China Surprise. Oh yes, I'm considering it.

[Brett H]

So...yeah....China Surprise.

Everyone's favorite freakin' Tenyo!

Here's the thing. I'm looking over one of my sets (that uses all Tenyo that would or can use a handkerchief) and as it turns out, the handkerchief-reliant Tenyo is pretty odd.

You have fragile ones (Hanky Penetration)
Ones made for older audiences (Ghost Lamp)
Ones where the presentation (currently...hopefully Tenyo-ism improves it) flat out SUCKS (Undercover Cube)
Ones where they would work better with younger audiences (Illusion Truck)

On vey. Now there are SOME that work with virtually any audience: Shrinking Pen, Magic Butterfly, and another that I just forgot.

But in a moment of panic that if have to carry virtually EVERY handkerchief-reliant Tenyo with me in order to have 6 kids of any age perform an age appropriate Tenyo. I starting looking up videos for Tenyo that I STILL haven't given the time of day.

Namely, China Surprise.

Don't know why it sucks. The patter could be EASILY worked with. Anyway. Couple questions:

1) It says that you do China Surrise with 'tissue paper'. Could you use a white silk handkerchief?

2). Can the 'surprise' happen in their hands? It looks like it COULD (like if I stuffed the tissue in their hand. Or if they stuffed the tissue in my hand).

It looks like it could potentially have a bit of hands-on work by a spectator. I'm interested to work with this thing. Dead serious.

Any help, as always, is greatly appreciated!

[SimonC]

Brett, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to make a good routine for China Surprise, it gets a beating (mostly from me) but there's always scope to put a good slant on it. You couldn't do it in their hands but they could probably push the tissue and pea into your hand (insert joke about pea/pee in your hand) I don't know about a silk vs tissue, it may work but I think the tissue is more likely to behave itself and stay compacted.
You got this man

[Brett H]

Brett, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to make a good routine for China Surprise, it gets a beating (mostly from me) but there's always scope to put a good slant on it. You couldn't do it in their hands but they could probably push the tissue and pea into your hand (insert joke about pea/pee in your hand) I don't know about a silk vs tissue, it may work but I think the tissue is more likely to behave itself and stay compacted.
You got this man

All right! Off to a good start! Totally onboard with them stuffing the tissue/silk in my hand and working from there.

The only reason why I'm asking if a silk can be used is that the set starts with passing out a handkerchief to each child. They would then each get to use their handkerchief with a Tenyo.

I'm hoping a silk could be used as I think it would be wonky to hand out 5 handkerchiefs and 1 box of Kleenex

[SimonC]

Exactly. I suppose if a silk works with a thumb tip it should work with this. Good luck!

[Brett H]

Exactly. I suppose if a silk works with a thumb tip it should work with this. Good luck!

I appreciate it! And thanks for the help. I'll start putting pen to paper and work from there. But man, this is one that, outside of Japan, you REALLY need to 'sell'; very patter and performance heavy. Kind of like Psychic Money (without all the neat nuances)

[SimonC]

how about this...
just to give it another facet, you could know up a few cards with say 4 different pictures on, say dumpling, sushi, umm two others (I'm not up on my Japanese cuisine) and force the dumpling card on them. perhaps you get them to write "dumpling" on a tissue and tuck it into your hand. or if you want to use a silk you could have it tucked it into your collar like a napkin as if you're going to eat, then pull it out and use that in your hand.

[Elliot W.]

Good luck with this Brett. This works in japan because it looks like a realistic dumpling but if you'd never seen one it just looks like a strange plastic blob.
Simon's idea of introducing the dumpling first on a card is good but I still think kids will just look at this strangely.

Still, if you want to give it a go you can get one pretty cheap here:
http://madhattermagicshop.com/magicshop ... ts_id=8251

[Brett H]

White silk napkin! That's brilliant! I was thinking of using a while silk because it just matched the color of the tissue, but I didn't match that connection. Man! That's great!

And maybe have the child who used a red handkerchief to lay it on the table as a 'tablecloth' just to get more involvement.

