LESSON PLAN

• 01

  Meet Penn & Teller

  Meet your new instructors: Emmy-winning magicians Penn & Teller, who have dazzled audiences for more than 40 years. Penn & Teller share the tricks they'll teach you and how the thinking behind magic can resonate beyond the stage.

• 02

  Sleight of Hand: The French Drop

  Penn & Teller teach the French drop, one of the most fundamental sleight of hand methods. With students watching, they break down the steps of the trick and explain how it's a building block for hundreds of other tricks.

• 03

  Cups and Balls

  Once you've mastered the French drop, you can expand upon that method to develop a routine with cups and balls. Penn & Teller demonstrate a few of the countless variations you can do with cups and balls.

  • 04

    What Is Magic?

    Magic is an intellectual art form that requires the audience's engagement as well as their suspension of disbelief. In this chapter, Penn & Teller crack open the philosophical and psychological concepts behind performing magic.

  • 05

    Misdirection

    Penn & Teller are masters of misdirection. Learn how to use misdirection to persuade the audience to hear the story they want to believe.

  • 06

    Coin Magic

    Coin magic involves the principles of sound misdirection, sleight of hand, and palming. In this chapter, Penn & Teller teach various coin magic tricks that delight audiences of all ages.

  • 07

    Magic Vs. Lying

    To convince an audience, you need to encourage them to arrive at a conclusion on their own. Penn & Teller discuss their philosophy on the deception inherent in magic.

  • 08

    Mentalist or Crook?

    Mentalism is a genre of magic that exists across a spectrum of morality. Learn how Penn & Teller use mentalism to perform a "mind-reading" trick for entertainment purposes only.

  • 09

    Card Magic

    Learn the fundamental moves in card magic that can unlock a world of tricks at your fingertips.

  • 10

    Exploiting the Best of the Human Brain

    How are magicians able to fool audiences? They take advantage of the brain's vulnerabilities. Penn & Teller dive into some of the physiological aspects of the human brain and how it relates to magic.

  • 11

    Rope Tricks

    Rope tricks play with images of destruction and resurrection. Penn & Teller walk you through their version of cut and restored rope tricks.

  • 12

    Principles of Performing

    Authenticity, practice, and research are key strategies for perfecting a performance. As veterans of the stage, Penn & Teller draw from their years of experience to share wisdom and advice for aspiring performers of all disciplines.

  • 13

    Cause and Effect

    Magic oversimplifies and distorts the principles of cause and effect. In this chapter, Penn & Teller discuss the philosophical aspects of cause and effect in relation to magic and the human psyche.

  • 14

    The Joy of Magic

    Empathy, wonder, joy: these emotions are all part of the shared experience of a magic performance. Teller shares a rare emotional account of a childhood memory that sent him on a lifelong path of bringing joy to others through magic.

  • 15

    Bonus Chapter No. 1: Advanced Student Coaching

    Matt Donnelly is a co-host of the podcast Penn's Sunday School and has recently started to learn magic. Penn & Teller team up with legendary magician Johnny Thompson to coach him on a chop-cup routine that requires a lot of practice and technical skill.

  • 16

    Bonus Chapter No. 2: Piff the Magic Dragon

    A professional magician with years of experience, Piff the Magic Dragon gets advice and coaching from Penn & Teller and Johnny Thompson on a new routine that he has created largely from scratch.

• 17

  Bonus Chapter No. 3: Penn & Teller Live at Rio Las Vegas "Cell Fish"

  Watch Penn & Teller's unique take on the "card to impossible location" trick in the form of a disappearing cell phone during their live stage show.