Edinburgh Fringe venues can be small. The venue for Piff in "Last of the Magic Dragons" probably holds about 60, and this evening's show was a full house. We were packed right in, which made for a great atmosphere, though a rather warm one. Spotted lowercasekev in the audience too - hoping that he's already drumming up acts for MagicFest 2012.
I guess most people here saw Piff steal the show the week he was on Penn & Teller : Fool Us. And some of us will have seen him doing some promotional work on TV (or the YouTube clips). (And I think we've all heard of his older brother...)?
This was a very pleasant hour watching a skilled entertainer. I'm not going to list the effects he did, but I will say that he didn't perform the same effects we've seen on the TV (the V** signed card change, the bunnies etc). But plenty of the "magic dragon stuff" with flash and fire
I will also say that several of the effects he did were really straightforward "magic 101" basic - remember the little plastic vase with the dis/appearing ball that every kids' magic set has? Yes? Well, that. Which just goes to confirm that it's not always about the cleverest or latest effects, and it's all about the performance. And this guy knows how to perform. Special mention to "Amy Sunshine" (iirc) as the assistant-with-attitude. This was a comedy show with plenty of magic included, and a very pleasant hour's entertainment.
-isb