I feel like that, because we aren't in Japan; to get it to work, a sort of 'idea' needs to be introduced that we are going to work with food first. I'm thinking in the manner of using one trick that 'breaks routine' (in my case) of the constant uses of handkerchiefs near the end of the set (or the beginning of the set, since I don't think the effect is as strong as others). Like I need something to eat in order to continue. So I was thinking of introducing a routine with 'Ghost Card' where you 'eat the cards'...you don't do it with the 'other gimmick' at all. But after you eat as much if the cards as you can, you offer the spectators if they want a bite. Whether they say yes or no, there's is a response to either and you now have a very natural way if ditching the whole thing.
Even at the beginning of 'Ghost Card', I feel that with children, you can make a much easier and relaxed showing of the cards at the beginning. Like you're bringing out the deck and just adding cards that fell out. A much more natural routine.

Back to 'China Surprise'. I did take Japanese for 3 years in high school--even still keeping in contact with Sensei to this day. We had days where we all had to TRY and make Japanese food and bring them into class, so we all got to try this smorgasbord of different foods. And that's sort of the basis in working off of. Plus, Elliot W. Said recently that he has had no problem working another Trick that would work well
In Japan, 'Magical Sushi' and has had no problem working it here in the states. I figure that the same could work for the 'unfavorable dumpling', provided one can 'sell it'.

To Elliot W.'s credit, it's easier to 'sell' sushi. I was surprised hearing that as I figured sushi would be a sort of hit or miss. I'm thrilled that it can work here.

For you guys who work with older audiences. Why not have something along he lines of, 'I knew a guy that went to a culinary school, and showed me how to make quick dumplings like this!'

[VictorS]

Like the ideas here Just for your reference Brett, the china surprise or the dumpling is one of the famous traditional chinese cuisine which called Dim Sum. Maybe you`have heard about it and it is also famous in Asia and I believe also in US.

Wikipedia:
Dim sum /ˈdɪmˈsʌm/ (simplified Chinese: 点心; traditional Chinese: 點心; pinyin: Diǎnxīn) is a style of Cantonese cuisine prepared as small bite-sized or individual portions of food traditionally served in small steamer baskets or on small plates. Dim sum is also well known for the unique way it is served in some restaurants, whereby fully cooked and ready-to-serve dim sum dishes are carted around the restaurant for customers to choose their orders while seated at their tables.

Eating dim sum at a restaurant is usually known in Cantonese as going to "drink tea" (yum cha, 飲茶), as dim sum is typically served with tea.[original research?]

Similar small dishes exist in other varieties of Chinese cuisine, sometimes known in English as dianxin, from the pronunciation of the same two characters for "dim sum" in Mandarin.

So I believe that`s why they called the trick China (not Japan) Surprise.
Here are some different menus when we go to eat dim sum :
http://www.dimsumcentral.com/dim-sum-menu-guide/

The China Surprise is one of them what we called Pork Siu Mai or Dumplings.

So if you want to create a Dim Sum Routine by integrating China Surprise in it, it could be a good option.

[Brett H]

That is awesome info! Thank you very much.

Right after you mentioned 'dim sum', I jumped out of my chair, 'I had that 8 years ago!' They had a really good one in Las Vegas I went to a couple of times and one in Chicago. Extremely great stuff. Only one of the items I couldn't get on board with (it was rooster feet/legs). I remember the dumplings being really really good.

I also remember being a bit overwhelmed by the dim sum 'system' of how you end up ordering. LOTS of people running around with food and you sort of have to flag them down. At the time, I was way too socially awkward and inept make any order on my own (I even avoided restaurants in general). My wife (at the time) ended up having to order everything. Great food and you always leave stuffed. But man, if you're solidly used to the traditional way of ordering food, get ready to have that expectation turned on its ear.

As soon as I read your post, Victor. I went on Planet Tenyo to try and see if I can make a food-based set or routine. Oddly enough, there's not a lot of food Tenyo, and China Surprise is the front runner for being the most affordable.

You have the McDonalds based Tenyo (if you can find them). China Surprise, Magical Sushi, Ghost Card, and Magical Burger, I feel like I need 2-3 more to make it, and next years Tenyo won't have anything good based from what I can tell

[VictorS]

Only one of the items I couldn't get on board with (it was rooster feet/legs).

Oh really ? ? That is one of my favorite actually

[Brett H]

Only one of the items I couldn't get on board with (it was rooster feet/legs).

Oh really ? ? That is one of my favorite actually

I just looked at it with complete overwhelm as to how one would successfully store it in their tummy.