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Fool you once, shame on me. Fool you twice and it might just be the second ever Sleight Night.
I’m absolutely loving producing and presenting Sleight Night each month at The Laneway Theatre. On the third Wednesday of every month, I’m bringing together a ragtag team of magicians, mentalists and swindlers for a top-notch evening of close up magic.
Most of the time, audiences only get to see magician perform on stage where the performer is on the other side of the room. If you want to see close up magic you’re stuck with slickly produced videos and TV shows where the magician’s skill is hidden behind editing, multiple takes and sometimes, even CGI.
That’s like watching a nature documentary when what you really watch is wildlife safari.
Sleight Night is your opportunity to see magicians in their natural habitat. Magic performed so close you can reach out and touch the magicians. We only ask that you don’t feed them.
After the success of our first sell out show, I brought together a new quartet of performers for the second show.
Dom Chambers kicked off proceedings by having Siri magically produce a freely named card while simultaneously sassing Dom’s life choices. Then he read an audience’s mind, revealing the celebrity they were thinking of by producing a hand cut silhouette in real time. Fun Fact: The father of close up magic, Dai Vernon, made his living from cutting silhouettes like Dom’s to fund his magic addiction.
Lucas Kogaki, the 17 year old magician who fooled Dynamo was second. Lucas not only manipulated the 52 cards in front of him, he also manipulated four spectators to his will. And he did it all while blindfolded.
During the break I challenged the audience to solve one The Laneway Theatre’s many puzzles. The winner scored a free chocolate bar. No expense spared.
After the break, Alex De La Rambelje showed why he was a finalist on Australia’s Got Talent, performing miracles with cards, cash, cups and even apples.
The show closed with comedian and mentalist Lawrence Leung who proceeded to psychologically manipulate the audience “like a bitchy high school girl.” His finale drew obscenities from his baffled volunteer.
There’s just a handful of tickets available to November’s show where I’ll be joined by Prue Spencer, David Key, Mr Marmalade and Vyom Sharma.
