Fab time for hobby's birthday. Magic keeps you entertained with a different types of shows…read more Something for everyone. Service was amazing. Had to get a refund for a member of our part who came down with Covid and it was handled perfectly.

DEAL: Join their mailing list to book a deal directly on their website. When you arrive they might…read moreoffer you VIP seating with a shot glass gift if you didn't already purchase it beforehand. They didn't volunteer the information about how many rows there are so be sure to ask how many rows there are because we were about to pay extra, but there were only going to be maybe 6-7 rows so we didn't mind not sitting up front. Maybe if it was 20 rows then I would have upgraded and paid extra. It also depends on which room they use so sometimes they don't know yet how many rows they will have. Even if you don't sit up front you still might be picked to partake in the show, but no guarantees. OVERALL: I recommend this dinner and magic show as a different activity from a boring night at a restaurant and the movies. The dinner reminded me of a full course Chinese dinner like what you would order banquet style. I thought the food was tasty and enough portions to where there were very little leftover. They played music during dinner which made it nice. I thought we would be eating dinner and watching a magic show at the same time, but you eat dinner first then go to a different room to watch the show. DETAILS: they do magic at the table as you're waiting for dinner. Check in is in the back private rooms. I think it's worth arriving on time to see the table magic. Dan had his son there who was a cute kid and talented. He did magic too. I didn't mind it being like a family affair it made it more sincere and genuine. Dan and his son even sat at our table and ate dinner. You are sitting with people you don't know who bought tickets for the show. Dress isn't formal I'd say semi formal is good or even business casual you would fit in just fine. There was a couple here that had attended the dinner and show 3 times. Dan asked them which show they saw so he could try to make sure he did magic they hadn't seen before. I thought that was considerate of him and probably why they keep coming back. LOCATION: they have the Cupertino location in Vallco mall or the Oakland location in downtown Chinatown area. We went to the Cupertino one. PARK: Outside parking in the parking structure behind what used to be TGI Fridays, but is now some kind of sports grill lounge bar. Then you walk toward the main street past the back of the restaurant under the overpass to get to the entrance of the restaurant. Kind of smells because of the dumper trash area though.

"Is this really happening?!" Those were the only words I could eek out of my gaping mouth during…read morelast Friday's living room performance at the Vespertine Circus. Okay, I also managed to say "I'll have the $2 white wine, good sir!" But really, that's about it. There were mesmerizing musicians, an astonishing aerial acrobat and her hooping partner. There were couches and a hodgepodge of chairs filled with the artists friends and family and some random Facebook stalkers like us. But the most surprising attraction had to be the bar in back, serving $2 wine, beer, and soda. *Rub eyes in dream-like stupor.* Like the others have noted, this is an eerily magical place, concealed behind residential walls. Part Alice in Wonderland, part Burning Man, part Dark Carnival...yet approachable enough for average folks like you and me. The shows are $10-15 sliding scale at the door, and while the venue itself may not appear to merit such a cover, the sheer novelty and unexpectedness of everything that ensues is worth the cha-ching, in my opinion.

There are many reasons to fear and loathe Facebook. Sit at any bar, eavesdrop on any bus…read moreconversation, and woo any self-aware youngin' with a lit degree, and you'll hear a litany of FB complaints, usually coming straight from the mouth of your's truly about the inanity of self-promotion and narcissism. But when I step back from talking about my status in the third person or rapidly de-tagging myself from pictures that I don't want my mom to see, I appreciate how useful it has been in finding some cool events. Cue the Vespertine Circus, which I circuitously found when I saw an event listing for audiafauna, one of my favorite local acts. Not knowing what to expect, nor caring much, since my beloved band was performing, I came with little to no expectations, just being a groupie and rounding up some friends for a night out. Literally located in someone's living room, with barnyard lighting and some scattered cushions, this is a very comfy venue. The circus itself is not the corndog/creppy clown carnavale that I envisioned. There are contortionists, lovers, advanced hoopers, and what I came for-music and dancing. My heart was won by the ginger with an improvised violin/trumpet contraption, who's in a band from Seattle called Impossible Bird, another serendipitous music find that's put an extra hop in my step. Come support this amazing endeavor-such a heartwarming atmosphere, and if you're missing your weekend night boozin', drink assured that there's some cheap wine, though I opted for the cheap alcoholic-free ginger beer. After being intoxicated by the good vibes this place is percolating, you won't need anything else.

