Voodoo Box FAQ
Here's a list of useful questions about the Voodoo Box:

Voodoo Box is very easy to build. The only tool you'll need is a knife or a box cutter.

You can make it in under 30 minutes (after you get the materials).

I made mine for $30 with materials I found at the store. I bought the umbrellas from the dollar store for a buck each. I've checked with several other dollar stores to make sure they carry cheap umbrellas, they do.

Build it, yes. Perform it well, maybe. That depends on how good you are at practicing and preparation. Most of the work is done by your assistant in the box. If they're a quick study and understand what's going on, you should be able to get the effect ready with a couple hours intense practice.

Two people. One in the box and one to place the umbrellas in.

Absolutely.

Very.

It's a similar concept to the sword basket with a few extra twists. There are several methods of deception being employed to make the effect work.

Some illusions are really expensive, some aren't. This is one of those effects where the materials lend themselves to being inexpensive. A sub trunk is just a crate, a straitjacket is just canvas and lots of black art effects are just black fabric. It's how these materials are used that makes the difference.

Yes, but the point of the effect is to look like a cardboard box. Magicians have a habit of trying to make props look like magic props. This isn't always a good thing. A shiny chrome box with fancy doors and dragons on the side looks like it's designed for making someone vanish. That can defeat the element of surprise.

A twelve-year old could make the trick. A responsible twelve-year old could perform it. Being inside the box requires a certain about of flexibilty, but nothing you didn't learn in gym class.

I'd been playing around with a different kind of sword basket effect that didn't use swords when I came across a bunch of cheap umbrellas. I started thinking about how some people think opening umbrellas indoors brings bad luck. That gave me a premise. From there I created the effect.

Versions of Voodoo Box had been in my head for a long time (years). When I finnally sat down to create it for the Illusion Impact series it took me two weeks to arrive at the final version.

Go to the Illusion Plans section: [Illusion Plans]