CUPS AND BALLS (silver) - BASIC ROUTINE

In this routine, three balls will apparently pass, one at a time, through the solid cups.

For this trick, you will need the three cups and the four matching balls. Before the performance, stack the cups, mouths upward, with one ball hidden inside the middle cup and the remaining three balls in the top cup.

To perform, tip the three balls from the top cup onto the table and place them in a line. With the three cups still stacked and held mouth-up, take the bottom cup, turn it mouth-down and place it on the table to your left.

Take the next cup (with the hidden ball inside) and, turning it mouth-down, place it to the right of the first. Make sure the motion of turning the cup mouth-down and placing it on the table is smooth, so the ball doesn’t fall out before the cup reaches the table. At this point in the routine, no one should suspect that there is a ball hidden in this middle cup.

The last cup is now placed mouth-down to the right.

Place the middle ball on top of the middle cup and stack the other two cups on top of it, covering the ball.

Tap the cups, then lift them up together to show that the ball has passed through and landed on the table!

This action will reset you back to the start of the routine, as you now have a ball hidden in the middle cup once more. You can simply repeat the same moves to make the second ball pass through the cups, as follows.

Again, hold the cups in a stacked position, mouth-up. Take the bottom cup, turn it mouth-down and put it on the table to your left.

Next, take the cup with the ball hidden inside and, turning it mouth-down, place it onto the middle ball (the ball that apparently travelled through the cups earlier). Again, be careful not to let the ball fall out before the cup reaches the table.

The last cup is now placed mouth-down to the right.

Place a ball on top of the middle cup and stack the other two cups on top of it, covering the ball.

Tap the cups and then lift them all up together to show that the second ball has passed through!

You can now repeat the trick one last time to make the third ball pass through the cups, as follows.

Hold the cups in a stacked position. Take the bottom cup, turn it mouth-down and place it on the table.

Take the next cup with the hidden ball in it and place it over the two balls on the table.

The last cup is now placed mouth-down to the right.

Place the final ball on the middle cup and stack the other two cups on top of it, covering the ball.

Tap the cups then lift them all up together to show that the third ball has passed through!

Practise this trick, reading though the instructions with the props in your hands, and you will soon find the entire routine to be very simple. Your audience, not knowing about the secret fourth ball, will be baffled and amazed by this classic magic trick.