A great way to support your local arts and dance programs!…read more Redwood City's own Ballet America (ballet school) puts on this show every year in mid December, and includes ballet students from all ages (4 and up) to participate. Though the cast is primarily students (and even some parents), they do also use instructors and a few professional dancers to fill out the main roles (e.g. sugar plum fairy, snow queen, etc). The result is magical, fun and surprisingly polished for what you'd expect from a local, low-budget production. The performance period is short: only 2 days & nights, which makes sense considering all the young children involved. We attended the final 2009 performance on Dec 11. Though typically held at the Fox theatre downtown (which is in the throes of a foreclosure saga), this year it was held at the Sequoia High School theater (Carrington Hall), a surprisingly nice venue with a colonial Spanish design, built in 1904. As usual, we enjoyed the show and came away feeling like the Holiday season had REALLY begun. Until next year!

The 2010 Nutcracker production from Ballet America was astonishing in the quality of the dancing…read more Every year this production continues to improve in the choreography and the ability of those dancing on stage. This year was no exception. The professionals that accompanied the junior company dancers and those that were our featured dancers were incredibly accomplished and a delight to watch. I heard from folks in the audience that they felt the choreography was more difficult than in the past, and the dancers were excellent! The people I heard this from do not see dance productions that often, but have come to this Nutcracker in the past. The show date tends to fall on the first Friday or Saturday of December. I hope people reading this review will hold that date for the 2011 performance. I overheard another patron say the length of the performance was perfect, and was just as enjoyable as any of the major productions in the area. Redwood City is very lucky to have a production of this quality in their midst.

Mr. Boswell and Mr. Owens were funny from the get-go! The close-up magic tricks they performed…read moreseemed simple but will astonish you and have you scratching your head for the rest of the night. The "mind reading" was my favorite. The magic show is in a small, intimate room that seats about 30 people at Hotel Rex, a venue that reminds me of the lobby of the tower of terror in disneyland. The show lasted about 1.5 hours and involved a lot of audience interaction. Even in last row, you're still only about 10 feet away from the performer. Parking is hard to come by so it's best to take BART to Powell and walk 10 minutes to the venue. The 2 drink minimum is not enforced, but buy your drinks before the show as there is no table service in the room. Sign-in early to get front row seats. The show will make you laugh, keep you in suspense, and completely perplex you. At only $13 brought from Goldstar, it was a very affordable and entertaining show!

Saw someone mention this in my FB feed, and after checking Yelp reviews decided to check it out. It…read morewas a lot of fun! I like close up magic (and this is definitely close up - everyone was first or second row, and no more than 20 people in the whole audience) because sometimes you have some shot at figuring out how they do it. It's definitely not smoke and mirrors, it's sleight of hand and misdirection and general cleverness. Three performers each put on a 30 minute show, so there is variety to it. My favorite was the "mind reading" which was quite remarkable, and no less so for the magician telling you that he did it through reading microexpressions. A great date night

The Magic Theater is located at Fort Mason on the 3rd floor of Building D. Intimate space with a…read moresmall number of seats; there's definitely a sense of being personally connected to the interactions on stage. In February, I caught the premier of "Cuckoo Edible Magic," a show that playwright Reed Flores calls "a love letter to being a brown kid in the Bay Area." To me, a brown kid who grew up in SF, the story of family bonds & trauma feels familiar, heartbreaking, even. Love the shout-out to BART & specific neighborhoods. Appreciated the handful of Asian & Pacific Island languages & accents spoken on stage. And while I didn't grow up with a love for Sailor Moon or video games, I know those references resonated with so many in the audience. An obvious & loud five stars for the production. Wonderful staff. Ticket prices are so reasonable, you'll have a few extra dollars to donate to the theater. Unique programming. And the picturesque location (with parking & eateries at your fingertips) is pretty hard to beat. Can't wait to see my next show here.

