Review of the Tobacco Factory 2002

Prepare to be amazed
21 September 2002
Source: bbc.co.uk

"Everything you see is real, but nothing is based on reality," the amazing Mr Brown told a stunned Tobacco Factory audience at the climax to his one-man show.

The Factory, fast becoming a popular venue for productions that are slightly different from the norm, has probably never seen anything quite like Derren's show.

And the audience, which joined in the evening's entertainment with gusto, certainly hadn't.

It's very difficult to describe exactly what went on during the show without a) giving too much away and b) arguing bitterly about it with my husband, who might have seen a totally different act from the way he interpreted it.

Derren has made his name as a "psychological illusionist" with his own TV specials on Channel 4 and is a cross between a magician, hypnotist and mind-controller, with a good dash of showman added into the mix.

Manipulation

He has a background in both magic and hypnotism, and practiced both for a time, before moving into the field of manipulation and psychological control.

And I'm fairly sure he still uses a healthy dose of both to achieve some of the amazing results he produced during what felt like an exhausting two hours plus of entertainment.

Game of two halves

The show was certainly a game of two halves.

Derren spent the first half showing astonishing feats of mind-control to a group of fairly pliable members of the audience, most of whom were amazingly happy to be show as weak-willed saps in front of a group of strangers.

At the end of the first half, as we prepared to retire to the bar for a well-deserved drink, Derren warned us that the second half of the show would be different.

It would be darker, would end with at least one member of the audience being completely shell-shocked and involve the use of a Ouija Board!

A number of people looked as if they might leave when this was announced, Derren's dark, compelling eyes and considerable air of confidence giving the whole idea a very sinister feeling indeed.

An air of worry

But I saw no empty seats when the second half resumed and though there were moments when an air of worry descended on the audience, our amazement at what was happening in front of us kept us firmly in our seats.

One little niggle here. The Tobacco Factory still allows the audience to take drinks into the auditorium, and the sound of people kicking over their plastic glasses on at least two occasions, not to mention someone's mobile going off, was really off-putting.

Derren worked hard to get the audience into a pliable state for his "tricks" and there was a definite flash of his eyes when something disturbed the atmosphere.

Perhaps it's time the Factory decided to confine drinks to the bar area.

Delight

But this was just a small niggle in an evening that was a delight from start to finish.

Derren is a consummate professional and the sparse set and black and white decor was a world away from the vivid colours you might expect from a conjurer, giving a more authoritative and scientific feel to the whole show.

Any illusionist who can send his audience away astonished, perplexed and wanting to know more has achieved a most definite success.

I think we'll be hearing a lot more from the amazing Mr Brown.