IncredulousChris 
Presto Pete brings you, in his own inimitable way, one of the OLDEST documented magic tricks… the Cups and Balls trick! This is one of the MANY tricks we teach in our Magic Lesson sessions.
According to Wikipedia:
“The effect, also known as acetabula et calculi, was performed by Roman conjurers as far back as two thousand years ago, as referred to in Seneca’s 45th Epistle to Lucilius:
‘Sic ista sine noxa decipiunt quomodo praestigiatorum acetabula et calculi, in quibus me fallacia ipsa delectat. Effice ut quomodo fiat intellegam: perdidi lusum.’ (Such quibbles are just as harmlessly deceptive as the juggler’s cup and dice, in which it is the very trickery that pleases me. But show me how the trick is done, and I have lost my interest therein.)'”
Of course, when Pete and Chris, do the trick, we do it in our own goofball way. However, the routine also differs from place to place, era to era, and performer to performer. According to Wikipedia:
“Medieval cups and balls
In 1584 Reginald Scot wrote The Discoverie of Witchcraft, within which he describes tricks with balls. He recommends using candlesticks with a hollow underneath, or bowls, or salt cellars covers to cover the balls. He describes the routine with 3 or 4 balls, and as many covers. He describes placing a ball under each cover, lifting the covers to show the balls vanished, and then having the balls all re-appear under one cover. Although Scot describes a method, it is considered by magicians to be unlikely as some of the moves described would be impossible to perform invisibly.
Indian cups and balls
In India, the cups and balls were performed seated on the ground, with an audience stood, or in chairs around the performer. This unique line of sight for the audience gave rise to some unique sleight of hand moves. The cups that are used are shaped like a shallow bell, a shallow bowl with a small knob handle on the top. They are often held between the first two fingers by this handle. The shallow nature of the cups means that a large item cannot be produced at the end of the routine, so the routine is often ended with the production of many of the same sized balls, although Shankar Junior would end with the production of black powder from one of the bowls. The number of cups and balls used varies, with between 1 and 5 balls in play during the routine, and between 2 and 4 cups.
Owan To Tama (お椀と玉)
Owan To Tama, the “Turning of Bowls” is the Japanese version of the cups and balls. The magician uses 3 bowls, and traditionally 4 soft silk covered balls as 3, a fan and 3 final productions, either oranges or boxes, sometimes of cigarettes. The movements of the Japanese routine are based on Japanese classical dance.There is a display to show the bowls used called “Owan-Gaeshi” where the performer passes the bowls from hand to hand, showing them empty in a dance-like manner. The routine has been described as having a reverent, ceremonial air. The routine was also performed kneeling on the floor, for a kneeling audience. Unlike other cups and balls routines the Japanese magician would usually work inside, and to music.
“Bean sowing”
The Chinese routine of the cups and balls is often called “The Immortal Sowing Beans”, it originated in ancient agricultural society as early as the Longshan Culture Period, pre-Shang Dynasty (before 1600 B.C.). It takes its name from the saying “Plant melons and you get melons, sow beans and you get beans.” The immortal was believed to grow from ordinary man who is capable of various magic power and longevity by either accumulation of mortal cultivation or eating elixir vitae. The beans in the routine represent beans of elixir vitae.
The props used consisted of a fan, mat, and between 2 and 6 bowls, with between 3 and 10 beans. The most common numbers being 2 bowls with 3 or 5 beans. The Chinese method is unusual in that an extra bean or ball is rarely used. They also have some unique methods of concealing the beans. Traditionally the routine was performed on the ground, but now it’s more commonly performed on a table.
Another element of the Chinese routine is to make large productions at the start as well as the end of the routine. Common productions include changing a small peach into an egg, producing water, sometimes with fish, and sometimes Baijiu. For the finale, “Harvesting a Million Beans” involves placing two bowls mouth to mouth, when they are opened many tiny beans are seen to over flow from the lower bowl. However, like the Indian routine, the Chinese do not always use a large final production, such as the routine performed by 王鬼手 (Wang Gui Shou, or King of Ghost Hands).
Modern cups and balls: the Dai Vernon routine
The cups and balls have a long history, and the routines performed by today’s performers are naturally built upon the work of previous masters. In ancient Greece and Rome magicians would perform stood behind a table, as opposed to on the ground as seen in Egypt, India and Turkey, to allow a larger audience to see the show, this tradition has continued today. Tall conical shaped metal cups were the norm in Europe and Egypt until the routine by Dai Vernon became popular using shorter, more squat cups that were about as tall as the hand. Similar squat cups were popularised by the likes of Paul Fox, Charlie Miller and Ross Bertram.
Dai Vernon’s influence can be seen in many modern routines. Jim Cellini, a student of Tony Slydini, and teacher of many street performers, credits his routine to Vernon, Miller, and Johnny Fox. Dai Vernon’s student, Michael Ammar, of whom Louis Falanga, President of L&L Publishing, said: “Ammar has literally led the industry in shaping the thinking and performing of this generation of magicians”, created his own routine based upon what his teacher had taught him.
The Vernon routine consists of vanishing the three balls, to reappear under the cups, the penetration of the balls through the cups, the spectator choosing which cup to invisibly transport a ball to, the removal and return of the balls, and the revelation of the final large production items, usually fruit. Watching modern performances of the cups and balls you are likely to see a similar sequence followed.
Chop cup
A fairly modern development is the ‘chop cup’. This cup was invented around 1954 by Al Wheatley who performed a Chinese-costumed act with the name “Chop Chop”. The chop cup is a variation with one cup and (apparently) one ball, hugely popular because it requires only a very small flat area to perform, unlike the considerable table space needed for the classic three-cup routine. The Chicago close-up magician Don Alan performed his streamlined chop cup routine on television. and was immediately copied by magicians all over the world. Paul Daniels’ routine with the chop cup has also done a lot for the routine’s popularity. The chop cup can be handled entirely by the top, creating a more seemingly impossible performance.
Three shell game
The three shell game is similar in some respects to the three cup routine. In it, the main move is a steal of the pea from the back of the shell. This achieved by using a flexible pea and performing the trick on a soft surface. The pea is squeezed out under the back of the shell into the fingers in the act of pushing the shell forward. In a similar way, the pea can be introduced under a shell by drawing it back. These moves are made casually in swapping the positions of the shells. The spectator is supposed to follow by eye which shell has the pea, but in reality, they have no chance of success as the performer is always one step ahead of the spectators.
Clear Cups
Penn & Teller
The magic duo Penn & Teller performs a version of the cups and balls trick in their act. Initially, they perform the trick with small aluminum foil balls and plastic cups. The trick ends with the appearance of larger foil balls under the cups, and the surprise appearance of an extra unrelated object, such as a potato or a lime, under one or more cups. They then repeat the trick using transparent plastic cups, claiming that they will reveal how to perform the trick. However, as part of the joke, they do the trick so fast as to make it difficult to follow. They claim that this version of the cups and balls breaks all four rules of magic: not to tell the audience how a trick is done, not to repeat the same trick twice, not to show the audience the secret preparation, and the “unwritten rule” never to perform the cups and balls with clear plastic cups. They claim this version of the trick got them kicked out of The Magic Castle.”
