Tricks
Theatrical Magic, Illusions and Mentalism
Dr. Bruce Ballon, the Founder of Hounds and Jackals has been involved in stage and theatrical magic, mentalism and illusions for decades. Besides creating performances to use these techniques to help educate and illuminate issues around mental health in society, he has worked with other professionals in the field to help create products for magicians and illusionists around the world. He has also consulted on various performances for fellow entertainers. In addition, he had produced numerous magic/bizarre magic/mentalism/illusion effects that had limited distribution to the magic community.
Over a decade ago, his project known as the Carcosa Collection had produced numerous works, including a very limited run Carcosa Tarot Deck, amongst other odd items. It also held contests with fellow performers around various themes to create magic routines. This carried on into the Phantasms projects, which further developed various close up, parlour and stage acts.
Over the last few years he continued to get requests to bring back the tarot deck, the magic effects he created , as well as compilation books.
Therefore, as part of the Hounds and Jackals initiative, Dr. Ballon has gone back into the dusty forgotten catacombs to resurrect some ancient lore to share with those who seek offbeat and interesting magic effects to dazzle their audiences!
Yes, yes, I normally would not call what is being offered here just “tricks” as these are more content and processes for magic/mentalism/illusion effects… but I named this page “TRICKS” to keep with a Hounds and Jackals canine theme… speaking of which…
Canine Conjurations
If you did really need a further connection to tie magic into Hounds and Jackals, consider Anubis the Jackal Headed Dog of ancient Egypt…. as well as the fact that Dr. Ballon had trained all his dogs to do magic tricks! Below are images of his first dog, the beloved and now deceased Scooby, AKA the Great Scoobini, who performed card and mental magic effects! (Yes, the Dog Magic effects will be dug up from the “yard” and be made available for those interested!)
Some Sample Videos
for your Viewing Pleasure
Upcoming Projects
As mentioned, a whole bunch of ancient and arcane secrets from the vaults are in the process of being dusted off and prepared for being unleashed upon the world.
Stay tuned for updates and/or sign up to the Newsletter for notifications on upcoming releases.
