Parlor Tricks

Before the commercialization of electricity in the late 1800s, “parlor tricks” were a popular form of entertainment.

Private social gatherings might feature simple sleight of hand with everyday props like cards, cups or hats. But the more elaborate the trick, the more popular. Some foreshadowed technologies developed after the widespread availability of electricity by the 1950s. 

(I am pleased to announce that the word foreshadow there was itself foreshadowing something.)

That said, some of the oldest tricks are worth another look.

You might recognize some: magic lanterns, zoetropes, peephole illusions, flipbooks, Pepper’s ghosts (a reliable standby for centuries).

My favorite is shadow play. The most complex variant is shadow puppetry, a national heritage treasure for some. But it can also just be a silhouette on a wall, moving or painted on. The fact it’s missing all detail other than its outside edge makes it powerful. In exhibitions about people never recorded in history, we have to guess how they looked. Shadows are a way to evoke them without disrespectfully adding details that aren’t true.

Here’s the thing:
Parlor tricks are the oldest tricks in the book. But sometimes the oldest tricks are worth another look.

Warmly,
Jonathan