The performance of Macbeth was extraordinary, as is every production of the Magic Theatre in recent…read moreyears. I have only missed one or two. This theater company continues to evolve creatively and meet high standards that should impress any theater audience in New York or London! It's an asset to the Bay Area and deserves support.

It's been years and years since we checked out this circus and loved the trip, it was fun to check…read moreout, super casual, family friendly spot, they were all really good!! We definitely plan on coming back

I didn't expect to find a circus in Redwood City! Performance is good and this seems very…read morekids-friendly. This circus is honestly a decent size. I actually expected to be smaller. My friend and I got the ticket for 4-7 pm, but it somehow ended before 6pm with one intermission. I wonder if something happened to the performer that day or maybe an emergency. Still worth $20 dollar per person for ticket tho.

Went to the popup Nightmare on Franklin St. (wrote a separate review just for the popup). Please…read moresee my review NightmareSF- also on yelp. Rather than duplicate that I will summarize- Not One Person who attend from my group enjoyed it and would not return again to another performance.

CLUE Jan 12 thru Feb 2011 - THE BOXCAR winter 11 show…read more CLUE: Directors Peter Matthews & Nick A. Olivero have a brilliant show - sure to sell out - so buy up all these goldstar seats if you can find any.. this is truly a charm to sit above the amazing wiz of a CLUE GAME Board designed by co director Olivero . his vision of hosting the game watcher above the set is epic .. as if we are part of a Harry Potter broom fight ,, we are instead a sit a top of a game of CLUE. The adapted script moves fast and is very fun mixing in many of the key lines from the film and more. A great cast of SF locals better players all move at the speed of this game plan - The Butler brilliantly played by Brian Martin - holds the game board together with the most script tied to his role. Sarah Savage, Linnea George-Kupferand, Justin Liszanke keep the game rolling with some very funny comic timing linked to the many roles that Adam Simpson is cast as his every role true to the game and killings. J. Conrad Frank the queen on he board spins his skirt as the dice is tossed and is hilarious as the bodies fly. Besides the dead dummies as they pile up, the true star of this play is the set. The audience is lifted above the game board to see the whole 90 min event unfold - its a great night of Black box theatre in SF - not to be missed and is most likely sold out ,, I hope you get to see it. CLUE is the best .. V

I had no idea there was a children's theater here in Palo Alto…read more I came here with a large group and everything ran smoothly from arriving. We were guided to how to sit adults on the edge if possible so the kids can see. No flash photography. Exits and emergency exits. Once we were seated the play began. This is my first time watching a kids play and it was very fun. The play moved along had a clear plot and was enjoyable by the kids and adults alike (measuring this by how loud the laughter was). The costumes were beautiful and the stage props were colorful. The orchestra was also really cool to experience. The length of time of the play was also good at just an hour. A great way to enjoy art and get the kiddos ready for lunch or other local activities. From reading other reviews it looks like this theatre offers other activities and also performers outside of the building so that's really neat. The actors came out to take pictures at the end so that's was really neat. This is such a neat experience for kids and adults alike. Definitely a fun addition to the toddler and kids activities list!

We came to watch a Hansel and Gretal show put on by the Palo Alto Children's Theatre and it was a…read morefun/cute experience. The children shows are held in the Secret Garden. Space is limited, so definitely get there early. You bring your own picnic blankets and food items, but they also sell some drinks and food at the concession stand, with all proceeds going directly back to the children's theatre. The play is held by a group of child actors of different ages and they all did a great job with their lines and making their whimsical jokes. The script of the play was changed to incorporate characters from other children fairytales such as red riding hood, and other new characters that I didn't recognize, but they tied it all into the main storyline of Hansel and Gretal. The play runs only for about 40 minutes with no intermission. There are porta potties conveniently located across from the garden but their actual bathroom facilities are only a 1-2 minute walk down the corridor. There is plenty of street parking in the surrounding neighborhood.