Durban - You could be falling in love with a mic stand, sharing an intimate supper with a mop, or swimming like a shark in an evening of entertainment from Andre the Hilarious Hypnotist.
Catering for even the most cynical audience, Andre takes to the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre with a ton of new routines, props and ideas.
Compelled by the mystery surrounding hypnotism, The Independent on Saturday team invited Andre to work his magic in our office.
Before being a stage hypnotist, Andre wanted to be all sorts of things, from a teacher to an actor.
“My initial training was in theatre and drama. My drama teacher decided the best job for me was to be a news reader, which is the opposite of what I’ve ended up doing,” he said.
“I wanted to be a teacher so studied child psychology for about a week, before I got bored.”
Thankful for his background in theatre, Andre said it had played an important role in moulding his career. “I always say a good hypnotist should have more training in drama than in stage hypnosis.”
“I use hypnosis, conducted in the same way as other hypnotists, the only difference is that I use it for entertainment value. So there’s no difference in the hypnosis that a therapist would (undertake) except I provide entertainment,” he said.
“When I saw Max Collie’s show in the 1980s, I knew, this is it, this is what I want to do,’ and that’s how I discovered my niche.”
Andre decided to change career paths. “I was already studying drama in Joburg and had my heart set on being the next David Copperfield, I was doing a bit of magic and even worked at the Brian Boswell Circus.”
Mentors were necessary to become a professional stage hypnotist: “In those days there were no special schools to train as a hypnotist like there are now. Collie became my mentor, I toured with him for four years. I followed him to all his shows, watched all his performances and would ask him questions.”
Durban-born, Andre calls it the city that launched his career. “I’d come to Durban during holidays from university and perform at caravan parks and the uMhlanga hotels. Shows were R2 a ticket, but they did very well.
“They’d have my show in the evening. The restaurants would close during the show because their staff couldn’t keep up with orders from the overload of people. That’s where it really started and it only grew from there.”
At 47, he’s been performing for 22 years, “I enjoy the recognition. There’s nothing like a really great show.”
The energy and the audience fuel his passion as a performer. “A good show definitely leaves me happy,” said Andre.
Having performed for just over two decades, he has a number of “cringeworthy” on-stage memories,
“One that stands out was when I performed in East London and asked a man to make love to a puppet, but of course I meant just kissing.
“The show carried on and I hadn’t noticed that one of my volunteers had disappeared until everyone was seated on stage and there was an empty chair. The audience was in stitches and I was distracted with everything else going on. Eventually, we found him backstage with the puppet. It was a sight to behold.”
The changing parade of volunteers ensures no two shows are ever alike. “It’s something of everything and I never know what will happen. Each audience is different and that allows for a unique show. I never know what to expect myself, but audiences can expect a lot of humour,” he said.
For the less adventurous, Andre promises not to drag you out of the audience screaming.
During his session with us, he had the entire team perform tasks. “The older the individual, the harder it is for them to be hypnotised,” he said.
Nevertheless, we all joined in the fun, holding out our arms and imagining a pile of heavy books in one hand and a balloon in the other.
What Andre put us through
It was with some apprehension that five Independent on Saturday staff sat down with Andre the hypnotist in our conference room.
He started with simple tests, which revealed those most likely to be hypnotised: Sacha van Niekerk and Phindile Shozi. Our team relate their experiences:
Sacha Van Niekerk :
“I”ve always wanted to experience hypnotism. Being very open to the idea, I was still unsure. After performing the tests, I found out from Andre that I”m easy to hypnotise.
“Under hypnosis, I felt my eyelids flickering wildly. I was completely aware of my surroundings and could hear the laughter from my colleagues as I played” the trumpet. Being rather shy, I was surprised by how willing I was to embarrass myself in front of everyone.
“The craziest part was when I thought the session was over, we were all discussing what had just happened when Andre tapped me on my head and said sleep”. Immediately, my head dropped back and Andre said, I’m going to ask you to say your name, but instead you won’t be able to answer.” When he tapped me to wake up, he repeatedly asked me to tell him my name. All that could escape my mouth was laughter as I struggled to answer him. It was the strangest feeling.”
Phindile Shozi:
“I felt as though I was a puppet. It was a weird feeling not being in control, although I was aware of my surroundings and what I was doing.”
Shozi played the drums and trumpet under hypnosis:
“When he made me act out as a drummer, I felt like I was playing for a huge crowd but I was still aware that I was in the office. I remember the entire experience. I felt torn between obeying Andre and making a fool of myself in front of our news editor and senior journalist.”
“I would definitely do it again. I enjoyed it in an unusual way, and it was a bit awkward, but a very fun experience that’s hard to put it into words.”
Shozi has always been curious about hypnosis and said, “It made me want to see more of his tricks and also have the full experience of being in the theatre seeing how people react.”
Sithembile Mkhwanazi:
“I didn’t experience much apart from the first test, I felt my hands shake as the hand carrying books became heavier and heavier.”
“During the second activity I could hear his voice but didn’t feel compelled to pretend to play the trumpet.
“From the beginning I was very nervous which may have played a role in me not responding,” she said.
Trevor Bruce:
“I’m a lot older and probably a lot more cynical after so many years in journalism. Strangely enough, with my eyes closed when Andre said that my left hand was carrying heavy books and my right had a balloon tied to it, for a moment I think my left hand dropped a fraction but when we opened our eyes I saw both were dead level, unlike my two colleagues.
“It was hilarious watching Sacha and Phindile going through their trumpet and drum routines as they are normally rather shy, particularly Sacha.”
Tanya Waterworth:
“We were all asked to hold our arms out and Andre suggested the left arm would become heavy and the right would become light.
My left hand felt as though it went down, but only very slightly. Apart from that I did not feel affected in any way.
It was fascinating to watch Andre at work and how quickly some of our team went under his spell, even though I knew they were nervous before the interview. Apart from all the laughter, the interview sparked a great discussion among our team as to the possible beneficial and not so beneficial possibilities of hypnosis.
If you need two hours of laughter-based treatment, look no further than Andre the Hilarious Hypnotist’s show at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre until August 21. Book through Computicket.
Independent on Saturday