The History Of Stage Hypnosis
The story of stage hypnosis begins in Paris in 1813 when a scientist named Abbe Faria began to perform public demonstrations of hypnosis. Whilst these demonstrations of hypnosis could hardly be thought of as hypnosis shows as we now consider them, Faria’s demonstrations were the start of hypnosis being performed for the amusement of the general public. Stage hypnosis as we think of it today was really pioneered by a failed French actor turned Mesmerist named Charles Lafontaine.
Lafontaine was a French hypnotist who toured the vaudeville theaters of Britain in 1841. An old-fashioned Mesmerist, Lafontaine achieved fame and fortune as one of the first genuinely original specialty acts. For Lafontaine, it was adequate to simply ‘put his subjects to sleep’ and very little else was required to amaze the audiences of the day. On November 13th 1841 one of Lafontaine’s Mesmeric demonstrations was witnessed by a certain James Braid this encounter would be a turning point for hypnosis as it was James Braid who in 1842 coined the terms “hypnotism” and “hypnosis,” based on the Greek word for “sleep.”
Throughout the 1840s public demonstrations of hypnosis, were all the rage, with the stage hypnotists frequently ending their shows with advertisements for private consultations. Unfortunately, by the end of 1852 interest in hypnosis was waning due at least in part to the large number of fraudulent hypnotists employing paid stooges and performing unsavory routines.
In the early 1900’s, stage hypnotism enjoyed a brief revival with Dr. Walford Bodie being the most famous proponent of stage hypnosis, although almost nothing is known about him other than his reputation, the fact that he wasn't a real doctor and that he retired to live on a houseboat on the Thames. Dr. Bodie livened up the hypnosis act and his performances were played more for amusement than amazement.
In the 1940’s in the United States of America interest in hypnosis was resurrected due to the incredible success of an American stage hypnotist, named Ormond McGill. In addition to pioneering hypnotism as television entertainment, McGill penned what is now acknowledged as 'The Bible' of stage hypnosis, his book "The Encyclopedia of Genuine Stage Hypnotism" first published in 1947.
Whilst across the pond in Britain, at around the same time an incredibly talented hypnotist named Peter Casson burst onto the Moss & Stoll theatre circuit and revived interest in stage hypnosis. Following Peter Casson’s success a American hypnotist named Ralph Slater came to the UK and enjoyed great success until he was embroiled in a court case which was widely reported in the tabloids although Ralph Slater eventually won this case it had already led to an increased concern about the possible dangers of stage hypnotism, and the 1952 Hypnotism Act was created with the intention of protecting the public from unprincipled hypnotists.
The 1952 Hypnotism Act succeeded only in pushing stage hypnosis to the fringes of the entertainment scene forcing hypnotists to perform in less prestigious venues such as nightclubs, working men’s clubs and of course the infamous end of the pier shows. And this was how it continued until the 1970’s when stage hypnotist Robert Helpern began to perform in both the pavilion theatre in Glasgow and the Cagey picture house in Edinburgh.
Robert Halpern's success was unrivaled until the appearance of a witty and talented stage hypnotist named Andrew Newton. Whilst Robert Halpern ruled hypnosis in Scotland, Andrew Newton built a huge following in Leeds, Liverpool and rather further a field in New Zealand. In the late 1980’s Robert Halpern bowed out of stage hypnosis and left Andrew Newton as the undisputed king of stage hypnosis until 1987 and the arrival of radio DJ turned hypnotist Paul McKenna.
In 1993 both McKenna and Newton recorded television series’ McKenna recorded for Carlton and Newton for Sky. Unfortunately for Newton, McKenna’s series went to broadcast first on a terrestrial channel and so consequently McKenna’s series enjoyed much greater viewing figures than Newton’s that was broadcast on Murdoch’s satellite television platform However all this TV exposure was far from being a good thing for hypnosis. Before this time there were only a handful of stage hypnotists in the UK after the huge success of Paul McKenna’s TV series there was a veritable flood of stage hypnotists performing allover the UK most of whom were woefully inept as both performers and hypnotists.
Then in 1993 the unthinkable happened a 24-year-old woman named Sharron Tabarn died after taking part in a hypnosis show. Now whilst it may be easy to think that Sharron died as a result of being hypnotized the coroner, Michael Howard McCann recorded a verdict of death by natural causes. When you consider the sheer number of stage hypnotists performing at this time on almost a daily basis it was inevitable that someone somewhere by coincidence alone would die after having been hypnotized. Sharron’s family was not satisfied with the coroners report and waged a public campaign against stage hypnosis. This campaign against stage hypnosis was widely reported in the tabloids much like the case against Ralph Slater. All of this negative publicity lead to a Home Office review of the 1952 Stage Hypnotism Act.
In 1994 a board of experts was created by the Home Office to analyze any evidence of possible damage to people participating in public performances of stage hypnosis, and to review the effectiveness of the laws governing stage hypnosis. Publication of the expert panel's report was announced in parliament in 1995, which came to the conclusion that "there was no evidence of serious risk to participants in stage hypnosis, and that any risk which does exist is much less significant than that involved in many other activities."
