Edinburgh Fringe 2024
Edinburgh Magic
Kevin Quantum
Genre: Magic, Magic and Mentalism
Venue: Caledonian Hotel
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Kevin Quantum’s Edinburgh Magic is an intimate evening of illusions ranging from slight of hand to flying objects. His range of skills covering new and classic tricks makes the show an excellent example of how to amaze and awe a magic audience.
Review
Kevin Quantum’s show, Edinburgh Magic, provides a unique reprieve from the madness of the Old Town fringe venues by inviting the audience into an grand yet intimate space at the renowned Caledonian hotel for an evening of up close and personal magic. After being welcomed by a glass of prosecco, the audience is ushered into a mural-covered room containing just a few seats, a wooden table, and a handful of unassuming props. Throughout the course of the show, Quantum uses the tools provided to perform both classic and new illusions with immense accuracy and flawless technique.
Part of what makes Edinburgh Magic unique is the size of the space and audience. In shrinking both of these down, Quantum gives up (or appears to) a level of control that most magicians attempt to hold on to. Nearly every audience member was given the opportunity to take part in the show, giving each attendee the chance to get even closer to the illusions performed, further working to convert the sceptics, as Quantum describes some, to believers, as he calls others.
Clocking in at about 90 minutes (not including an encore), the show outlasts many others of its kind, but it does not feel long winded or unnecessary. There isn’t much down time between tricks, but any bit that exists is taken up by stories of both Quantum’s and Edinburgh’s past. These transitional moments gave the show a consistent through-line stopping it from feeling like a slideshow of illusions.
For those who appreciate magic and want to see the best of the best, this is an excellent show and shouldn’t be missed. The excellence doesn’t necessarily come from the variety of illusions, but from the way they are performed. A standard audience may have seen a number of the tricks performed before, but many will never have seen them executed with the same skill that seems to come easily to Quantum. Quantum talks about his past and training with some of the best magicians in the world, but he may at some points lean to far into this with the percentage of classic tricks. The show could perhaps, then, benefit from a few more innovative illusions. In any case, though, Quantum takes us away from the tech-heavy venues of Assembly and George Square, and into a show feels like a private party at the Plaza Hotel. Quantum’s show is all about the magic and personal experience, two promises he perfectly delivers.
