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It can sometimes be difficult to pinpoint why people choose their line of work, but Dave Alnwick does not leave his audience guessing why he became a magician: he wants you to join his cult.

In his “Cult of Dave” show, Alnwick makes the case for why he should be accepted into everyone’s hearts and minds as a God. He does this by performing his mentalist tricks and then giving the audience tips on how they can use the theories behind those tricks in their everyday lives. If they join his cult, he promises, he will teach them all of his skills.

This tutorial style makes his show especially interesting to watch. Alnwick reveals just enough to give the audience a greater appreciation for the difficulty of what he does. Some of his lessons do feel useful—advice on how to force a choice, or tips on how to tell whether or not someone is lying—although it is clear that these skills work best in the hands of a naturally charismatic individual like Alnwick.

It is that charisma that really makes this show fun. Alnwick has a great wit and charm that makes him entertaining to watch on stage, regardless of what he is doing. Even when he asks multiple members of the audience to choose numbers in preparation for his impressive final trick, he makes this potentially dull groundwork into an enjoyable part of his performance. He is the kind of performer who could probably make reading the dictionary into an entertaining show.

Alnwick does run in to the same problem as many other Free Fringe performers, in that the venues they perform in often have issues with outside noise permeating the main theatre. However, Alnwick reacted to this professionally and did not allow it to derail his show, and his excellent vocal projection was certainly appreciated at that juncture.

The “Cult of Dave” is a delightful show, both for magic enthusiasts and for anyone who just enjoys comedic live theatre. Alnwick skillfully controls his audience, creating impressive illusions while dispensing life advice in an incredibly fun performance.

More information on Dave Alnwick and his performance dates can be found here