One of the finest teachers of magic ever known came to Penguin for a record breaking 5-HOUR live event!

“Roberto Giobbi’s brilliant lectures are clear and pedagogical,based on immense knowledge in magic. Roberto Giobbi is a trueconnoisseur in many fields. He doesn’t serve you a quick meal. Ratherhis menu in magic begins with a tasteful starter, followed by a powerfulmain course and an exciting dessert. When he talks you listen and whenhe handles the cards he really catches your attention and creates theessence of attractive magic. Roberto Giobbi’s card work can becharacterized in a few words: Elegant simplicity with economizing ofmoves, delicate misdirection guided by a powerful logic story.”-Lennart Green

“Roberto – You are an inspiration to thinking magicians everywhere.”-Pete McCabe

“Roberto Giobbi is the perfect combination of scholar’ teacher’ andperformer. As a scholar he has studied the literature of card magic,examining the best effects, methods and techniques. As a teacher, he has(in his Card College series) organized this material in a logical,structured way that effectively leads the student along the path towardmastery. As a performer he knows the importance of presentation,management, and psychology and he has incorporated this information inhis books. Through these accomplishments, Roberto Giobbi has become oneof the most important voices of 2Ist Century conjuring.”-Michael Close

“There is not a magician alive today who wouldn’t benefit fromstudying Mr. Giobbi…He’s kind of the King Midas of card effects. Histouch on classic plots turns them to gold.“-Jeff Stone

What will he teach?

The lecture will deal with effects, techniques and theories for the performer who works standing up before a bigger audience.

Such a situation can be a large table with too many people to performtrue close-up magic, or a living room in a private setting with theaudience sitting on couches and standing, or a more formal setting withseveral dozen people sitting in chairs and/or at small tables (CabaretMagic), or small theaters of up to 150 people.

The lecture will be framed by the five major operating principles on which all classic card magic is based:

These techniques will be explained in detail in the context ofcommercial performance pieces, most of which are in Roberto Giobbi’sprofessional repertoire and which have earned him a comfortable livingby performing for international audiences of all types around the globe.

Although the instrument used will be an ordinary deck of playing cards,the main focus is on artistic magic. Roberto Giobbi’s holistic approachto magic, well-known to readers of his best-selling books, considers thetechnical, psychological and dramatic aspects on which all excellentmagic is founded.

Many of the tricks and techniques performed and explained, albeitconceived for the stand-up performer, can also be done close-up andsitting at a table with few people.

Calling the Cards

A spectator takes cards from a shuffled deck, and the performer knowswhich ones he is thinking of. An apparent mistake is corrected by anamusing and totally baffling prediction.

Discussion of how to manage an audience member, how to interactphysically in parlor situations, how to stage the divination of cards soas to make them look like mind-reading, and a fresh look at predictions(not only cards!).

Teach-in session on various false shuffles retaining partial andcomplete order of deck apt to be used in parlor situations, such as theunderused Greek Shuffle, the little known Frank Lane Shuffle, and theyet unpublished Combination Shuffle.

Thought Card in Cigarette

In the course of a game of Swiss Poker, which is played with imaginarycards, a freely named card appears in a cigarette (or other object ofyour choosing – you do not need to be a smoker for this trick). This isone of the effects with which Roberto Giobbi has fooled many of hiscolleagues at international conventions. Explained here for the firsttime in detail.

Discussion of the creative process behind a magic trick, with theexplanation of how to practically use Mind Mapping to reach originalsolutions. Also, an analysis of how to combine verbal strategies, shrewdmethods and sleight-of-hand.

Card Stab

This has been Roberto Giobbi’s finale trick in his professional stageact for the past 25 years. Revealed here for the first time with alldetails and subtleties gained from a lifetime of experience. 8 minutesof solid entertainment, amusing and mystifying.

Twice As Difficult

The Jim Ryan classic “Vice-Versa” revisited: in the course of a trick,which is “twice as difficult” as the most difficult card trick in theworld, two thought of cards are produced, and then unexpectedly changeplace.

Discussion of how to logically stage unusual looking procedures, how tocontrol two cards at the same time, and how to handle the difficult andoften confusing issue of transposing two cards. With special attentionto the management and handling of the Double Lift & Turnover forstage.

And This IS Your Card!

A most unusual trick in which a “wrong” card oddly changes into the“correct” one – with lots of laughs, and even more mystery. This mightbe dubbed the “Paper Balls Over Head” of card magic.

With an in-depth discussion of the classic top change and variationsthereof and special emphasis on the psychological construction of atrick, as opposed to the technical and dramatic construction.

Homing Card Plus…Plus

This is the one trick from theCard College book series that has beenmost adopted by professionally working performers. Over the yearsRoberto Giobbi has addedseveral refinements to an already brilliant trick, which he will revealhere in detail.

Discussion of the Spread Pass, the Top Card Glimpse (an easy andimperceptible method you will use for the rest of your life) and the TopPalm, as well as verbal strategies such as Miscalling, and how tocombine subtlety with sleight-of-hand.

Hofzinser’s Triple Prediction Problem

Before the proceedings start, a spectator holds a handkerchief withthree prediction cards that the performer has taken from his wallet. Asabsurd as this may sound, these three cards turn out to be identical(including signature!) to three cards that are now chosen and signed bythree spectators.

Discussion of how to have cards selected on stage and how to controlthem; detailed explanation of single and multiple card controls.

Three Roses

Dai Vernon’s Brainwave with a poetic note and using an ordinary deck ofcards with special emphasis on how to stage the mental selection of acard, and how to make the invisible visible, and the impossiblepossible.

Who is he?

Roberto Giobbi has an international reputation as one of the finest teachers of magic ever known.
Of course, we all know him as the author of the bestselling Card Collegeseries, which is the most widely translated text in the history ofmagic and considered globally as the ultimate reference work for cardmagicians everywhere.

He’s also written for over 50 magic magazines worldwide and has receivedthe coveted Literary Fellowship from the Academy of Magical Arts.

If that wasn’t impressive enough, he’s also been twice awarded the titleof Vice World-Champion in Card Magic and received the Grand Prix fromFISM in Switzerland.

Roberto Giobbi is a master of the technical, psychological, and dramatic foundations of all excellent magic.