Review: Now You See Me Live (London Coliseum)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many of us would agree that a trip to the theatre can be pretty magical in itself, particularly when the stars align for a brilliant show that utilises theatre magic at its finest. And then there's actual magic (well, not ACTUAL magic but you know what I mean). It feels like a while since the West End has enjoyed a big new magic show to sit alongside all the plays and musicals we all know and love. Attempting to right that wrong is the UK premiere of Now You See Me Live, a show based on the acclaimed series of films from Lionsgate, settling into one of the most iconic stages in London, the Coliseum. Could these new Horsemen pull off the perfect heist, stealing the audience's imagination and sense of wonder, or would I fail to see the magic hidden behind the smoke and mirrors?

For anyone unfamiliar with the Now You See Me films, they concern themselves with a group of illusionists known as the Horsemen who attempt to carry out heists by using their own tricks. So how does that fit into Now You See Me Live? Very loosely, if I'm being honest. If you are expecting an extension of that world with recreations of recognisable moments from the movies, you may well feel short-changed, as the only connections here are the name and the overall look and sound of the show. Essentially, the name has been placed on to a show that could have simply been called “A few magic tricks” though obviously Now You See Me Live is catchier.

That is actually part of what stops Now You See Me Live soaring to the level it should reach. Ironically, matching what the Horsemen do in many of their tricks, it all feels a lot like misdirecting and even misrepresenting. With the branding of the film so prominent in this production, more references and tie-ins would have been expected. Apart from a shoehorned-in reference in the opening act and the four main performers referring to themselves as the Horsemen, what we get instead is one trick followed by another with no narrative or through theme. The lack of structure or cohesion lets Now You See Me Live down significantly - I have seen magic shows that aren’t tied to an existing IP that have somehow woven a narrative through their seemingly unrelated tricks to reveal a satisfying and surprising payoff. The fact this was notably absent here was a huge let down.

The show also suffers from not feeling as slick and polished as you would expect - awkward silences and performers repeating themselves after not getting the response they wanted gave the sense that this show could have used a bit more bedding in before inviting people to review. One particularly painful moment saw one of the performers merrily ask the audience to cheer if the trick he had asked everyone to do with him hadn’t worked for them to the response of half of the audience cheering. It hadn’t worked for me, but I didn’t expect so many to have missed the mark, so bringing attention to it was puzzling?

The Now You See Me movies have done so well due to their determination to do something different - bringing magic into the world of heist movies, the result is a creative and distinct approach unlike anything you have ever seen before. That is sadly not the case for Now You See Me Live. You can argue that magic has its limits though I would argue back that defeats the purpose of it, but there wasn’t a single trick performed I hadn’t seen before in some shape or form, be it Penn & Teller or any number of magicians on stage, on a cruise ship or even at a kids birthday party. It grew quite tiresome to watch another performer add nothing new to a trick many others have attempted before, and by the time the big climax was the tried and tested calculator trick with the added frustration of not encouraging the audience to join in with them by inputting the numbers (essentially - trust us, no need to do it yourself) I found it hard to believe such an obvious case of low-hanging fruit was their spectacular finale. Quite a small trick for such a big show on such a cavernous stage, but therein lies the problem. The show is nowhere near big enough for what it should be, and placing itself on such a huge stage like the London Coliseum showed up all its weaknesses - had it opted for a smaller stage, I dare say they wouldn’t have been so noticeable.

If Now You See Me Live sounds like an absolute disaster of a show, let me reassure you it is far from that. The show has one more trick up its sleeve to ensure audiences are entertained and that is its talented cast. Enzo Weyne (until 10th August), Andrew Basso, Gabriella Lester and Matthew Pomeroy make up the Four Horsemen who fill the bulk of the show. Disappointingly, we don’t see them all together until the show’s climax which again feels like a massive missed opportunity as their interaction with each other added to the feel of the movies and certainly elevated the show. Enzo Weyne and Andrew Basso both thrilled with their tricks, with the latter's escapology stunt involving a tank of water the most showstopping sequence of the night, despite prolonged pauses before the event that took far too long and rather than ramp up the tension just came across as slightly boring. 

After a misjudged comment about magic being a male-dominated industry but that not being the case here, Gabriella Lester, the only main female performer in a cast of seven, was an absolute delight through her performance, exhibiting the kind of stage presence others can only dream about. Her escape trick proved one of the highlights of the night, though bizarrely it was replicated near entirely from Enzo Weyne moments later - why we needed to see the same trick done twice in the same act from separate people was a bizarre choice and another offering of why Now You See Me Live struggles to reach the heights it promised. The last Horseman is Matthew Pomeroy, acting as a sort of compere and oozing charisma. A natural charmer on stage (no snakes are involved), his interactions with audience members and general presence added a touch of class to proceedings, assuring the audience they were in safe hands even if those hands would gladly deceive you to pull off a trick.

Most exciting to a British audience was the inclusion of three performers from the recent performance of Britain’s Got Talent. With a permanent smile (spelt correctly this time) on his face, Rafferty Coope is certainly one to watch, feeling like a natural on a stage as big as the London Coliseum. Fraser Penman was the only one who realised magic works better with connection, bringing a personal touch with the inclusion of his story in a performance that benefited his overall time on stage. The standout of the night for me was Eden Choi whose ability to manipulate objects in his hands was nothing short of show-stopping. Truly the only act of the night who offered something different to what you will see in shows all over the world, it worked in his favour, leading to a memorable performance I longed to see more of.

Another positive about Now You See Me Live is its design. Looking as if it has come straight from the world of the movies, Hugo Mercier Bosseny’s lighting isn’t just expertly executed, it is necessary in its intricacy to often help with the illusions and is glorious for that alone. It is surprising no sound designer has been credited in the making of this, and there were times where it became hard to hear what was going on clearly which is perhaps a testament to the importance of using them. Illusions directed by Enzo Weyne ensured everything went off as planned to allow for a safe and entertaining watch even if nothing was truly groundbreaking, while Eugene Titus’ costume design made us at least believe we were watching the Horsemen, even if the real ones were nowhere to be seen.

This review may have a lot of negatives, but that is a response to the huge promise and weight of expectation offered by Now You See Me Live. It is a shame that this production offers nothing new and only has the most tenuous of links to a franchise it has shoved a name on for no rhyme or reason. That said, there is still plenty to enjoy here, making the show far from the disaster it ought to be. Performed by experts in their fields, the tricks are still world-class, and if you haven’t seen anyone else do them before, your mind may well be blown. It is the charm and creativity of the performers themselves that provide the biggest reason to watch this - yes, you may see bigger and better tricks in other magic shows in the future, but you won’t see these magnificent seven performers on stage again, and that would be a huge loss. Fun for all the family, it may not have stolen the show quite as I wanted it to, but Now You See Me Live still manages to offer little glimpses of that elusive theatre magic.

Now You See Me Live plays at London Coliseum until 6th September. Tickets from https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/concert/now-you-see-me-live

Photos by Johan Persson