Chi, IL Live Shows on our Radar
The Magic is Back®!
Chicago Magic Lounge,the area’s premium venue for Chicago-style, close-up magicto reopen its secret doors to the pubicon August 2, 2021
Here at ChiIL Live Shows we've been excited about Chicago Magic Lounge since we were first invited to cover their groundbreaking. We were there for their original press opening and many shows since, and we missed them the past 16 months when their stage went dark. That's why we're so excited The Magic is Back®! Chicago Magic Lounge, Chicago’s home for close-up magic, announces plans to reopen its speakeasy-style Art Deco venue on August 2, 2021. We dig their minimalist signage and secret entrance through the laundry, a nod to the building's former use as a commercial laundry. The inner swinging bookcase entrance is sweet too! Ready for some post quarantine entertainment? Chicago Magic Lounge has got you covered with mind bending magic and Art Deco charm.
Chicago Magic Lounge will be open at capacity, including the Blackstone Cabaret, 654 Club and Performance Bar. To celebrate the Grand Reopening after a 16-month intermission, Chicago Magic Lounge will be hosting a full week of Signature Shows, from August 2-8, 2021.
Opening week, August 2-8, 2021, will spotlight some of Chicago’s best local talent, including Signature Show emcee Jan Rose, headliner Luis Carreon and featured performer Justin Purcell. Following the main stage performance, Paige Thompson will perform a close-up magic set for Premium ticketholders in the intimate 654 Club. The Performance Bar will feature AJ Sacco, Deven Brown, and The Amazing Bibik.
CML Owner Joey Cranford comments, “Chicago Magic Lounge is like no other place in Chicago, or elsewhere else, for that matter. We are thrilled to be reopening the secret doors to our gorgeous venue offering a unique entertainment experience. We can’t wait to welcome our audience, magicians and staff. Like so many, we have been looking forward to Opening Day for so long. In honor of our reopening, we want to celebrate the heart of Chicago-style magic by featuring Chicago Magic Lounge company members and local fan favorites, who rank alongside the best magicians worldwide.”
Tickets for all Chicago Magic Lounge performances are available at the box office, (312) 366-4500 or online at chicagomagiclounge.com. Chicago Magic Lounge is a 21+ venue. Ages 16+ allowed to ticketed shows with a legal guardian.
Showtimes for the opening week are 7pm Monday-Sunday and 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Premium tickets (Front Row, Main Floor Cabaret, Main Floor Banquette) are $65 - $75 and include access to exclusive close-up magic performance in the 654 Club immediately after the main stage show. Standard tickets (Rail Seating, Elevated Banquettes, Mezzanine) are $50 - $55. The Performance Bar is open to the public (21+) and no ticket is needed.
The Signature Show was conceived in 2015 as an homage to the historic, Chicago magic bar scene. Experience close-up magic right at your table during the cocktail hour, followed by an hour of stage magic featuring masters of their craft performing feats of prestidigitation and sleight of hand. Guests who purchase Premium tickets (Front Row, Main Floor Cabaret, Main Floor Banquette) are invited to an exclusive performance of close-up magic directly after the main stage show in our 43-seat close-up gallery, The 654 Club.
The Signature Show: Opening week, August 2-8, 2021
Headliner: Luis Carreon
Luis Carreon is an accomplished and well-respected magician, originally from Mexico. He won the Harlan Tarbell Close-up Competition Award from the International Brotherhood of Magicians two years in a row. He also took home first place at the Chicago Magic Competition hosted by The Society of American Magicians.
With his unique style of humor and wisdom, Luis regularly travels the country teaching other magicians about the art of magic. He is, also, the head demonstrator at Magic Inc., the oldest family-owned magic shop in the country. Internationally, Luis has been featured on the Univision evening news showcasing his talents. He was honored to be a semi-finalist on Tengo Talento, the Spanish language equivalent of America's Got Talent. In addition, he is also a frequent performer at the famous Magic Castle in Hollywood, California. Luis can be seen performing regularly at The Chicago Magic Lounge where he is also one of the founding members.
Featured Act: Justin Purcell
Justin Purcell is relentlessly trying to convince audiences: Magic is REAL. Chicago Magazine wrote he performs “with the aplomb of a ringmaster and the flair of a standup comedian” in their issue naming him “Chicago’s Best Bar Magician.” And even top magical expert Dan Harlan calls his sleight-of-hand work “sublime.” He is a founding company member of the Chicago Magic Lounge, where he is a House Magician and frequent Headliner. In addition to doing magic, he plays drums for feminist punk band The Cell Phones and is a father.
