Universe

THE BLURB:
The Universe focuses upon one primary method, indexing, and
several of its applications. While the effects all appear to
be different from an audience’s perspective, they are, in
fact, all variations upon the same methodological theme.

1st edition 2005; 27 pages

MY COMMENTS:
This is Cassidy's brilliant handling of a classic
mentalists' technique using four effects. In the first
effect, a book is randomly open to a page and a word freely
selected. The performer takes a billet from his wallet and
that word is on the page. Cassidy includes a very nice
variation that doesn't use the Universal principle, so you
can compare the two.

The next effect is a drawing duplication. The participant
draws any simple drawing that they like and the performer
reveals that the slip of paper in his wallet, which was
shown earlir, has a very similar drawing on it. The third
effect uses cards and is inspired by Paul Curry's Out of
this World. In this effect, the performer is able to
correctly predict how many reds and blacks will be dealt
into two different piles. Finally, Cassidy explains how you
can use this principle for readings and also he discusses
his "Window Envelope."

Because he uses wallets, most of the routines are designed
for close-up or parlour. But with a little thought, you
certainly can adapt some of these routines to a larger
audience. One other note is that Cassidy uses some special
wallets for these routines. Most mentalists, or magicians,
already have this type of wallet in their collection. (Of
course, if you don't have one, I have them available.)
Though the page count on this e-book is slim, there's some
powerful stuff in here. And it's highly recommended.