Items filtered by date: November 2007

To call Joshua Tillman’s career unusual is something of an understatement. A former drummer for Fleet Foxes and an accomplished solo musician, he left that group, loaded his van with mushrooms and took a trip down the California coast, a hazy exodus that resulted in the birth of his current performing alter-ego Father John Misty. Luckily for us, that strange journey resulted in one gorgeous album, and now a global tour that made its stop at Lincoln Hall on October 30.

It should come as no surprise that Tillman’s band resembles the Muppet’s Electric Mayhem, all bleached dreadlocks and sunglasses that are most likely vintage. Despite their somewhat loud appearance, though, the band stayed mostly quiet throughout the night, leaving the stage banter to the instrument-free Tillman. He more than lived up to the challenge, going on drawling sidebars between songs, every word as perfectly scripted and drily erudite as his lyrics.

“I see one masked face coming out of the fog,” he said at one point, noticing a concert-goer in a Halloween costume. “This is how I always knew death would come to me. Masked, in the fog. Take me. It’s my time.”

When that same wry, detached voice opens up in song, it’s startling. His voice has the polish of aged wood, or maybe oak-aged bourbon is a better comparison – there’s roughness there. Tillman sounds remarkably flawless live, and his wonderfully bonkers lyrics come through even clearer on stage:

“I ran down the road/pants down to my knees/screaming “Please come help me, that Canadian shaman gave a little too much to me/and I’m writing a novel/because it’s never been done before.”

Considering how patently strange the lyrics are, it’s slightly astonishing that the album has cultivated such a passionate following. Lincoln Hall was stuffed to the gills with enthusiastic attendees of all ages, spanning the spectrum of standard twenty-something hipsters to subdued-looking professionals. We were sandwiched between a particularly lively group who shrieked along to every number, and a guy dressed as MacGruber.

The set highlight was definitely “Hollywood Forever Cemetary Sings,” a strangely infectious mid-tempo jam filled with gravestone imagery and a relentlessly driving beat.

Even with the wonderfully witty banter, the concert was over far too soon – Father John Misty, after all, has only released one album. Tillman and his guitarist (who Tillman said had a “lusty” speaking voice) did return for a quiet number, and the rest of the band came out for one last song before everyone said goodnight.

MacGruber seemed to approve.

Father John Misty's debut album "Fear Fun" is out now on Sub Pop.

If you’ve recently had the odd inclination to see a play that revolves around an Uptown donut shop –good news! You will be pleased to know that Tracy Letts’ “Superior Donuts” is not only currently playing at the Cabaret Theatre inside the Royal George Theatre, but is also a sweeter treat than any Krispy Kreme fried dough concoction. Funny and thoroughly engaging, “Superior Donuts” centers around a donut shop in the midst of Uptown that has been in the family for sixty years – but there’s so much more.

Run by son, Arthur Przybyszewski (just like it sounds), now an aging Jerry Garcia-alike, Superior Donuts holds onto to the comforts of routine, and unchanging ways where the same handful of regulars make most of its customer base. When Franco Wicks, a young visionary and dreamer, comes knocking for a job opening behind the counter, Arthur reluctantly hires him. Franco is filled with energy and new ideas and continues to hammer Arthur with creative proposals to attract a new crowd – bran muffins and bananas for the healthy minded individual, poetry night… Though the two couldn’t be more opposite, they begin to click, learning from, and about, each other as outer layers are slowly peeled away. In the meantime, neighboring businessman, Max, is trying to buy the donut shop from Arthur to expand his electronics business. Arthur is not willing to sell.

Arthur is such a wonderful character. Slow to speak with simple, direct and thought out words, he is extremely laid back, outwardly set in his ways, though at times also shows glimpses of excitement to explore new directions. Still, at the end of Arthur’s day it’s all about complacency, familiarity and relaxing with some weed in his bowl at closing time. As the play moves on, we learn about Arthur’s background  - Polish heritage, raised in Jefferson Park, and like many, past ghosts are revealed, in his case a lost wife. Richard Cotvsky is simply terrific as Arthur, really making the character easy to relate with.

