Thrills and Chills of Halloween Hypnosis

Cox Farms' Fields of Fear, Centreville, VA.

Halloween has proven to be a hypnosis-friendly holiday as revelers have come to expect unique entertainment as a complement to the standard thrills and chills.

For the past two years I was fortunate to have been included in the line-up of performers at the Bradley Farm Haunted House, a wonderful event in Northern Virginia that benefits a charitable organization that provides support to families in need.  You can read about my experiences at Bradley Farm here and here.

This year, you can find my Hypnotic Experience show at Cox Farms’ Fields of Fear in Centreville, Virginia.  I’ll be part of the entertainment at an area called the Firegrounds during the evening of October 18 and 25.

I encourage you to come out and enjoy what is considered one of the best Halloween-themed events in the Washington, DC area.  It’s family friendly, yet the folks from Cox Farms do a great job to ensure you come away appropriately scared.

Photos from Halloween Hypnotic Experience Show

Last month I have the privilege of performing "Hypnotic Experience" at the Bradley Farm Haunted House.  It's a wonderful Halloween-inspired community event in Northern Virginia that benefits Herndon-Reston FISH, a charitable organize that provides support to families in crisis.

Here is a link to a recap of the Bradley Farm performances, which presented a couple of interesting challenges.

Included below are a couple of photos from the shows that Bradley Farm Haunted House just posted on its Facebook page.  I thought I'd share with a caption to better illustrate what the photo depicts.

My pre-talk defines hypnosis, sets expectations for volunteers and allows me to weave in a few entertaining anecdotes.

"Magnetic fingers" is a suggestability test and helps volunteers focus.

A wonderful group of volunteers who want to give hypnosis a try.

Taking volunteers through a series of relaxing visualizations as part of a hypnotic induction.

Sleep suggestion instantly brings volunteers back to a deep level of relaxation.

Back to Bradley Farm - Recap of this Weekend's Hypnotic Experience

This year I have had the good fortune to perform my "Hypnotic Experience" show at more than 20 community festivals, street fairs and charitable fundraisers.  Each is incredibly rewarding because of the exceptional people I meet and the contribution I make to a worthy group or cause.

My participation this past weekend at the Bradley Farm Haunted House in Herndon, Virginia was no exception.  This was my second year performing at this family-friendly event and I was given the privilege of going on-stage on both Friday and Saturday night.

Plus, I learned the community of Bradley Farm was honored a few months back for the contributions they've made to a Herndon-Reston FISH, Inc., an organization that provides assistance to Northern Virginia families in need.  The proceeds from the Haunted House are donated to this worthy charitable group.

The Hypnotic Experience shows this weekend did present an interesting set of challenges.  Here are a few thoughts:

1.  Last year's audience was a mix of ages from adults to high school students and tweens.  The range of ages allowed me to incorporate a broader set of visualizations into the show.

This year, more than 90 percent of the audience on each night were primarily kids aged 8 to 12.  I'm still able to put on an entertaining performance, yet had to cut down on the pre-talk and funny anecdotes.  It's imperative to respect the maturity level of the audience and their lack of interest in any discussion of the health and wellness benefits of hypnosis.

It's a nice reminder that when performing the focus must always be on catering to the needs of the audience, rather than staying true to how I scripted out the show.

2.  The event organizers from Bradley Farm are incredibly warm, friendly and gracious, except for the person tasked with running the stage and sound system.  I'm not sure if he does not like me, my show or comedy hypnosis shows in general.  We just didn't click and it made for a few awkward moments.

For instance, on Saturday evening I had intended to begin setting up the stage about 10 minutes prior to the start of the show to create interest and excitement.  This would have also given me the full hour to perform, rather than having to cut the content of the show back by 10 to 15 minutes.

The early set up was a "no go," even though the entertainment at the time was merely an informal set from the DJ.

As my wife likes to say, "it is what it is" and I did not let any uncomfortable interactions steal away my enthusiasm for being part of the Haunted House event.

So...forward we go.  I'm presenting tomorrow to a class at Whitman High School about the applications of hypnosis to enhance athletic performance.  Look for an update on the blog later this week.

Even the food vendors were part of the Halloween scare.

    

Rock on!  The bands that played at Bradley Farm were awesome.

Halloween Hypnosis for a Wonderful Community and Charitable Cause

Next weekend you'll find me at the Bradley Farm Haunted House in Herndon, Virginia for two performances of my "Hypnotic Experience" show.  I'm featured on the main stage at 9 PM on both Friday, October 25th and Saturday the 26th.

Bradley Farm is one of my favorite communities in the Washington, DC area.  Their Haunted House is exceptionally produced and appropriately scary for visitors of all ages -- adults, teens and younger kids.

Plus, the event organizers recruit an interesting mix of entertainers (bands, DJ, dancers, etc.), as well as offer food options from a number of local restaurants and vendors.

The event benefits Herndon-Reston FISH, a charitable organization that provides support services for local residents in need.

You can learn more about the Bradley Farm Haunted House in this recently published article that appeared in the Herndon Patch.  And you can find a recap of last year's Hypnotic Experience show along with a couple of photos at this link.

I hope to see you next weekend for a scary good time and an entertaining show about the power of positive visualization.

Positive and Personal Inspirations from Hypnosis

My message about the power of positive visualization to achieve health, happiness and success is the core tenet of my “Hypnotic Experience” show.

I perform three versions:

1. An entertaining and informative discussion about and demonstration of hypnosis with an emphasis on its use as a tool for stress management, self confidence, and career, academic or athletic performance.

2. A more comedic show that is perfect for college and high school events, community festivals and charitable fundraisers.  I steer clear of the over-the-top Las Vegas-style antics associated with hypnosis shows, although I do suggest volunteers visualize some rather entertaining situations.

My recent show at the Burke Centre Festival is an example.  In October, I’ll perform two shows at the Bradley Farm Haunted House event in Herndon, Virginia.

3. An informal, walk around approach to demonstrate hypnotic inductions at street fairs and other events.  This coming Saturday I’ll be at the South Silver Spring Street Fest and in early October I’ll be a strolling entertainer at the South Riding Fall Fest in Virginia.  

This past Sunday I was invited by one of the most profile Washington, DC based social organizations to speak with a group of nearly 30 professionals about hypnosis and positive visualization.

It was a rewarding evening because of the exceptional people I had an opportunity to meet, and their shared commitment to health, wellness and self-improvement.  Selfishly, this interaction with such high-performers who aspire for continued growth serves as personal inspiration for me – as a parent, business owner and performer.

Here are a few of the comments from attendees after the event:

“I enjoyed Marc's stories and his journey on how he got into hypnosis. I'm learning to meditate and do find the similarities as Marc stated.”

“In case anyone is wondering slept the best I have in years.”

“This was a fun and positive experience. Thanks, Marc, for all the goodies you shared with us. Just like Jill, I slept well last night…

“I truly enjoyed this event! Learned a lot.”

Earlier this year, my "Hypnotic Experience" show entertained the members of the Welcome Club of Northern Virginia.