The Edinburgh Fringe 2009 saw Lewis perform his one-man close-up magic show over sixteen evenings.
With all but two of the shows completely sold out, Lewis received high critical acclaim for his unique yet traditional approach to the art of conjuring.
Reviews of the show are provided below.
****
"I have a real soft spot for stage magic - I must have spent too much time watching Paul Daniels in my youth. With this charming and hugely impressive show, magician Lewis Barlow is returning the genre to its roots; there's just him, a table, and a briefcase... and some truly extraordinary sleight of hand.
The routines which impressed me most were, I think, the simplest ones: making three silver coins appear, disappear, and transfer from hand to hand; or, standing alone in a spotlight, ripping up a piece of paper and then restoring it to its whole. You've probably seen all this before, but Barlow's stripped-down presentation made the familiar amazing. There were no stunts or gimmicks to cover up a quick dip into his pocket; there was nothing up his sleeve, because he had them rolled up to his elbows. I just have no idea how he did it all.
Some of the later card tricks had intriguing twists, too, lifting them above the obvious and making them truly bamboozling. But the possible highlight of the show is a complex sequence with cards and coins, which move inexplicably from place to place under the very eyes of two volunteers on stage...
This is in every way the antidote to the traditional Fringe magic show: the showmanship's replaced by brain-fuddling skill, and the small venue means you get to watch it all up close, without distractions. And despite sitting at the front and watching like a hawk, I really don't know how any of it was done. So should you go to see it? Yes, Paul."
****
"A magical hour in a safe pair of hands. Barlow starts the hour by not claiming to be a comedian or perform any flashy illusions. Magicians are notorious liars, though, and this masterclass in card and coin tricks proves to be very entertaining, and as jaw-droppingly impressive as any of David Copperfield’s supersized shenanigans.
Starting small, he takes for granted that the audience knows the basis for each trick and even the particular skills he uses to achieve it. Demonstrations of producing coins from thin air, locating a single card in pack and dealing a winning hand at poker are all effortlessly done, but never in a way that would incur the wrath of The Magic Circle.
When he kicks it up a notch and escalates each trick beyond the understanding of all but other magicians it becomes something else. It’s the difference between knowing how to read music and hearing a virtuoso wring all the emotion out of Beethoven. At the top of the hour Barlow claims that this is as close to ‘real’ magic as it gets. What is easily dismissed as more of that magician falsity turns out to be true."
****
"I have a real soft spot for stage magic - I must have spent too much time watching Paul Daniels in my youth. With this charming and hugely impressive show, magician Lewis Barlow is returning the genre to its roots; there's just him, a table, and a briefcase... and some truly extraordinary sleight of hand.
