Mentalist hire in Australia: the complete guide

A mentalist works with words, choices and memory rather than objects. Somebody thinks of a name, writes something down, picks a number, and the performer arrives at it anyway. There is nothing to look at except people's faces, which is why the format travels so well in a room where a card trick would feel small.

The live prices from the mentalists listed here are below. This is entertainment, presented as entertainment, and the useful questions are about format and length rather than about how any of it is done.

Figures for each city are listed below this. Shows are typically sold by the set, and roving mind reading through a standing crowd is sold by the hour in the same way close-up magic is. Both formats are common and plenty of performers offer each.

Where a quote rises, it is usually for a longer seated show with sound and lighting requirements, or for a piece built specifically around your event. Ask what is included so you are comparing two quotes for the same thing.

A mentalism show is a performance. The effects are theatrical pieces, rehearsed and staged, and the performer's craft is in presentation, timing and reading a room. Most working mentalists in Australia say so openly, and the good ones treat that honesty as part of the appeal rather than a disclaimer.

If the framing matters to you, ask about it directly. Some performers present the act as pure entertainment and say so on stage. Others keep an ambiguous tone because it makes the show better theatre. Neither is wrong, but you should know which one is walking into your event.

Mentalism sits well at a company dinner because the show is about the audience rather than the performer. Guests supply the names, the numbers and the memories, so the interest is in what your own colleagues do, and a room watching each other is a room paying attention.

It is also quiet. There is no backing track and no equipment cluttering the stage, so it drops neatly between courses or after a speech without a changeover. That low footprint is a real part of the value at a conference venue with a tight schedule.

The act depends on people participating, so think about who is in the room. If you would rather nobody's personal life came up on stage, say so. If there are people who must not be singled out, name them. A professional builds the show around those instructions without complaint.

It is also worth agreeing that nothing sensitive gets aired. At a work event especially, a routine that lands on somebody's private business is a problem that outlives the evening, and the fix is one sentence in the brief.

Is this a seated show or roving, and how long? How do you present the act, and how do you handle a heckler who wants to explain it? What do you need in terms of microphone, lighting and a table? Do you use anything provided by guests, such as phones or personal items? And is there video of you working a corporate dinner.

If your event is a fundraiser or a launch with a specific message, ask whether they build a custom piece around it. Many do, and it is the sort of thing that needs lead time rather than a fortnight.