What makes this play so entertaining is the connection and interactions between Franco and Arthur. As every bit as engaging as Arthur was made to be, the same can be said about Franco. Kudos to the director for casting Preston Tate, Jr. to play the role of Franco, who was not only outstanding as Franco, but couldn’t have been more perfect to craft a fun, and meaningful, relationship with Cotvsky. The chemistry between the two is magical and is completely enjoyable to watch from any theatre seat in the house. I want to also acknowledge Paige Smith for his exceptional work in the role of Max and express appreciation to him for providing some of the show’s biggest laughs.

“Superior Donuts” is a perfect dose of Chicago evening theatre and contains all the ingredients of an intriguing story from loan shark thugs to the perpetual ambitions of a dreamer, complete with big laughs and its share of sticky moments.   

“Superior Donuts”, A Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company production, is playing at The Royal George Cabaret (1641 N Halsted St.) though November 25^th. For more information call 312-988-9000 or visit www.maryarrchie.com. 

“Who Killed Rock ‘n’ Roll?” In a musical landscape currently littered with corporate, mindless teen-pop and overproduced hip-hop, this was Rick Springfield’s opening salvo Friday night at Joe’s Bar on Weed Street.  Over a classic, driving power-pop rhythm and cranked power-chords, Springfield spit out lyrics any mourning, long-term lover of rock could relate to: “Rap put the bullet in rock ‘n’ roll’s head/Radio used her and left her for dead”. It was a high-energy opener that would’ve worked just as well in a stadium setting as in the more intimate confines of Joe’s.  Thankfully, the small-scale atmosphere also played to Rick’s strengths as a performer (even if it took the first two numbers for him to find his footing on the tighter stage).

Perhaps it’s the Malibu living, years of groupiedom, or maybe he has a very decrepit portrait hanging in his attic, but at 63 Springfield stands as a testament to the more rejuvenating powers of rock-n-roll. Touring behind his latest (and possibly strongest) album “Songs for the End of the World,” Rick has somehow managed to turn back the hands of time. Onstage, he still looks every bit the rock idol of yesteryear and, if anything, his voice actually sounded stronger on certain songs (the aforementioned opener and the new single “I Hate Myself”). This is a veteran performer who has known his share of highs and lows, but also still values his creativity and his audience.

He is also an underrated songwriter. Beneath the pop-idol image and sunny, sing-a-long choruses lay some dark lyrical observations on fame (“Living in Oz,” “Rock of Life”) and sexual obsession (“Don’t Talk to Strangers”).  Even songs of seduction and young lust, such as “I Get Excited” and “Love is Alright Tonite” have an air of accusation and taunting. And on “Our Ship’s Sinking” (one of two new songs in Friday’s setlist), he sings about his marital struggles. Anyone who’s read his uniquely honest (among celebrities) autobiography knows it hasn’t been an easy ride for Mr. Jessie’s Girl.

Sprinkled among the many pop hits (probably more than one remembers) were some energetic covers such as Wings’ “Jet” and Robert Johnson-via-Cream’s “Crossroads” (complete with impressive guitar work – even more so considering Rick was relegated to two fingers on his temporarily broken fretting hand). There were also several nods to the Beatles with the upbeat “Can’t Buy Me Love” as part of his encore and the classic “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” outro riff making an appearance at the end of “Jessie’s Girl”.

In the end, it was the ‘80s hits people came to hear (a fate he shares with many veteran hit-makers, even those with strong new material) and Rick delivered them with the same youthful enthusiasm he did during his initial, heady burst of fame. For “Human Touch,” Rick not only crowd-surfed, he got deep in the trenches, fully connecting with fans. And in-person, all of the songs had a heavier, driving guitar sound than on record, making the live versions punchier and, dare I add, a bit more “guy-friendly”. For musicians, there was much to admire in the interplay between Rick and his talented band members (standouts being Rodger Carter on drums and George Bernhardt on lead guitar). This was tight, concise, late ‘70s-style power-pop at its finest.   

