DVD Review: Enigmatic Vol 1-Alexander de Cova

I greatly admire the creativity and ingenuity of Bavarian magician Alexander de Cova. His brand of magic offers some well-thought-out enhancements to classics and the six stand-up effects on this DVD are varied and strong. As he did on his “Thumb Tip” DVD, de Cova fooled me bad. None are difficult to perform, but will take some rehearsal.

Rope a Dope

More like a phase in a rope routine than a stand-alone effect, “Roping” offers an extraordinary jumping knot that's easy to perform. The magician ties a knot and by pulling on the ends, causes the knot to visually jump off of the rope. Audience members in the front row can even catch the knot. This is a clever variation on the old disappearing knot trick. I’m trying to find a place in my rope routine to feature this one.

Premonition

Based on Eddie Joseph’s amazing effect, in “Premonition,” de Cova offers a gimmick-based routine that is equally baffling and easier to perform. The magician brings out a sealed envelope, which is laid on a table. A volunteer is asked to name a playing card and another is asked to name a number between one and 52. Both are completely free choices.

A spectator takes a deck of playing cards out of its box and counts to the named number. The card is shown to be the wrong one. But when the spectator looks for the named card in the deck, it’s found to be missing. The envelope is opened to reveal a note. When the note is read, it states the chosen card. A brilliant gimmick and a sneaky reference makes the miracle happen and removes the use of the index. This one will take some time to make, but it’s mind-blowing.

Beer Game

Based on a Paul Curry effect. “Bavarian Beer Game” offers a prediction that revolves around beer. Six empty glasses are placed on a table and a set of written instructions is given to a volunteer. A stack of name tags is shuffled and a spectator is asked to pour beer into one of the glasses. Bills of different denominations are borrowed and the magician puts up a $100 bill. The spectator places the bills in any order in the glasses and is free to change the position of the glasses. The shuffled cards are then placed on the table, one in front of each glass.

The volunteer follows the instructions read by the other spectator. Various glasses are switched, moved around and taken away, and are referenced to the name tags. At the end, the glass with the beer remains. This mathematical wonder is impressive and fairly easy to setup and perform. It’s pretty much a self-worker with the exception of a switch and another brilliant adaption with some clever additions and an entertaining theme.

Sympathetic

Basically de Cova’s version of “sympathetic silks,” “Master Silks” has the magician and spectators tying two silks together, which are placed into a clear jug. Another spectator is handed two separate silks which are held in his hands. The knot is magically passed from the tied silks to those held in the spectator’s hands-the tied silks are found to be separate and the separate silks are found to be tied together. Again, there’s a clever gimmick and some subtle handling that makes for a baffling effect that is easy to perform.