Penn & Teller return to Rio after Australia shows
Penn & Teller return to Las Vegas this week after a triumphant sold-out tour of Australia that included 10 shows at the Sydney Opera House. Catching up with audiences who were denied access to the Penn & Teller experience during lockdowns took precedent over making sure they were in Vegas on June 23 to observe the 20th anniversary of the date they became full time headliners at the Rio. Times change but the duo’s dedication to their worldwide fanbase remains the same. It was first time Penn Jillette and Teller toured Oz, fulfilling dates that had originally been promised before the pandemic. It was also an outreach of sorts, taking the show directly to the people that can’t make the pan-Pacific journey to Penn & Teller Theater. They took new tricks that they had developed with their time away from live performing as well, and perfected at the Rio once they returned to their 1,475-seat Vegas venue. The honorable menschen of magic kept themselves busy with other intellectual pursuits as well. Jillette wrote a “psychedelic phil-
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LAS VEGAS MAGAZINE
Australia almost served as reset. osophical murder mystery” titled In addition to the string of Sydney Random, which is set for publicaOpera House shows Penn & tion in October. Patreon supporters Teller spent time in Melbourne and of Penn’s Sunday School podcast Brisbane. They did not, however, can get access to early signed take magic-fingered pianist Mike copies and a bonus four-story Jones on tour with them. Jillette “chapbook.” is surely itching to get hold of the Teller is preparing to direct a upright bass he began learning to production of The Tempest this play 22 years ago and get back to fall in Washington D.C. It’s not his his preshow ritual of jamming with first time directing Shakespeare’s Jones. It’s worth getting to the Rio comedic tale of sorcerer Prospeearly and having a listen. ro, which he clearly feels Basically Penn & Teller, a kinship to. Teller has together and separately, also staged Macbeth, exist in their own media but it may have been 702.777.2782 multiverse. Penn & Tellthe quote, “What fools er Theater is the base, these mortals be,” from but their reach is wide. A Midsummer Night’s They tour, but they always Dream that inspired the title come back to the Rio, and Jillette’s of their long-running CW series, weekly podcast provides fasciwhich enters its ninth season nating conversations with guests in October. from the world of magic and New bits prepared for upcoming beyond. Recently, he shared his episodes of Penn & Teller: Fool Us experience teaching himself the art will be making their debut at the of fire-breathing, which involved Rio when the magicians reappear deep-inhaling fireballs, followed by there. They somehow managed coughing and screaming: to develop a few new innovations “I thought if it was really hurting of illusion while appearing on The you were doing it right. That’s the Masked Singer and the season fiNew Englander in me.” nale of CBS sitcom Young Sheldon.
Photo by Francis George
