The Amazing Zinzanni
Astound and mystify your friends with feats of mental brilliance! You'll need a partner in crime, but once you've shared the secret together, you'll be able to keep an entire room entranced. See how long it takes your audience to figure out the trick -- that is, if they ever do. Watch out, next thing you know you'll find yourself hired out for birthday parties!
- A space where guests can sit comfortably with a lot of items in the room (books, knick-knacks, etc.)
- Top hat or magical outfit (optional) for the Great Zinzanni
1. Before you begin, you will need a partner who is in on the trick; we'll call this person the "feeder."
2. Have everyone sit down.
3. The great Zinzanni announces to the crowd that he will read the minds of everyone in the room at the same time, with his abled-bodied assistant guiding the way. The great Zinzanni then explains that he will leave the room, and an item will be chosen at random from that room. The great Zinzanni will then come back into the room, and with the help of his assistant, read the collective minds of everyone there and detect the chosen object. Zinzanni will then leave the room, the object will be chosen, and Zinzani will tell the audience the correct item. Zinzani can do this time and time again, until everyone has figured out the trick, or Zinzanni reveals how the trick is done.
How it's done:
1. The feeder is key, because without their information Zinzanni will have no idea what to look for.
2. Once the item has been chosen, the feeder invites Zinzanni back in and requests that he "Make his mind as black and empty as a chalkboard." Zinzanni should dramatically close his eyes at this point. The key word here is "black." When the feeder says "black," Zinzanni knows that is important. The feeder can now say that they will write the answer on that "black" board (they should do so dramatically while Zinzanni, eyes still closed, swoons).
3. What Zinzanni now knows is that after the feeder points to a black object (say, a black book) the very next object he points to will be the item the audience chose.
4. For example: let's say the audience chooses a green plant. Here's how the dialogue would go (after the above, over-the-top performance)
Feeder: "Oh great Zinzanni, is the item you seek this white dove?"
Zinzanni: "No."
Feeder: "Oh great Zinzanni, is the item you seek this blue pen?"
Zinzani: "No!"
Feeder: "Oh great Zinzanni, is the item you seek this black book?"
Zinzani: "No..."
Feeder: "Oh great Zinzanni, is the item you seek this green plant?"
Zinzani: "Yes!"
5. Play as many rounds as you like. Switch up the color (see variations below) and the placement of the item in the lineup (make it second, make it fifth, etc., so people can't think it's always the third item).
1. Change up the color used. For example, the feeder could say...
"Oh great Zinzanni, I want you to make your mind as blank as a white snowstorm." (The color would be white.)
"Oh great Zinzanni, I want you to make your mind as heated as red fire." (The color would be red.)
"Oh great Zinzanni, I want you to make your mind as open as a blue ocean." (The color would be blue.)
"Oh great Zinzanni, I want you to make your mind as clear as a window pane." (The "color" would be clear glass.)
1. Make sure to practice a couple times with your feeder, to make sure you both are on the same page and have the trick down.
2. Have fun -- the more outrageous you get with the character, the better!
Great for getting kids to puzzle things out.