Trickery

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Phone #: (312) 566-8061

Address: 3453 N Halsted St, Chicago IL 60657

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Trickery

At Trickery in Northalsted, Chicago, Owner-illusionist Aaron Rabkin performs six intimate magic shows each week at this Halsted Street storefront theater where his tricks are visible by sidewalk passersby. Shows Thursday – Sunday. Reservations recommended.

Hours of Operations

Thursday: 7pm

Friday: 7pm & 9pm

Saturday: 6pm, 8pm, & 10pm

Sunday: 4pm

Address

3453 N Halsted St, Chicago IL 60657

Phone #

(312) 566-8061

Website

https://www.trickerychicago.com/

Reviews

Trickery

4.9

Based on 224 reviews

See all reviews Write a review

Amanda Landowski

01:39 25 Jul 21

If you’re on the fence thinking how good could this show really be for an intimate one man show, do yourself a favor and just GO! You will not be disappointed!! Without saying too much, Aaron himself is a magical sensation! You will be amazed with his magic, witt, and charm. Lots of trickery and laughs. Everyone in the audience left with a smile on their face! The place is so cool and unique. And he stocks his bathroom with the fancy toilet paper…what a gem he is! I would recommend this show to all my friends!

Susan Copeland

19:31 10 Jul 21

Aaron was incredibly funny throughout his magic show. I came with my 3 teenage boys who put up a fight about going to begin with BUT they all loved it. It was memorable to see their smiling faces and to hear them laughing. I would rate his show with more stars if I could! We will definitely come back to Aaron’s show next time in Chi town!

Matt Lyons

01:11 28 Jun 21

Aaron works hard and keeps the audience entertained. I would agree a good potion of the banter is more suited to an over 21 set and the *magic* falls more in the entertainment rather than awe-inspiring category. A fun way to spend an hour though.

Davron Lopez

00:01 14 Jun 21

Aaron was magical but his sidekick stole the show.The intimate space created the opportunity to see the magic up close. I was a mere 3 feet away from Aaron the entire time and I have no idea how he performed the feats in his show.Highly recommend if you’re looking a great way to spend an evening

Michael Nystuen

23:12 09 Jun 21

The show was very entertaining. I think the descriptions out around the web are very accurate, it was fun, engaging, and yes maybe not perfect for the prude, or younger audiences which seem to be the source of any negative reviews. Thought it was entertaining, riffed on old magic tricks and made them fun, as well as fun new tricks, and Aaron is great at crowd work, there was both a heckler and just an unfortunate crowd situation that were handled well. People who complain about not having a full bar, can't read, and could've bought whatever they wanted a block away as it is byob, and I was a tourist. Would recommend to anyone who doesn't suck.

Lil MaGill

20:08 30 May 21

Amazing show!! Loved the magic and illusions, will definitely be taking my kids again. They were so entertained and had a lovely time. My husband also enjoyed it. Will be coming back! 💜

Kevin Scribner

20:04 30 May 21

Trickery will BLOW your mind. I’ve gone a few times with guests from out of town and Aaron never fails to wow everyone. The show is incredible - both funny and magical! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

JUDY SCRIBNER

19:55 30 May 21

Amazing, 10/10. There was a perfect amount of people in the room, and you could buy cheap snacks/candy. There was sodas and waters as well. The magician Aaron was spectacular, his magic is extraordinary, all of his tricks left the crowd in shock. Will most definitely go again!

Melanie Conquest

23:20 23 May 21

Noticed the place while driving down Halsted last week and ordered tickets on a whim. Went to the show yesterday and my husband and I had a really great time! The show started off not super impressive but Aaron was really funny so I kept an open mind. By the middle to the end, the tricks (or illusions or whatever) he did were really amazing! We’re still just randomly asking each other “but how did he do...?” or “what about that one part where he....?” Great show. Would definitely recommend for a date night, group outing, etc.

