On TV I am sure that these “escapes” would look truly terrifying, but live in the theatre, you can see the safety precautions that are there around the act and you DO look for them.  I was wondering how many of the padlocks that he had to unlock around his arms and legs genuinely took all the effort he was putting into it.  In between each of the seven escapes there was a female M.C., of course, named Vice who presented a worn out, over-sexed, counterpoint to Lord Nil.  She became almost cringeworthy at times. 

Perhaps the disconnect is that they are building Lord Nil up to these impossible heights and basing his skills in ancient traditions, and then when the performer first appears, it’s like, oh, he’s just a human. The over-the-top window dressing takes away from a rather quiet, determined performer who seems less driven by spectacle and more centered on obstacle.  The show needs to figure out what it wants to do.  All of the window dressing was disconnected to the actual show.

My favorite element, however, of the production was the small group of dancers/magic assistants who really could dance.  I often felt like I wanted to see more from them and less of the “ta-da”  – “wasn’t that magical!” – – not so much.