Hypnotic Times at High School Post Prom Parties

My show at Kennedy High School's Post Prom party was especially rewarding.  Why?  It is my alma mater!

Performances at seven post prom parties in three weeks…what a month of May it has been!

This may be my most favorite time of the year because of the opportunity to contribute to such a formative experience for so many high school kids.  Organized by the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) and financially supported by parents and local retailers, the post prom party is designed to keep the kids well entertained (and safe) from midnight to the early morning hours of the next day.

A comedy hypnosis show is the perfect fit.  It is fun, easy to organize, and unique and memorable for the kids.

As an entertainer I pride myself on three things:  1) be professional, on-time and well prepared; 2) be flexible in how, when and where I perform; and 3) always focus on the audience and their desire to have a great time.

Admittedly, this year’s schedule of performances presented interesting challenges.  Some PTSA’s wanted a traditional stage show, while others preferred a “roaming entertainer” type approach.

 

At one post prom, I was sequestered into a small hallway off of the main dance floor.  The DJ’s thumping speakers created a less than ideal environment for hypnosis.

All in all, it was an incredible set of shows and I am so appreciative of the PTSA’s at Springbrook, Blake, Damascus, Blair, Magruder and Kennedy for including me.  The show at Walter Johnson was hosted by two educators who I worked with last year to incorporate a discussion about hypnosis into their curriculum.

I hit the road this weekend for an exclusive show at the Timberline Lake Camping Resort in New Jersey.  It’s then time for the summer season of festivals and street fairs, which present another chance for me to help community-based organizations host wonderful events.  

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A simply "thanks" from an event organizer makes my day.  Here are two I received this month:

"Thanks so much for adding such a special event to our party. When I came in at the end, it was great to hear the students' thoughtful questions and their enthusiasm as they asked for a second show. Blessings to you for offering your time and talent to our students!"

Karyn McCoy
Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) After Prom Committee
Springbrook High School

"What can I say?  You were amazing!  Thank you so, so much for donating your time to Blair's After Prom.  I hope you enjoyed yourself -- I know the kids loved having you.  I was so impressed by the crowds who gathered to watch you, and how you managed the crowds!"

Nina Fascione

Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) After Prom Committee

Blair High School

A Genius Within

Creativity, passion and the ability to rise above adversity resides in each of us.  That is one of the core messages of my Hypnotic Experience show.

What about genius?  Is an exceptional talent hidden in our mind just waiting to be tapped?

After reading Jason Padgett’s story I am inclined to believe “yes.”

Fifteen years ago, Padgett – a furniture sales rep, and self described jock and partyer – was attacked outside a bar and left beaten with a severe concussion.  Upon recovery, Padgett realized a dramatic and stunning evolution in how he perceived his environment.

Everything in his world now appeared to him in the form of a mathematical structure, such as a rainbow or water spiraling down a drain.  Padgett’s brain injury somehow unlocked a truly remarkable gift that he is now cultivating as a number theorist.

In no way do I mean to imply that the practice of hypnosis can help a person unleash this type of genius.  However, it’s clear the human mind is complex and full of secrets.

We should all strive to harness tools (such as hypnosis) to help us sharpen our natural gifts and, as a result, achieve a higher level of satisfaction and happiness. 

A brain injury unearthed a truly stunning talent.  Photo: thetechnopedia.com

After Prom Partying, Springbrook Style

A parent created this awesome sign that helped point attendees to my show.

After Prom parties are a labor of love.

A group of dedicated parents invest hours of their free time during the months leading up to the event on planning, logistics, coordination and fundraising.  And then there’s the challenge of hosting and chaperoning a party that runs from midnight to the wee hours of the morning. 

 

All of this is for a group of teenagers who are in the final stretch of their senior year and anxious about what the next phase of their life may hold.

That’s why performing my “Hypnotic Experience” show at high school After Proms are perhaps the highlight of the year for me.   The kids are in a great mood, the parents are appreciative and the venues typically have a break-out room that presents the ideal environment.

My 2014 After Prom season kicked off this weekend with Springbrook High School.  Hosted at the pristine White Oak Community Recreation Center, the event featured the typical entertainment fare, including casino games, inflatables, billiards, DJ and temporary tattoo artists.