Once again stage hypnosis is experiencing a revival as it has done so many times before. Today hypnosis stage shows are recognized as safe family entertainment and are again becoming incredibly popular as both public and corporate entertainment. If you want to book a show that is sure to stir up public interest a comedy hypnosis show is as it always has been and always will be unrivaled.
Lafontaine was a French hypnotist who toured the vaudeville theaters of Britain in 1841. An old-fashioned Mesmerist, Lafontaine achieved fame and fortune as one of the first genuinely original specialty acts. For Lafontaine, it was adequate to simply ‘put his subjects to sleep’ and very little else was required to amaze the audiences of the day. On November 13th 1841 one of Lafontaine’s Mesmeric demonstrations was witnessed by a certain James Braid this encounter would be a turning point for hypnosis as it was James Braid who in 1842 coined the terms “hypnotism” and “hypnosis,” based on the Greek word for “sleep.”
Throughout the 1840s public demonstrations of hypnosis, were all the rage, with the stage hypnotists frequently ending their shows with advertisements for private consultations. Unfortunately, by the end of 1852 interest in hypnosis was waning due at least in part to the large number of fraudulent hypnotists employing paid stooges and performing unsavory routines.
In the early 1900’s, stage hypnotism enjoyed a brief revival with Dr. Walford Bodie being the most famous proponent of stage hypnosis, although almost nothing is known about him other than his reputation, the fact that he wasn't a real doctor and that he retired to live on a houseboat on the Thames. Dr. Bodie livened up the hypnosis act and his performances were played more for amusement than amazement.
In the 1940’s in the United States of America interest in hypnosis was resurrected due to the incredible success of an American stage hypnotist, named Ormond McGill. In addition to pioneering hypnotism as television entertainment, McGill penned what is now acknowledged as 'The Bible' of stage hypnosis, his book "The Encyclopedia of Genuine Stage Hypnotism" first published in 1947.
Whilst across the pond in Britain, at around the same time an incredibly talented hypnotist named Peter Casson burst onto the Moss & Stoll theatre circuit and revived interest in stage hypnosis. Following Peter Casson’s success a American hypnotist named Ralph Slater came to the UK and enjoyed great success until he was embroiled in a court case which was widely reported in the tabloids although Ralph Slater eventually won this case it had already led to an increased concern about the possible dangers of stage hypnotism, and the 1952 Hypnotism Act was created with the intention of protecting the public from unprincipled hypnotists.
The 1952 Hypnotism Act succeeded only in pushing stage hypnosis to the fringes of the entertainment scene forcing hypnotists to perform in less prestigious venues such as nightclubs, working men’s clubs and of course the infamous end of the pier shows. And this was how it continued until the 1970’s when stage hypnotist Robert Helpern began to perform in both the pavilion theatre in Glasgow and the Cagey picture house in Edinburgh.
Robert Halpern's success was unrivaled until the appearance of a witty and talented stage hypnotist named Andrew Newton. Whilst Robert Halpern ruled hypnosis in Scotland, Andrew Newton built a huge following in Leeds, Liverpool and rather further a field in New Zealand. In the late 1980’s Robert Halpern bowed out of stage hypnosis and left Andrew Newton as the undisputed king of stage hypnosis until 1987 and the arrival of radio DJ turned hypnotist Paul McKenna.
In 1993 both McKenna and Newton recorded television series’ McKenna recorded for Carlton and Newton for Sky. Unfortunately for Newton, McKenna’s series went to broadcast first on a terrestrial channel and so consequently McKenna’s series enjoyed much greater viewing figures than Newton’s that was broadcast on Murdoch’s satellite television platform However all this TV exposure was far from being a good thing for hypnosis. Before this time there were only a handful of stage hypnotists in the UK after the huge success of Paul McKenna’s TV series there was a veritable flood of stage hypnotists performing allover the UK most of whom were woefully inept as both performers and hypnotists.
Then in 1993 the unthinkable happened a 24-year-old woman named Sharron Tabarn died after taking part in a hypnosis show. Now whilst it may be easy to think that Sharron died as a result of being hypnotized the coroner, Michael Howard McCann recorded a verdict of death by natural causes. When you consider the sheer number of stage hypnotists performing at this time on almost a daily basis it was inevitable that someone somewhere by coincidence alone would die after having been hypnotized. Sharron’s family was not satisfied with the coroners report and waged a public campaign against stage hypnosis. This campaign against stage hypnosis was widely reported in the tabloids much like the case against Ralph Slater. All of this negative publicity lead to a Home Office review of the 1952 Stage Hypnotism Act.
In 1994 a board of experts was created by the Home Office to analyze any evidence of possible damage to people participating in public performances of stage hypnosis, and to review the effectiveness of the laws governing stage hypnosis. Publication of the expert panel's report was announced in parliament in 1995, which came to the conclusion that "there was no evidence of serious risk to participants in stage hypnosis, and that any risk which does exist is much less significant than that involved in many other activities."
Once again stage hypnosis is experiencing a revival as it has done so many times before. Today hypnosis stage shows are recognized as safe family entertainment and are again becoming incredibly popular as both public and corporate entertainment. If you want to book a show that is sure to stir up public interest a comedy hypnosis show is as it always has been and always will be unrivaled.
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