Hypnotism is not magic. But there is a science behind what may seem like magic. There are therapeutic treatments that only hypnotism can provide.
Wednesday night’s show by Michael C. Anthony at Pittsburg State was not that type of hypnotism. It was more a show hypnotism. But it’s the type of hypnotism the Student Activities Council asks to return every fall.
“Every time he comes, he puts on a great show. Everyone loves him. By the way everyone rushes the stage when he asks for volunteers, people feel like they can be a part of it,” said Khalid Tirawi, SAC spokesperson. “It’s a good show with great laughs.”
Part of that show included subjects howling like werewolves, dancing with brooms and leaping across others to act as an imaginary seat belt. As if those scenarios were not strange enough, Anthony even induced men to imagine that they were giving birth.
“People like it because they get to see their friends act out of character,” Anthony said. “If you go to a band or a broadway show, you don’t know anybody on stage personally. With stage hypnotism, the audience knows them better, and finds it funnier.”
Anthony got his start from watching his uncle and picking up hypnotism slowly, eventually being booked for stage shows and turning that into a career.
But there is more to Anthony’s hypnotism than just stage shows. He’s also a hypnotherapist, offering recordings to help with some of life’s problems, such as taking tests.
“In a therapeutic sense, it’s extremely powerful. You can lose weight, athletes can perform better, and you can quit bad habits through it,” Anthony said. “Your subconsciousness can put up patterns that block you from doing what ou want. Hypnotism can help break those patterns on the subconscious level. It fixes the problem at the source.”
Anthony hosted two shows on Wednesday, and ended the first by having each participant walk off the stage, only to realize everything that had occurred while they were hypnotized at the second they touched the ground.
But despite the tricks of the mind, Anthony said it was all in good fun and just a demonstration of the power of the subconscious.
“They’re doing it to themselves — there’s no danger. It’s like when you watch a movie,” Anthony said. “When you’re watching a movie, you suspend belief. You know the movie was made by producers and directors and actors, but you let the fictitious world take hold of you.”
Andrew Nash can be reached at andrew.nash@morningsun.net or by calling 231-2600 ext. 132.
