of focused attention and heightened suggestibility, often accompanied by deep relaxation. In this state, individuals are more open to accepting suggestions without critical analysis. Unlike popular misconceptions, hypnosis is not about mind control; it requires the participant’s consent and active involvement. Stage hypnosis leverages these principles but emphasizes showmanship to maximize audience engagement.

Selecting the Right Volunteers

A crucial aspect of stage hypnosis is volunteer selection. Hypnotists often engage in swift suggestibility tests with members of the audience to determine who will be most likely to accept hypnosis more easily. The tests may include straightforward exercises such as imagining that their fingers are being drawn together or feeling their hands get stuck together. Those volunteers showing vigorous reactions are invited on stage since they are more liable to enter the hypnotic state in less time and would heed the postulates of the hypnotist.

Induction: The means whereby subjects are guided into hypnosis. In this, the inductions may involve verbal instructions, soothing music, or focusing the eyes on an object-in this  case, the infamous swinging pocket watch or even the hypnotist’s voice. Inductions commonly stress relaxation and concentration, helping participants become oriented internally and release external concern for the environment. Induction techniques in stage hypnosis are usually rapid. These methods try to bring about a state of suggestibility very fast so that the show can maintain a tempo and is entertaining.

The Power of Suggestion

When in a hypnotic state, participants become easily suggestible to ideas that are imaginative and playful. The hypnotist then capitalizes on this by creating witty scenes that make volunteers believe they are someone famous, an animal, or even that they have forgotten their own name. During hypnosis, participants usually react quite vividly because the critical thinking part of their brain gets bypassed while the imagination is in full action. Importantly, however, subjects maintain some awareness and control. They will not act contradictorily to their moral values nor engage in any behavior that they would strongly object to during a state of hypnosis.

Audience Dynamics and Performance

Stage hypnosis is as much about the audience as about the volunteers. The charisma, humor, and timing of the hypnotist himself play an important role in the entire performance. The laughter and gasps of amazement from the audience further reinforce the hypnotic experience in the volunteers by encouraging them to give in to the suggestions of the hypnotist.

Debunking Myths

Stage hypnosis gives the impression of mind control, but nothing could be further from the truth. It works because there is willing participation with the hypnotist, and trust in the process, because subjects are consciously or subconsciously aware that at any they can simply stop participating.

Takeaway

Stage hypnosis is an incredible display of the human mind’s capabilities for suggestibility and imagination. However, while seemingly magical, it’s founded on well-understood psychological principles combined with flair for the theatrics.

by: Paul Gustafson