Kyle Marlett gives a massive At The Table lecture with 14 different effects over 3 and a half hours and there’s only one card trick taught! If you are looking for non-card, organic material then this lecture will show you things you may not have seen before. This is mostly DIY material with very few dealer items being sold.

Kyle Marlett is primarily known as a consultant, who gives some very good and real world advice on what it’s like to be a consultant, which is still one of the top professions some magicians want to get into, and the information is still relevant all these years later.

The lecture is hosted by Greg Wilson, who loves to banter and give his candid thoughts throughout the lecture which keeps things interesting but the banter can also slow the pacing down of the lecture, which is already very long at 3hrs 44 minutes.

But let’s get into the list of effects that Kyle teaches!

**Draw Straws** - The first trick is a parlour gag with a visual ending where you “instantly” draw a cup and straw on a paper pad before reaching out a plucking the straw from the drawing. This leaves you with a straw to move onto a routine using it.

This is a great premise based off a pun, but if you don’t like that I can see other objects being plucked out as you transition between stage pieces. 4/5

**Sugar Packet** - A sugar packet is held flat between your fingers and then puffs up, revealing a sugar cube inside.

The visual of a sugar cube forming within a sugar packet is stunning, this works perfect for social media and coffee shop magic. 3/5

**Animal Cracker** - A participant closes their eyes and takes a cracker out of an animal cracker box. You then mentally divine the animal anyway you want, in this case via a drawing. Another DIY effect that is cleverly constructed and gives a force bag some context. 3/5

**Stir Stick Prediction** - You write a prediction on coffee stir stick (ie. dog) and ask the participant if they’re a cat or dog person. They answer cat, you show your prediction is incorrect, but with a shake the word changes to dog.

A simple trick for when you’re at the cafe which can apply to any change of a word to another. You are also able to end clean which is a bonus since it’s close up magic. 4/5

**Vanishing Banana** - You take a banana off from a bunch of bananas, then place it in a paper towel which can be held by the participant at the top. You crush the banana and paper towel, vanishing a full banana.

This ingenious method was created for Cyril Takayama for one of his TV Specials and is as organic as you can get. It’s also possible to set this up on the fly and is a great alternative to the vanishing bottle that audiences are more familiar with. 5/5

**Dollar to Toilet Paper** - A bill is signed and vanished. It is then found inside a toilet paper roll after unrolling it almost to the end.

Kyle created this routine and performed it on stage the same night and it has become one of his main routines. This routine has a lot of comedy byplay with a child or someone unrolling the toilet paper all over the stage or into the audience. This routine fits the definition of packs small and plays big, and there’s no DIY involved too! 4/5

**Coffee Break** - Two empty coffee cups are placed mouth to mouth and coffee is produced.

This is a DIY trick that is easy to construct and also perform, the coffee produced isn’t a lot but enough to create wonder with where and how the liquid came to be. There is setup involved and there’s a risk with performing this trick, like most tricks that involve liquid. 3/5

**Trick to Get Tips** - A bill is changed into a piece of paper with your name on it. After doing a couple of other tricks, the bill is finally found inside the card box, which has been empty and in full view since the beginning of your set.

This trick came from Kyle’s repertoire when he performed walkaround magic at restaurants and is a clever way of letting people know you accept tips and practically guarantees you get one by the time you make their bill reappear. An excellent trick for those who work in restaurants. 5/5

**Bill to Lip Balm** - A simple routine where a chapstick is brought out. A bill is borrowed and vanished. You open the chapstick and the bill is found inside.

This trick takes a page out of Jay Sankey’s book for the method and you are able to use the chapstick before the vanish of the bill. I found the holder that Kyle made to hold the chapstick more useful than the trick itself. 2/5

**New Ring Thru Table** - A ring is placed in a folded napkin and then pushed through the table. Another version sees you vanishing the ring from the napkin and producing it wherever you imagination wants.

There are two methods taught for this trick, and the second method where the participant can feel the ring in the folder napkin before you rip up the napkin to show it’s gone was the best method. This trick is very much an idea for us to take and use in any routine where a ring needs to be vanished. 4/5

**Card into Dollar Bill** - You hold a playing card and visually change it into a dollar bill.

Kyle performs and teaches a full routine using this gimmick, but the highlight is the visual change itself, which is not hard to make for the visuals you can produce and it’s also possible to hand out the bill for examination afterwards. 5/5

**Phone Prediction** - A selected card is found predicted in the background photo of your mobile phone.

Probably the weakest trick in the lecture as there are so many variations on this in this modern digital age. Kyle’s method is simple and makes use of the default backgrounds that Apple iPhones had before, but these days everyone has different backgrounds. 1/5

**Balloon Trick** - A balloon is blown up and tied. You write POP onto it with a marker. A participant holds the balloon between their hands while you rub your hands together and mime pushing your energy into the balloon. The balloon then pops without you touching it.

Kyle presented this trick as a concept with room to grow and improve. This method is very angle sensitive and really only works one on one, which would not fit a balloon effect as most times you encounter a balloon is at a party with lots of people around. 1/5

**Glass Bottle Thru Body** - You place a glass bottle into a paper bag and are then able to push it through a participants stomach and take it out of their back.

Kyle ends the lecture on a great parlour effect where the participant can feel a bottle in the bag up until the moment it is pushed through their body. Be aware that this is best done on someone who can handle something being pushed against their body with force. This is also the only routine that uses a marked effect that you have to buy, but Kyle teaches a method with a plastic coke bottle that you can make yourself. 3/5

Throughout the lecture Kyle talks about consulting, table hopping, notebooks and other thoughts on magic which are all great nuggets of theory which help you think more about your magic. Kyle is very creative and this lecture is a great showcase of what he is capable of.