Theater Review by Ron Fassler . . . .
The internationally renowned magician duo of Brynolf & Ljung claim the following on the website for their new show, Stalker: “In today’s society, no one is hidden. Everyone is being stalked, and everyone has become a stalker.” It’s an intriguing theme upon which to stage a magic act and it certainly pays off big time here as this pair of Swedes show off their prodigious talents as mentalists and illusionists. It’s no exaggeration to say their antics caused audible gasps at the New World Stages in Manhattan’s theater district on a recent night. And though some of the up-to-the-minute and state-of-the art-magic performed will tie your mind in knots, it also includes such simple-minded classics in the art of misdirection as “pick a card, any card,” and the artful grace of working with a sole balloon. Children and adults of all ages are bound to have a grand old time.
As shows of this ilk are among my favorites, I was immensely looking forward to just how off-the-charts the wow factors would be. Especially since I was so blown away by Secret, the British Derren Brown’s one-person highwire magical act on Broadway in 2019, a show I had to see twice. Like Brown, Peter Brynolf and Jonas Ljung are also masters in the art of subliminal suggestion and body language reading. While you shake your head in wonder throughout the 90-minute act, there’s also a clever deconstruction at Stalker’s finale that reveals a good deal of how they do what they do. They hardly make it look easy (it’s a ton of preparation meeting inspiration) and the old adage, “Don’t try this at home” immediately springs to mind.
With audience participation a key component, a live video feed is utilized, blown up on a large screen in order that the audience can view, close-up, each feat of prestidigitation. My companion was spared the ignominy of being chosen for one particular trick, happily relieved when the woman seated next to him was brought up on stage instead of him. But if you’re the type who raises their hand and all but shouts, “Pick me!” this will be very much your cup of tea.
Winners of Britain’s Got Talent, Brynolf & Ljung have turned their act into a successful Swedish TV series and have played venues the world over. Though Stalker is produced on far less of a substantial budget than Derron Brown’s Secret, they are certainly in the same arena of the “big time” in terms of how they manage to have everything go their way, stunt after stunt. A “no” from any volunteer should be all it takes to throw them off balance but you will be amazed how skillfully they elicit a “yes” each and every time.
As you might have already guessed, I’m loath to give away the magic of Stalker, even so much as to describe the sort of things that get pulled off. In the interest of selling a ticket or two, here’s one:
Three books are presented to a volunteer, who then randomly picks one. Ljung extracts the exact word from the volunteer using mentalism (not really) while, at the same time, another volunteer has written a word on a dry-erase board. Brynolf then deciphers that volunteer’s word as if out of thin air. Only he reveals that word by a numerical code he’s written down that corresponds to a dictionary which, by its first number, takes us to the page; its second to the column; and its third to how many lines down the word is. Then something is done with the same series of numbers that is truly mind-boggling, as it relates to another volunteer from the audience, who’s already back in their seat.
With English as a second language, it’s another feat of magic that Brynolf & Ljung charm and entertain so effortlessly (magical to me, at least, due to my bafflement of anyone who excels as a linguist). Most importantly, not only does their show offer sensational feats but it provides much-needed social commentary on privacy and how easily we indiscriminately give away so much information—and for free. After all, the gathering of data is a magician’s stock in trade. They make you believe magic is in the air when it’s really just a whiff of fraud (for entertainment purposes only).
Brynolf & Ljung: Stalker. Through September 2 (Labor Day) at New World Stages (340 West 50th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues). www.stalkershow.com
Photos: Jeremy Daniel.