By the time Rick and company arrived at the final encore of the evening (audience favorite “Kristina”), the nostalgic itch had been scratched, but for those paying closer attention there was every reason to believe in the Rick Springfield of today. He delivered what was expected, but remains creative and attuned to the present. Between writing strong new songs and promoting them in a fun way (his recent New York subway-busking appearance and the four different interactive CD covers), he is doing his part to make album-buying enjoyable again. And for a “sleeping” art form such as rock-n-roll, what more can you expect?    

Setlist:

1. Who Killed Rock ‘n’ Roll?
2. Affair of the Heart
3. Living in Oz
4. Jet (Paul McCartney & Wings cover)
5. I Get Excited
6. Medley: Bop ‘Til You Drop/Celebrate Youth/Calling All Girls/Don’t Walk Away/State of the Heart/What Kind of Fool Am I
7. I’ve Done Everything for You
8. I Hate Myself
9. Our Ship’s Sinking
10. Rock of Life
11. Love is Alright Tonite
12. Crossroads (Cream cover)
13. Don’t Talk to Strangers
14. Love Somebody
15. Human Touch
16. Jessie’s Girl

Encore:

17. Can’t Buy Me Love
18. Kristina

Review by Bruce Colón

www.joesbar.com

www.rickspringfield.com

Something interesting is showing at Auditorium Theater this weekend. I say interesting because it’s one of the few words I can think of to sum up the Joffrey ballet’s fall program ‘Human Landscapes.’ Comprised of three pieces, Forgotten Land, Pretty BALLET and The Green Table, Human Landscapes explores the human spirit, interpreting life, relationships, romance, and death, in the most interesting of ways.

The first performance, Forgotten Land, was inspired by a painting of women on a beach by Edvard Munch. This piece is supposed to ‘invoke treasured memories of lost homelands, lost lovers and lost time.’ It’s difficult to watch a ballet portraying a painting when one has never seen the painting. And while the dancers were beautiful, I did not get the impression that the choreographer obviously was trying to convey, though I am not an interpreter of ballet or art. It was an interesting piece to say the least, but I had high hopes for the next piece, Pretty BALLET.

I’d like you to close your eyes and imagine a ballet. Any ballet. And now picture the dancers dancing that ballet. Have an image in your mind? If you do, it’s most likely that Pretty BALLET is a pretty accurate representation of your imagination. The performance delivers what its name promises; it is a pretty ballet. The curtain opens and dancers in long tutus stand surrounded by mist, a beautiful dancer with red shoes held in the air, and the women twirl and the men leap; oh what a pretty thing. The ballet is a perfect combination of femininity and masculinity that explores ‘the subject of ballet itself as a balance between romantic ideals and industrious principles.’ Interesting, I guess I am getting better at interpreting ballets.

And finally, like any good tv marathon, the show you want to see is always at the end. The final performance in the evening, The Green Table, was by far the standout performance of the evening for the Joffrey. First premiering in 1932, The Green Table is a rather dated piece, but one that still resonates with audiences. It starts and ends with, what else, a green table. Humorous caricatures of diplomats gather around the table bickering and disputing and until –bang—they incite a war. There enters the character of death, beautifully performed by Fabrice Calmels, which ‘takes’ victims of the war from on and off the battlefield, sometimes in a passionate way, others in a harsh, cruel way. This is the one performance that does not require a whole lot of interpretation, but one that requires thought and appreciation for the ballet as a whole as a representation of death and war.

An interesting evening of ballet awaits you in Human Landscapes. It’s a much more modern, angular fall production, and if you are not a fan of modern ballet, this performance might not be the best for you. However, if you are in the mood for an interesting evening, Human Landscapes shows through October 28^th at the Auditorium Theater.

The Neo-Futurists aptly celebrate our nation’s leaders in their current production of “44 Plays for 44 Presidents”. Finding both tragedy and humor in each president from George Washington to Barrack Obama, the show gives you a quick look into each leader and also presents some little known facts about some. Cast members take turns donning the presidential jacket in chronological order from first to current all the while completing a map of the United States as each state becomes part of the nation.

