Onstage is a large cabinet. The magician mysteriously moves his hands toward the box and the box lights up like a Japanese lantern via an electric light in the box. The magician opens the front door of the box to reveal an empty interior. He removes the electric light that hangs through a hole in top of the cabinet and proceeds to shine the light behind each of the transluscent sides of the illusion to show there are no hiding places. He closes the cabinet and places the light back into the box through the hole in the roof. Suddenly a faint shadow appears on the front panel. The shadow moves and gyrates in motion as mysterious music echos the presentation. The shadow forms itself into a humanoid form, the cabinet is opened, and the shadow has been transformed into a person!

This is an incredible and eerie magic illusion that can be augmented with fog machines and other ambient lighting. Originally called “The Girl From the Light” and attributed to David Bamberg in the Tarbell Course in Magic, the illusion is spectacular and flashy. Variations on this prop are plentiful and the shadow principle can also be incorporated into other illusions. The standard version or the base versionof this prop that can be performed surrounded are both available.