“Psyche!” By Phoenix Will Leave You Believing The Unbelievable! – Adelaide Fringe Review

Gluttony’s The Peacock, Fri Feb 13 I’ve seen enough of mentalists now to declare that I’m a believer. Mentalists like Phoenix can either read minds or employ techniques that on some subconscious level make us think what they want us to think. Most of what they are able to predict or guess or divine in a Fringe show like this is very non-threatening, but it is scary to contemplate what they could do if they decided to use their powers at a deeper level. This is great entertainment. There’s lots of audience involvement, and if you’re the kind of person who likes to get up on stage and be part of the show you might like to see if you can will it to happen! I liked the way he was open about not always getting things absolutely right, but that could have been a ploy to get us to work with him. The audience after all want him to show that he can know things he normally wouldn’t – that’s why you attend shows like this – but he was certainly right divining information about people most of the time – like guessing the name of someone in the audience with an exotic foreign name! Phoenix showed great professional aplomb in dealing with technical hassles that can plague the first night of a show, and he has a calm easy manner that engages people of all ages. There are no secrets when a good mentalist is at work, and to prove that he is not just limited to using his powers on people present in the audience, a mobile call to a random member of the public showed he can exercise the same powers with someone who is not physically present. Even hardened sceptics would have to concede that what Phoenix does is impressive. Even before the two show stopping final stunts! I guarantee you will leave thinking ‘how the *%#& did he do that?’ Michael Coghlan Phoenix performs Psyche! at Gluttony’s The Peacock until Sun Feb 22. Book at FringeTIX on 1300 621 255 or adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix. Click HERE to purchase your tickets.