A Wily Worker of Wonders
The best method by which to advocate the “black stage” as a means of entertainment, will perhaps be to describe one of the many illusions that can be produced with its aid.
The audience first witnesses the performer—who is generally made up as a Chinaman—and a young lady dressed in white, standing in the center of a small “black stage,” as shown in [Fig. 1].
Fig. 1.—The floating head.
The performer then throws a white cloth over the lady’s head. Without a moment’s pause he draws it away again, and—hey, presto!—the lady is headless! The Chinaman next takes a larger cloth, and holds it before the lady in such a manner that she is entirely hidden from the spectators. A second later, however, he drops the cloth to the ground. This time the audience is treated to the spectacle of the head of the lady floating in the air. More wonderful still, the head can speak, sing, and answer any questions that may be put to it.
After a while the illusionist picks up the cloth, and holding it before the head, once more cuts off the view of the spectators. Upon its being drawn away for the third time, nothing whatever is visible—even the mysterious head has vanished. But when the cloth is held up again and withdrawn, the young lady—in her entirety—appears, and after bowing to the audience, walks unconcernedly off the stage.
Almost every well-known conjurer has stated at one time or another that the secret of his success may be summed up in the one word—practice. But there are very few young ladies who would have either the courage or the ability to practice being decapitated. The ordeal might prove a trifle too exciting. However, they may pass through it without fear if the following method, given in explanation of the illusion, be adopted.
The interior of the stage must be fitted throughout with black cloth. The lights in the room are lowered, the only illumination of any brilliance being a row of candles or lamps, at the side of the stage. These are equipped with tin reflectors, so that the light, instead of shining on the stage, is projected into the eyes of the audience. The effect of this is that, whilst any white object can be seen quite plainly by the spectators, everything black remains invisible.
When the performer envelops the young lady’s head in the white cloth, he at the same moment throws over her a piece of black material of similar size and shape, attached to it by one corner. When he removes the white cloth, however, he allows the black cloth to remain, thus veiling the head and apparently causing it to disappear.
Another and larger piece of black material is similarly hidden in the folds of the second white cloth. Directly the performer spreads this before the lady assistant, so that she is hidden from the audience, she rapidly pulls off her head-veil, and taking the large black sheet, muffles herself in it up to the neck. Consequently only her head remains visible. In order to disappear entirely, it is only necessary for her to replace the head-veil or to pull the larger black cloth up over her face.