Yes, you will be sure to see all your faves come to life including Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore. Joe Dempsey leads an outstanding cast that somehow successfully captures the mistakes and achievements of each president while spending an average of just a few minutes on each, paying tribute to those deserved and criticizing when necessary no matter the represented party.

Halena Kays directs this production well, as it moves at a prefect pace to tickle one’s interest throughout. As with many Neo-Futurists productions, the audience comes into play when cast members ask for volunteers, adding some very funny and embarrassing moments. A few audience members are also selected to share memories of John F. Kennedy in a more moving segment.

“44 Plays for 44 Presidents” is part of the ongoing Plays for Presidents Festival taking place throughout the country (www.playsforpredsidents.com for more info). Playing through November 4^th, this is a great show to take in just before the election. Tickets are just $20 ($10 for students and seniors) for 7:30pm shows on Fridays and Saturdays and 3:0pm on Sundays, and 7:30pm Thursday shows are listed as pay-what-you-can. The Neo-Futurarium is located at 5153 N. Ashland. For more information call 773-275-5255 or visit www.neofuturists.org.            

I love celebrating Halloween and seeing a live stage version of the Rocky Horror Picture Show is a

perfect way to do it. 

Rocky Horror by Awkward pause Theatre Co. is a  funny, stylish and sexy production. They will give you a bag of participation toys including rubber surgical gloves and wedding bubbles and instructions in case you are a virgin. If  just haven't seen Rocky Horror in a while and have forgotten the great adlibs like shouting out “Asshole” at Brad or “Slut” at Janet, they have some plants in the audience to help you out. Seeing Rocky Horror performed live at classic Mayne Stage really brought back great memories of the first times I saw Rocky at the Biograph in Chicago and The Coconut Grove in Miami with my high school and college friends.

A live band brings all the favorite Rocky songs to life including the memorable “Time Warp”, “I’m Going Home”, “Damnit Janet” “Over at the Frankenstein Place” and the upbeat “Hot Patootie – Bless My Soul”. From the opening number “Science Fiction/Double Feature” it was apparent that this was going to be one of the better productions of Rocky Horror. The singing throughout was very good and the costumes were the perfect finishing touch.

Michael Buonincontro was absolutely fabulous as “Frankenfurter” and really took command of the stage from the moment he first appeared to his signature number “Sweet Transvestite”. Erin O’Shea and Corey Mills were tons of fun as “Brad” and Janet” while Megan Schemmel rocked as “Magenta” and Kevin Buswell did a great job as “Riff Raff”.

Richard O’Brien’s “The Rocky Horror Show” is playing select dates at Mayne Stage Theater through Halloween’s midnight performance. Mayne Stage is located at 1328 Morse Ave in Rogers Park. For more information, visit www.aukwardpausetheatre.com.  

1893 brought forth one of Chicago’s greatest accomplishments in the Columbian Expedition World’s Fair. At the time, the gargantuan fair was one of the most stunning spectacles the world had ever witnessed. The site took place on Chicago’s South Side and contained a brilliant collection of monstrous white buildings designed by renowned architect Daniel P. Burnham, who went on to take a chief role in creating The Plan of Chicago. Frederick Law Olmstead’s beautiful landscaping connected the magnificent structures with rich greenery from around the world, peaceful lagoons and streaming canals. It was a rich time for not only Chicago, but also for an America that wanted to outdo the Paris Exposition held just a few years prior. Many things were introduced at the World’s Fair such as the zipper, Cracker Jack, Shredded Wheat, phosphorescent lamps, spray painting and probably the most notable of all, The Ferris Wheel, which was made solely to top Paris’ Eiffel Tower. 

However, no one at the time had any idea that the fair’s top billing would later go to a certain H.H. Holmes who used the fair to lure unsuspecting victims to his nearby hotel, otherwise known as his “Murder Castle”. Herman Webster Mudgett, a.k.a. H.H. Holmes, was in the murder business well before the World’s Fair, but it was during those very six months in which it was open to the public that his hideous nature would reach its pinnacle. 

