Jonathan Levit Presents
The Stranger, reborn.
A performance app for magicians. A spectator names a card on a phone call — and the voice on the other end names it back. Everything the original Stranger did, with the whole workshop now built in.
- iOS
- Free trial
- Over 40 call regions
- Community since 2018
How it works
A phone call that is exactly what it appears to be.
Stranger X is a tool for performing a piece of close-up magic. The performer sets it up in advance; the spectator experiences an ordinary phone call.
The performer chooses a Stranger
Before the show, the performer picks who will answer, from their own list of fellow Stranger X members. Each one is marked active or off duty by that person.
The spectator dials
The spectator picks a number and dials it on the phone. To them, it is the ordinary iOS keypad, because it is.
The chosen Stranger answers
The call routes to the member the performer selected. They answer, and — knowing the reveal — name the card.
What the app does not do
No call is ever placed to the number the spectator dials. Stranger X re-routes the call to the Stranger the performer has already chosen from their own list. No stranger to the app, and no member of the public, is ever contacted.
Every Stranger is a consenting member. Strangers are registered Stranger X users who have agreed to receive these calls, appear on that performer's list by mutual arrangement, and can mark themselves off duty at any time.
No caller ID is spoofed and no telephone network is manipulated. The app does not place calls on anyone's behalf, does not mask numbers to third parties, and does not auto-dial.
If no chosen Stranger is available, the call falls through to a pre-recorded Conversation Recording stored on the performer's own device — so the app never needs to reach anyone unexpected.
The performance screen
The whole act, one screen.
Choose your Stranger, set one or two convincers, pick Live Stranger or Recording, choose how the call is carried — cellular, FaceTime Audio or VoIP — and set the reveal. Everything the performer touches sits on a single screen, because there is no time to hunt for a setting mid-show.
Reliability
Set the show in seconds.
Reorder your Strangers, switch tonight's line-up on or off, and let Auto Advance cycle the list until someone answers. If nobody does, a Conversation Recording takes the call. The reveal happens either way — which is the only thing that matters when you are standing in front of an audience.
Conversation Recordings
Build it in the app.
Recordings no longer have to be produced somewhere else and carried in. Name it, choose playing cards, zodiac or a custom set, then record every line inside Stranger X — in any order, saving a draft whenever you stop. Import from Files still works if you would rather.
Using an API key you supply and control, Stranger X can also generate a transcript of a finished recording for you.
The Marketplace
A library that grows itself.
Members publish recordings and convincers for one another, and download each other's. Search by title, author, region or tag, preview before you take anything, and publish your own under your name when you are ready. It is the only part of the app that gets better while you are not using it.
Member-published content
Everything in the Marketplace is published by a registered member under their own name. Listings can be reported from the app, are reviewed, and are removed if they breach the guidelines. No listing is anonymous.
Practice and Tutorials
Learn it where you use it.
Every instructional video lives inside the app, sectioned from first call to settings — no separate site and no second login. Alongside them, Rehearsal plays any recording with its transcript in sync so you can loop a passage, slow it down and run it again until the timing is yours.
The community
The people on the other end of the line.
Stranger X is not a service with a call centre behind it. The person who answers is another performer, somewhere else in the world, who agreed to be there. That only works because there is a real community underneath it — regional WhatsApp groups joinable from inside the app, a private Facebook group, and a membership built up since the original Stranger launched in 2018.
Groups run in eleven regions across four continents. If there is no group where you are, a request to start one appears automatically.
Eleven regions · Four continents · One call in progress
Everything in Stranger X
The complete system.
Live Stranger Calls
A fellow member answers, chosen by you in advance from your own list.
Conversation Recordings
A full library covering every card, ready out of the box, working with no second person and no data connection.
Record in the app
Cards, zodiac or a custom set. Record in any order, save a draft, or import from Files.
AI transcripts
Generate a transcript of any recording using an API key you provide and control.
The Marketplace
Publish and download recordings and convincers, with search, tags, regions and share codes.
Practice
Audio and transcript in sync. Loop a segment, slow it down, run it again.
Tutorials
The whole instructional library inside the app, sectioned from first call to settings.