Jake Hyland

15:05 26 Apr 21

Love this place. It’s well worth the money and a great location for dates/an evening with friends. The magician has an awesome show that is sure to wow even the strongest non believer. I can’t wait to go back!!

the Mcgroovers

14:38 26 Apr 21

Visited Chicago for a birthday weekend for friends and decided to go to the Trickery based on prior reviews. I am so glad that we did!! Aaron was so engaging and funny!!! The magic left my group baffled and amazed. We were still talking about it the next day! With such an intimate venue, the interaction with the audience made the show even better and believable. My son and daughter were included in a couple of the tricks that left us all wondering "what the heck?" I would definitely go again. It was one of the highlights of our weekend!!

Monica Donnelly

16:05 18 Apr 21

I came here with my sister for her bachelorette party and it was absolutely perfect! They had water and pop available for $1 and snacks for $2. They also had cups if you BYOB. We loved the decor in the lobby. The show was hysterically funny and incredibly entertaining. The magic and miracles had us on the edge of our seat all night. You need to go see this show!!! I’ll definitely be coming again :)

Miss Jay

07:52 12 Apr 21

My FIRST magic show I’ve ever been to and let’s say I was very impressed! Keep up the good work man. You’ll be entertaining in front of thousands of more people in the future!!

Noel Maldonado

15:09 05 Apr 21

Nice sideshow tricks. No big smoke and mirror tricks but it was entertaining for a little over an hour. The show can be in the yellow zone for kids under 10 years old but i think all ages are welcome. Just realize you are in boystown and there are references in the show. This show paired with the frozen yogurt shop next door makes for a one stop show and desert date night.

Judy

15:39 15 Mar 21

I’ve lived in Chicago all my life. What a gift to have this guy in my city. The set and atmosphere are really cozy and decorated amazing! It’s very quaint and the show is intimate with audience participation. This guy is funny too! (A few jokes are adult only ;) We went out to dinner after the show and couldn’t stop talking about the tricks....phenomenal! We’ll be going back!!

Fernanda Martinez

03:32 14 Mar 21

He was AMAZING! He needed a volunteer and I took the stage, he was absolutely amazing! I don’t want to ruin it but let me tell you his grand finale was AMAZING!

Angel Valdes

01:58 21 Feb 21

Seriously funny and very entertaining! Went for a birthday and would recommend to anyone looking for a fun night out. Aaron is awesome with the crowd and brings everyone into the show!

Justin Bobo

07:35 20 Feb 21

Loved my experience at Trickery - magician is hilarious and put on a great magic show. Highly recommend!

Juan Rosales

12:10 14 Feb 21

Had an amazing time at the trickery. It was entertaining, funny and mind blowing, Aaron’s magic will make your head spin!Highly highly recommended! 10/10

Destiny May Wander

05:35 06 Feb 21

Wonderful experience. Perfect mixture of comedy and conjuring. Would recommend and definitely go again!

Shannon Z

20:01 23 Jan 21

Incredibly fun, mind-blowing, hilarious, and truly magical - Aaron’s show at Trickery is all of the above and more.I went on Friday night with friends, and as soon as you enter the venue, you know you are going to see something special. Even skeptics will be impressed - I was one! As soon as I’d let myself start to guess how I thought a trick was working, Aaron would yank me back into the moment with some new twist or turn in a trick that defied reality. I gave up and just enjoyed the show after the third or fourth time this happened.The show and the venue is perfect for groups of friends or date nights (there were both at the show I went to), and as another review mentioned - the limited capacity due to pandemic restrictions makes it feel like a pretty exclusive show, although I have no doubt that it’d be just as fun if not more at full capacity and will definitely be going back. I was really happy with the other pandemic-related safety measures Aaron has in place. Trickery is BYOB and people are unmasked while drinking, so just keep that in mind, but I felt very safe and would highly recommend Trickery to anyone! 😊

Andrew Martin

00:47 19 Nov 20

Lots of fun, celebrated a private birthday party there and with covid it was a perfect night out. Definitely recommend it to anyone whose looking for a great time. Show is roughly an hour too so it's perfectly timed. Byob too!

