About Penn & Teller
Laugh and be amazed as Penn & Teller hit the stage with their comedy magic. The duo has been around since 1975, taking away the breaths of their audience through their tricks, their hilarity, or both! Check out Penn & Teller tour schedule and get your tickets to their unbelievably hilarious magic show.
Penn Jillette and Raymond Teller met through a mutual friend, Weir Chrisemer. Soon afterwards, the trio performed together at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival in August of 1975. For the next six years, the trio would go on to perform as “The Asparagus Valley Cultural Society” at the Phoenix Theater in Petaluma, California. In 1981, Chrisemer would quit the entertainment business and Penn & Teller would be born.
Penn & Teller performances encompass both magic and comedy. Their shows now are typically in the form of light-hearted magic tricks and pranks that give a satirical spin on contemporary political and social issues. While remaining safe, Penn & Teller are also known for the shock value they give during each performance whether it be through unusual tricks or symbolic commentary.
The duo’s successes have stemmed from the variety of shows that they’ve provided over the years. At the beginning of their breakthrough, Penn & Teller created Penn & Teller Go Public which was an Off-Broadway-turned-PBS show that received positive reviews and an Emmy Award. Their show ended up receiving three Broadway runs, allowing them to enter the world of stardom.
From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, Penn & Teller made television appearances on several talk shows such as Late Night with David Letterman and Saturday Night Live. Eventually, the comedy duo made their own television series. From 2003 to 2010, their show on Showtime called Bullshit! served as a documentary series that dove into skepticism for different subjects such as religion and pseudoscience theories. In October of 2011, their six-episode series called Penn & Teller Tell a Lie. The premise of the show was that Penn & Teller would tell stories in each episode and only one of the episodes would be a lie.
Since 2011, Penn & Teller have hosted the magician competition television series Penn & Teller: Fool Us where magicians from all over the world perform magic tricks in front of Penn & Teller. The winner of the show is picked based on if Penn & Tell can reproduce the magic trick. Due to its popularity, the show continues to be approved for more seasons, leaving fans wanting more.
Penn & Teller tickets keep selling out as they continue to shock the world with their magic and humor. The duo still performs live shows across the country, so see the magic for yourself! Check out the Penn & Teller tour nearest you.