![]() ![]() The deeper you get into magic, the more profound your amazement becomes. The ironic thing is, the deeper they dive into magic, the less often they get fooled. Magicians get into magic because they’re seduced by the feeling of amazement. And there is a level in which you go, “Wow, I really thought for that moment, that the character onstage was Hamlet.” That amazement is the bottom line of any work of art. When you’re an actor, you must, for the moment you’re there, convince the audience that you are possessed by the spirit of this character. In almost every work of art there is on one level-and this is the level at which magic is, I think, the most fundamental-at which you must amaze the audience. Teller: What’s the end goal for any work of art? The answer is it’s not one thing. I suspect your motivation is more nuanced than that. Vanity Fair: Having a magic show called Fool Us would lead most to believe the end goal of magic is to fool someone. The variety of magic subgenres given the spotlight is encouraging for those of us who don’t perform with live tigers: there’ve been acts of coin and card magic, mind-reading, escapology, quick change (where costumes transform in a flash)-even a man who solves Rubik’s cubes, magically. I’m comfortable saying Fool Us has advanced the art form within popular culture better than any televised magic show in recent memory. I also watch the show as a guy interested in magic since age six. The show has been a surprise ratings hit in its Monday primetime slot, averaging 2 million viewers (it’s been renewed for a third season). If they succeed, the aspiring magicians win an opening-act slot in the duo’s longtime Las Vegas show. Fool Us is a magic competition on the CW Television Network in which performers try to fool Penn Jillette and Teller as to how their trick was done. ![]() As a layperson, it’s entertaining as hell with a clear-cut premise. I approach the show from several perspectives. As one of the few humans on Earth who un-ironically calls himself a “TV magic obsessive,” let me tell you, there’s never been a magic show on television like Penn & Teller: Fool Us. ![]()
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