BA / NEWS / THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
Hypnotist entertains a packed Woodruff Auditorium
Popular campus performer Frederick Winters hypnotized 18 students in his show
BY NICOLAS ROESLER
nroesler@kansan.com
You're taking off on a hot air balloon ... 10. Lifting off high into the sky ... 9,8,7. Flying to the other side of the world ... 6,5,4,3. To a land you've never seen before ... 2,1. PHWOOM ... You're out.
A show that lasted almost two hours passes in your mind like a five minute nap. All of the insane dancing, becoming different animals, and even egg laying become
just a blur of half-formed memories. Three of the students who experienced it last night said that is what hypnosis felt like.
"It hurt." Blair said.
William Blair, a freshman from Shawnee, was one of those students who entered this dream world. He said he actually recalled laying an egg.
it hurt, Blair said.
Of the 18 students, 15 were randomly chosen to go on stage. The other three were hypnotized in the crowd. Brought to the University by Student Union Activities, Frederick Winters, a certified hypnotist, playfully controlled the actions of these dreamers like he had with over 155,000 in the past.
Chris Bronson/KANSAN
"It was like when you're dreaming, but you know you're dreaming," Blair said as he tried to explain the sensation.
to dive into it.
Winters was voted Campus Entertainer of the Year 2006, and was voted the Best Male Artist Award in 2010 by Campus Activities Magazine. He has performed almost 3,000 times, but said the audience last night was unique. He said he had never seen so many people who had never witnessed or experienced hypnosis before, but were so eager
When Winters asked the audience if they wanted to be hypnotized, the crowd erupted with willing volunteers. One even jumped on stage. When he had selected 18 random students, a completely full Woodruff Auditorium turned into a hypnotherapist's office. The lights dimmed, a slow drum beat started playing, and one-by-one the volunteers slumped over into a deep sleep.
sleep.
Angela Sutton, a sophomore from Marysville, said she had never experienced anything like it. She said she can only recall certain things from the show.
"I remember seeing kangaroos or something" Sutton said.
sometimes happens.
That was because Winters had convinced one of the males that he was a mother kangaroo, and convinced the guy next to him that he
was a baby kangaroo. Once Winters snapped them out of their sleep, they both started hopping on all fours, and the baby got in its mothers pouch and they both started hopping around together.
hopping around the room.
These are the things that can happen when hypnotized: you can become president of the University of Kansas and outlaw laughing (that goes over real well), you can turn into a pony, you can have a little man stuck in your watch (even if you're not wearing one), and then, you can get stuck in that same watch.
Some of the dreamers remember nothing. Kyle Nelson, a freshman from Leawood, had seen one hypnotist show before but never believed it. After almost two hours erased from his memory, he now believes. He just thought he had taken a power nap.
Frederick Winters. 2010 Campus Activities Magazines' best male artist, hypnotizes a group of KU students on Wednesday night at Woodruff Auditorium. An event sponsored by SUA allowed volunteers to be put under hypnosis, an altered state of consciousness, causing the hypnotized student to become less aware and perform entertaining acts in front of the audience.
"I feel ready to go," Nelson said, as if he had just had an energy drink.
Nelson, Sutton and Blair all said they would get hypnotized again.
Sutton even said it was relaxing.
To see what hypnosis looks like, go to FrederickWinters.com
Edited by Tim Dwyer
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