Hypnotist Chris Jones Mesmerizes Audience

by Benjamin Middendorf

Weller Hall auditorium was filled with animal noises, screams and raucous laughter as hypnotist and comedian Chris Jones entertained a full house on Saturday, Sept. 24.

Jones began the show by playing soft and slow music and directing the crowd through certain motions and thoughts, such as imagining a balloon held in an outstretched hand.

“I saw a hypnotist while I was in college and I thought it was good,” Jones said. “But . . . I was in college for four years, and kept seeing the same show. I was like, ‘Can’t you do something different?’ So I started learning it, and that was eight years ago.”

While reciting command or “trigger” words, Jones walked around the crowd and tapped certain people on the shoulder.

“If you’re not familiar with what a hypnotist does, we give you a suggestion,” Jones said. “We don’t have power over you, we just give you a suggestion.”

Over a dozen students were told by Jones to walk along the aisle and up onto the stage, where they sat down in a row of chairs, many with heads dropped to their chests.

Hypnotized students were told to forget their real names, which would be replaced by their “spirit animal.” Names ranged from “tiger” to “platypus” to “Beyoncé.” Throughout the two-hour show, they were also led to believe that they were riding a rollercoaster, dancing with a prom date from the audience, being tried by a jury or playing a men versus women game of Family Feud.

Senior Tyler Miles and junior Jan Steinbrueck were among those hypnotized.

“It was kind of like an out of body experience,” Miles said. “Coming out of (the auditorium), I was like ‘Oh boy, I did a lot of stupid stuff.’ It was fun though, I enjoyed it.”

“I had never been hypnotized before, this was a first,” Steinbrueck said. “The beginning was really weird, because my heart started beating really fast. But mostly I was just really tired and didn’t feel like I could pick my head up to look at what was around me. I got really sad because everyone was laughing around me and I wanted to see what was going on, but I was so tired. But I was fully conscious and remember everything that happened, I just didn’t feel very embarrassed.”

This is Jones’s third year performing at Concordia.

“It has been great,” Director of Student Development Rehema Kavugha said. “I definitely am always looking for new events, but he was one that so far, every year, students and SAC members have said ‘don’t change.’”

Jones has also inspired some Concordia students to try their hand at hypnotizing. However, this has caused questions and concerns for the Student Life Office.

“I know he has definitely inspired some of our students to venture out that way,” Kavugha said. “It’s one of those things that has been a harder topic to discuss, because it’s not something that we would encourage our students to do. The students who I’ve encountered, I’ve just told them ‘that’s something that you can do during break or at home,’ but unless it’s in a controlled environment, we wouldn’t want (them) to do that. We’ve had students who have expressed uncomfortability … and just for that alone we ask that people wouldn’t do that.”

“It’s powerful stuff,” Jones said. “Have a mentor, and use it wisely, ethically. Even if you do therapy and help people, you should have some type of training. No one is perfect, no one knows everything, no one’s read every book, but when you’re working with people’s subconscious mind, you can actually do some harm. Entertainment is cool, but if you’re going to do it, have a piece of paper behind it that says you can actually do it.”

Jones recommends that those interested in hypnotism should look for resources and mentors through the National Guild of Hypnotists at ngh.net.

“Chris has definitely brought a wide variety of our student body to come out and enjoy, and it’s always a lot of fun,” Kavugha said. “I think our students really enjoy the opportunity for something different.”