654 Club: Paige Thompson
Currently living in Chicago, Paige Thompson has become one of the Resident house magicians of the Chicago Magic Lounge. A longtime dream was recently fulfilled as she appeared for the first time in the close-up gallery at the internationally acclaimed Magic Castle, in Hollywood California. Paige was also a featured contestant on FOX’s “Showtime at the Apollo,” and last summer made her debut on the CW’s hit television show “Masters of Illusion.”
Emcee: Jan Rose
Jan Rose has performed nationally and internationally in all fields of Magic including Family Theatre, Corporate Events, Trade Shows and Conventions, and at Hollywood’s’ World Famous Magic Castle. Jan began her career in Magic in 1983, after joining forces with Magician Danny Orleans. Together they toured their Children’s Theatre Show for well over 6 years. In the early 1990’s, they were mentored by Eddie Fields. The result of that training is a two person show that puts a contemporary spin on an old Variety Act. Jan has been so very grateful to have worked with such great mentors as Eugene Burger, Jay Marshall, Max Maven and Ross Johnson. Happy to return to the theatre, Jan was a supporting Actress/Magic Team Member of The Rosenkranz Mysteries at The Royal George Theatre. She performed over 100 performances of that show! Jan is a Company Member and has been with The Chicago Magic Lounge since the early days in Uptown. She is a native Chicagoan and a member of AEA, AFTRA, and SAG.
The Performance Bar
The Performance Bar features signature cocktails, luxurious seating and magicians behind the bar to challenge your imagination. The Performance Bar is open to the public and does not require a ticket to the show. The Performance Bar is 21+ only.
The bar magicians for Opening week are AJ Sacco (Monday), Deven Brown (Tuesday, Wednesday; Friday-Saturday 9pm-close) and The Amazing Bibik (Thursday-Sunday 5pm-9pm)
The regular schedule will return on Monday, August 9, including Music & Magic on Monday nights at 7:00pm, The Showcase on Tuesdays the Artist-in-Residence Series.
Music & Magic
Mondays at 7:00pm
Tickets: General Admission $20
The August schedule includes: Ethan Moll Trio (August 9), Michael Jackson (August 16), The DOT (August 23), and Heisenberg Uncertainty Players (August 30)
The Showcase
Tuesdays at 7:00pm
Tickets: Standard: $35; Front Row: $40
Luis Carreon and Paige Thompson, August 10-August 31.
Artist-in-Residence Series
Wednesdays at 7:00pm
Tickets: Standard: $40; Front Row: $45
Trent James: Pure Lies, August 11-September 29, 2021
Trent James is back to complete his original run from Spring 2020, along with a one-month extension!
The Signature Show
Thursdays-Sundays at 7:00pm, Fridays and Sundays at 10pm from August 12–August 15
Tickets: $50-$55 (Standard); $65-$75 (Premium, includes 654 Club admission)
Featuring Special Guest Nick Diffatte
654 Club features Luis Carreon
Special Guest Nick Diffatte is quickly becoming one of the most talked about and in-demand young comic magicians working today. His unique brand of entertainment seamlessly blends dry humor, quick wit, and incredible skill. His performances are presented with perfect comedic timing and a deadpan delivery that has kept audiences laughing uncontrollably all over the country for over 14 years. Most recently, Nick has been seen in a residency at the Planet Hollywood Casino in Las Vegas, The World Famous Magic Castle in Hollywood, luxury cruise lines and “The Late Late Show with James Corden” on CBS.
For a complete schedule of performances and more information about Chicago Magic Lounge, visit chicagomagiclounge.com.
About Chicago Magic Lounge
Chicago Magic Lounge reinvents the classic "magic bar" that once dotted Chicago's nightlife landscape, bringing cocktails and card tricks back together again. Shows include magic performance at the bar, on the stage and in true Chicago-style Magic form, at the tables of the guests, providing the classic "Close-Up" tradition Chicago-style Magic is known for. Chicago Magic Lounge is also the home of the Chicagoland magic community, showcasing over 30 local professionals, and serving as a networking hub for working magicians from all over the world.
The newly constructed theater at 5050 N. Clark St., designed by Morris Architects Planners, has ushered in a new wave of entertainment, bringing back “Chicago-style Magic” under the leadership of Donald C Clark, Jr. and Joseph (Joey) Cranford. Converted from a 1940s-era, commercial laundry building, the Chicago Magic Lounge is a 7,200 square-foot, Art Deco, state-of-the-art theater and lounge complete with secret doors, elegant performance areas and a magic bar – all dedicated to the art of sleight of hand, prestidigitation and Chicago's contribution to the magical arts. From magicians to mind readers, Chicago Magic Lounge provides guests the unique, one-of-a-kind experience of seeing wonders up-close and personal in a venue unlike anything else offered throughout the country.
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