At this year's Fringe, a bedazzlement of magicians will distract and deceive from the comfort of a stage, utilising lights and sound, smoke and mirrors, perhaps rabbits and hats.
Card shark Harry Milas, though, can evoke all the wonder of a Vegas spectacular armed simply with his skill, wit, a sheet of green felt and a pack of ordinary playing cards.
Harry's illusions are possibly even more awe-inspiring than a grand Houdini-style stunt because they are occurring just inches from your face. At a special preview performance at Hains & Co, six of us shared a booth with the convicted card cheat. His run of dates will occur in such a manner at a secret location; it is just like having drinks at the bar, but with more interesting company than your mate Robbo from the footy club.
Harry is an amalgam of Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman's characters in 'Rain Man'; part raconteur, part savant. With hands as delicate and trained as a surgeon or a concert pianist, he demonstrates the mystery behind his craft and the trouble that possessing such remarkable talents has landed him in.
Purchasing a ticket to 'The Unfair Advantage' is not a get-rich-quick scheme; do not book flights to Melbourne and a suite in the high rollers at The Crown for the next day. To replicate his talents would take thousands of hours of diligent training and, having mastered it, you may end up in jail or perhaps a shallow grave.
Harry, as a performer, holds all the aces, he is one of a kind and with only ten tickets per show, is guaranteed a full house.
★★★★☆
