Magicians Jade and Jonathan Levit take over Pellar Theatre at the Magic Castle this weekend. They have been friends and colleagues for 30 years – so that means, Mr. Levit first became aware of Jade while she was in utero – and that’s fine by us.
It is no secret that Jade is not only an Inside Magic Favorite but also one of our personal favorite performers. We have watched her perform in venues across the United States and have always hoped that one day we would be selected to assist in one of her fantastic routines. Our hope was not rewarded this evening but again, that is fine by us.
In fact there is virtually nothing Jade could do that would not be fine by us. We consider her three ring routine one of the best we have seen – and we have seen a bunch. It is truly magic to watch. Her grace and poise match the beauty of this historical effect. We also saw a side of Jade we haven’t seen before. She was working with Mr. Levit to perform “Simultaneous Mentalism™.” We just made up that term and may seek trademark protection so do not go throwing it around too loosely.
We do not want to spoil the effect and may have already done so by saying the words “simultaneous” and “mentalism” so forget we said those words. Our point is, Jade and Mr. Levit performed at the same time and did an effect that was truly startling and exciting.
Mr. Levit has a wonderful on-stage personality. We assume his off-stage is just as wonderful but we did not have a chance to talk to him post-performance. He is likeable and talented and nimble in thought, words, and deeds. His twist – see what we did there? – on the now very popular Rubik’s Cube effect was truly original and so well done. He told a wonderful story to surround what in the hands of other performers is merely a stunt and a short stunt at that. A stunted stunt.
Jade and Mr. Levit work together so well on stage that it appears they have been doing just that for years. And yet, we learned this was their first time working together.
The Peller Theatre is always a wonderful venue for great magic just due to the sightlines and proximity to the performers but when the performers are as wonderful as Jade and Mr. Levit, it is truly a magic venue. If you have a chance to visit the Magic Castle this weekend, be sure to check out the Peller.
But it is late now and time for us to start our night job. We’ll tell you more about that in later entries. It’s like Uber or Lyft but with a bicycle.
Inside Magic Review – Five out of Five – Our Highest!
