Description
“The Magic Event of a Lifetime!” – Huffington Post
“The #1 Magic Show of All Time” – Las Vegas Sun
“The Greatest Magician in History” – Vanish Magazine
“The Best Show on Earth!” – Daily Star
“The Best Magic Show in the World!” – BBC
“The Biggest Name in Las Vegas Magic” – Bloomberg Businessweek
The Q&A
Criss Angel is the most commercially successful magician of all time. Having directed and starred in more magic made for television than any other magician in history, Criss breaks down his success – and the road to it. In this Q&A lecture hosted by the legendary Lance Burton and filmed live in Las Vegas on Criss Angel’s very own stage at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, you will get a deeper insight into the onstage persona and the offstage man that is Criss Angel. In addition to road stories, and a look inside the creative process behind the production of the Luxor show “Believe” and the Planet Hollywood show “Mindfreak Live”, you’ll learn some clever ideas to make yourself better at the business of show business.
More than 90 minutes in length, this exclusive interview granted to Penguin Magic grants unprecedented access and candor by Criss Angel himself. In addition, 100% of Criss’ proceeds from this special presentation will go to benefit pediatric cancer research*. Whether you want to be a better close up magician or the next big star on the Las Vegas strip, this in-depth discussion between Criss Angel and Lance Burton has the secrets to success that no other lecture can offer all while benefiting a great cause. Join the Mindfreak now at Penguin Live.
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*The mission of the Johnny Crisstopher Children’s Charitable Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, is to raise awareness of pediatric cancer and provide funds for research, treatment, and – ultimately – a cure. Unlike many other non-profit charities, 100% of your donation goes directly to this fight; NOT one cent is deducted for ANY expenses, salaries, or overhead. Criss Angel has funded the operations of the foundation out of his own pocket since its inception in 2008. It has now become his life’s mission (after working with childhood causes since 2001) when his own child, Johnny Crisstopher, was diagnosed with leukemia in 2015 at 20 months old.
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Who Is He?
For more than a decade, Criss Angel has dominated the world of magic as the biggest name on the planet. From his role as star, creator, executive producer and director of the most successful magic television series of all time, Criss Angel MINDFREAK on A&E Network, to his #1 best-selling Las Vegas stage show Criss Angel MINDFREAK, to countless critically-acclaimed television specials and series, best-selling books, top-grossing retail products, music CDs and more, Angel is the most influential and imitated magician of the modern era. Hailing spectacular reviews from outlets such as Bloomberg Businessweek – who called him “the biggest name in Las Vegas magic” – Angel brings “an estimated $150 million a year into the local economy” (Newsweek) and generates a whopping “$70 million a year” personally (Businessweek), proving time and again that he is the most successful magician ever.
His hit series MINDFREAK on A&E is the most successful magic show in television history, resulting in more hours of magic during primetime than any other magic show ever. The series was viewed regularly by more than 100 million viewers in over 90 countries. According to police in Clearwater, Florida, the live broadcast of the show’s “Building Implosion” episode drew in excess of 50,000 people to the venue – resulting in the largest crowd ever for any magician, rivaling Houdini. “Criss is the best, THE BEST,” said Oprah Winfrey.
Angel’s next series Criss Angel BeLIEve, premiered on Spike on October 15, 2013 as Spike TV’s most-watched original series premiere in over 18 months. In November 2013 Endemol, the world’s largest independent production and distribution company, announced that it had acquired the international television distribution rights (outside of North America) to the series, and the show is was aired in over 100 countries worldwide.
Angel made a return to A&E in October 2016 with Trick’dUP. The network announced the one-hour Halloween special which aired on October 12th.
In late 2014, Angel unveiled his touring production — featuring his first performances outside of Las Vegas in more than six years — with MINDFREAK® Live! The show’s premiere run of 18 shows were a smash hit, selling out one month prior to opening. In 2017 the touring show made its international debut in Buenos Aires, Argentina with multiple performances at the famous Gran Rex Theater.
Criss Angel RAW – The Mindfreak Unplugged, Criss’ third and most recent touring production, debuted in January of 2018 with sold-out shows in nine cities. RAW is a theatrical experience unlike any seen before; bringing Angel’s famous sleight-of-hand street magic, mentalism, and even some of his most iconic illusions to life – all performed in an intimate, raw setting. This extraordinary evening of magic unplugged features Criss and some of his amazing friends with a stripped-down purity that’s in-your-face and guaranteed to blow your mind. The show continues to perform for capacity houses around the US and Canada, including a blockbuster week on Broadway in July 2019 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.
