☆☆☆☆
Popular card magician Andrew Frost seldom uses other props, but in his new Fringe show Just Let Me Have This he breaks with tradition to briefly consult a dictionary. So, it’s fitting that as his audience filtered out, one woman could be heard saying to her friend, “I’m the definition of flabbergasted!”
Frost is a friendly stage presence from the moment that the audience enters, greeting folks as they come in and getting early arrivals to help with the set up for a trick while the rest make their way in. Like most magic shows Frost uses a significant portion of the audience in the act, and at the reviewed show his friendly demeanor is, at times, tested by the unexpected nature of these interactions. Luckily Frost is a true professional, remaining kind to his participants even when they mistakenly undercut the occasional reveal.
The magic that Frost performs is, as his fans will have come to expect, primarily card magic. It can be a challenge to make an hour of card magic feel varied enough to hold an audience’s attention, and even more so for an annual regular like Frost, but you wouldn’t know it to watch him perform. This year he does include a few other props, including a couple of books and even a mathematical prediction, which he performs with his usual skill. However, Frost evidently knows what his fans come back for, and the card tricks he performs are the clear highlights.
Frost also leans in to his storytelling talent this year, spending slightly more time telling the audience the stories from his life that augment the tricks. He is an entertaining speaker, frequently getting laughs as big as the applause for his magic. In a festival known for having possibly too many comedians, this may not be the factor that sets him apart, but it certainly increases his appeal.
If the sold out reviewed show is anything to go by, Frost’s previous ventures have cemented his status as the Fringe’s favorite card magician. In a way Just Let Me Have This is more of the same, with its perfect card magic to satisfy his fans and gain him more. It’s also different enough to make Frost a reliable performer to keep coming back to. Frost has become the must-see for card magic fans, and Just Let Me Have This will only help that reputation grow.