3 Stars

TODD VARIOUS

☆☆☆

If you startle easy (as I do) the crack of a whip on a crowded street can be a terrifying sound. However, in the case I am describing, it indicated something awesome was to come.

Street performance is really cool inherently, and to do successfully requires crazy impressive showmanship skills.  If someone comes to a stage show, they’ve already spent their money on a ticket, and are thus likely to stick it through regardless. But street performers have to make the audience committed. Todd Various was one of the best street performers I have seen in this regard. Mr Various, with his cowboy persona and vicious looking whips was genuinely funny in a relaxed way that kept the crowd both entertained and at ease throughout the show.

The insane thing is, Mr Various doesn’t do a massive amount of tricks in that time. He actually only does a couple. But due to his entertaining chatter and undeniably likable personality, it seems like a lot more happens.

The tricks that are performed are pretty impressive to see, but the truly great quality was his talent as an entertainer. Mr Various could make jokes at peoples’ expense without being nasty about it, convince dubious tourists to play along with his show, and keep an audience enthralled on a chilly day in Edinburgh for nearly an hour- all without guarantee that they will give him money for his performance. But they damn well should (and I was happy to see did) because this funny, startling, captivating show was absolutely fantastic.

If this was a stage show I would say here where it is playing and at what time but ??? uh Royal Mile, Edinburgh, in the afternoon? Look for the guy wearing a cowboy hat and just stick around until he does something interesting?

+ I realize at no point in this review did I explain the purpose of the whip I mentioned in the beginning. Good. Be curious.

++ I accidentally saw this show twice (there is v little to do on Sundays in Edinburgh. I am not actually a stalker) so this review basically covers both performances at the same time.

More information on Todd Various can be found here

NEIL HENRY’S IMPOSSIBLE

☆☆☆

Note to all magicians: if you do a joke trick with a fake bunny at the beginning of your set, don’t leave it on stage. People will be distracted the entire time wondering if that bunny is going to become switched for a real one. Gotta say I’m a little disappointed.

Bunnies aside, Neil Henry presented an excellent show. His tricks were magic classics, but done with such skill and ease that even someone looking in all the right places wouldn’t see how they were being fooled. Even when presented with the challenge of easily confused audience participants, Mr Henry maintained his funny patter and kept his crowd laughing.

A particularly great moment of the show was the finale, at which point Mr Henry created legitimate concern and tension with his crowning act. Even though audiences who come to magic shows generally know that the magician has their show under control and probably won’t be harmed, Mr Henry’s last trick had people looking away and wincing- but definitely peeking through their hands.

This skillful control of the atmosphere showed the masterful showmanship Mr Henry had created even with his somewhat goofy persona, and certainty had audience members hissing ‘impossible’ afterwards as they squinted and poked at the cards onstage.

Neil Henry’s Impossible is on at Pleasance Courtyard at 3:50pm until August 25th.

ALAN HUDSON: TRICK TEASER

☆☆☆

‘No secrets’ could be the tagline for this show. Considering the ‘mystery’ appeal that most magicians will make their living on, this is a bit out of the ordinary. Alan Hudson’s show is pure silly, happy, humble magic, and he doesn’t pretend to be anything more than exactly what he is.

And what he is is spelled out right on his flyer: a comic with a feel-good magic show. But it works because he does it well. He’s working in a small venue here at the Fringe, where he stands at the same level as the audience, only a few feet from them. No room for frills or secrets, it’s just you and the magician- and Mr Hudson is a funny, friendly guy. He manages to make his audience like him nearly immediately, with jokes that hint of self deprecation, stupid dancing, and purposefully see-through magic.

This is all particularly notable on the night when I went. Mr Hudson messed up a trick in a way he couldn’t salvage in the moment. But perhaps with the exception of the woman whose wedding ring was now missing, he still had the audience on his side. The attitude was of willingness to gloss past the problem, not to blame him for messing it up.

Perhaps not the guy to see if you want to be utterly astounded, but if you want to see some cool tricks and genuinely laugh for nearly an hour straight, Alan Hudson is the right choice.

Alan Hudson‘s Edinburgh Festival Fringe show is on at Gilded Balloon at 19:45 until August 25th (not on the 13th).

CHRIS DUGDALE: MORE MAGIC AND MISCHIEF

☆☆☆

The first thing you will notice when More Magic and Mischief starts is that Chris Dugdale just radiates absurd, over-dramatic cheesiness. This is a fine line of a choice, wander too far and you risk making the audience want to punch the smarmy grin right off your face. But somehow, Mr Dugdale has actually cultivated it to the point of being hopelessly charming. It’s the kind of showmanship that will make you think ‘you utter goof’ while grinning and clapping loudly.

And clap loudly the audience does. Mr Dugdale interacts well with his crowd, focusing (and this is a warning if you’re planning on going to his show) on those in the front row. He weaves participation into many of his bits, interacting playfully but never disrespectfully. Rather he- and there’s this word again- charms his participants through tricks with predictions, reappearing cards, words in books, and an unexpected use of citrus.

The general rule of magic is that the performer will capture your attention exactly where they don’t want you to look, but even I, knowing where to look, took going to the show four times to catch even a couple of his tricks. As a rule I don’t go onstage the first time I see a performer, and then of course, I can’t go on if I attend again during the rest of the show run because I know what’s going to happen. However, I did peer pressure a friend into going up. She, a person who prides herself on being unreadable, was astonished at how quickly he could guess the word she was thinking of.

This is not to say that he’s perfect. I work with a lot of actors, so I am very observant of flubbed lines. And there are a couple of places in his show that he has distinct trouble with- watch for stumbles around mentions of Tesco’s finest wine and President Obama. But in his defense, the ability to weave a mostly set script around improv to audience participation is impressive, and he carries it off at most times. I wouldn’t notice these stumbles if I hadn’t seen them repeated at the six times I’ve seen his Fringe show so far- yes, I’ve gone six times, so who’s really winning?

Mr. Dugdale mentions Las Vegas in his show, and nothing could be more spot on. He emanates slick charm and skill indicative of a Las Vegas performer, and keeps his audience laughing and bewildered- without ever condescending to them. From start to finish his Edinburgh Fringe show is a captivating experience that will delight any and everyone.

 

Chris Dugdale: More Magic and Mischief is going on at Assembly George Square Studios during the 2014 Edinburgh Fringe, at 18:50 on August 12-17, 19-25.