From Illusion to Reality
The Illusionists are back on Broadway, this time, sub-titled,”Magic of the Holidays.”
The spectacle still presents many different genres of magic, but packaged with holiday decorations, boxes and bows, assistants dressed in candy cane costumes, and an underlying musical track of repetitive and slightly suspenseful sounding holiday music.
If you like all the mysterious elements that illusionists can offer, this production is certainly for you. The host of the show, Paul Dabek, is incredibly adept at being a funny and engaging host, with several really fabulous tricks up his sleeve as well.
The Illusionists runs the gamut from slight-of-hand, to mind-reading to levitation, to transference, to vivisection (and then back to being whole again).
There is a great deal of audience participation, and kids are particularly enchanted with the magical opportunities presented to them.
With a truly amazing set design by Vincent Schonbrodt, who is also technical director, this show does not fail to entertain. Get details and tickets.
For a much, much, much smaller scale show, in an off-Broadway house, the play One November Yankee offers up two seasoned television stars in a two-hander with a trio of stories interwoven into one. Starring the perennially youthful-looking and gorgeous Stefanie Powers, and Harry Hamlin (equally perennially youthful-looking and gorgeous), the play written and directed by Joshua Ravetch, explores three different sets of a brother and sister centered around a plane. The plane is almost another character in the piece, as it plays a most important role in each scenario. A unique premise for sure and worth a look.
Kudos to these two celebrated television actors for taking on these three roles in one play.
Through December 29 at 59 E 59 Theatre. Get details and tickets.
Valerie Smaldone is a 5-time Billboard Magazine Award winner and is well known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 on-air position in the New York radio market on 106.7 Life-FM, an iHeart station. She has hosted, produced, and created several award-winning nationally syndicated programs featuring in-depth interviews with stars like Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Mariah Carey among others. Her radio talk show "Bagels and Broadway" highlighted theatre and food personalities. She is an accomplished interviewer and voice artist heard on commercials, narrations, promos and audiobooks, as well as a sought after live announcer.
Most recently, Valerie produced and directed a film, The Thursday Night Club, featuring pop diva Gloria Gaynor in her movie acting debut. She is one of the creators and producers of a docu-series, Divine Renovation, starring Erik Estrada, on streaming networks soon.
