Mario The Maker Magician

Mario The Maker Magician

Mario The Maker Magician Rating

Click if you liked this article

1

Mario “the Maker Magician” Marchese is a New York-based performer, author, and maker. He tours worldwide with his wife, producer, and children. He incorporates DIY electronics and robotics into his projects, using magic to inspire limitless creativity in children and families.

This is a fun and amazing show for the whole family. Mario is a dynamic performer. Larger than life, he commands the stage. Even on one of the hottest days in Adelaide, he still put on a stunning show. But I feel we are grateful as he sprays water about the venue, cooling and more sleight of hand.

The audience was totally engaged with Mario’s every move. The hand-made props add a gorgeous charm to the show. They remind you of the toys that children would make themselves with cardboard, paint, and sticky tape. It took me back to my childhood, and I imagine that a lot of the parents were remembering their childhood.

It was also relatable to the younger audience members, the arts and crafts they like to do on a rainy day. Magician David Blaine, whom he has toured with, has labelled Mario “the best kids’ magician in the world”. He has appeared on the “Sesame Street’ show and with Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show. Even David Copperfield has heaped praise on Mario.

The show revolved around robots that Mario had hand-built. There was a lot of audience participation in the show, and the kids loved it. The kids loved the magic, and so did the adults.

Mario touches on his favourite teachers and what they mean to him, reminding the audience that teachers have had a pivotal role in our lives. This is part of the misdirection. In fact, the show starts with some simple, sleight of hand tricks. They immediately draw the audience in. Mario has us all hooked. The pace accelerates, and more tricks are revealed. We are introduced to the simple but fun robots.

The pace of the production helps with the sleight of hand and misdirection, which are important in this show. Mario makes positive statements about children and how the simple act of getting up on stage as a volunteer is a brave moment in their lives. We should applaud this.

The audience’s reaction throughout the show is something to behold. I have never seen an audience so captivated, engaged, and incredibly noisy. He owns the venue, and he takes along his magic journey, meeting those who have influenced him, like Andy Warhol.

As the show progresses to the finale the strings of the story come together. And with an ending we did expect it comes to a close. We are left wanting more. Which is how all shows should end.

The takeaway from this fun, glorious production is “Follow your dreams”.

Performed by Mario “the Maker Magician” Marchese
Written by Mario and Katie Marchese
Produced by Katie Rosa Marchese and Chris Cox

To book tickets to Mario The Maker Magician, please visit https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/mario-the-maker-magician-af2025.

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

The importance of being fruit

Fruition

Fruition Rating

Click if you liked this article

0

Well, this is an interesting, fun show. It’s comedy clowning at its best. It’s a rollicking, frolicking comedy about fruit, its position in society, and its relevance to the main character, Cherese.

We learn why fruit is fun, why she loves all fruit, and why she also loves us, the audience. The show consists of a variety of sketches that flow smoothly from one to another.

For Cherese Sonkkila, this is her debut Fringe show. She has plenty of energy, and it keeps flowing. Hopefully, we will see more work from she/her in the future.

The sketches have a variety of styles, from song and dance to monologues. There are costume changes off stage, although in a couple of places, the performances are a fraction too long. But it was opening night.

This is a show worth seeing. It is a fun event with some audience participation, which I normally don’t like, but I enjoyed it. So, get a ticket or several and take yourself to the Mill on Angas Street.

To book tickets to Fruition, please visit https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/fruition-af2025

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

Mel McGlensey’s Motorboat: A Hilarious High-Seas Adventure

Mel McGlensey is Motorboat

Mel McGlensey Is Motorboat Rating

Click if you liked this article

If you’re in the mood for a wildly absurd, delightfully unhinged, and incredibly physical comedy experience, then Mel McGlensey Is Motorboat is your perfect Fringe vessel. Docked at the Bally in Gluttony, this boat-woman hybrid performance is a riotous ride through high-energy clowning, audience interaction, and some very “nautical but nice” humour.