For almost a decade, Criss Angel BeLIEve was hailed as the #1 best-selling magic show in Las Vegas (Extra). Following the show’s 7th anniversary celebration in 2015, Angel unleashed the future, bringing his brand-new creation MINDFREAK® LIVE! to the Luxor Hotel & Casino in June 2016. The production – based on the wildly successful touring version, which was hailed as the “Magic Event of a Lifetime” (Huffington Post) – replaced the critically acclaimed BeLIEve. Angel served as writer, director, illusion designer, star and executive producer of MINDFREAK® LIVE!. The Las Vegas Review-Journal called the show “The #1 Magic Show of All Time!”
2019 marked the end of Criss’ historic 10-year run at the Luxor, with the grand opening of Criss Angel MINDFREAK® in the newly-renamed Criss Angel Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino Las Vegas. Debuting never-before-seen sequences – including a revolutionary finale nearly twenty years in the making – the state-of-the-art theatrical production features countless fully immersive special effects, transporting audience members into Angel’s mystical world of MINDFREAK®. The production has Las Vegas’ first high-tech experiential lobby with cutting-edge interactive elements, and a fully reimagined stage outfitted with the most sophisticated technological production the world of entertainment has ever seen. The visual feast includes in excess of half a billion pixels of video on over 100 surfaces, over 2000 lights, custom-made fire and pyrotechnic effects, and advanced 3D holographic and immersive projection technology. Vanish Magazine, the world’s largest magic publication, called MINDFREAK® “the greatest magic show of all time!” Celebrity Radio rates it as “the best show in Las Vegas!”, and the BBC gave it “10 stars!”.
Angel is the most watched magician in Internet history – a YouTube sensation. His “Walk on Water” clip has generated over 60 million views alone, and all his clips combined have over a half a BILLION views. Criss also has the largest social media following of any illusionist, with nearly 7 million followers.
Angel has received numerous awards throughout his career. Most recently, Criss was honored with a “Lifetime Achievement Award” from the International Brotherhood of Magicians. The award was be presented at the 2018 I.B.M. Convention, and he is the youngest recipient of this distinguished honor – which was approved unanimously by the I.B.M. Board of Trustees at its Midyear Meeting. “This incomparable honor has only been presented previously to two legendary commercial magicians – Siegfried & Roy; now Criss Angel joins them as the most successful magician of our day,” said Simone Marron, International Secretary for the International Brotherhood of Magicians. In 2019 he also received “The Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T)” Award by Vanish Magazine. The prestigious award, decided by a panel of professional magicians to honor outstanding artists in the magic industry, adds to Criss’ long list of accolades as the most awarded magician by magicians. Marron continues, “From his wildly successfully television series ‘MINDFREAK,’ to his years of performing daring stunts and innovative illusions in front live audiences worldwide, the global brotherhood of magicians unanimously and enthusiastically cements Criss’ immortal mark on the industry announcing him as ‘The Greatest of All Time.’”
In July of 2017, The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce honored Criss with the 2,615th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The star was dedicated at 7018 Hollywood Boulevard next to the historic Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and across the street from the star of Houdini.
Criss has been named “Magician of the Year” an unprecedented six times, including from The Magic Castle – far more than any other magician. He was the youngest magician inducted into the International Magicians Society Hall of Fame. Criss was also presented with a lifetime achievement award, The World Magic Legacy Award “A Living Legend,” at The World of Magic Seminar in Las Vegas. Additionally, Angel was named the first recipient of “Magician of the Decade,” as well as “Magician of the Century” and “Innovator of the Decade.” Angel received an International Magic Lifetime Achievement Award and was unanimously selected as the recipient of the 22nd Louie Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Art of Magic.
Angel is tireless in his ongoing efforts to help children through his charitable works. His Johnny Crisstopher Children’s Charitable Foundation (formerly Believe Anything Is Possible), was renamed in early 2016 after his then two-year old son Johnny was diagnosed with leukemia. 100% of all donations to the foundation (no deductions are taken for administration or expenses) go to childhood cancer research, treatment and ultimately a cure. His first-ever benefit event, H.E.L.P. (Heal Every Life Possible), brought in over $1m during the one-night live production in Las Vegas. In 2018 Criss received the first American Cancer Society Compassionate Heart Award, presented by Barrick. This award honors community leaders whose compassion is put into action and serve as role models for others.
