I’ve lived in Vegas for close to seven years now and last night, we attended the Penn & Teller Show, which is a combination of comedy, magic and philosophy. Penn, of course, is the ringleader with his big presence and big voice and he skillfully works the audience and narrates each bit with a blend of drama and education.
I must say, the show exceeded my expectations. On a 0-10 scale, I give it a solid 9. What was interesting to me is how they did a bit (magic trick or act) and then often times educated the audience on how it was done, while playfully poking fun at the Chris Angels’ and John Edwards’ of the world. Classic stuff. In addition, Penn is an extremely intelligent guy who is on the “left-side” politically, and speaks his mind and uses jokes and illusion to communicate his views on the world. Here’s a video of one of their bits below.
Jennifer and I attended the show, along with the kids, who are 13 and 11 and they thought the show was “awesome.” So, if you’re coming to Vegas and you’re looking for a very cool, intelligent show for the entire family, consider Penn & Teller at the Rio Hotel & Casino. I would think any child over 10 would dig the show. After the show, both Penn & Teller signed autographs and took pictures, which is not typical in Vegas, so that was very cool. I had met Teller a few times; once on a Southwest Airlines flight, and the other at one of my speaking events, so it was fun to finally see the show and connect with him. Jennifer, who is a Vegas headline Singer, is an acquaintance of Penn, so she was able to connect with him as well; and he is 6’6″… which I didn’t know. Great night in Vegas.
Penn Jillette & Dan Lier
