Writer: Paul Aitchison
Director: Owen Lewis
We should get it out of the way first: magic shows are cool and that is essentially a fact. However, for some unfathomable reason, there are those who (while having good judgement in other areas) refuse to see the light and unfairly put the whole artistic genre in the shade because of poor memories of their uncle failing to complete a card trick.
In all fairness to those who criticise this art form, there is a powerful level of naffness to most magic shows. The earnestness with which the performers approach their jobs can be jarring, and there’s only so many places one can get away with billowy, sequinned pirate blouses.
Tapping into this over-the-top theatricality and revelling in the diverse and singular types of people found in magic, Paul Aitchison’s one man, four-character show takes us into the world of a local magic club’s chaotic annual competition. Hosted by “Reg Kettle”, club supremo and nine-time winner of the competition, it becomes clear we’re in for a bumpy ride with the acts, though should we expect to gasp in delight at the tricks on display?
With twists and turns in the construction of the tricks Aitchison (through the competitor magicians) takes us through some genuinely delightful illusions and sleights of hand. None of which, of course, can be fully revealed here. A “mind reading” attempt turns into a pre-planted object reveal, a bottle of beer turns out to have at least seven different drinks in it, and he does a great routine with the classic ball and cup accessories before a big finish.
The true chaos comes with the characters. We have a brash and obnoxious American performer (pronouns: he/him/daddy) called Zantos Thorne and a competitor with a cabaret style flamboyancy (highly reminiscent of a Las Vegas act) called Klaus Fantastich. Finally, there’s the star of the show – Colin and Carol’s double act (“the strongest magic is their love”, apparently) but Carol’s decided to leave poor Colin for a tennis instructor so he’s dismally on his own for this performance.
While Colin proves to be a great section, the other three characters (Reg, Zantos, Klaus) grate and become repetitive even in the short time we’re engaging with them. It’s a send-up of low-rent comedy acts and a good one. However, if the characters on stage are doing flat jokes and bumbling about, then there needs to be some slick bits otherwise that’s all an audience gets – flat jokes and bumbling about.
The magic does a lot of lifting in this show, and the end is a great payoff of a long-running trick. There are some nice jokes too; proper belly laugh moments for the whole audience. There are oohs and aahs and all the crowd sounds of a good magic show. But being in the company of these four characters is draining, they suck energy from a smart idea and very capable performer and what could be a stellar show.
Runs until 5 February 2022
