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Further Education
A 2 DVD set by John Archer
Reviewed by Steve Evans
Further Education is the latest material compilation DVD from John Archer's
working repertoire. The routines (for the uninitiated) feature comedy mentalism
that John performs on stage but some (if not all) of the routines are adaptable
for close-up. All are high on magical content as well as being funny. I would
qualify this review by saying that John is a close friend, although not that
close as I didn't actually know he'd released a new DVD until I went in search
of his Bank Night routine called "Blank Night" the trick that fooled Penn and
Teller on the tele.
For those with very busy lives this 2 DVD set is more than value for money - go
buy it. For those with less busy diaries (or personal interest in this project)
I will continue. Disc 1 is the live performance of the material that is
explained on Disc 2. There are eight routines, 6 are fully explained with the
other two being discussed in detail but the methods are not divulged because
they feature commercially available props. In additional (as a bonus) there are
three close-up effects that are all fully explained. All of this material John
works in the real world meaning in effect he is tipping a large chunk of his
commercial act.
As the title suggests this is a follow on from John's previous DVD Educating
Archer with one of the routines being a large venue presentation of a routine
featured in the earlier DVD. This gives you the working of an envelope that does
the job of the previously used wallet which some had said they were having
problems finding. For me the cost of the DVD's is more than covered by the
inclusion of the Blank Night routine (with PDF included so you can make up the
envelopes) and a DIY Add-it (number) pad that is genius in its simplicity.
John Archer fans will I'm sure be happy with his latest offering. A criticism by
the neutral observer may be that overall the material isn't as strong as his
previous DVD and the stage setting for the live performance is somewhat
disappointing. But for me the material scores on quality over quantity and the
stage setting is used by John for very good comic effect.
As a bonus John also includes his commercial close-up set. The three routines
covered represent more commercial material then you would find on many DVD's
dedicated to the subject. So I would recommend Archie's latest offering but it
comes with a warning; you don't get to be as good as John Archer by simply
watching his DVD but it's a very good place to start the journey.
Further Education by John Archer can be purchased from
www.alakazam.co.uk - my
copy arrived in 24 hours. There you will also find the props featured (but not
explained) on the DVD and John's twist on the book test plot called Street's.
This is performed (without explanation) on the DVD and is well worth a look.
© Steve Evans, January 2011