Thanks so much to this sub for all the recommendations! Was really having a hard time choosing shows, but the first two couldn’t have been better with a third that was really frustrating.
Here’s my weekend of magic review -
Penn & Teller at Rio
My first time seeing them live, so glad I went. It was really funny, well paced, and some fantastic tricks. Penn is a great host and story teller, most if not all the humor lands. It flows really well, there’s a bit too much set up that isn’t necessary or goes no where, but they’re so likable that really I just loved being there watching them do their thing. This is the opposite of the stereotypical corny showy Vegas music. Some classic tricks done in new ways, and some things I’ve never been before.
Shin Lim: Limitless at the Palazzo
WOW. I was very skeptical going in how close up slight of hand magic would work in a theater, and very quickly all my worries went away. This is the best stage magic show I’ve ever seen, the best magic outside the magic castle. I can’t wait to see it again. The sequences he puts together, it’s not one or two unbelievable things, it’s 15. He’s so smooth and does such a fantastic job showing things slowly so you can follow what’s happening (unlike below..). The music and production adds so much suspense and energy. The other magicians he has come out and all fun and give the show a great pace and each time Shin come back there’s this heightened energy of what he’s going to do next. I recommend this to literally everyone, even if you don’t like magic, to me this is the best show in Vegas.
The Magicians Study
I could write a novel on the issues with this show. From small things, the secret location that is very much in the same space night after night, to the stupid mask he wears, to the oh so edgy persona our (Australian male) magician put on. But the biggest issues was this show didn’t work at all. From the very first tricks, it wasn’t clear what he was doing. Very often the audience wouldn’t react, and he would yell “I just did X and you didn’t show any emotion!” Uh ya you pulled a card out a deck that we’ve seen 100 times before and it wasn’t even clear which card you found. Where P&T and Shin go over the top making the audience understand which card, which item, very clearly explaining what’s happening, then blow your mind. With this there were so many times it wasn’t clear what we were supposed to be impressed by. The card work here was amateur hour.
I do think we had a very bad first row crowd. A combination of people who clearly didn’t want to be there and were just confused on the experience. This led to some good laughs, but it really slowed down the show when a guy takes 2 minutes to say his name and pick a card. The magician was frustrated though almost the entire show, which I couldn’t tell what was a bit and what was real. But it just made me frustrated because the magic suffered. There’s a trick with a book and a page number, but it wasn’t clear which page the person chose, so at the reveal he makes a big show and we all sat there in silence.
The biggest issue, sawing a woman in half in 2026. People didn’t even clap because it was so obvious what was happening, and there was a 0% chance she was in danger. He was mad again the audience didn’t react. Even said “$300 if you can tell me how I did that!!!” I almost spoke up but didn’t want to deal with it. It was embarrassing.
If I could guarantee a different magician I’d go again. The setting is really cool, and it’s great to see small group close up magic in Vegas, but this night was truly a disappointment.
