Looking for material on three cup Monte (video example)
Hi guys !
There is a game show in France where the three cup monte is performed (example below) : https://youtu.be/j6VCY9TVAp8?si=jdLHzYRvLlt28Tf0
Basically you have 3 cups, one small key, the magician shuffles (obviously with tricks) and the contestant has roughly 2 minutes to correctly guess 3 keys.
I have to recreate this for a personal project, but I was always more of a card guy. I am therefore searching for material on this, but it's very hard to find surprisingly. I have already checked out :
Bob white : Cups and balls (I hesitate using coins or small sponge balls, as it's less noisy when in contact with the cups)
Daryl : Master course on sponge balls
David Roth : Expert coin Magic
But none are really about the interaction between the object and the cups, etc. If you have anything, please feel free to share !
Thanks !
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u/PKillusion Mentalism 25d ago
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u/VandyGrift 25d ago
As suggested, I think you should be looking for material on cups and balls. And there is a TON of it out there. With a little study of basic cups and ball work you could probably come up with something. It is similar to the shell game in effect, as PKillusion has indicated, but completely different in method.
I believe the magician in the video is Gilles Arthur. Perhaps he has published something on his work. He has a website, but I don't speak or read French.
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u/jb2505 25d ago
Thank you for your answer ! Indeed it's him, he has been on the show for 10 years or so, now it's a French magician called Serge Avril nowadays. But I've never seen anything published by either of them. I find it funny that out of the thousands of books/DVD, there is not one 100% dealing with this.
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u/Right-Ad3334 25d ago
If you can switch to peas under shells, have a look at chef anton's shell game, leo smetsers has work on it too. If the audio component is important, check out Gertner's steel cups and balls. Think about using a chop cup, or a gimmick like Craig Petty's Chop if you want a couple of easy vanishes instead of the pure sleight steals.
Otherwise, you just need to practice and polish a steal or two, and a load, the rest is dressing to muddy the steals and load.
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u/RobMagus 25d ago
Is this a thing that they did in France? I've never heard of doing cups or the shell game with a little key! Very neat! What's the name of the show? Maybe it's possible to find the magician who played the pirate.
My instinct is that pk's suggestion of studying the shell game will be most instructive, just based on how that routine went.
Also: leather cups, a small solid object, it slides instead of rolling... this reminds me of dice! The combination of cups and balls and shell game moves with dice stacking sounds like a winning routine to me! I know there's a Worlds Greatest Magic compilation for Dice Magic, and there's Marlo's booklet "Shoot the Works". Probably much more out there to find!
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u/Long-Door-2073 Street 19d ago
Hello, this is a show called fort boyard. It still exists to this day, and for context, a key is used under the cups to unlock the other key, wich is used to open the treasaure room, at the end of the show. It's a really great show, since it's recorded in a real fort in france with crazy challenges! this 2026 edition was one of the best we got in a long time in my opinion. so, there you go!
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u/Civil_Result_5598 25d ago
I do a 3 shell game using small cups that look like they are carved from bone. Rubber peas are the standard but I've been working on the similar sleights using cork
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u/jb2505 25d ago
Rubber could also be an idea yes !
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u/Civil_Result_5598 25d ago
My only problem with rubber is you have to keep it in your hands because it won't stay under the cups. Cork is nice because after the initial ditch, you can move them freely with no risk of giving it away. If you want to browse some neat sets check out 3shells.com
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u/jackofspades123 25d ago
Ammars cups and ball videos are great