There are many magic shows on offer this year at Adelaide Fringe, so it becomes a trick in itself to stand out from the crowd.

Ben Hart, The Nutshell does this in spades by threading an intelligent and thoughtful narrative through the show about the impact of smaller things on bigger things – the butterfly effect.

With some seriously fun tricks up his sleeve, a couple of truly incredible illusions and the set up of several amazing steps toward a mind-blowing finale, The Nutshell is a magic show for the thinking person.

While there are a couple of slow moments in the show that could do with a little refining, Ben is a charming host and an excellent magician.

In a nutshell: go and see it.

4 stars

By Libby Parker