By Sunny Fitzgerald
Visit a world-class magic show at Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa. Photo courtesy of The Magical Mystery Show!
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A dimly-lit, Victorian-style, 64-seat parlour — hidden behind a secret door on the second floor of the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa —was not the setting I was expecting for an evening out in Hawaiʻi. And that’s exactly the point. The Magical Mystery Show! offers an experience you won’t find elsewhere in the islands. It was the #1 rated show in Honolulu by TripAdvisor.
Be prepared to leave your expectations in the lobby (where you can also grab a pre-show cocktail, as our group of five friends did) and spend your night like a 19th-century Hawaiian royal might… if that royal was the fun-loving “Merrie Monarch” King David Kalākaua, who famously met Queen Victoria and attended a magic show in a London parlour in 1881.
Our VIP tickets landed us in front row seats with a rum punch in hand, a few feet away from the magicians. But no matter where you sit in this intimate theater, you’re never far from the action, and someone from your group is likely to be integrated into the show. The performers invite attendees to assist with tricks, co-creating an experience over the course of the evening that is unique to each audience. (Fellow introverts, before you plot your escape or scout a curtain to hide behind, let me quell your fears; participation is voluntary, not mandatory. You can decline, and the magician will move on to another guest. Trust me, there will be plenty of willing audience members ready to take your place!)
I assumed the parlour would be at least half-full of children and the show would be geared to a younger crowd — and on some nights it very well could be. But the show my friends and I attended ended up with an audience of all adults. There were couples, friend groups, and families; some were Hawaiʻi residents on a date night, and others were visiting from the mainland, Mexico and Australia.
We knew we’d likely see card tricks and other close-up magic, but we never expected to laugh so much. The magicians’ quick wit and ability to improvise on the spot and adjust their performance to individuals in the crowd reminded me of the way I’d seen comedians deftly work the room at top L.A. comedy clubs. Genuine gasps, laughter and unscripted commentary from the audience confirmed amusement and amazement in equal measure throughout the show.
What surprised me even more than the mind-boggling levitation that happened under bright stage lights a few feet in front of me — not on a distant, elevated stage like you might find in a large Vegas theater — was the fact that for those two hours that I was seated in the parlour, I wasn’t thinking about my never-ending to-do list, the stressful day I’d just had, the sleep I desperately needed, or what problems lay ahead of me tomorrow. These days, we’re often so overburdened with responsibilities and worries, attached to our phones and computers and distracted by notifications. So, the performers’ ability to connect with a room of strangers and create a rare opportunity for us all to be fully present, engaged, and temporarily carefree? That, to me, was the real magic.
Even if magic shows aren’t typically your thing and you’re a first-time attendee like me, the experience of The Magical Mystery Show! is for you. It’s for everyone. Or at least everyone who likes to laugh and make memories with friends and loved ones. Like a magical parlour door hidden in plain sight, the secret to a magical evening here is actually quite simple: Don’t go in with any expectations. Don’t get distracted by trying to figure out the tricks or unravel the mysteries. Just let yourself believe in a little magic; make like Hawaiʻi’s “Merrie Monarch,” sit back, and enjoy the show.
Hidden behind a secret door, on the second floor of the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa, is a dimly-lit, Victorian-style, 64-seat parlour. Courtesy of The Magical Mystery Show!
Here are some tips and answers to help you plan your night at The Magical Mystery Show!:
The Magical Mystery Show! at the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa is offered twice daily, at 5:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
The Magical Mystery Show! is approximately two hours long.
The Magical Mystery Show! is absolutely kid-friendly. The performers are adept at adjusting their performances to their audience, and are even capable of making jokes that resonate with kids while also entertaining adults. Kind of like those Pixar films that use images, dialogue and humor that simultaneously play to all ages!
Tickets cost $79 for general admission (ages 13 and up) and include a rum punch for those aged 21 and over. A $10 discount on general admission is available to kamaʻāina (local Hawaiʻi residents), military, seniors, and Hilton guests (with a valid hotel key card from any Hilton property in Waikīkī). Children’s tickets for ages 4-12 are $49, and infants aged 0-3 are free.
Looking to make your evening even more magical? VIP tickets, which include front row seats, two rum punch drinks, and a magic kit, are $109. The V-VIP dinner and show package, which includes a pre- or post-show gourmet dinner at Hy’s Steakhouse, a backstage tour, a meet and greet with the magician and a two-year pass to see any magician at The Magical Mystery Show!, costs $1,000 per person.
Yes, reservations are required and easily bookable on The Magical Mystery Show! website.
There is no food served at The Magical Mystery Show!. However, there are several restaurants in the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa (and the surrounding neighborhood) where you can grab a bite before or after the show. There is a V-VIP Waikīkī magic show dinner package (see FAQ #4 above and The Magical Mystery Show! website for more details).
The Magical Mystery Show! is located on the second floor of the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa, 2500 Kuhio Avenue, Honolulu, HI. Please note, there is no Hilton Hawaiian Village magic show; that resort is at the other end of Waikīkī and is not the location of The Magical Mystery Show!.
The Magical Mystery Show! features a rotation of nearly 30 professional magicians from around the world. Currently, the main act is Shoot Ogawa, an international magic artist who began practicing magic when he was 10 years old. He has performed in more than 50 countries, has been named “Magician of the Year” multiple times by Magic Castle’s Academy of Magical Arts, and was called “the best sleight of hand artist alive today” by Penn Jillette (of the famous Penn & Teller: Fool Us magic competition television series). Ogawa won first prize at the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques–the olympics of magic–where he beat over 83,000 professional magicians.
Yes! Many things set The Magical Mystery Show! apart from other activities. Most notably, this is not simply a Honolulu magic show or a Hawaiʻi magic show. It’s an interactive and unique opportunity to make memories with your friends and loved ones; no two shows are exactly alike because they are co-created with the audience each time. This has made The Magical Mystery Show! the top-rated TripAdvisor experience and the best magic show in Waikīkī, with thousands of glowing five-star reviews.
Your attendance at The Magical Mystery Show! helps spread some magic, too; a portion of ticket sales supports various charities and arts academies, including Aloha Shriners, The Maui Shrine Club and The Academy of Magic Arts in Hollywood.
There’s also over one million dollars of antiques in the Victorian-style parlour and the connected Museum of Curiosities and Oddities (entry included with show admission). Spend some time post-show browsing this distinctive collection that you won’t find elsewhere.
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