Amalia Martinez

20:03 08 Oct 20

Fun time to be had by all, family friendly but also byob and he can read the audience. I had a great time with my family and was left wanting to know how things were done. A little pricey but worth it if you are looking for something new and fun to do.

Tamara Wanstall

19:48 29 Sep 20

I can't rave enough about The Trickery and the miracle magic I experienced. My boyfriend who was skeptical, kept telling me NO. I didn't care, I read the reviews and I was convinced I NEEDED TO SEE THIS SHOW. I felt like I had to drag him there. The venue was small and thankfully a group of 4 (2 couples who dragged their boyfriends as well) and an older couple for a birthday gift. In the first 5 minutes we were all hooked and laughing! By the end of this amazing, magnificent performance I found myself crying. I cried because the show was so unbelievable. Aaron engaged with every person in the audience, that brought us all together for the finale. We all turned to each other to try and figure out how? he did what he did. This place was magical, comical and fun! I don't think I ever stopped smiling and gasping. Please see this show you will not be disappointed. I also want to add I kept hearing the party of 4 saying "I'm dead" and "how can you explain that"

BoB Noriega

01:35 20 Sep 20

Omgggg this place is amazinggg. So much passion, energy and great vibes. We loved it and will be back on our next trip

Rachit Nimavat

04:46 14 Sep 20

We had a magical with Aaron and Hoppy! Because of Covid-capacity-restrictions, we felt as if we were in a private show. 😊

Andrew Bundy

16:55 21 Aug 20

Trickery is must-see magic in Lakeview! Three of us attended a very recent THU evening performance that was Covid intimate consisting of 3 small groups well distanced from each other and yet thoroughly entertaining. Because the group was necessarily small, every audience member participated and had a great time doing so. Aaron puts on a show that is literally magical, amazing and really funny. It's BYOB and a great venue to celebrate an occasion or go as a group you're distancing with.

michelle junge

00:00 09 Aug 20

Show was a lot of went with my family everyone said it was one of the best things we did in Chicago!

Dan Moisson

02:34 15 Mar 20

Had a great time. Excellent magic show. Incredibly intimate venue. Highly recommended.

Alexandra Espinoza

02:39 08 Mar 20

What a fun, hilarious, and intimate show! Aaron Rabkin is the owner, greeter, producer, lights and music, AND the magician. A truly great one-man show at a venue that seats 30-40 people. He is very funny, interactive, and really wows you with trickery and excellent sleight of hand. I look forward to returning to see the show again when family comes to town.

Marquita Smith

15:32 19 Jan 20

This was definitely a great show! It was entertaining, interactive, and it really had me amazed! I went here for my birthday, and I don't regret it one bit. The magic that he was performing was incredible and it was a bit shocking, how good it was. I will definitely recommend that people go check out this show, because it's really one of those things you won't forget!

Hayden Green

22:16 07 Jan 20

The show was impressive and left me puzzling as to how some of the tricks and illusions were performed. Aaron was a great showman and kept us all entertained and awed throughout. I would definitely recommend to anyone visiting Chicago!

Anh Hoang Ho Quan

05:58 29 Dec 19

This was definitely one of the highlight of our quick trip in Chicago. Reading all the 5 starts reviews saying they had an amazing time with Aaron, I convinced my friend to go see the show, even though he was skeptical the magic show would have any entertainment value. And boy, let me tell you how wrong he was! Aaron really knows how to interact with his public and some of this magic tricks are really good, makes you wonder how he pulled them off! Definitely a must see!

Dan Riley

23:12 10 Nov 19

Fun show! Very entertaining door man, cashier, magician, and props guy! The whole staff was awesome, great visit! Also byob, is a plus actually. It made for a really unique experience.

Supertriggered Z6

19:17 13 Oct 19

We took our family there last night and it was completely worth it. It was funny and mind blowing. Incredible place and we look forward to going back again.

