From: gumby@matt.ksu.ksu.edu (David Brian Gumminger)
Newsgroups: alt.magic
Subject: Penn & Teller Review
Date: 11 Nov 1992 11:29:39 -0600
Organization: Kansas State University
NNTP-Posting-Host: matt.ksu.ksu.edu
Keywords: Penn&Teller


The following is a review of the Penn & Teller "concert" I attended on
Monday November 9, 1992.

Let me begin by saying that I drove for 4 1/2 hours (one way) to see the
show.  I don't mean on 4 lane interstate either, but one lane of hilly
backroad in the fog.  Additionally, the tickets I ordered by phone were 
10 rows further back than I had been told.  Was it worth all this frustration?
YES.  I would gladly do it again.  The show is that good.  If you have a 
chance to see it, GO!

The show was in two parts seperated by a 15 minute intermission.  The first
half of the show Penn calls their "weaker" material.  This was mostly made
up of the Penn & Teller classics: the handstab, Teller drowning while Penn
"tries" to find a card, and Teller's straight-jacket escape while Penn reads
_Casey_at_the_Bat_.  Even though I had seen most of this material before,
Penn & Teller managed to make these "oldies" immensely entertaining anyway.

Part two of the show was newer material and included: a performance art 
piece called "The Domestication of Animals" which featured Penn on bass
guitar and Teller on balloon animals (no magic, but lots of fun), a 
tremendous flower illusion by Teller (see below), and a sleight of hand
finale that sees Penn and Teller strip naked to prove they have nothing
up their sleeves (This one you just gotta see to appreciate).  I thought
the best "pure" magic effect in the show was Teller's flower illusion.  For
those of you who haven't seen it, it is worth the price of admission alone.
A lone flower in a vase sits on a small table.  A blank canvas sits a few
feet behind.  A light on the floor projects the flowers shadow onto the 
canvas.  Teller appears with a pair of scissors and begins to cut the 
shadow of the flower on the canvas.  As he does so, the real flowers leafs
and petals fall away.  The audience actually gasped in astonishment - 
probably the only time I've ever seen that happen.

Audience participation seems to be a key ingredient to the act.  "Volunteers"
are selected for almost everything performed.  Penn is a true master at
handling these people.  He dares them to screw him up, yells at them,
insults and belittles them - and the "volunteers" don't seem to mind! Why?
Because everyone is so busy having a good time, they forget to be insulted.
Very few people could pull that off, but Penn and Teller manage it nicely.

Well, I've raved about the good. What was bad?  I thought about this for
a while and could only come up with one complaint.  Several of the effects
were difficult to see well.  Things like the handstab are not easy to
see even from only 20 rows back.  I think this is a result of the type of
magic Penn & Teller perform.  They don't do standard stage magic.  Their
effects are often smaller with an interesting twist.  Don't get me wrong,
they do everything possible to help the stuff be visible to those in the
back, but I think I would have had even more fun if I'd been a little closer
to it all.

A final word about Penn and Teller as individuals. They are HIGH-CLASS.  At
the end of the show, they are wearing only long white t-shirts and are caked
in blood.  Do they dissappear off stage?  No, they went straight to the front
lobby to sign autographs (complete with blood stain), and answer questions.
(when I asked Penn if he would answer a question he responded with, "Anything
ask me anything." and he meant it).  

My apologies to Penn and Teller for saying so many nice things.  They've
thrived on the "bad boys of magic" image for revealing things on stage and
producing so much blood.  But these guys are truely fabulous performers and
really high-class individuals.


David Gumminger
-- 
David B. Gumminger
Kansas State University
gumby@matt.ksu.ksu.edu