Comedy and hypnosis are combined by a professional hypnotist to create captivating and frequently humorous experiences for the audience in hypnosis comedy shows. In these performances, the hypnotist usually asks audience members to volunteer for hypnotic inductions and recommendations, which result in humorous and surprising actions.
The hypnotist uses vocal cues and relaxation methods to induce a trance-like condition in consenting subjects. Participants are more receptive to recommendations once they are in this state. The participants may then be given amusing tasks or scenarios to complete by the hypnotist. Audience members may laugh and be entertained by the participants' pretending to be in particular scenarios, acting like specific characters, or participating in lighthearted activities.