The room was tense and the audience fell silent as mentalist Robert Channing, blindfolded by layers of duct tape, repeated the exact serial code from someone’s two dollar bill. Once the last digit had been verified, the crowd gasped and began to cheer, and the hands of students all over the room shot up to volunteer for the next activity.
Robert Channing was only five years old when he discovered his talent for mind-reading. Since then, he has used this ability to entertain others, even participating in Season 9 of “America’s Got Talent” in 2014. Recently, he has been performing at various schools and venues and participating in charity work. On the night of September 16, Channing performed for Andover students in Kemper Auditorium. Audience member Zadie Robinson ’26 described how she was stunned by Channing’s mind-reading accuracy.
“Everything surprised me. I was trying to think of every single logical way he could’ve done it, but I couldn’t think of anything. It was just random people. He even picked me. He literally [went], ‘Zack Robinson,’ and I [replied], ‘Oh, I’m Zadie,’ He [described] my entire outfit, and he [was] blindfolded. He [said], ‘Your hand is on your hip, right?’ How can you even do that?” said Robinson.
Maggie Agosto ’26, another audience member, discussed her experience watching Channing’s performance. Channing first called out her sister, Agnes Agosto ’24 from the audience, and then immediately called on Maggie Agosto right after. Even with blindfolds on and never having met the sisters, Channing managed to guess both their names correctly and draw a connection between them.
“My sister got called up when we were doing the part where he was reading your mind about a number, your nickname, and other things. I thought it was cool because the next person he called up was me, and he guessed that we were siblings,” said Maggie Agosto.
In the beginning of the show, Channing offered a large sum of money to anyone who might figure out how he reads minds. Students originally believed they might win the prize, but as the show went on, no one was able to come up with a solution. Robinson shared that she would never have expected a stranger to know so much about her.
“I guess when it’s someone else, it’s kind of easier to think, ‘Oh, maybe it’s not real,’ but when it was me, I’ve never seen this man before, and he got my name. Especially because he got it wrong the first time, it was even more believable. He guessed [that I was wearing a] crop top, and sunglasses. What in the world? It was just incredible,” said Robinson.
Although audience members were skeptical, Channing claims his mind-reading skills are real. After the show, Channing shared pieces of advice about success and sticking to your goals, and encouraged the audience to pursue their dreams.
“Just open your mind to anything you can do in your life, set your goals, have a vision, have a dream board, and write your goals down. Just keep following your goals, and you can be successful in anything you want to do in your life,” said Channing.
