Hypnotist performs show packed with fun, humor

"These students just realized they were eating sour lemons in Thursday's hypnosis."

Lisa Grzyboski
News Editor

Megan Baker may be a Pitt senior majoring in information sciences, but for a few minutes Thursday evening, she had the mind of a 5-year old.

In front of a good-sized crowd gathered in the Assembly Room of the William Pitt Union, Baker excitedly sat on Santa's lap and eagerly went down a laundry list of presents she wanted for Christmas: one Barbie (minus the Ken), a bicycle without training wheels, and a puppy. After all, she was a good girl. Her mom even said so. Santa smiled, said he would see what he could do and gave her an orange lollipop.

Fifteen minutes later, Baker hopped off the stage, rejoined her friends, and tried to shake off the feeling that she'd just awakened up from a good night's sleep. But it wasn't sleep she was trying to shake. For a little more than an hour, Baker had been hypnotized.

"You knew exactly what was going on. Like, you could hear everything the crowd was saying, but you had no control over what you were doing," Baker said. She, along with 14 other Pitt students, found themselves eased into a hypnotic state by Bob Hein, a hypnotist with 30 years of experience, who appeared courtesy of the Pitt Program Council.

The evening started off with Hein briefly talking about the art of hypnotism while fielding some questions from members of the audience. He labeled colleges as his favorite forum for performances, saying a large majority of college students can be hypnotized.

"The more intelligent you are, the easier it is to be hypnotized," said Hein, who averages 100 shows a year. "The best way you can use hypnotism in the college scene is in studying and learning."

Hein quickly began his show with a skit he called "at the movies". The 15 students went through a gamut of emotions ranging from sidesplitting laughter to deep sadness. At one point in the skit, Hein informed the participants they were watching a triple-X-rated movie and could look away if they wanted.

In other skits, participants had to cheer for a racehorse that was a 50-1 long shot at the Meadowlands racetrack. The students on stage also ate lemons, performed their ideas of a strip dance (without taking off their clothes), and had puppies poop on their heads.Despite the ordeal, Brianna Evans, one of the 15 participants, said she would do it again.

"Its taken me many years to get to the point where I am today," Hein said of hypnotism. "I'll say that only in the last few years do I feel at the top of my ability".

Hein had a great rapport with the audience and the excitement and enthusiasm at the event was unbelievable. I am sure he will be invited back in the very near future to entertain the students with another fun-packed show.