Rooms for rent was a popular commodity during the fair and Holmes’ tiny ad in the local paper brought plenty of travelers his way. Holmes was also selective in who he rented to, mostly choosing lone tourists or people that wouldn’t exactly be missed very easily. The hotel, located on the corner of S. Wallace Street and 63rd, was filled with trap doors, and rooms that would lock from the outside to prevent escape once Holmes would emit deadly gas into the air from hidden pipes. Holmes also had a walk in vault that he used to gas victims to death after tricking them into grabbing documents from within. But possibly most disturbing of all, was Holmes’ tortures chamber located in the building’s basement where a variety of medical instruments were often used in the worst ways and vats of acid could be found to dispose of the mangled bodies.

Now you can relive the horror.

H.H. Holmes is believed to be America’s first serial killer and Rosemont’s Screams in the Park is doing its part in keeping his memory alive. With a haunted house themed around Holmes “Murder Castle”, we are led through creepy dimly lit hallways reminiscent of the historic hotel. Eerie pictures decorate the walls with many causing double takes as though something may have moved within its frame. As the maze continues, we walk into one frightening room after another not knowing if anything might jump out towards us at any given second. Each room is unique from the other with some exhibiting scenes as imagined directly from Holmes evil hotel and others displaying their own original theme of gore and horror. Screams from other guests are often heard from other rooms adding to the excitement. Ghosts of past victims walk frantically about and H.H. Holmes himself instructs guests to walk through a frightening stretch of pitch black void. 

Thrills, chills and plenty of excitement will certainly be had at Rosemont’s Screams in the Park. The haunted house is by far one of the more original fright factories I have seen in some time. It is quite obvious that tons of thought, effort and precision went into each detail of the house from the moment you walk into the house to the moment you escape with your life. With more heart stopping scares than the “Saw” films combined, this is the perfect Halloween event.

The walkthrough takes a good 20-30 minutes and the price, which includes parking, is very reasonable at $20. “Screams” is open most nights in October from 7pm through 11pm. For more information on this scare fest, visit www.screamsinthepark.com.

 It is truly the closest thing to dreaming while being awake. There are very few shows that have so much going on, so many enthralling acts one after another, that you find yourself wondering when you can see the show again before it's even over and "O" by Cirque Du Soleil at the Bellagio Hotel is certainly one of them.

It's hard to even begin to describe the artistry of this masterful combination of ballet, gymnastics, diving and synchronized swimming. I think my jaw dropped about ten minutes into the show and after that I just kept shaking my head in stupefied awe as I tried to follow and digest every one of the nuances of the individual dancer/swimmer/acrobats as they swam, crawled, and flew in and out of the huge pool and filled every foot of space around it with one visually stunning image after another.

The costumes and makeup reminiscent of the 15th to 20th centuries with an emphasis on the Romantic period, defy description as each character stands out uniquely in vivid colors and lavish, flowing designs full of natural movement that glorify the human body on these dancers already remarkable physiques.

The pool, the cranes and giant swinging barge, trapeze and other floating phenomenon compose the structure of this technically compelling and mind boggling masterpiece. It is interesting to know that when they first developed this show they found major difficulties keeping the Las Vegas audience cool and the soaking wet performers warm. The solution was to create two completely separate temperate worlds wherein the pool area and the air above it stays warm enough for all those amazing dives into the 1.5 million gallon pool, and lightning fast costume changes while the auditorium remains a comfortably cool dry 72 degrees.

Inspired by "the concept of infinity and the elegance of water's pure form", there is no real plotline or dialogue in this show, but none is necessary where heady romanticism, and haunting Fellini-esque scenarios evoke such moving and exciting emotions in the audience of tourists from around the globe. The cast is made up of 85 superbly skilled, Olympic quality performers from more than twenty different countries and gives you an incredibly warm feeling of universal oneness. It really reminds one of a veritable UN of the international theatre community. As I looked around at the faces of the enraptured audience and realized that they had all come together and were enjoying this wonderful piece without words in similar ways regardless of their country or language of origin, it gave me a wonderful feeling of pure theatre acting as a catalyst for world peace.

