Richard Barker, The Incredible Hypnotist

©02 — The long version

Nobody plans a career like this one.

Most stage hypnotists come to the work through theatre. Richard Barker came to it through the British Army, a murder squad and a Master’s degree.

It started in the Royal Green Jackets.

Richard began his career in the United Kingdom’s elite military forces, where he was trained in Neuro-Linguistic Programming and advanced persuasion technique. That training was not designed to entertain anybody. It was designed to read people quickly, build rapport under pressure, and change how someone responds in the moment. Two decades later, that is still the engine of the show.

Then came the detective work.

He went on to serve as a Police Detective, using his understanding of human behavior and memory recall to assist in complex investigations. Interviewing a reluctant witness and inviting a nervous volunteer onto a stage in front of 3,000 people turn out to demand the same skill: making a stranger feel safe enough to let their guard down.

The academic half.

Armed with a Master’s Degree in Education, Richard bridges the gap between high-energy entertainment and genuine psychological application. It is why the show works for a Fortune 500 sales kickoff and a university freshman week alike, and why he is as comfortable presenting at Google Talks as he is headlining a cruise ship theatre.

Six thousand shows later.

Richard has now performed in 38 countries and delivered more than 6,000 live shows. He is based in Orlando, Florida and works nationwide across the USA, for corporate events, colleges, theatres, fairs, casinos and cruise lines. The volunteers are always the stars. Richard just knows exactly how to get out of their way.