Under a spell

By SUSI LAWSON/Correspondent

Things were a little crazy at the Rural Retreat High School auditorium Friday night. Students danced, sang, cried, laughed and tried to save the villagers from an impending flood.
Fortunately all these antics were played out under harmless hypnosis by master hypnotist Jason Linett.
Linett started off the show by explaining to the audience how we all fall into a hypnotic trance quite often. For instance, if you have ever been driving and suddenly realize you have made it to your destination and don’t remember the last mile or so, then you have experienced this phenomena.
After doing some trance demonstrations with the audience Linett invited about 20 students on stage to turn their minds over to him for some fun.
The students first were taught how to relax their whole body, and you could see how they slowly were moving into a different state, at which point the show really started to get entertaining. Soon they were sweating and freezing in Hawaii or suddenly driving a new car while singing and swaying to the radio. Next they were laughing at a happy movie and then sobbing to a sad one. They discovered the joy and sorrow of owning a puppy and showed off their buff muscles to the audience.
Linett ended the show by sending the students out into the audience still hypnotized and acting as FBI agents. One student, Alexa Becker, was told to hold her finger in the wall to keep the “leak” from flooding the village and drowning us all while Josh Stephens ran back and forth to the stage to offer his shoe. Ali Spraker struggled to get out of her chair where she was “stuck.”
Afterward, the participants talked about the experience. Zack Newsome said, “It was really a strange feeling, and it was like I could sense what (Linett) was going to ask us to do next before he even said it.” Alexa Becker said “I really felt like we were all going to die if I didn’t keep my finger on that leak!”
All in all the students felt it was a fun new experience which left them feeling relaxed.
The proceeds from the show went to the drama club.
Susi Lawson is a Wythe County artist and photographer.