When citizens are exposed to high culture whether it's on the traditional Broadway stage in New York or right there in good old Sin City, they are transformed into peaceable creatures for the night, clapping, laughing and dreaming the same dream. In this case it's a dream of both unlimited possibilities and impossibly spectacular and graceful feats of daring and skill. It's a dream I plan to share with that beautiful cast and equally beautiful audience again on my next trip to Vegas. I highly recommend "O" as one of the must see shows for anyone looking to buy a single ticket that will absolutely deliver on it's high quality promises of delight and wonder.

"Believe" is the Harley Davidson of magic shows. There are motorcycles and then there are Harley Davidsons. Not that there is anything wrong with many of these motorcycles, but it’s the innovative style, performance, detail and quality that sets Harley Davidsons apart from the rest. Well, in comparison, there are magic shows and then there is “Believe”, the amazingly mind-blowing collaboration of super magician Criss Angel and Cirque Du Soleil. Performing in Las Vegas’ Luxor Hotel and Casino, Criss Angel’s magic spectacular is performed in a theater specifically built to handle the magnitude of such a show. With over forty illusions executed to perfection in each show, “Believe” has all the ingredients to make this an experience to remember for a lifetime – a larger than life set, energetic music, humor, explosions and fiery bursts, sexy assistants and an immensely charismatic magician who has the skill and ability to back up the hype as one of the world’s best performers of magic. Basically, a rock n roll magic show.   

Known for his stardom on the popular “Mindfreak” series, Criss has taken on the challenge of live theater and is in the middle of a ten-year deal at Luxor. In fact, the fifth anniversary of “Believe” falls on Halloween, 2012. Without giving too much away, “Believe” (also designed and directed by Criss Angel) is one breathtaking illusion after another. At one point, Criss Angel dangles upside down, high above the audience as Harry Houdini’s mystifying straight jacket escape is recreated. Rapidly spinning in place, we watch from the edges of our seats to see if an escape will be made in record time. Moments of intensity in the show are frequent and when Criss disappears from the stage only to reappear in another part of the theater in a blink of an eye, it’s…well – Mindfreak! In “Believe” we are also treated to Criss’ unfathomable demonstrations of mentalism, sleight of hand and there is also plenty of audience participation, which always adds to the fun.

Las Vegas has plenty of shows to see but “Believe” should be on the top of everyone’s list. It is also a show that constantly evolves and can be entertaining time and time again.

I met with Criss after the show and, after talking with him for some time, realized the person I was sitting with was a perfectionist, an extremely hard worker and someone who has a deep, perpetual inner drive to continuously better his performance. I also found Criss Angel to be a genuine and down to earth person with the raw energy and excitement of a little kid. Yep, he’s the real deal.

Buzz – So as far as your own creativity and personal touch for “Believe”, is this show mostly your own conception?

Criss – This show itself it basically written, directed, designed by me as far as the magic and illusion goes. I completely designed it. We literally fabricated the stuff in my facility. I have a 60,000 square foot production facility. We manufacture the magic that you see on “Mind Freak” as well as the stuff that you see in “Believe”. Basically, it starts off in my mind and we’ll do some drawings and then some small, little prototypes and then once when we have it evolving to the point that we feel good about it, we’ll start building one. It goes through several phases – several months or even years – before it is developed enough so that it can be used in a practical way for ten shows a week - 46 weeks a year for a ten year deal.

Buzz – So you are the mind behind the show.

Criss - So the illusions you see, I create and design them and the show itself – I wrote the show so all the lines and all the jokes I wrote from beginning to end and directed everybody. Cirque also provided incredible support and creative minds that were able to do the projections, bring in the pyro and add the scenic elements and stuff like that. So it was kind of an evolution - the show is all about magic. There are more than 40 illusions in the show – more magic in the show than any other Las Vegas magic show and it all centers around giving people an experience that is unlike any other magic show – to revolutionize magic as far as awe and wonderment.

