The Wonderous World of Pickpocketing
The Wonderous World of Pickpocketing












Want to set yourself apart from other magicians? Discover the secret to a criminally-overlooked skill that is easier than you think and will help you stand out from the crowd with The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing by Héctor Mancha.
The idea of learning pickpocketing is a skill that scares many magicians. But, what if we told you that you can enter this exciting world without actually having to steal anything? The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing by Héctor Mancha is the ultimate guide to learning theatrical pickpocketing.
Theatrical pickpocketing transforms the art of pickpocketing into a one-of-a-kind entertainment experience. It has been used by many great magicians like Alexander Herrmann, Blackstone, Paul Daniels, Derren Brown, Tommy Wonder, Darwin Ortiz, Ben Seidman, and even our own Andi Gladwin. Yet very few resources have been available to learn it—almost none of which focus on presenting these ideas through the lens of magical entertainment.
That is why we are beyond excited to bring you FISM-winner Héctor Mancha’s new book, The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing. Everyone from beginners to pros will love this book because it’s the perfect entry into the world of pickpocketing.
You will learn a ton of real pickpocketing skills, practice drills and routines that are perfectly explained and illustrated. But, you will also discover techniques that can be be best described as pseudo-picpocketing. Essentially, you can build up confidence and work toward stealing stuff for real through tightly-scripted, audience-tested routines that will convince your audience you’re a master pickpocket without you actually needing to be one.
There is no better way to add a new layer of mystery and excitement to an act than by secretly removing an item from a spectator. Giving someone their watch back as they leave the stage is a guaranteed moment of shock and laughter that will make your act instantly memorable.
So, yes, you’ll learn how to steal watches, ties, belts, wallets and even glasses. But, more importantly, you’ll learn how to script these steals and put them into action.
There are many complete routines included and very few of them actually rely on real steals to work. There’s room to add in real pockpocketing once you’re comfortable. But, it’s not needed to perform many of the routines and your audience will still be left with the impression you are a master thief.
Everything is explained across 113 beautiful pages accompanied by wonderful illustrations. And the book is funny too! Héctor is as hilarious as he is talented. There’s even a chapter with his Mother’s hot sauce recipe in that we highly recommend you try.
There really has never been a book like The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing. Sure, you can learn “traditional” theatrical pickpocketing, but not in a way that applies that skill (or the appearance of that skill) to a parlor magic act.
If you are looking for new, super-strong, audience-tested stage and parlor magic material that will make you look like the master of an unusual, exciting and secretive skill, grab The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing by Héctor Mancha today!
The Wonderous World Of Pickpocketing Contents
Prologue - Woody Aragon
Introduction
Before You Start
- Preventative Measures
- How To Practise
The Auditions
- Studying The Value of Your Audience
- Let’s Start Pickpocketing
The Groundwork
A Brief Guide To Pickpocketing
- The Watch Steal
- The Tie Steal
- The Belt Steal
- The Front Pocket Steal
- The Blazer Steal
- The Glasses Steal
A Basic Pickpocketing Script
- Scripting
Magic Routines
- Himber Night Revenge
- Pick Bill in the Shadows
- Ring Over the Rainbow
- The F*ing Awesome Robbery of the Rainbow
- The Doppelganger Comes Round for Coffee
- The Impossible Robbery of the Invisible Man
- Johnny Slates Steals a Bill
- The Elegant Robbery of Sean Connery
Other Tricks
- Other Tricks
Final Words
- Final Words
- My Mother’s Hot Sauce Recipe
- Thank Yous
- A Brief Bibliography
Hardcover | 113 pages
All of the techniques and routines used in this book are designed to be used for entertainment purposes only.
Further reading
Pickpocketing - How To Pick Pockets
What Is Theatrical Pickpocketing?
Customer reviews for The Wonderous World of Pickpocketing
My biggest con, I wish there was more content within the pages. There seemed to be a lot of dead space. It’s about 113 pages that could honestly be cut in half. Lots of fluff. It reminded me a lot of in college when you have an essay deadline so you double space and repeat the same ideas over and again. But all in all, it’s a fun read.
The book gives a broad overview of how to pick pockets, steal watches, and other pickpocketing feats. There is a good amount of information on choosing your target, and how to make sure that all goes well. My favorite part of the book are the "magic" routines, where magic, pseudo pickpocketing, and real pickpocketing meet. The routines don't need you to pick pockets, but rather give ample cover to steal a wallet or a watch.
This isn't a complete guide on how to steal a watch or wallets, but it is a great first step into theatrical pickpocketing. Well worth the price!
Why are you still reading this? Buy this book. You're welcome.
Very glad I’ve purchased this book
Check out my YouTube review below
https://youtu.be/YcVV4Xo3cac?si=qCUCyuenUuFlJROI
There was good information on organizing your pickpocket show. What to avoid saying, and doing while pick pocketing. I enjoyed some of the approaches to the pseudo pick pocketing. But much of this book reads as a big picture idea of what pick pocketing looks like. These were good as ideas but in order to apply any of the routines I would have appreciated more detail.
You will not learn how to pick pocket anything in this book. Hector recommends you look to other books for that. Overall, this was a fun read but don't think you will be able to perform theatrical pick pocketing after reading it.
Community questions about The Wonderous World of Pickpocketing
Have a question about this product? It's possible others do too. Ask here and other Vanishing Inc. Magic customers will be able to respond with assistance! Alternatively, email us and we can help too.
Maarten asks: What does the audience see in the pseudo-pickpocketing routines? It sounds great, but before I purchase I need to know what it entails (not asking for methods, strictly what the audience experiences). Thanks in advance!
- 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds:This blog post goes into detail about one of the routines. It should help explain what we mean: https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/blog/what-is-theatrical-pickpocketing
Deryck asks: Is this a good book for those beginning in this field, or is there a better book on pick pocketing for beginners?
- 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds:Yes!
Max asks: There is actual pickpocketing taught in this as well, right? I understand most routines can be done with pseudo-pickpocketing, but I would also learn watch, belt, glasses, tie, etc steals, correct?
- 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds:Yes, you'll get real and pseudo pickpocketing
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