(seen at the performance on 18th June 2023)
MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT: Teller speaks on stage. The man just won’t shut up, ruining the entire show. Two whole words. In French, would you believe. So he used to be a languages teacher, there’s just no reason to show off now, is there. SPOILER ENDS.
Or does it...
Penn & Teller’s trade mark (which keeps them out of the “Magic Circle”) is to show how the tricks are done. Though, if you believe some of their explanations you a) don’t know their act very well and b) believe you can knit wire netting, probably.
Either way, their “first final UK Tour” sees the faithful as well as first-timers who have waited years to see them live gather once more – two years late - at the temple of London magic. That they have sold every seat and standing place for two weeks of tours in huge venues is impressive; just not as impressive as their show.
Kicking off with an hilarious geriatric escapology routine, fifty years of exuberant Penn and (now, almost) silent Teller are celebrated with a sequence of tricks other magicians simply don’t come close to presenting half so brilliantly.
This duo often use techniques other magicians do not, and the slickness results in the audience not just questioning “how did they do that?” but almost constantly “HOW AND WHY DID THEY DO THAT?!”
Jelly beans are a constantly recurring theme as a “guess the number in the jar” – the audience supply written guesses, read out by a nervous conscript from the front row - starts the show. How the total, divided by four, matches the number of coins selected by another audience conscript is anybody’s guess. The gasps from the crowd prove it.
Ever wondered how a rope is cut in two and restored? Another audience volunteer doesn’t know, but the rest of us do – and the litter of tiny rope ends show it. Later, a confident 9-year-old boy gets to see it done on a larger scale with a skein of nylon as he is inducted into the Church.
More revelation in the “escapology” routine. The front row spent the interval checking the integrity of a Perspex box and a wooden one next to it. Insert Teller into the first, place the first into the second and how does he escape? If you chose to keep your eyes open, you find out... well... as much as they want you to anyway. And it is hilarious.
There’s a giant performing monkey as well, much to this monkey’s delight. Fired in the first half, crashing in on the second and making an amazing appearance a few moments later. That’s distraction.
From monkeys to whack-a-mole with a fun wince-inducing routine involving Teller in a giant arcade “whack-a-mole” holder and Penn armed with a lethally heavy mallet to whack the mole in the numbered holder selected by another audience member. The things an audience will do for jellybeans... kept by the first conscript and handed out at Penn’s direction to all following.
Anyway, the genius of this one is that those close enough could see where Teller’s seat in the line (the seats were on wheels) was placed. How he wasn’t chosen though... that’s mathematical magic.
Also demonstrating the genius of those who devise this kind of trick, a repeat of “Love Match” in which the entire audience participate with four cards picked up in the foyer drew the usual amazement... oddly, didn’t work this time for the monkey... it guesses singledom isn’t so bad... aww....
Solo, each man takes a little time to do their special thing. Penn ends the show on fire-eating with a good “freak show” tale. Teller, when he finally does zip it, repeats his "pruning routine" and “chipper monologue” stunt (no rabbits were actually shredded, for those sitting near the back) and performs the “swallow needles then produce them on a thread” classic routine with a precision that makes this very ancient trick brand new.
For this simian life-long magic fan, two-and-a-half hours in the presence of these legends is a reminder of the difference between the good and the very, very Las Vegas-headlining best. Now learning a little magic itself, and thus knowing a little of the what it is watching, the appreciation of palming, substitution, distraction, French Drop and every other performer’s skill is heightened.
They are calling this their “First” final tour. The monkey hopes sincerely it is not their last. If it isn’t, keep an eye open for when they next make it over. If it is, well, what a way to go... beats a mallet to the skull, anyway...
5 stars, standing ovation given.