Buzz – Sounds like “Believe” is the show to see and based on what I saw, it is.

Criss - Cirque and I take it very seriously with the economy the way it is and people coming to Vegas and not having the disposable income they once had, they have a very important decision to make. They are not seeing two or three shows anymore, they’re choosing one show, and if they choose believe I want to make sure we deliver and the best promotion and marketing in this business as you know is word of mouth. People leave here and tell their friends and they come back. We’ve have people that have seen the show 70 or 80 times. We also have all kinds of fans from six years old to seventy-five years old. It’s really amazing the demographic. It’s really exciting and it’s a big room. It has 1,534 seats, unlike other shows in town that play in venues half the size. We’re very, very, very fortunate and I really attribute that to the great show that we have, and it’s not my show it’s really everybody’s show because without this amazing team, there would be no show. It takes an army to win a war not just one person, and I have the best army in the world.   

Buzz – Do you as a magician go out and see other magic shows?

Criss – I know it’s out there, but I don’t spend a lot of time looking over my shoulder looking to see what others are doing because I try to lead the way, doing things that are innovative. A lot of the stuff that’s out there – not to pick out anybody in particular – but you go see that show and you can see seven other shows that do the same tricks. You know, have the box come out and we’re going to squish somebody that is small or have the box come out and slice people. For both me and Cirque Soleil, we have built our reputation on being able to deliver first class entertainment that’s provocative, that’s engaging, that’s exciting and that’s unique and that is the mantra that we have – and if someone else is doing it, we don’t want to do it. We have an advantage in the fact that the show is built right here and we’re not moving around from venue to venue. This show is here for ten years and maybe five more if we mutually agree to an additional five-year contract.

Buzz – You’ve single-handedly brought magic to a completely new type of audience that has now become a phenomenon, thanks to a platform such as “Mindfreak”.

Criss – Well, I think magic has been is a stagnant position and was just coasting along, not really keeping up with the times in pop culture, in music, in visual and so on, so I wanted to give it a kick in the ass and do something that I wanted to see. Years and years ago I really did not aspire to be a magician – I thought Houdini was fantastic and one of the greats in magic, but magic that was happening at the time just seemed to be kind of hokey. It was really cutting edge that had a mass appeal to a popular culture, so for me it was all about – as a fan – what do I want to see? How can I bring that to people? I think that success really resonated in “Mindfreak” and obviously in “Believe” it has that kind of a concept. If you watch “Mindfreak” a lot of those illusions are in different incarnations in this show, like the cutting in half which I did in “Mindfreak”. There are a lot of different pieces of magic that I did in “Mindfreak” that are in this show, so they are able to work on television and in live performance. I just think the whole nature of it is much more entertaining and more contemporary, if you will.

Buzz – Was that a big transition to go from TV to live performing?

Criss – Well, I’m a live performer first. I’ve been ding this since I was 11-years-old. I performed at kids’ parties and corporate events – all sorts of clubs in New York City, Webster Hall – all sorts of places. I really started to build a following and then television was something that I was involved in as a teenager and I was kind of able to work in both mediums and understood that just because something works in one medium doesn’t mean it will work in the other. I understood that when you work in television, you have to make engaging TV and that’s very different than live performance. When you’re in live performance you can’t do – we’ll television is a completely different thing. When your in television you’re able to use the cameras to zoom into the action, keeping it moving, upcutting so you don’t have to sit there and be bored watching the whole lead up to the effect.

Buzz – Sure. And the attention spans of younger viewers are different these days.

Criss – Right. Kids and audiences today are so overwhelmed by information with the Internet at their fingertips. They don’t have the attention span that they did 10, 20, 30 years ago. So when you create a TV show, it’s got to hold people’s attention. It’s got to be produced and created in a certain way where it connects and brings them into it and that approach is a very different approach than when you’re doing live performance because in live performance you can’t go to a close up shot – they’re the directors. So they’re watching the show from their perspective and you have to provide a show that’s going to keep moving and my goal is to make “Believe” a freight train. You’re on a fright train – a journey that’s going to be exciting, scary, dangerous and sexy. I try to take people and let them feel these different emotions and not kind of repeat the same thing so it’s funny as well. That’s a very different approach than in “Mindfreak” which is more serious. 