McGlensey, a 2024 Golden Gibbo nominee and winner of Best Comedy at Adelaide Fringe 2024, fully commits to her larger-than-life character. With a sailor’s outfit ingeniously doubling as boat parts—including some particularly buoyant “floatation devices”—she embraces every wave of ridiculousness with infectious enthusiasm.

From the moment Motorboat sets sail, the audience becomes her crew, each assigned a boat type in a flurry of improvised banter that McGlensey expertly weaves back into the show for maximum comedic payoff.

The story? Motorboat dreams of leaving the dock and venturing into the great unknown, but she’s held back by the booming, omnipresent voice of Captain Daddy. But as any good Fringe audience knows, staying anchored is never an option. What follows is a rollicking, often improvised voyage where McGlensey’s quick wit, expressive clowning, and razor-sharp comedic instincts keep the crowd both on edge and in stitches.

The humour is far from subtle—expect a bit of salty language and some audience participation—the energy and commitment of the performance keeps things afloat for the entire show.

With her formidable improv skills and natural comedic presence, McGlensey delivers a show that is as silly as it is skilful. Whether you’re a tugboat, an ocean liner or a lowly kayak, Motorboat is a high-spirited, side-splittingly funny voyage well worth embarking on. Just batten down the hatches—things are bound to get a little choppy!

To book tickets to Mel McGlensey is Motorboat, please visit https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/mel-mcglensey-is-motorboat-af2025

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

CON 2077: A Wildly Inventive Comedy

CON2077

CON2077 Rating

Click if you liked this article

One man. Hundreds of sound cues. A time-traveling plot. That’s all you really need to know before stepping into Con 2077. That, and that Con Coutis is easily one of the funniest performers you’ll see this Fringe season.

The premise? Delightfully ridiculous. In 2027, a meteor strikes Earth, wiping out every comedian—except one. Fast forward to 2077, when an Arctic researcher stumbles upon the lost art of comedy and resurrects the world’s last comedian from cryosleep: Con Coutis. Now, humanity’s fate rests on one man’s ability to rediscover the joke. No pressure.

From the moment Con springs out from behind the red curtain, he commands the stage with an infectious energy that never lets up. Armed with a few props and an impossible number of sound cues, he masterfully blends stand-up, sketch comedy, and physical performance into a high-octane, laugh-out-loud spectacle. His physicality is next-level—flinging himself across the tent, weaving through the audience, dodging invisible ninja spikes, and racing against time to answer a phantom phone call. Very impressive, and the ease at which he moves in and out is a true skill.

Coutis’s ability to balance the absurd with razor-sharp comedic timing is born from natural talent, creativity and dedication to his craft. His deadpan delivery of high-concept sci-fi lunacy—interwoven with spot-on stand-up about everyday life—creates a perfect contrast. One moment, he’s breaking down the price of safes at Bunnings; the next, he’s deciphering cryptic voice recordings left by past Con for future Con. It’s chaotic, it’s clever, and it’s utterly hilarious.

 

The show’s technical elements are equally as impressive. The precision of its lighting, sound design, and audio effects make Con 2077 feel like a full-blown theatrical production disguised as stand-up. And when the occasional technical hiccup occurs, Coutis rolls with it so smoothly that the audience is left wondering whether it was planned all along.

The real magic, though, is how effortlessly he connects with his audience. The playful participation feels like goofing around with a friend rather than a spotlight interrogation. It’s a testament to Coutis’ warmth and natural charisma—he makes the ridiculous feel relatable and the surreal feel strangely familiar.

So, can Con save the world with comedy? No spoilers here. But one thing’s for sure: Con 2077 is a wildly original, utterly bonkers, and unmissable ride that will have you laughing out loud and leave you in awe. Coutis delivers innovative, fresh, and thoroughly entertaining content. It needs to be seen to be believed, and I encourage you to get yourself to the BankSA Theatre this week.

To book tickets to CON2077, please visit https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/con-coutis-con-2077-af2025

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.