New Hypnosis Show Leverages the Power of Music
Music’s ability to connect all human beings across different cultures, languages, and experiences is one of its most profound and universal attributes. This is the attribute that I focused on when designing my new hypnosis show, “Mind Games: Music is Hypnotic.”
I’ve been a professional hypnotist since 2004. I’ve hypnotized over 30,000 people at high schools, colleges, and corporate events. In the early years of my career, I saw hypnotism as a way to amaze people. Then I focused more on the comedy aspect of hypnosis. That’s what most of my colleagues were doing with their shows, as well, but I wanted to do something different. I wanted to create a show that was a significant departure from what others were doing.
For the second decade of my career I worked on keeping those elements of comedy and amazement, but also adding the factor of true audience interaction, producing the first entertainment hypnosis show that used audience polling technology to let the audience determine the path the show takes. My show, “Mind Games” became one of the most successful shows in the industry.
Then came the pandemic. Times change. Audiences change. And I want my show to reflect an understanding of the times. Since the pandemic, I’ve felt a different energy in my audiences. I’ve felt a different energy in the world. There is an increase in tension, and fear, and uncertainty. Live entertainment can’t fix those issues, but it can give a respite from those emotional states.
Hypnosis is a state of narrowed attention and increased suggestibility. That, on its own, is not entertaining. It’s what you do with that state that becomes entertaining. If I can surprise you, that’s cool. If I can make you laugh, that’s awesome. Both good things.
But what if I can give you a moment of joy? What if I can help the people in the room feel happy, and connected, and part of a shared experience? To me, there’s tremendous value in this, and a great way to do it is to tap into our universal love of music. What are the elements of music that would be great to work into a hypnosis show?
Memory and Nostalgia
Music has a unique ability to trigger memories and evoke nostalgia. A song can transport individuals back to specific moments in time, eliciting vivid memories and emotions associated with those experiences. When people share music from their past with others, it creates a bridge between personal histories.
In a hypnosis show, we can leverage the power of nostalgia in really fun ways. We can use the theme music from a favorite movie from your childhood to activate a joyful state, or give the suggestion that you’re the star of a favorite childhood TV show and have you sing the theme music.
Social and Communal Experiences
Music often plays a central role in social gatherings and communal rituals, from weddings and funerals to festivals and religious ceremonies. These shared musical experiences can strengthen community bonds, create a sense of belonging, and reinforce social cohesion among groups of people. This can be particularly useful at college orientations or corporate events.
We can create hilarious scenarios that leverage the understanding of the communal experience, but give it a twist. Someone sings “Happy Birthday” like an opera singer. A hypnotized subject might believe they are at a wedding, but they have been hired to freestyle rap while the bride walks down the aisle. Hypnotic suggestion creates the scenario, but music helps carry the energy.
Because the audience votes on what they want to see on stage, they’re helping me as the hypnotist understand which scenario is most understood and appreciated by the group. They’re telling me, through their votes, what is the best experience for us to share together.
Personal and Collective Identity
Music can play a significant role in shaping individual and collective identities. For individuals, music offers a means of self-expression and exploration. On a larger scale, music can represent the voice of a generation, a social movement, or a nation, uniting people under common themes.
In a hypnosis show, we can activate these qualities through hypnotic suggestion, but tweak them somehow. We’re all at the Taylor Swift concert, and she’s doing a version of “Shake it Off” that you’ve definitely never heard before. Or, in hypnosis people can have full-blown hallucinations, so what if someone’s a huge Post Malone fan, and we give them a chance to meet Posty? Maybe even sing a duet with him?
At one point in the show the hypnotized person might meet their musical hero, while at another point a hypnotized person might become their musical hero. Each experience can be highly entertaining.
Hypnosis and Music Are a Great Combination
In essence, music’s power to connect humans lies in its ability to touch the core of human emotion, transcend cultural and linguistic barriers, and bring people together in shared experiences and expressions. It is a testament to the shared essence of humanity, highlighting what unites us rather than what divides us. My goal with this show is to leverage that so that everyone at the event has a wonderful experience.
Hypnosis clears the clutter of the mind and activates a higher state of creativity and imagination. In this state, the guests on stage have a greater focus and commitment to the scenarios they are experiencing. It makes them capable of performing on stage like improv actors, even though they may not have intended to perform when they came to the show.
Like the Way This Sounds?
If you think this concept would be a great one for your next entertainment event, call Neon Entertainment at 800-993-6366 and tell them you want to bring “Mind Games: Music is Hypnotic” to your campus or corporate event.