Buzz – I have to ask you about that incident on the TV show “Phenomenon” when you called out that mentalist who claimed to communicate with the dead. Was that whole exchange scripted?

Criss – Oh, no. Absolutely not. That definitely was not scripted. I can’t remember his name offhand but he claimed to talk with the dead. I don’t have a problem with that if it’s for entertainment. I don’t have a problem with that - but when you prey upon the vulnerable and you try to go after people for financial gain, or you manipulate their emotions to get money from them, which is what these charlatans do, I have a real big problem with that. I just think that’s completely wrong. Houdini spent half his life disproving psychics and mediums who claimed to talk with the dead – he proved them wrong. Interestingly enough when Houdini passed away in 1926 on Halloween, he said to his wife – because he spent a good portion of his life debunking these people – he said to his wife, Bess, from his deathbed, “when I die there are going to be a lot of people coming out of the woodwork that are going to claim to have made contact with me, so I’m going to give you a secret word – a code – so that when they hold a séance you’ll know whether they are really talking to me or if they are frauds and charlatans.” And the word is “believe”. That’s why the show’s called “Believe”. So I feel pretty passionate about that.

Buzz – Wow, cool. I didn’t know that - a very apropos name for your show. There are sure a lot of TV psychics out there that are able to get family members to trust them.

Criss - To these people that claim to have these powers, I’ve offered a million dollars of my own money if someone can do something that can’t be explained or reproduced and James Randy, John Edwards, Sylvia Brown – that’s all bullshit. It’s all nonsense. It’s just tricks that a magician would use to be able to utilize the person, to gain information so that the way it appears is as though they know something. This most simple example is like discovery. You’re gonna go home and you’re gonna be in traffic, now there are a million cars and you’re never going to notice a specific car. But if you go out tomorrow and by a specific Nissan, the minute you buy that car your going to notice the same car everywhere because your awareness – your perspective – completely changes.

Buzz – That is so true. Happens every time.

Criss – Sure. So if you’re looking for information and I’m able to fill in little pieces in your mind that make sense, then you’re going to give me information by your body language, by your vocal responses  - your gonna feed me with information just like how somebody dresses, how they conduct themselves – I’m gonna know what kind of personality and what kind of financial base they probably come from, etcetera. You become very aware and perceptive to these things so that you’re able to create a scenario that people buy into and as they buy into it, your getting more information from them. It’s called cold reading. That’s the name of the technique.

Buzz – So it’s like mentalism?

Criss – Well, mentalism is a category. Mentalism is basically more of a magician kind of word. Like I do mentalism. Now people that claim to have these beliefs, they’ll say they are clairvoyant or psychic – it’s all kind of the same thing, but I wouldn’t use those terms because I am an entertainer.

Buzz – What’s your favorite trick to perform?

Criss – I get asked that a lot and it’s really funny because we do over forty in “Believe”, but they’re all basically my children. So to pick one over the other is impossible. Each illusion is designed to evoke a different emotion so they’re designed differently to give the spectator a different feel. So to pick one over the other is very, very difficult, but some of them are much more challenging because the show is very physical to do, so sometimes on my body, it’s much more difficult. The straight jacket escape where I’m hanging above the audience and spinning then free falling to where I’m caught by my ankles is sometimes challenging. For me and the cast and the crew, we always go out there and give 110% because we’re very grateful to have such an amazing audience. We put in our best to give the best and I’ve never missed a show in my entire career. 

Criss Angel is the most watched magician in history for a reason and “Believe” allows him to bring the magic right to your seat. Get ready to be bewildered and mystified in a highly intense magic show you will never forget!

“Believe” is performed eight times weekly. For more show information click here.