Clearly Impossible is a variation of the
illusion
An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people.
Illusions may o ...
of
sawing a woman in half
Sawing a woman in half is a generic name for a number of stage magic tricks in which a person (traditionally a female assistant) is apparently cut or divided into two or more pieces.
History
There remains a debate about the origin of sawing ill ...
devised by
Jonathan Pendragon.
[Schneider, A., "A New Clear Sawing", ''Genii'' magazine, June 1993 (Vol 56, No 6).]
Description
The illusion is very similar in principle and performance to the older "
Thin Model" versions of sawing a woman in half, with the exception that the boxes used to cover the assistant being divided are clear, rather than opaque. In basic concept, it is very similar to the transparent sawing developed by Les Arnold in the late 1970s. However, in the Pendragons version, the boxes are much smaller, and are never covered at any point during the illusion. As a result, the assistant within the boxes remains in full view throughout, making this a particularly baffling illusion for the audience.
Performance
The illusion usually begins with the magician showing the audience a low table, designed to split into two halves. The main assistant is then introduced, and lies down on the table. Other assistants then place two boxes over the assistant, with clear sides and tops. As the upper box is placed over them, the main assistant extends their arm out of the open side of the box, while their head and feet extend out of the ends of the two boxes. Small stocks are then used to restrain the assistant's feet and neck. Because the boxes have clear sides, the audience is able to see right through them, and can see that the assistant has not curled up inside the upper box, as is described in many commonly available magic books for the "Thin Model" sawing.
The magician then cuts through the box using either a saw or sword (although some performers skip this step), and dividers are placed into the box either side of the cut. With the dividers in place, the two halves of the table are unlocked and pulled apart. As the assistant has been in full view of the audience throughout the illusion, it appears that they have been separated into two halves, the impossibility of this situation helping to give the illusion its name. The halves of the table are then pushed back together, the dividers removed, and the unharmed assistant released from the stocks and boxes.
Notable performances
While she was in a relationship with
David Copperfield
''David Copperfield'' Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work, see is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from inf ...
and not otherwise occupied with modelling work,
Claudia Schiffer
Claudia Maria Schiffer (; born 25 August 1970) is a German model and actress based in the United Kingdom. She rose to fame in the 1990s as one of the world's most successful models, attaining supermodel status. In her early career, she was compa ...
often assisted Copperfield in his stage shows as a "special guest assistant". Part of these shows was a performance of Clearly Impossible, with Schiffer as the assistant being sawed in half by Copperfield.
On a number of occasions when Claudia Schiffer was not available to assist David Copperfield, he performed the illusion on her fellow model
Cindy Crawford
Cynthia Ann Crawford (born February 20, 1966) is an American model, actress and television personality. During the 1980s and 1990s, she was among the most popular supermodels and a ubiquitous presence on magazine covers, runways, as well as fash ...
.
During the 1996 TV special ''Champions of Magic'', Jonathan Pendragon performed the illusion on the show's host,
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
Princess Stephanie Marie Elisabeth of Monaco (born 1 February 1965) is the youngest child of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and American actress Grace Kelly. She is the younger sister of Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and Caroline, Princess of Han ...
.
In November 2004, singer
Shania Twain
Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...
appeared on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
'' as a celebrity assistant in a magic act, being sawed in half in a performance of Clearly Impossible.
While appearing on a local TV talk show during a promotional visit to Japan in 2006, actress
took part in a performance of the illusion in which she was sawed in half by a local magician.
Italian singer
assisted illusionist Martin in a televised performance of Clearly Impossible.