Penciltration (DVD, special pencil and two gimmicks) by Jesse Feinberg $29.95
Running time: 60 minutes
Available at: http://www.jessesmagic.com/jessesmagic/ ... ATION.html
As a therapist, I’m both amused and alarmed by many performers’ passionate proclivity to pierce, perforate, puncture and penetrate people and props, just so they can heroically heal the hole. Jessie Feinberg perpetuates this provocative practice with Penciltration.
The performer displays a pencil which he holds by its unsharpened end. He borrows a dollar bill and holds it in his palm-up hand. He places the eraser end of the pencil over the bill and pushes the pencil through the bill.
The performer pulls the pencil out of the bill and immediately hands the bill to its owner, who discovers that there is no hole in it. The participant examines the pencil and finds nothing amiss.
Click on the link above to watch a performance video.
This effect is a tasty piece of eye candy. There’s something counterintuitive, yet oddly appealing about plunging the eraser end of a pencil through a bill.
Before I received the effect for review, I watched the performance video numerous times and I couldn’t unravel the mystery. The extraction of the pencil looks like trick photography!
I’m not aware of any penetration/restoration effect that employs this combination of methods. I’m impressed by Mr. Feinberg’s creativity.
The effect is angle sensitive and should be performed with the crowd directly in front of you. You start dirty and end dirty. But the clean-up takes only a second and is well covered by the crowd’s reaction to the effect.
The production values of the DVD are very good.
The special pencil is well manufactured and will withstand the closest scrutiny. The gimmicks are cleverly designed and based upon familiar principles.
Mr. Feinberg does a fine job of performing and teaching the effect. During the instructional segment, he is joined by Mark Calabrese, who offers additional useful tips and ideas.
After the lads finish teaching the effect, they demonstrate and teach five other effects using the pencil and the gimmicks. I dare not describe these effects lest you will deduce the pencil’s secret feature. But don’t fret. These items pale in caparison to the main effect.
Penciltration is a visually compelling effect, accomplished by novel means. I dig it!
Recommended
Penciltration by Jesse Feinberg
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Re: Penciltration by Jesse Feinberg
There were a number of disgruntled customers receiving a gimmick that fell apart. Not sure if that matter has been addressed or not.
- Tom Frame
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Re: Penciltration by Jesse Feinberg
Tom,
I based my assessment on the materials that I received. One gimmick is made of a single piece of elemental material. It cannot fall apart.
The other gimmick is a composite of several materials. For the sake of this review, I shall now throw it against the wall.
Yikes! It bounced off the wall and blinded my left eye. I'm going to quit my day job and become a pirate. I need an eye patch, and a precocious parrot.
I can't imagine what it would take for this gimmick to fall apart. Methinks the disgruntled parties received beta-level gimmicks. If that's the case, they should send them back to Mr. Feinberg and demand the proper props.
I based my assessment on the materials that I received. One gimmick is made of a single piece of elemental material. It cannot fall apart.
The other gimmick is a composite of several materials. For the sake of this review, I shall now throw it against the wall.
Yikes! It bounced off the wall and blinded my left eye. I'm going to quit my day job and become a pirate. I need an eye patch, and a precocious parrot.
I can't imagine what it would take for this gimmick to fall apart. Methinks the disgruntled parties received beta-level gimmicks. If that's the case, they should send them back to Mr. Feinberg and demand the proper props.
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Re: Penciltration by Jesse Feinberg
My review of this trick has been written and sent to Genii for publication in the Sep issue. It is not nearly as kind as Mr. Frame's. If you are on the fence about Penciltration, you should wait until you read my review before investing.