Magician Mat Franco won America's Got Talent 12 or so years ago and has a residency at the Linq in Las Vegas. Now years ago, I gave up trying to figure out magic because I don't really want to know. Years ago, Dirk Arthur gave a box. It was a box. The box was empty. Then Abra Cadabra the box got heavy and he pulled a duck out. Where the hell did the duck come from? I was holding the damn box the whole time. It freaked me out and from then on, I don't even try.
Franco is personable, charming, self-deprecating and can zing you with a gentleness that you don't even know you've been zinged. Trust me, he saw me sitting there with folded arms and I regretted it as soon as he commented on my apparent cynical view of his magic. Tip-don't sit in front row unless you are aware he can see you. Oh yeah, I ended up with 3 bags of ramen noodles.
His magic is absolutely baffling. Now we've seen Dirk Arthur, Penn & Teller numerous times and they were all great. But this guy? Wow. He does card tricks, makes things disappear, finds phones inside of tables, banters with volunteers and much like Penn & Teller calls you out if you screw up his instructions (for instance he asked a volunteer to roll imaginary dice and the guy said he rolled a 14 much to Mat's and the audience's amusement). He calls up a lot of people, kids (a young boy was called up and was funny and quick), adults, men, women, everyone. They say its "Magic Reinvented Nightly" and I imagine it is as volunteers are very unpredictable. This guy is a pro.
I cannot recommend this show enough. It's reasonably priced and if you buy the cheap seats in the back and the front is not sold out you just may get upgraded to the front row. This happened to us. But just don't fold your arms or else.
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