Date: Dec 15, 2008
Title: Criss Angel Does "Believe"
Band: Criss Angel Believe/Cirque Du Soleil
Venue: The Luxor
Place: Las Vegas, NV
Author: Robin Roth
Photos: Tomasz Rossa
Editor: Mark Lewis
Posted: Dec 25, 2008
 
 

Criss Angel's "BeLIEve", is now presented in the custom-built plush theater at Luxor Las Vegas. This brand new show will not only capture and mesmerize you, but take you on a uniquely magical 'La Cirque' journey into imagination. But, I warn you, YOU MUST BELIEVE!

If you are looking for the Criss Angel of "Mindfreak", you will not find him here. However, if you are seeking a different Criss, featured in a visually beautiful, original, creative, ‘out-of- the-box', Cirque' show, you will be in for an artistic treat. "Believe" is a haunting exploration, deep inside the inventive mind of mystifier, Criss Angel, as he floats between the land of the living and a surreal world uniquely woven together by the distinctive imaginations of Angel and Cirque du Soleil. Like any Cirque production, "Believe" is full of daring, audacious and beautiful visuals.

Unlike conventional magic-themed shows, "Believe" transcends any preconceived notion of what it means to be expressively engaged by the arts of mysticism and illusion. This bold, fantasy fable is an extremely theatrical montage of mood, daydream and emotion set against a backdrop of illusory darkness and light. I suggest that you totally surrender your own mindset and thoughts and just go with it. Simply allow yourself to be swept away into the journey of Criss Angels mind.

I would be amiss, if I didn't mention the fantabulous music, the spectacularly amazing singers, dancers and costumes, as in all of the Cirque shows.

For those of you with inquiring minds that just need to know, in the audience was his devoted loving Mom (Dimitra Sarantakos) and his new very beautiful love interest Holly Madison (From the reality show, "The Girls Next Door").

Fu rther info, Believe opened on Oct. 31st, as Halloween is particularly significant for Criss Angel. It marks the anniversary of the passing of legendary magician and escape artist, Harry Houdini. Every Halloween for 10 years following Harry Houdini's death, his wife held a vigil to test the legitimacy of people who claimed to be able to communicate with Houdini. To claim success they needed to say the code word ... 'BELIEVE'. Hence, to pay homage to the late Houdini, Criss chose "Believe," as the title for this extraordinary live experience.

 

 

Criss Angel's "BeLIEve", is now presented in the custom-built plush theater at Luxor Las Vegas. This brand new show will not only capture and mesmerize you, but take you on a uniquely magical 'La Cirque' journey into imagination. But, I warn you, YOU MUST BELIEVE!

If you are looking for the Criss Angel of "Mindfreak", you will not find him here. However, if you are seeking a different Criss, featured in a visually beautiful, original, creative,‘out-of- the-box', Cirque' show, you will be in for an artistic treat. "Believe" is a haunting exploration, deep inside the inventive mind of mystifier,  Criss Angel, as he floats between the land of the living and a surreal world uniquely woven together by the distinctive imaginations of Angel and Cirque du Soleil. Like any Cirque production, "Believe" is full of daring, audacious and beautiful visuals.  

About the show and to quote Criss: "Transferring from television to live was very easy for me because that is where I come from. I'm a creature of live performances, more so than of television. I've been doing that since I was a kid and I actually did 600 performances on Broadway. I think, for me, the biggest challenge was that we wanted to present magic in a way that has never been presented on a stage before. I wanted to get rid of the boxes, get rid of the typical presentation associated with traditional tricks. I wanted to present a sophisticated version of cutting a human being in half without boxes, to give people a presentation that had the illusions woven in the fabric, so the biggest challenge was to figure out a way to do that, to involve other art forms-the costumes, the lighting, the special effects-to get all these things to seamlessly work together to pull that off. There was a long period of trial and error to figure out if it was even possible to do what had never been done before. So for us that was incredibly challenging and we are very happy to have gone through that process." For those of you out there who would like to know more about the star of "Believe," here's some info for you as well:

Criss stars as a surreal, mysterious Victorian Noble. Along his journey of imaginary exploration, he encounters two women Kayal a and Crimson who embody different aspects of femininity. He also, comes across four bizarre Ushers, that introduce the audience to the extravagant theater of Criss's mind and a high-energy ensemble of characters and amazing dancers. "Believe" blends an array of styles into a high-energy show, graced with sensuality, enchantment, and talent which is all wrapped brilliantly into a blanket of magic. You will not only witness a colorful, dazzling story, but fantastical creatures, impossible feats of dexterity, gorgeous sets, life, death, marriage, and stunning illusions; not to mention the hunky Criss, shirtless for much of the show, my favorite part, I might add! 

The already legendary Christopher Nicholas Sarantakos was born December 19, 1967 and is better known by his stage name, Criss Angel. An American of Greek descent, Criss is a magician, illusionist, musician, escapologist, and stunt performer. The six foot, amazing to look at, Angel was raised in East Meadow, Long Island , New York . He is best known for starring in his own television show "Mindfreak".Growing up loving music, Criss played the drums. Later he was part of the band called, AngelDust with friend Klay Scott who produced and helped arranged his CD's and music for Criss' "Mindfreak" show.However Angel always had an interest in magic. His biggest magic influences are Harry Houdini and Richiardi. His beloved father, (John Sarantakos, who Criss loves dearly) was also a big influence on him, especially after a long battle of cancer until his death in 1998. As a teen, he performed magic at birthday parties, night clubs and private events. He  received his pyrotechnics license at age 18. In 1998 Criss performed in World of Illusion at Madison Square Garden .

At long last, he became a household name with the A&E channel "Mindfreak" television series. Among just some of Angel's accomplishments are, a 7th degr ee black belt and a background in dance and gymnastics. He is the only magician to have won the Merlin Magician of the Year award twice: in 2001 and 2004. He holds the world records for longest time submerged underwater (24 hours), the longest body suspension (5 hours, 42 minutes), fastest time to perform the Metamorphosis illusion (under a second) and the fastest straight-jacket escape (2 minutes & 30 seconds). He finally got his big break in a show on Broadway titled, "Mindfreak" which ran up until Jan. 6, 2003 with almost 600 performances. He has had many television appearances and specials.

 

So show lovers, if you can find your way to believe, written by Criss Angel and Serge Denoncourt, Directed by, Denoncourt with Director of creation, Pierre Phaneuf, Director of illusions, John Farrell and Choreography by Wade Robson, then run to this new, talked about show at the Luxor Hotel.

 Enjoy....................and may the magic and illusions stay with you long after you leave the theater.