One of David Copperfield’s most famous illusions is to disappear off a platform right above the audience and to reappear a few seconds later on a beach thousands of kilometres away. I first saw this trick performed live when I was a kid, and a recent Digg article led me to a video recording of it.
Do watch it if you haven’t before. It is an amazing illusion. There’s a larger version on the Daily Motion, but the quality isn’t much better.
After examining the video, I have come up with what I believe to be the only plausible explanation of the disappearance act. I shall explain the logical deductions I made to arrive at my conclusion.
Fact 1
David and Michael disappeared from a platform that is suspended over the audience. The only thing that is connected to the platform is a huge long sheet of 2-inch-thick steel and the wires suspending the steel plate.
Fact 2
Magic is not real. The two of them must have left the platform somehow without the audience noticing.
Fact 3
A 2-inch thick steel plate is a very lousy support structure. This can be seen from the fact that additional metal cables are needed to secure the set-up in a suspension bridge style.
Therefore, there must be a reason why a flat and thin surface was chosen as the supporting structure, and indeed the only thing that is connected to the box frame from which two grown men disappeared.
The 2-inch steel plate appears to be very smooth and flat.
Fact 4
After the curtains went down, a total of 15 seconds elapsed before David’s scream and disappearance.
Fact 5
Did you notice what happened to the curtain? The curtain disappeared into the backstage and was clearly pulled away rapidly by wires!
The curtain was pulled through the back panel of the standing structure. The path it followed as it went backstage was a straight path and not a projectile motion.
Fact 6
The standing structure from which the curtains hang appear different before and after the disappearance.
The removal of the curtains does not explain why the structure appears to be a lot thinner and less complex than before.
The Prestige
Here’s how the trick works.
During the period of time the curtains are down, David and Michael attached harnesses to themselves, some of which were concealed in the rolled-up curtains and some of which were disguised as part of the top of the standing structure itself.
These harnesses are likely to be attached to a small wheeled cart-like structure. After the curtains went down, David and Michael spent 15 seconds assembling the small wheeled structure, with components originally disguised as part of the standing structure, and securing themselves to it.
At the moment of disappearance, David and Michael were propelled through a trapdoor at the bottom of the standing structure. The method of propulsion is probably some kind of pulley system that extends to the backstage, alone the path which they would travel. The cart sped away, heading toward the backstage with David and Michael strapped on.
The raised platform they were standing on formed a downward ramp. As the same time, the curtain was pulled away in the same direction as the speeding cart by wires. The curtain serves to obscure the trick mechanism involving the trapdoor and the ramp, and to cover David and Michael as they sped away from the standing structure.
The removal of the curtains also serves to draw attention away from the fact that the standing structure is now smaller than before due to the missing parts needed to assemble the escape mechanism.
Loose Ends
Why didn’t anyone notice two grown man travelling away on a cart?
At the crucial moment as the cart is moving away, the camera is directly in front of the set-up, thus preventing home viewers from examining the back of the set-up just as the cart is speeding away to the backstage.
The audience directly in front of the stage are below the 2-inch metal plate, and therefore cannot get a clear view of what is travelling on top of it, especially since the metal plate is quite wide. The curtains moving along with the cart also serve to obscure the view of those sitting higher up in the audience seats.
At the moment of disappearance, a loud bang and flashing light effects focus the audience’s attention on the standing structure itself and away from the rear of the structure.
Do take a closer look at the mirror (stolen from 7-11) at about 7:30 in the video. You can see the back of the curtains opening up before being obscured by a bright flash.
There must be some other way!
No, I don’t think so. The only thing that left the platform visibly is the curtain. Therefore, that must be the moment when David and Michael left the platform too. Logic dictates that this must be true. The details may not be completely accurate, but the fact is that a rapid retrieval mechanism of some kind was used to pull the two of them backstage under the curtain’s cover.
But there are eyes watching the standing structure from all directions!
This is the clever part of the trick. There are eyes watching the structure from all directions: that is true.
However, there isn’t any member of the audience actually standing behind the platform. The only way they get to see the back of the structure is through the round mirror.
Here’s the problem: The mirror does not move! The mirror is always focused on the standing structure. In only takes a split second for the curtain and the two men to move out of the standing structure, during which the audience is distracted by the sound effects, the flashes of light and the smoke flares.
If you were actually standing behind the standing structure, your eyes would be free to move around and look at the curtain moving away, perhaps noticing something strange about it. But during the illusion, the audience’s view of the back is restricted by the stationery mirror which is focused solely on the structure itself.
What was used to propel the cart so rapidly?
Perhaps some kind of weighted pulley system. The wires used are probably similar to the ones David Copperfield used for his levitation trick. In fact, a lot more wires can be used in this case than the levitation trick because the wires are lying flat on the 2-inch black steel plate for most of the time and are pretty invisible from a distance. Audience seated closest to the plate is located below the plate and therefore cannot examine the top surface.
Also, the entire length of the 2-inch metal plate may have been tilted to slightly to form a downward ramp, facilitating the cart’s rapid escape. Clever camera angles and some optical distractions can help to obscure the fact that the plate is not parallel to the ground.
But there’s no cart!
I’m only using the term “cart” for easy reference. The actual device/harness involved may not resemble a cart. I do think that wheels were involved due to the speed of the launch. In all likelihood, the “cart” is probably just a tiny metal frame with wheels.
But on the other hand, perhaps the surface of the black metal plate was so smooth and lubricated that David and Michael could simply slide across it while being pulled backstage by wires. This would eliminate the need for a metal supporting structure with wheels, in which case simple stunt harnesses hidden in the curtains would be sufficient.
But what about the rest of the illusion? What about Hawaii?
Personally, I think the disappearance was the only impressive part of the trick. The rest of the illusion can be explained by a mixture of pre-recorded and live video feeds and a really large projector.
My original assumption was that the entire video was pre-recorded and the volunteers were pre-selected, but apparently this is not so, as pointed out to me by a commentator. Since I did not figure out the method myself, I shall not post it here. But the hint is to examine David’s claim that the entire video is being shown in a single cut, and to note the panning of the camera.
Important Timings
Still not convinced? Here are some important timings in the video to rewatch with care:
6:42 to 6:52
Look at what was at the top of the structure.
7:30
Notice that the camera panned to the front of the set-up just in time for the disappearance.
7:32
The curtain retreats backwards, through the back of the structure.
7:33
Very thick flares prevent the camera at the front from seeing what is behind the structure: The curtain moving away at suspiciously high speed.
7:34
Look behind the entire support structure. The curtain falls right at the very back of the support foundation.
7:49
The top of the structure is a lot emptier than before.
Conclusion
There are some iffy details in my explanation, but I believe that the general idea is correct. The curtains are the only thing that leaves the platform and therefore they must be the key to this illusion. The only way for David and his helper to leave the platform is under the cover of the curtain.
The equipment involved in setting up this illusion was probably custom-made and insanely expensive, particularly the propulsion/pulley system needed for the rapid retrieval of two grown men.
David Copperfield is a brilliant magician and his illusions are very well crafted. Hopefully I’ll get to watch his performance life again some day.
Sandbox 