Ambitious card

 

Performed by David Blaine in his television specials, but this is my version, which is a slight variation on the one Blaine does

 

Effect

The volunteer picks a card at random from the deck. The card is then placed in the middle of the deck, and with a click of the fingers, jumps to the top.

 

Props

A standard deck of playing cards is needed

 

Instructions

Offer any card to the volunteer, and let them show it to everyone. You can even have them sign the card.

Next, place the card face down on top of the deck.

Using the cut force, cut the deck, leaving the volunteers card on top of the deck, but make it look like you have just cut their card to the middle.

Then either click your fingers over the deck, or let the volunteer click their fingers over the deck, and turn over the top card to show their card at the top of the deck.

 

Next, leaving their card face up on top of the face down deck, cut the deck and hold the pile with the volunteer's card in your left hand.

With your right hand, slide the bottom card slightly to the side.

Then, flip the volunteers card over with the cards in your right hand, so that all the cards in your left hand are now face down.

Place the right hand half of the deck on top of the rest of the cards, but only about half way, so that one half of the cards in your right hand are hanging over the back of the left hand cards.

Then slide the right hand pile up the left hand pile, taking the volunteers card with you. You should now have the whole deck of cards together, with the volunteers card sticking out of the top about 1"-2", with your right hand still holding the cards that are above the volunteers card.

Now you must take off the cards above the volunteers card, but leaving one card on top of he volunteer's card. This should have been made easier by sticking that card out of the side earlier in the trick. So, without anyone seeing the extra card on top of the volunteer's, take off the top half of the deck with your right hand, and turn the cards in your left hand over, so they are face up.

Tell the volunteer that the card sticking out is their card, as you can see their name on it, and then push it back into the deck, making sure it looks like there isn't a card behind it.

Then, insert the top card of the right hand pile, which everyone thinks is the volunteer's card, into the middle of the cards you have in your right hand.

Then insert the cards  that you have in your right hand into the middle of the cards in you left hand. If you do this correctly, the volunteer's card should be on the top of the deck.

Now, click your fingers over the deck, and turn over the top card to reveal the volunteer's card.

 

Next, take the volunteer's card of the top of the deck, and while distracting the audience, make a break under the top card.

Then place the card underneath the top card, making it look like it is being placed into the middle of the deck.

Click your fingers over the cards, and double lift the top two cards to reveal the volunteer's card.

 

Next, still holding the two cards, bend them almost in half, making sure no one sees the card behind the volunteer's card, and place them on top of the deck.

Then take off the top card, and hold down the volunteers card which should be on top of the deck. Place the card you now have in your hand into the middle of the deck.

Then, still holding down the top card, click your fingers and release the card at the same time. This should give the effect that the card has literally jumped to the top, and take off the top card revealing the volunteers card.

You can do these different ways of making the card jump to the top in any order you want