Miscellany: Penn & Teller: 50 Years of Magic

I never had the chance to see Penn & Teller live in Las Vegas, so when their 50th anniversary tour stopped by Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood last month, I schlepped myself over there to catch the show.

Like their long-running TV series Fool Us, "Penn & Teller: 50 Years of Magic" was a somewhat low-key affair filled with as many jokes as magic tricks. There was lots of audience participation, plenty of forcing, and some classic illusions mixed in with new material.

This is still, at its heart, a comedy magic act, and Penn & Teller haven't lost any of their comic timing over the years.  Even though they're both senior citizens now, they nimbly adapted to what the audience gave them, and the crowd was regularly laughing out loud during the routines.

For me, the most memorable trick of the night was a teleportation effect involving a credit card that I still don't quite understand. I don't know how many more tours these two have left in them, so if Penn & Teller are coming to your town, you might want to check them out.