I was assigned to a well sized room with an appointment of comfortable chairs and couches.  The parents on-site then did an excellent job of promoting my show through signage and regular announcements.

The result:  a wonderfully fun evening for the kids who attended the show, the volunteers and me.

Here are a few observations:

--Although well promoted, it did take some time for me to attract a sizeable audience.  I was scheduled to start at 1:30 AM, yet gave it a few extra minutes to allow for about 40 kids to grab a seat.  I attribute much of this to the unfamiliarity with hypnosis, as many of the kids reported they had never seen (or even heard) of a hypnosis show.

--For younger audiences who typically have a limited attention span, I move more quickly through the pre-talk part of the show.  However, I always make sure to take the time to explain what hypnosis is and its applications for health, wellness, and athletic and academic performance.   I always want someone to come out of my show intrigued about hypnosis, rather than viewing it as some sort of parlor or circus trick.

--I had an amazing set of volunteers, eight of whom achieved a deep level of hypnosis.  Two volunteers in particular went incredibly deep and acted on several creative visualizations, including the American Idol competition skit.

--The instant re-induction always draws the biggest gasps from a high school audience.  Seeing a friend or classmate drop back into hypnosis through the simple “sleep” suggestion is what I like to refer to as a convincer.  Maybe there is something to this hypnosis, they conclude.

A special thanks to Karyn McCoy who hosted me and all of the parents who organized Springbrook’s After Prom.  You did an amazing job and I hope to be included at next year’s event!

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UPDATE: Karyn was kind enough to provide me a quote for my Web site.  Here is what she had to say about the Hypnotic Experience at Springbrook's After Prom party:


"Thanks so much for adding such a special event to our party. When I came in at the end, it was great to hear the students' thoughtful questions and their enthusiasm as they asked for a second show. Blessings to you for offering your time and talent to our students!"

Karyn McCoy
After Prom Committee
Springbrook High School
 

Casino games, raffles, caricature artists, food, music...and me!  Springbrook's After Prom had it all.

Quiet for a Racing Mind

Just as the audience settles into their seats for my Hypnotic Experience show I dive into the pre-talk.   It’s during this 20 minute chat I use humor and entertaining anecdotes to clear up misconceptions about hypnosis and set expectations for the show.

I’ll ask the audience to accept for a moment that we all have two minds – conscious and sub-conscious.  Our conscious mind is our area of rationale thinking and, while important to how we survive and thrive each day, it often gets us in to trouble.

Have you ever arrived at home exhausted after a long day at work?  You may feel like you’ve run a marathon, even though you have been planted at a desk.

That’s because our conscious mind requires a tremendous amount of energy to function.  A hypnotic induction helps a person step outside of the conscious mind, and get to a place of focus, quiet and relaxation.

That outcome intrigued a woman I recently met with individually after she attended one of my shows about hypnosis for exceptional living.

When I arrived at her home, it was obvious that her mind was racing.  In short order, she talked about an important graduate school project she has in the works.   She mentioned a grant application she’s developing.  And then rattled off several conflicts these deliverables had created in her relationships with co-workers and classmates.

Could hypnosis help quiet her mind?

In this particular case…no.  I walked her through several relaxation exercises and soothing visualizations, using my “go to” scenarios such as lying on a raft on the perfect pool and floating in the cloud.

Although she gave it a sincere try, she simply could not step outside of her conscious mind.  Little things like me saying her name as part of my soothing dialogue jolted her out of trance.

Plus, she changed up the visualizations to better suit her interests.  For instance, rather than lying on a raft on the pool, she placed herself in the water.

Of course, this action required attention from her conscious mind.

The take-away for me is that a person must absolutely be in the right state of focus and creativity to reap the full positive outcomes of visualization.  It confirms that it truly is self-hypnosis.

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Our time together did prove to be well spent.  The woman sent me a text message a few days later that read, “BTW, I think it did help afterwards.”

The subconscious mind holds much of our creativity and power of visualization.  Photo source: Aisha's Scrapyard.