A Collection of One-Handed Cuts: "A Cut Above"

When it comes to flourishes with playing cards, most magicians learn THE one-handed cut, or Charlier (click here to learn the cut). But for many of us, the Charlier is simply a starting point. And for those with an inclination towards one-handed cuts, I recently came across an excellent new book, "A Cut Above," by Msgr. Vincent Foy. This comprehensive and classy book teaches some 100 one-handed cuts in a mind-numbing array of variations.

If you could sequester yourself in a room for a year, you probably wouldn't be able to come up with half of the variations that Msgr. Vincent Foy has compiled and developed and teaches. The cuts are roughly categorized into transpositions, spins, table cuts, throw cuts and more. And there's a section on "challenge cuts" that will keep you practicing a long time.

The book features clear step-by-step explanations and lots of pictures. This is the way that I like to learn complex moves - from a clearly illustrated book that doesn't ask me to constantly "pause and rewind." Particularly when both my hands are holding and balancing cards in precarious states and can't reach for the remote.

Wish List
There's no question that "A Cut Above" is a crowning achievement and the culmination of years of experience and experimentation in card magic. Despite the many things that I liked, I still had a wish list that I believe would have made this excellent book outstanding.

The cuts are presented in chapters, each of which represents a certain category. However, the categories are never explained. While I could discern most of the categories based on the cuts that I saw within, it would have been nice to offer some information to introduce the reader to each particular genre.

Another wish was for a list of Msgr. Foy's favorite one-handed cuts and his reasons why, which may guide readers to those with the highest relevance to the author. Just a simple tag that identified a cut as one of Msgr. Foy's favorites would have been greatly appreciated. As it stands, the book leaves the reader to, one-by-one, decipher each cut and visualize it, and then determine if it is one the reader would like to learn.

One final observation. I generally equate card flourishes and extreme card manipulation (XCM) with magicians under 30, and yet, here's a book of flourishes by an individual who is not only over 30, he's an astounding 95 years of age. Msgr. Foy was not only performing magic when the Buck Twins were in diapers, he was likely doing so when the Twins' grandparents were in diapers. Despite the generational difference, Msgr. Foy's work is relevant to anyone interested in card flourishes.

More Reading:
Learning Card Flourishes
Card Flourishes Versus Card Magic