Auto Advance & fallback
Cycles your active Strangers, then falls through to a recording. The reveal always happens.
Choose how you call
Cellular, FaceTime Audio or VoIP — VoIP removes the iOS prompt asking whether you meant to dial.
Region awareness
Country-correct ringback and disconnect audio across more than forty regions, with localized on-screen text.
Convincers
Voicemail and out-of-service tones before the reveal, and a callback afterwards from recent calls.
Community, built in
Join your regional WhatsApp group from inside the app, or ask to start one where none exists.
Also from Jonathan Levit Presents
Stranger X works alongside Nexus.
Stranger X is complete on its own. Performers who also use Nexus — the platform that orchestrates apps and devices in electronic magic — can build routines that span more than one app. Nexus is a separate product and is not required.
Voices
From the magicians who carry it.
On the original Stranger, in use since 2018.
Jonathan is an evil genius.
A revolutionary magic utility for the modern world.
This is a sea change.
It's the ultimate.
I love The Stranger.
A perfect trick that I pull out when I want to send them over the edge.
Revolutionary.
The Stranger is a true showstopper.
I use it in every one of my shows.
This defies explanation.
This is a real winner.
The ultimate in modern magic.
Ingenious.
You want The Stranger in your set.
A roller coaster ride on my phone.
So clever.
Questions
Before you download.
Who actually answers the call?
Another Stranger X member, chosen by the performer in advance from their own list. Strangers are registered users who have agreed to take these calls and who mark themselves active or off duty. The app never calls anyone outside that list, and never calls the number the spectator dialled.
Does the app call the number that was dialled?
No. The dialled number is not contacted. The call is re-routed to the Stranger the performer selected. If none of them is available, it falls through to a recording stored on the performer's own device.
Does it require an account?
Yes. An account identifies you to the members who agree to answer your calls, carries your Marketplace listings, and syncs your data. Registration is free and you can use Conversation Recordings without ever calling a live Stranger.
Can I use it without an internet connection?
Conversation Recordings perform with no data connection at all. Live Stranger calls, the Marketplace and tutorials need one.
What is the Marketplace, and who can publish?
Registered members publish recordings and convincers under their own name for other members to preview and download. Listings can be reported from within the app, are reviewed, and are removed if they breach the guidelines.
What happens with the AI transcription?
Transcription is optional and uses an API key that you obtain and enter yourself. You control that key, and you can use the app fully without ever providing one.
Does it work in my country and language?
Stranger X carries country-correct ringback and disconnect audio for over forty regions, with localized on-screen text so the phone looks right in the spectator's hands.
What does it cost?
Stranger X is a one-time purchase of $299, with a free trial so you can perform with it before deciding. Additional capabilities are available as in-app purchases.
I already own The Stranger. What happens?
Stranger X is a separate App Store listing, so there is no automatic upgrade — but existing owners are looked after. Write to support@jonathanlevitpresents.com from the address on your original purchase.
Who do I contact for help?
Jonathan Levit, who built the app and performs with it professionally, answers support himself at support@jonathanlevitpresents.com. Typical response is hours, not days.
Yours to perform
A modern classic.
Free to download, with a trial so you can take it on stage before you decide. If it earns its place in your set, keep it.
One-time purchase · Free trial
Wait for it.
The moment a stranger names the card. Captured in the wild — no actors, no rehearsals, no edits. This is what your audience will feel.
From the magicians who carry it.
The Stranger lives in the pockets of the working performers, from close-up to stage, from beginner to professional. These are some of the voices.
"A perfect trick that I pull out when I want to send them over the edge."
"It's the ultimate."
"The ultimate in modern magic."
"This defies explanation."
"A roller coaster ride on my phone."
"Ingenious."
Watch it land.
Performances, reactions, and testimonials from over the years.
"It f*%#ing crushed! One guy jumped out of his seat and ran out of the theater!"
Every call answered by another magician.
The Stranger isn't a service — it's a community. WhatsApp groups by region. A private members space. Magicians around the world picking up for each other, on stage and in homes, every day.
Yours to perform.
The Stranger is on iOS. Free to download, with a fully unlocked trial. Bring it on stage. Try it in the field. The work speaks for itself.