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They�re entranced � literally Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell When hypnotist Steve Bayner told these five subjects to relax deeply Wednesday at the Jackson County Fair, they obeyed his commands. Hypnotist�s show puts �em away By Bill Varble Look deeply into Steve Bayner�s eyes. You are getting very, very sleepy. You will bark like a dog ... Which is what the people are doing now who a moment ago were on stage with Bayner at the Jackson County Fair: Arf! arf! arf! arf! arf! ARF! ARF! An old Oregon law made it a crime to expose to public view "any person in a state of trance, sleep or entire or partial unconsciousness ... induced by hypnotism, mesmerism or any other form of the exertion of the will power ... " That law was repealed this year, making Bayner�s twice-a-day shows at the fair the first legal hypnotism performances anybody�s seen hereabouts in nigh onto a century. Who: Hypnotist Steve Bayner. When, where: 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. today, Jest in Time Theater 8 p.m. Friday, Main Stage, opening for Tanya Tucker 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, Jest in Time Theater 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday, Jest in Time. He does an adult show at 8 p.m. Monday at Shenandoah Inn, 4635 Crater Lake Highway. Bayer, of Seattle, says he�s been on the hypnotism circuit for 20 years. He got into it after seeing a hypnotist work in Washington. He describes his act as "an educational comedy show." The comedy is for sure. Bayer allows as how it�s hard to say exactly what hypnotism is. "There are degrees," he says. "Levels." The show begins with Bayner, wearing a purple shirt that�s downright stereophonic, on the stage with a sound system and a row of empty chairs. Are you afraid he�ll make you do something weird? He will. He calls for volunteers, and a dozen people come on stage "Listen to my voice," Bayner begins. He tells the volunteers their muscles are becoming heavier, and they�re becoming more deeply relaxed. "Feel yourself drifting," he says. "Floating like a leaf." The first head flops down, a guy who melts onto the girl next to him. Another guy sort of oozes onto the stage floor. Soon Bayner brings them back. Variations on this theme appear to take his subjects deeper more quickly. Soon he can put each under his spell with a mere tap on the forehead and a little popping sound. He weeds out several subjects when their attention wanders. When he takes his designated victims verbally to the North Pole, they shiver and draw T-shirts over bare ankles. When he takes them to Tucson, it�s 120 degrees in the shade, and they�re fanning themselves and panting and wiping brows. One takes his shirt off. One starts taking his pants off. A post-hypnotic suggestion causes Bayner�s subjects to see a rip in the part of his clothing closest to them, which turns out to be the seat of his pants. This is good for snickering, then guffaws, then covering of eyes. Finally Chris Campfield gets up to cover Bayner�s backside. "You got something goin� on with your pants," he explains. "We don�t wanna see it." Bayner plants other post-hypnotic suggestions, then excuses his subjects. They return to the audience � which is in on it � and are left to their fates, which are revealed each time Bayner says one of his key words. "DO YA THINK I�M SEXY?" a young woman yells on cue. "I AM AN OSCAR MAYER WEINER," yells Ryan Reid of Medford. Reid, 15, says later it was like being asleep. "I think it�s totally real," he says. "Why did I stand up and yell that I�m an Oscar Mayer Weiner?" Well, Ryan, consider what happened to Campfield, 20, also of Medford. He woke up on stage doing a killer impression of soul godfather James Brown, complete with all-the-way-down splits. "I FEEL GOOD!" Da-da-da-da-da-da-da! Asked the secret of hypnotism later, Bayer has one word: concentration. Look into his eyes. You will write a story ... Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA