Hypothetically, a magician has a small seance routine he performs for a friend's friends, where the magician and the host are in on it, and the other 4-6 guests are unknown to the magician. The show is a lot of fun, but the finale is super intense. The scary bit is milked for about ten seconds, then the magician and host laugh and tell everyone it's just play.

Hypothetically, a person unknown to the magician heard of this little show, got his number, and offered him an absurd amount of money to do it at her house... BUT... she wants the magician to tell everyone that something isn't right and to leave in a hurry while pretending to be in a great deal of fear, leaving her to trigger the finale, surely with the intent of absolutely scarring her guests.

This really is a hypothetical and not some decision I'm faced with, it's simply a scenario that crossed my mind and sort of stuck. I personally examined it from lots of different angles, and simply can't come up with a way to justify it.

I'm very curious if anyone would do this and how you rationalize it being okay. I'd honestly like someone to present an angle I haven't considered and change my opinion here... even though I doubt it could be done. In fact, as I type it out, I think it might be even worse than I first speculated.

Thanks to anyone who answers!

If you could actually scare folks that much with a seance that
would be quite impressive.

As for if I would do it, no.

But it would be "neat" to see.

Ha! That's an excellent point. I've got a finale for a situation like I describe that I consider "intense", but it would come nowhere near invoking the kind of fear I'm referring to in the hypothetical.

The scenario as you described is just a pointless prank. I could be done...but why would you? A scare without some context, purpose, and meaning is nothing.

I dunno... in this day and age, I'd be concerned about lawsuits.