Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Mischief misfires with its new illusionist spoof MIND MANGLER at New World Stages

• By drediman
• November 30, 2023
• No Comments

Earlier this week at Off-Broadway’s New World Stages, I was able to catch up with Mind Mangler: A Night of Tragic Illusion, the latest creation by Mischief Theatre, the folks responsible for such guilty pleasures as The Play that Goes Wrong (which is still going strong in New York, also at New World Stages) and Peter Pan Goes Wrong (which earlier this year wrapped up a limited run on Broadway). In Mind Mangler, Mischief turns its attention to spoofing the sub-genre of the illusionist show (think Derren Brown), which has become over the years mainstream popular entertainment. Suffice to say, practically nothing goes right as the evening’s illusionist — played by Mischief usual suspect Henry Lewis — fails to successfully complete even the simplest of tricks.

One of the chief delights of Mischief shows is how they treat theater as an extreme sport. Indeed, it’s the kind of highly physical theater that often has me fearing for the performers’ lives. Although the company’s actors are immensely talented in terms of cleverly veiled, carefully plotted stage choreography, they’re less skilled as nuanced comedians, tending to deliver their pun-heavy lines with a telegraphed broadness that would seem overly trite if it weren’t for the lavish high jinks transpiring onstage. Given Mind Mangler‘s smaller scale relative to other Mischief offerings — both in terms of the size of the cast and scenic elements — and less physical ethos, there’s little to camouflage the fact that the show is little more than an opportunity for relentless juvenile behavior.

It doesn’t help matters that our host for the evening is as unlikeable as he is inept. Indeed, another reason for Mind Mangler‘s misfire is the fact that Lewis’s character is, by design, a distasteful host. Balanced only by an obvious audience plant (the jovial Jonathan Sayer), there’s little to counteract his tiresomely obnoxious act. To make matters worse, audience members are shoehorned into participating in the show — both voluntarily and involuntarily — which may not be everyone’s cup of tea. And at two hours in length (including an intermission), the show is about half an hour too long, losing steam and our limited interest well before the curtain mercifully falls.

SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED

MIND MANGLER: A NIGHT OF TRAGIC ILLUSION
Off-Broadway, Play
Mischief at New World Stages
2 hours (with one intermission)
Through March 3