Mind Mangler: Member of the Tragic Circle
What is Mind Mangler on Virgin Voyages?
From the comedic minds at “Mischief Comedy“, known for hits like ‘The Play That Goes Wrong‘ and ‘Peter Pan Goes Wrong‘, comes another theatrical masterpiece: “Mind Mangler: Member of the Tragic Circle“. Originating from the Edinburgh Fringe, the production toured UK theatres in 2022 before finding its sea legs aboard Virgin Voyages. The show current plays on board Resilient Lady and may make it’s way to Brilliant Lady once launched.
The show is a spoof of classic mind-reading and magic shows, poking fun at the magic and mystery of traditional magic shows on other cruise lines and the theatre circuit. If you’re looking for Derren Brown at sea – he’s not here! The show follows an inept mind-reading ‘expert’ – the titular Mind Mangler who tries and fails to impress the audience with magic tricks and feats of mind reading.
Audience Participation
As with most shows of this kind, the audience are a great target for the cast to get input and add a sense of unpredictability. As with all shows on board the Virgin Voyages ships, guest participation is optional. Audience members are asked to write a secret on a slip of paper ahead of the show starting – the purpose of this is revealed later in the show during a hilarious roving-camera section.
If you would prefer to not participate you can let the cast members know and they will move onto another sailor.
The Not-So-Randomly-Selected Audience Member
One of the fun departures of the show is a section where a member of the audience is selected to participate – the Mind Mangler is suspiciously adept at reading this person’s mind – for once! It’s revealed that this audience member was a planted stooge all along, to comedic effect. As the show goes on this cast member is an integral part to the overall performance and brings a lot to the role.
Tricks and Treats
As with many of the shows from Mischief Comedy, everything is designed to go wrong – including magic tricks and mind-reading scenarios. It’s to the production team’s credit that some of the ways these tricks break or backfire are unpredictable and surprising. In this way the show keeps you captivated and builds suspense at every turn. Part of the fun of this show is guessing what will go wrong next!
Our Thoughts
Mind Mangler is a fun addition to the headline shows on board the Virgin Voyages ships. We found that guests going in with an open mind (and perhaps a drink or two) will have a great laugh. Our advice is to not take this show too seriously; go in with the goal of laughing along with the cast. They have great comedic timing and chemistry on stage. It’s great to see Virgin Voyages engaging with production companies like Mischief Comedy to bring these innovative and fun shows to life at sea.
