☆☆☆☆
If previous years’ trends are anything to go by, Fringe goers love watching a beautiful and stylish Scottish mentalist read people’s minds. For all in search of this, Cameron Gibson is the mentalist to go to this year. There is more to recommend him than just physical beauty—he is also a funny and compelling performer. In his wordily titled Mysteries; An Hour of Impossibilities Gibson displays a well structured mentalist show.
Gibson does not limit himself to mentalism, opting for a classic cup and ball to get the show going, to great success. A few tipsy audience members who had wandered in apparently entirely aware of what they were getting themselves in for could be heard commenting that Mysteries; An Hour of Impossibilities was already the best show they had seen this year as Gibson set his cup and ball to the side. The one slight hiccup came in his transition to the more mentalism-themed part of the show, when a supposedly suggestible participant was slightly less suggestible than expected, but Gibson did not miss a beat, and her initial hesitation only made the second step of Gibson’s work with her that much more impressive.
However the main event is Gibson’s mind reading using personality questionnaires that he had asked the audience to fill in immediately on entering the venue. The quasi-psychological twist of using personality tests rather than just random bits of information adds interest. Gibson outlines the personality types of his participants based on their responses, in what he freely admits are horoscope-level generalizations, before accurately mind reading more specific details. The range of information gleaned and individuals read made for an exciting final segment.
With a convenient pre-dinner time slot at the ever popular Voodoo Rooms Gibson is this year’s must-see for the Fringe’s mentalism fans. An hour in his affable company will only leave audiences wanting more.
More information on Cameron Gibson can be found here.