Sam Hume, Justin Williams and Magnus ‘Danger’ Magnus of Showmen Production bring three shows to this year’s Edinburgh – Greatest Magic Show, Adults Only Magic Show And CIRCUS. Hume fills us in on all the details.
Q&A with Sam Hume
How does it feel to be returning to Edinburgh Fringe?
2024 will mark our fourth year in Edinburgh!! This year we are returning with three productions; Greatest Magic Show, Adults Only Magic Show And CIRCUS the show which will be making its Edinburgh fringe debut this year. It is such an incredible thrill each and every time and we never get sick of the excitement and anticipation of performing at the Fringe. Since founding our company and beginning to create and tour shows, we have done so very regularly and year round to Fringe festivals all around the country and indeed internationally – but the simple fact is that nothing compares to Edinburgh Fringe. It’s like playing a cricket match on any ground in the world and then playing at Lords in England. The atmosphere, the amount of people in the streets and the sense of excitement carried within them, the history for the fringe and the amazing entertainers that began there career in the exact place that you are about to perform a months’ worth of shows – it is simply unrivalled by any other performing arts festival in the world. An absolute honour to be apart of it all.
What can you tell us about your show and its inspiration?
For our magic shows, Definitely Penn & Teller come immediately to mind as a duo that we liken ourselves to the most in the sense of their personality and performance style they demonstrate time and time again – you never feel like you are just watching trick after trick with them, the magic is just an element of a storyline they are presenting which is enriched with comedy, misdirection, subtlety, and absurdity!
For CIRCUS I am always incredibly inspired also by Cirque Du Soleil in the pure lengths they are able to elaborate an idea to, and how routines in their shows seemingly always just get bigger and bigger and bigger but never so much that the impact of the routine itself is lost.
How do you think audiences will react to the show?
We always strive to have the audience leave our shows with a sense of wonder, awe and joy. The connection and freedom in our shows allows us to genuinely enjoy ourselves and we believe that this enjoyment is contageous!! We aren’t playing characters on stage, nor are we really sticking to a script, we are just being ourselves and trying to share the fun we are having with our audience.
How have you been preparing for the festival?
We are touring our shows year round so we are very prepared in terms of what will be on stage so the main preparation pre festival is about logistics having many lists so that nothing is forgotten or missed. Once we have double and triple checked these lists then the preparation becomes more focused on daily preparation.
With the family shows our preparation pretty much goes as far as just making sure our voices are good, we’re feeling relaxed, had something to eat and a coffee, and mainly centred around our mindset as these performances tend to come a lot easier for us. Of course checking props, applying makeup, getting dressed and all the typical things – but above all else just making sure our heads are right and always reminding myself of the excitement that the kids waiting to be let in standing outside the venue must be feeling right now; that for some of them this may be the first show they have ever seen in their life, and for them, I always give 110% every single show.
As for the Adults Only Magic Show, the above does still apply but there is more of a focus on getting ourselves into that state where we feel ready to deal with anything that may happen such as drunk hecklers, troublesome audience volunteers, tech issues etc. That and a few glasses of red wine with Justin as we get ready to whatever ‘pump up’ playlist we have on that night!
Will you get a chance to enjoy the rest of the festival?
Edinburgh fringe is a doubler edged sword for trying to enjoy the rest of the festival outside of our own shows, it’s about constantly balancing looking after yourself so you can survive the month and taking advantage of having so many amazing shows everywhere you look. I always try and find time to meditate every single day, and sleep whenever I can. Absolutely adore seeing shows and love going out to pubs and restaurants that are more adorned with locals and being a part of that atmosphere. We always undoubtedly run into people who have seen our show that night and it’s such a lovely moment every time to just have a drink with them and chat about life!
Do you have any Fringe anecdotes you can share with us?
So one of the best moments of our Fringe lives happened in 2022 where we had a review for our Adults Only Magic Show come out on Edinburgh Live with the headline “I went to see a show so offensive that I had to walk out!”
Why did this review – which initially sparked a feeling of dread among the cast – turn into one of the best moments? Well the entire review was littered with comments such as “The rest of the sold-out crowd seemed to really enjoy it and was laughing uncontrollably throughout the show, I just didn’t get it” which of course was lovely to hear and have them include! Moreover, the initial review as it was shared on Facebook soon went viral with over 500 comments that were almost entirely in support of the show including comments from people who had seen the show leaving positive reviews of the performance they saw, and other people commenting “well now we DEFINITELY have to see it!”
Needless to say the rest of our season that year completely sold out, and we got one of the greatest memories of our Edinburgh lives!
Adults Only Magic Show is at the Assembly George Square until 25 August
The Greatest Magic Show is at the Assembly George Square Gardens until 26 August
Circus – The Show is at Underbelly, George Square until 26 August
