Charlie Caper

CHARLIE CAPER: MAGICAL

☆☆☆☆☆

The simplicity of the show title “Magical” perfectly reflects Charlie Caper’s 2022 Edinburgh Fringe show.  He doesn’t bother with an overarching plotline for the show, the closest we get is his recurring bowtie magic motif.  However, he is a master of the street magic style that he performs.  Everything bumbles along perfectly in keeping with his slightly scatterbrained character, without him ever losing control of the stage. 

The highlight of Caper’s shows is never the magic, as perfectly performed as it always is.  Caper always brings a selection of the robots that he creates to join in his show, to play the assistant role in a few of his tricks.  It’s the marvel of these robots and the delight of his adorable interactions with them that really sets his shows apart.  This year we only get two of them (Caper’s fans may remember that he devoted his show to introducing us to hundreds of them a few years ago) but they are as delightful as ever.  The most memorable one is given a little bowtie to match Caper’s own. 

The magic that Caper performs may be recognizable to those who attend a lot of magic shows, but here we see it performed flawlessly.  His brief coin trick uses an extra large coin, which is helpful for those seated toward the back of his venue, and his card tricks similarly involve a signed card to make it easier for the whole audience to follow along with the action.  A veteran street magician, it’s evident that Caper has honed his act in front of large crowds and easily avoids any of the usual pitfalls of performing sleight of hand to such a big group.  He is especially charming when he invites a young child on stage to participate in a trick, indulging her curiosity about his props without letting it break his flow. 

In Magical, Caper’s effects are always perfect and often beautiful.  Though he is not especially well advertised, his reputation alone gets him a decent crowd early in the Fringe, which can only grow as word of his current show’s quality spreads.  Fringe goers interested in excellent magic would do well to spend an hour with Caper. 

More information on Charlie Caper and his performance dates can be found here.

THE MIRACLE OF CHRISTMAS FUTURE

☆☆☆

The Miracle of Christmas Future set out a promising premise, advertised as futuristic magic performed by Charlie Caper, with his amazing robots, and Kevin Quantum, whose performances frequently incorporate his love of science.  They easily deliver on this.  While the show was not flawless, it had many magical and scientific highlights.

The most overtly futuristic element of the show is Quantum and Caper’s third performance partner, the artificial intelligence named Bob.  Bob primarily functioned as an emcee for the human magicians, occasionally also rating their performances, and even taking her turn at performing a magic trick.  While she was not convincing enough to make any reviewer or magician fear that they might soon be replaced by robots, her recurring participation in the show alluded to these exciting potentials for the future of AI.

This left the majority of the magic performed in Quantum and Caper’s able hands.  An unexpectedly lovely highlight was Caper reading a sad Christmas story while performing complementary magic.  This was an odd tonal choice, as it briefly brought the otherwise cheerful Christmas mood down several notches.  The apparently random tone shift only highlighted the disjointed nature of the show as a whole, as aside from Bob’s work as a show runner there was little binding the elements performed together.  This particular moment demonstrated that even that futuristic theme occasionally wavered.  However, the beauty of Caper’s performance made its inclusion worthwhile.

The disjointed feel of the show did not just come from the lack of consistent use of theme, but also from the way that Caper and Quantum rarely actually performed together, instead taking turns with their tricks.  This was a shame, as while no pairing could match the perfect connection between Caper and his robots, Quantum and Caper appeared to work well together when they did interact on stage.

Audience participation often seems to be one of the more challenging aspects of magic performance from the perspective of the watching members of the audience, as the wrong randomly chosen individual might not act according to the magician’s plan.  This looked to be the case in Quantum and Caper’s final performance of this run when two children got a little too competitive with their onstage task.  Quantum and Caper dealt this turn of events with professional aplomb.  Quantum was especially impressive in his handling of the unrulier child.

The futuristic theme of The Miracle of Christmas Future comes naturally to both Caper and Quantum.  It could perhaps even be the theme of each one of their individual magical careers.  Watching them collaborate in sharing that passion with the audience was the most magical part of the evening.

 

More information on MagicFest can be found here

CHARLIE CAPER – ARTIFICE INTELLIGENCE

☆☆☆☆

Charlie Caper calls himself a magician, but Artifice Intelligence is less of a magic show and more an excuse for Caper to demonstrate a variety of robots and other machines that he has clearly spent a lot of time building.  It is easy to see why, as they are incredible.  Artifice Intelligence loses nothing from this focus, as Caper creates a compelling storyline out of his creations.

The magic that Caper does perform often makes use of the robots. It does, at times, almost become a commentary on that stale magical trope of the beautiful assistant, and her relationship with the magician who she assists.  The robots steal the show.  A particular highlight is the butter robot, which conveys an astonishing breadth of emotion for what appears to be one of the more simple of Caper’s machines.

When Caper attempts more traditional magic tricks they do at times go awry.  Cards and bottles might appear out of turn, and, at the performance reviewed, cups of liquid that were being used as props spilled all over the floor and Caper’s clothing.  This is written in an ambiguous fashion because Caper performed through these potential mishaps so impeccably that it is difficult to know whether they were genuine mistakes or calculated aspects of his performance, designed to appear to go wrong for effect.  If they were honest mistakes it is perhaps even more impressive that Caper managed to play them off so efficiently.

The plot that Caper weaves through Artifice Intelligence is present enough to create dramatic tension, but not so prioritized that it dominates the show.  Its foreshadowing and ultimately darkly satisfying conclusion bind the show together.  It is charming that after the story has run its course, Caper takes advantage of his stage to deliver a message of hope about the future of technology in society.  This does not come across as part of his act, but as genuine social commentary from a man who has evidently spent a large portion of his life fascinated by machines.

Artifice Intelligence blurs the boundary of what can be decidedly defined as magic.  It also defies age boundaries, as it is both child friendly and engaging for all age ranges.  What Caper has done is use both the magic of magicians and the “magic” of technology to build an unambiguously exceptional show.

 

Charlie Caper can be found at Liquid Rooms Annexe (Venue 276) during the 2018 Edinburgh Fringe at 16:05 from August 21, 23-26

More information on Charlie Caper and his performance dates can be found here