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In often-pricey Vegas, magicians Penn & Teller continue a free tradition..

In often-pricey Vegas, magicians Penn & Teller continue a free tradition..

(Photo.. Penn Jillette and Magic News publisher, Rick Carruth )

Getting up close and personal with Las Vegas headliners can get pricey, with one big exception: Penn & Teller. Greeting their fans, for free, after their shows is something they’ve been doing for more than four decades.

Stick around in the lobby and you’ll see the famously silent Teller – the diminutive half of the duo – actually speaking. Each evening, he breaks his silence as audience members surge around him in the theater lobby at the Rio resort.

On Saturday night, he was urging people to form an orderly semicircle so that he could pose for dozens of selfies. Penn Jillette – the 6-foot-7-inch, hulking and vocal half – was doing the same nearby.

“I still bristle a little bit at it being called a meet and greet because it’s not organized, it’s not charged for,” Jillette told me. “It’s just if you want to talk to us, talk to us.”  Read more.. 

http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-tr-vegas-penn-teller-free-20160712-snap-story.html

Review: ‘Mindfreak Live!’ is Criss Angel saying, ‘Watch me now!’

Review: ‘Mindfreak Live!’ is Criss Angel saying, ‘Watch me now!’

Criss Angel wants it. He wants it so badly. He wants to be the biggest, baddest, greatest magician in the history of recorded time, space and dimension.

He wants that so bad he can feel it, and watching him impose his will on his audience at “Mindfreak Live!” at Luxor, you feel it, too.

“Are you ready!!” he calls from the stage. “I can’t hear you!!” Always with the shouting! This is commanding the audience’s attention in the most undiluted fashion, and Angel’s fans are eager to rise and shout right back.

But if you’re among the fans of a more nuanced experience than this Goth-rock-magic show, you’ll brace at this approach — and probably wish you’d worn earplugs.Read more…

https://lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-report/2016/jul/07/review-mindfreak-live-is-criss-angel-saying-watch/

Did Criss Angel miss the chance to move magic forward?

Did Criss Angel miss the chance to move magic forward?

Criss Angel certainly has the resources to deliver what he promised: “The most mind-blowing, revolutionary magic show ever to be performed live.”

But rival magicians are asking if he has a different goal: to be magic’s ultimate cover band.

Rick Thomas paraphrases the letter he says he sent Angel:

“Your success in Vegas is huge. You have much more opportunity than I do, and many more people who you can hire to work for you to create. I don’t. And when a magician comes up with something they can call their own, let them keep it.”

You may remember Thomas for a family-friendly magic show that ran on the Strip for years. Back when he did a lot of cabinet illusions with tigers, you could call it a bargain version of Siegfried & Roy. But — with the exception of a pop-up pooch — those aren’t what turned up in “Mindfreak Live!” the reboot of Angel’s Luxor showcase. Read the rest of this excellent article by Mike Weatherford at:

http://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/columns-blogs/mike-weatherford/did-criss-angel-miss-the-chance-move-magic-forward

( Photo Courtesy of Criss Angel’s ‘Mindfreak Live’ )

Jamie Raven talks BGT mishaps and real magic..

Jamie Raven talks BGT mishaps and real magic..

Who’s Jamie Raven, anyway?

He’s the charmer who made Simon Cowell believe in magic, for a start.

“Somebody once said to me, who I really respect, that there are a lot of people who do tricks and there are a few people who actually can do magic, and I think we just saw that,” were Cowell’s exact words, leaving Raven close to tears.

This was at his Britain’s Got Talent audition last year, which got him a unanimous ‘yes’ from the judges, 20 million views on YouTube and a spot in Cowell’s good graces.

Alas, the Hammersmith lad didn’t go home with gold, but he came in second only to a dancing dog act. Let’s face it — canines boogying? Nobody stood a chance.  Read more…

http://gulfnews.com/leisure/events/jamie-raven-talks-bgt-mishaps-and-real-magic-1.1858700