ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar
Chicago Magic Lounge Presents
Peter Samelson’s
Magic, Love, Mystery
Wednesdays beginning January 10, 2024
Chicago Magic Lounge Also Announces Full Slate of
Winter Programming
Review
By Guest Critic, Dugan Kenaz-Mara
Prepare yourself for a night of charm at Peter Samelson's Magic, Love, Mystery at The Magic Lounge.
In typical Magic Lounge fashion, the night begins with pre-show table performances as magicians bring close-up tricks directly to your table. Despite arriving after the table magic started we still managed to catch 2 different magicians who completely wowed us. I was especially excited to see some of our favorites who have taken the main stage at previous performances.
photo by Dugan Kenaz-Mara
Once Samelson took the stage the atmosphere completely transformed. With the help of slide projections, dim lights, and gentle jazz music, the audience was taken into a detective’s office straight out of a noir film. It was here that we got our role - the audience would be working together with the magician to solve a mystery throughout the course of the show.
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Samelson does a great job of tying each of his tricks to the case we are collectively exploring. He sometimes introduces tangential ticks through voice-over narration and clever slides and uses the rest of the tricks to find clues, like names, dates, and locations relating to the case. While the narrative itself was difficult to follow it was still a useful tool, and what the magician lacked in storytelling ability he made up for with skill and experience as a magician.
Theatergoers who appreciate magic and have seen other magicians will recognize some of the tricks in this show but will be surprised at how he adds his own twist to them. Magic, Love, Mystery incorporates a good mix of old and new tricks, as well as variety within the tricks from card magic and restoration to mentalism and predictions. The show even includes props I’ve never seen in a magic show, like the prize inside a box of cracker jacks.
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The show does include a lot of audience participation (which is to be expected at a parlor magic show). I appreciate that Samelson brings some of his acts out to individual tables to demonstrate a few stage tricks up close, and I think he does a wonderful job of including as many people as possible. He takes care not to invite the same few people up to the stage and actively seeks willing participants. It is worth noting that his instructions are not always clear and some audience members were uncomfortable being asked to do things onstage (like dancing), but for the most part, everyone had a good time.
Dugan and Kit (photo by Dugan)
Dugan Kenaz-Mara is a designer, photographer, educator, and recent graduate of Northwestern University.
Chicago Magic Lounge, Chicago’s home for close-up magic, kicks off its 2024 Artist-In-Residence series with Peter Samelson’s Magic, Love, Mystery. In this mesmerizing performance, Samelson takes you on a journey through the enigmatic world of love, exploring its many forms and revealing its secrets. Magic, Love, Mystery runs Wednesdays at 7:00pm, January 10 – March 27, 2024. Tickets for all Chicago Magic Lounge shows are available at the box office, (312) 366-4500 or online at chicagomagiclounge.com.
Experience the mystery of love through the eyes of a magician with Peter Samelson's one-man show, Magic, Love, Mystery.
Through his masterful storytelling, Peter explores how love can inspire us, transform us from the inside out, and even transcend death. Minds will be read, the imperceptible bond between soul mates will be revealed, and the boundaries of loss and mortality will be crossed, uncovering how memories shape our past and future.
Prepare for an unforgettable evening filled with laughter, entertainment, and wonder as Peter Samelson takes you on a whimsical journey through the mystery of love. Get ready to experience pure magic and unlock the secrets of love.
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About the Artists
Peter Samelson insists he doesn’t do magic, he only helps people to see it. He is an illusionist/entertainer/philosopher, blending simplicity and sophistication as he provokes thought and inspires wonder.
Recently appearing on Penn & Teller's Fool Us, the pair praised Peter Samelson as "one of the greatest living magicians." Samelson, master magician and off -Broadway star, literally wrote the book on Theatrical Magic. Co-founder of New York City's longest running off -Broadway magic show Monday Night Magic and frequent performer at Speakeasy Magick, one of NY's hottest new shows at the McKittrick Hotel, Peter has been hailed as New York's most distinguished illusionist, entertainer, and philosopher.
Christened “the soft-spoken conceptualist of sorcery” by the New York Times, Peter Samelson is a recipient of the Merlin Award for Lifetime Achievement, Peter is one of the most sought-after theatrical wizards. He has created magic for some of Broadway's biggest plays and musicals including Leap of Faith, Harvey, The Cherry Orchard, The Winter’s Tale, the National Tour of Pippin, the musical Houdini, Carnival at the Papermill Playhouse, Tom Stoppard's Travesties, and the Menotti opera The Consul. Additionally, Peter has created and starred in three critically acclaimed one-man off -Broadway shows: The Magician, PaperWork, and Radnevsky's Real Magic.
What distinguishes Peter from other artists in the field of Illusion is his commitment to making Magic an Art. His performance is more than mere entertainment, touching the hearts of his audiences in a way few evenings can.
Magic, Love, Mystery will be presented on Wednesdays at 7:00pm, January 10 – March 27, 2024. Tickets are priced $42.50 (Main Floor) and $47.50 (Front Row).
Also Happening at Chicago Magic Lounge
Music & Magic
Mondays at 7:00pm
Tickets: General Admission $30
The Showcase
Tuesdays at 7:00pm
Tickets: Standard: $35 - $37.50; Front Row: $40 - $42
The Signature Show
Thursdays-Sundays at 7:00pm, Fridays and Sundays at 10pm
Tickets: Front Row $85 - $96, Premium Main Floor (main floor banquette and main floor cabaret) $72.50 – $82.50, Standard (rail and elevated banquette) $65 - $75, Mezzanine $52.50 – 61.50.
Family Show
Sundays at 3:00pm, November 19, December 3 & 17, January 7 & 21
Tickets: Standard: $40; Front Row: $50
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 evening shows with a legal guardian. Ages 5+ are allowed to The Family Show. Children must be supervised by an adult at all times. The staff and performers of the Chicago magic lounge are fully vaccinated for covid 19. Ticket holders must attest to being fully vaccinated against covid-19 or have tested negative within 48 hours prior to your visit to enter the premises.
For a complete schedule of performances and more information about Chicago Magic Lounge, resident and guest performers, and more, please visit chicagomagiclounge.com.