Ryan Decker

21:03 21 Sep 19

We absolutely loved the show very fun and when he says magic its actually magic. Go to the show so you can see the final trick I'm still wondering how in the world did he do that. He is very funny and keep the audience in the show highly recommend!!!!!

Lindsey Taylor

04:25 14 Sep 19

Different type of venue would've like an in house bar but overall decent place ..plus they have the crowd participating in the act.just be open minded byob....

J Taylor Muck

14:39 30 Aug 19

An adorable 1-man, 1-Psychic Wonder-Bunny show. The headliner prefers that folks call ahead to get seats for one of the 2 daily shows but he has squeezed my wife and I in twice when we walked in just before show time. (Yes, we were those people...) Both times, we had a blast and we highly recommend buying a souvenir. The magnet looks beautiful on our fridge. PG-13 rating as the mildly suggestive content that tends to go over the heads of younger audience members will make you giggle to yourself and it's BYOB.

Morgan Gardner

04:52 18 Aug 19

The magician, Aaron, was so friendly and hilarious. He was engaging with the crowd and honestly had mind blowing tricks. Top notch. Would 10/10 recommend!

Lachlan Priest

04:06 18 Aug 19

The psychic bunny and his assistant Aaron were amazing! Definitely going to make this a regular event.

Jeffery Miller

22:51 30 Jul 19

It's a small but intimate venue. We enjoyed the show and left saying we would definitely return with friends to see another performance.You can purchase souvenirs and small magic tricks which were fun to get. The magician was personable and engaging and seemed to really like entertaining the group. Outside of that it's street and metered parking so pay very close attention to the parking and meter signs.

Xuan Li

03:47 02 Jun 19

It was absolutely amazing! Aaron is really talented, funny, and down to the earth. It was an incredibly entertaining show and undoubtedly one of the best shows I have ever seen.

Bennett Silbert

23:24 14 Apr 19

Hilarious show with impressive tricks in a great (BYOB) venue! Aaron is awesome, and was so kind and hospitable that a lot of people stuck around for a while after the show. I'll definitely be back when I have friends and family in town.

AJC

03:37 14 Apr 19

What a great show and it's BYOB! Great illusions and the host has fantastic comedic timing. Highly recommend everyone see this show; It's a steal for the price.Steve deserves a shout-out too!

Cash DeWitt

03:59 01 Apr 19

A great show! We saw Freak Show and Tell which was great fun with laughs, surprises, and some amazing feats! (If I say to much I'll ruin the surprises) We are already planning on going back for future shows!

Dean Stock

23:54 24 Mar 19

Aaron is a talented show man!The Sunday show was really complete super funny and amazing for all my family. Mentalist, coins, cards, ropes, balloons you name it! At the end of the show he likes to meet you and perhaps show you some secrets?I definitely will be back soon.

Erick Bieger

13:47 20 Mar 19

A wonderful hidden gem. Aaron is a top notch magician. Bonus points for Hoppy the Psychic Wonder Bunny.

Caitlin W

14:23 11 Mar 19

We were looking for something different to do to celebrate a birthday last weekend and I am so glad we came across Trickery! The magician, Aaron, was amazing. He is hilarious, super kind and personable, and he was very accommodating to our large group. The show was sold out but we had a few friends that wanted to join last-minute and he was kind enough to let us squeeze them in as well. He also welcolmed us to hang around after the show and we had a great time talking with him.The theatre and stage are small which was nice, the setting is really intimate and you are up close & personal with the magician. This made the tricks even more impressive; even those of us sitting in the front row with him directly in front of us still have no clue how he did any of them! There was a trick at the end of the show in particular that we are still trying to figure out & theorize how it was pulled off - so impressive! Overall, we had a blast and the experience was well worth $25 a ticket! BYOB magic show is a brilliant idea. He had us laughing the whole time and involved audience members which made it even more fun. Highly recommend if looking for something different to do for a date night or group outing!

