Where to See Live Magic
America
America
is lucky to have a quite a few hotspots for magic and
illusion. Among the most famous are:
Las Vegas
Las Vegas is the most
amazing place and, in my opinion, well worth a visit
quite apart from the world-class magic. There are several
or more fab magicians in this extraordinary town but
those I have seen and particularly recommend are Lance
Burton and Mac King. (The former does evening and the
latter does afternoon, so even if you’re only
staying one night, you should be able to see them both.)
Lance
Burton has got his own theatre, at the Monte Carlo
hotel/casino. His show is truly astounding and must
be seen to be, well, appreciated (you’ll never
believe it). Although remarkably unassuming to meet,
Lance is officially the world’s Master Magician
and there is no doubt that he possesses phenomenal powers
of magic.
Mac
King is Lance’s close friend. They grew up
together in Kentucky and developed their own, different
styles so as not to tread on each other’s toes.
Where Lance’s show is slick and sophisticated,
Mac’s is relaxed and jolly. There is less magic
as such in Mac’s show because he does comedy as
well but his magic is nonetheless brilliant. See his
show at Harrah’s.
Penn
& Teller are talented and eccentric magicians
whom I have not yet managed to see live but certainly
plan to. They perform at the Rio.
Criss
Angel apparently has his own suite at the Luxor
hotel/casino, where he lives when he’s in Las
Vegas. He appears there from time to time to defy death
through escapology. The dates are on his website.
Did you see Criss on CSI
New York? A rather gory but fascinating episode of the
hit crime drama. Find it in our magic
film section.
Although it's not
absolutely necessary, it's advisable to buy your
Las
Vegas show tickets in
advance (ie, before you leave home).
The Magic Castle in Hollywood
The
Magic Castle is the home of the Academy of Magical
Arts and a very magical place. Because it is a private
club, you need to be a member or a magician (or a magician’s
friend) to get in. If you are not actually a member,
contact the castle to check whether you could visit.
For heaven’s sake, don’t just turn up on
spec because you may not be allowed in – and imagine
the disappointment!! Iain Moran (see why he’s
my best friend?) got me in, a couple of years ago, because
he’s in The Magic Circle.
Buddy-up with a magician
and get over there – it really is incredible.
One of the highlights for me is Irma, the ghost who
plays the piano. We stood right next to the keyboard
and shouted out requests, which were instantly –
and excellently – played, by invisible hands.
I asked for Sunday Morning Coming Down, which Johnny
Cash used to sing. This is one of my favourite songs
and the only one I could think of at all on the spur
of the moment. Reflecting on it now, I can see it’s
rather a difficult tune to play on the piano but I didn’t
think of that then and I was put out when Irma just
didn’t do it, although she was rattling through
everyone else’s requests. I turned to Iain and
suggested that perhaps Irma didn’t understand
my accent. Seconds later, Irma started pounding out
God Save the Queen and I felt heard (if just a little
bit spooked!).
New York
There are a few good places
to see magic in the Big Apple, including these:
Monday
Night Magic is a popular event that happens every
Monday night (funnily enough) at 8 o’clock. Three
magicians perform on stage – different ones every
week – and in the interval there is close-up.
I booked tickets about
ten days in advance, on the internet, and got the front
row, although by showtime every seat was taken. Lots
of people are regulars and maybe get tickets on the
day but I think it’s still worth booking in advance.
 Don’t
expect a mainstream Broadway venue. Or get there early.
I had understood from the instructions that the doors
opened at 6 but we had to be there no later than 7.
I assumed they wanted people to spend at the bar in
the hour before the show and thought perhaps something
would be happening (close-up, for example). So my friend
and I set off in good time, aiming to arrive at about
6.30.
We took the subway to
the theatre district and walked along 46th Street to
find the St Clement’s. We walked and walked and
were surprised to find ourselves in Hell’s Kitchen.
This area had been on my list to explore anyway (one
of my favourite films is Sylvester
Stallone’s Paradise
Alley) but I had not imagined a magic show there.
It was dark at that hour in January and there weren’t
many people about. When we found St Clement’s
Theatre, we went up some steps and pushed at the door,
though I felt more like knocking and waiting for the
grill to open so we could give the password.
The theatre turns out
to be above a church (hence the name) and is an unusual,
intimate, informal place. A magician with a curled moustache
informed us that we might as well come back at five
to eight, so we went to find somewhere to hang out.
A place I would recommend for this is Zanzibar,
just around the corner on 9th Avenue. Billy
Joel sings a song about this bar and I had been
curious to find it… and there it was, in Hell’s
Kitchen.
The show was great, a
mixture of comedy, storytelling and good, old-fashioned
conjuring. The interval close-up was of a high standard
and, although I have seen a great deal of close-up magic
over the years, I saw a couple of tricks I’d never
seen before. Afterwards, we had a good chat with the
magicians, who were waiting in the lobby to say goodbye.
Overall, an excellent experience, definitely recommended.
Update:
In June 2008, Monday Night Magic moved to a bigger theatre.
The new address is 45 Bleecker Street, in the Noho area.
I enjoyed the old place but I'm very pleased to see
MNM thriving and I'll have to get to the new place before
long.
Steve Cohen’s Chamber
Magic: A Demonstration Of Modern Conjuring tends
to sell out months in advance (I learnt, too late).
However, I was lucky enough to have a breakfast meeting
with the Millionaires’ Magician and I would certainly
recommend this man and his show. Steve is world-famous
for being a smooth and amazing magician and you don’t
have to be a millionaire to appreciate his magic, or
even to buy a ticket.
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