I’ve seen a couple of these magic shows on Broadway before (The Illusionists’, for example) and they’re always super entertaining but they’re just not something that I get really excited to see. I had also never heard of Derren Brown. I learned though, upon arrival to the Cort Theatre, that he’s so popular in England that it was actually cheaper for some people to fly across the pond to New York City and see him here than it would be for them to buy tickets to see him in London. Wow.
I don’t remember specifics about the tricks and illusions he performed that day – nor would it be fair of me to reveal what they were if I did – but I was super impressed by the end of the show. I know it’s not real and that there’s a way to read people that you can learn (and I hear he talks about it in one of his books), but still: it’s super impressive to see in person. I understood after why people were flocking all the way from London to see him on Broadway!