Steven Twigg

04:00 16 Feb 19

Joining the rest of the five star reviewers here. Great show! Very clever, very dynamic, interactive, funny. I am so glad we ended up at Trickery this evening. Such a fun and intimate little venue. I highly recommend this to any adventurous Chicagoans or travelers alike.

paul k.

23:37 07 Feb 19

Took my fiancé for the 8pm show and we had a blast! The decor was awesome and it really did set the perfect energy for the room and the show. We spent the hour Laughing out loud throughout most of the show and enjoying the magic. A+ show and definitely worth checking out!

Abigail Watt

07:51 03 Feb 19

Aaron's show is AMAZING! Combines mind-blowing miracles with fantastic showmanship. Even after seeing it twice, I was still amazed. Bring your friends, go witness this masterpiece of magic

Danny O'Malley

05:03 26 Jan 19

Super fun date night! Aaron is hilarious and keeps the crowd interacted throughout the whole show. Highly reccomended!

Molly S

11:53 16 Jan 19

See a show!! It’s so good. It’s BYOB, be ready to have fun. Trickery is in a small storefront, I didn’t expect it to be as good as it is. The show started with a bit of self deprecating and silly humor. I didn’t take the Miracles very seriously. I thought we might be in for a show with lots of laughs and a few tricks. I was pretty wrong. These weren’t just slight of hand amusements. It’s been almost a week and we’re still talking about how impossible it is that he could know the serial number of that $5 bill. Having been to a couple of magic shows in Chicago, I was very impressed. For $20, it’s a must see!!!!

Josie Friedman

15:04 29 Dec 18

ABSOLUTELY hilarious and so much fun!!! I loved it and will definitely be bringing my friends back. He was a comedian and magician in one.

Sara Bellus

05:33 23 Dec 18

The show was good. The magician’s personality was great. It’s well worth the price of the ticket!

Elizabeth Dotson

16:12 30 Nov 18

I've walked past this place hundreds of times with the intention of stopping in for a show, and last night I finally did. Wow am I glad I did!! Aaron is so funny and the show is very entertaining. PLUS it's BYOB! He left me amazed. I will definitely be back with more friends :)

Jack Gillett

15:15 11 Nov 18

Great tricks, great humor and a great show! Aaron tried to get everyone involved in some way throughout the show, and his tricks were incredible. Would definitely recommend.

avery adams

06:53 10 Nov 18

Really enjoyed it! The magician is engaging, clever and talented. Def doesn't hurt that he's a shameless flirt ;)

John Queally

18:33 13 Oct 18

Happened to stop by on a Friday night with some friends and could not have had a better time. The magic was fantastic, was sipping champagne since it’s BYOB, Aaron was hilarious, and the crowd was so having the best time. We went to the late showing and went out in boystown after. Definitely would go back.

Aaron Honegan

02:25 09 Jul 18

We visited Trickery on a Sunday afternoon with some great friends on our last day in Chicago. The venue is dark and cozy with decorations that match the theme perfectly. The magician Aaron warmly greeted our party of 5 as soon as we walked in. Upon entering the performance studio we discovered that 7 boys around the age of 12 were also there to enjoy the performance, one of them was celebrating a birthday. We thought oh Lord this will be a PG show instead of the normal adult performance we were expecting. Aaron began the show on time and it was clear that he was well prepared when he introduced himself.Aaron started out with some ‘simple’ magic tricks which were engaging and entertaining; He placed a new spin on the trusty old rope trick by engaging one of the kids. Aaron graduated to ‘miracles’ which involved various items including cards, eggs, balls, etc and most importantly a couple of beanie babies. Let me tell you those simple items played strategic roles in amazing and bewildering everyone! Throughout the entire performance Aaron engaged just about everyone in the audience. Aaron used his props, music and smoke effects to draw us all in.At the conclusion of the show Aaron truly shocked and amazed us all with his final reveal. I guarantee if you choose to attend a performance at Trickery and WE ALL STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO you will also be shocked and amazed; At the very least you will be thoroughly entertained for the 60 minute performance.

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