5 STARS. Rhys Mancell Smith is mesmerised by the magic of master illusionist Jamie Raven, the cheeky chappy magician that first burst on to our screens in the 2015 series of Britain's Got Talent
When I think of magicians, I think of the comical character at childhood parties, wearing a bowler hat and an oversized bow tie, pulling endless handkerchiefs out of his sleeves. But, following his eruption on to the entertainment scene through ITV's hit show Britain's Got Talent, Jamie Raven is bringing a new type of magic to the stage; one dripping with glamour, panache and genuine confoundment on my part.
Now, I have always been a bit of a cynic when it comes to magicians – I suspect the crestfallen child after the realisation that magic was in fact all an illusion, and not a super power, still resides within me – so, I think it's fair to say I wasn't expecting to be bowled over by this performance. Even on entering the theatre through a door with a sign saying "WARNING: this show features flashing lights, haze and smoke", an indignant "Oh please" resounded in my head. But, try as I might, this indifference did not last long.
It all kicked off with an entrance out of a sci-fi movie – flashing lights, thick smoke, dramatic music and a deep booming voice introducing this master illusionist, the tension and anticipation was so electric even I was grinning with excitement. And then, from amidst the smoke, emerged Mr Jamie Raven – not an oversized bow tie in sight – but a slick black suit and perfectly sculpted hair. It was then I realised we were in for an entirely different type of magician.
Jamie switched from the dark mysticism of a magician, to the happy-go-lucky cheer of just a guy from Hammersmith with the ease of flicking a light switch. Within minutes he had us in the palm of his hand, calling up an audience member for his first trick – offering him five pounds and a sharpie pen, and instructing him to write his name on both sides of the note. Then folding the note up, he made it disappear. I had seen him perform this trick, along with 350 million other people, on youtube, so I knew what was coming – but when Jamie sliced the orange open (totally sealed shut, we were shown on camera) and produced the same fiver, my brain still did a mini backwards flip. Jaws dropped and the room exploded into cheer.
At this point a whisper of my initial cynicism still clung at the fringes of my mind, after all, he could know the man he picked from the crowd, it could all be set up. But this was soon blown out of the water, and rocketed into space. The acts that followed were all based on pure chance, people picked from the crowd in ways which could not have been pre-planned (for which I sunk lower and lower in my seat, trying my very best to be invisible), given choices of pen colours to pick or emojis to pick out of a hat – all of which Jamie could have had no control over – and resulting in 'coincidences' that left us all reeling. Even his take on the age old trick of sawing your assistant in half had a twist to it - don't worry, everyone survives it!
Whilst I recognise my childhood dreams of following in Harry Potter's footsteps are unlikely to be realised, I can't even begin to try and understand how Jamie Raven carried out these truly masterful illusions, and for me the sense of awe I was left with was the magic.
- Performing in Reading, Feb 27. readingarts.com
Check out Theatre/Arts Section for more great local thespian news, reviews and interviews
You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates on our latest articles
Sign up to our Weekly Newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and stories
