This past Friday, Chris Jones, the Hypnotist who was a contestant on America’s Got Talent, performed for Hope College in the Maas Auditorium. It was absolutely insane and I, along with the rest of the audience, enjoyed every second of it. Although I didn’t get hypnotized (I tried) many others did, suddenly dropping their heads at the sound of his voice. It was difficult to believe than any part of it was scripted since students I knew kept eerily blank facial expressions throughout the entire event, completely unaffected by the uproarious laughter around them.
The Highlights:
- Hypnotistland: Strapped to their seats by their arms and screaming for their lives, we watched as those who were hypnotize convulse in their chairs, believing they were being thrown around by an awesome rollercoaster. At one point, Chris Jones suggested that the seatbelt broke so they held onto each other for dear life.
- Thriller Night: The Hypnotist made them believe they were zombies… and released them out into the audience to hunt for a meal. One of the supposed zombies decided that a friend to my right had the most delicious brains.
- Dancing in the Moonlight: After the zombies found their meal and had a little nibble, they were hypnotized into believing their meal was in fact their prom date. Slow dancing ensued.
- It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s: Mashed potato gal (she shoots mashed potatos from her hands). Buns (she can only heal baby bunnies). Fisherman (he catches fish). Gene man (he alters people’s genes, not their jeans). Kip (he can jump, for good or evil). One thing we realized is that people can be really creative under hypnosis. Chris Jones prompted them to pick an unconventional superhero name who had an unconventional power and save people who were “in danger” in the audience.
- Professor X: A superpower they all had in common later that night was mind reading. They picked another partner from the audience and told the rest of us what his or her happy and naughty thoughts were. My favorite naughty thought was throwing grass at prospective students (only at Hope, kids).
One of my favorite parts was that at the end of the show the Hypnotist led his victims to believe that they had been at a Drake concert the entire time. Additionally, none of them could pronounce or remember their names for the rest of the night.
Student 1: “How was the Drake concert?”
Student 2: “It was great!!!”
Student 1: “HAHA. there was no Drake concert” *proceeds to show video of friend*
Student 2: *silence* No way.
While hypnotism shows are loads of fun, Chris Jones wants to also use his talent to help others overcome their stutters, decrease the pain for a soon-to-be mother giving birth, increase the energy and confidence in everyday people, and so on. I pray for the Hypnotist’s success in his endeavors and hope he comes back to perform for us again!