Black Magic Live: Stripped Review: A Revealing Look At The Stars of the Show

Release date: September 3, 2021
Running time: 82 minutes
Directed by: J. Horton
Cast: Jean-Claude LaMarre, Eurika Pratts, Allen Hayward, Jordan Woods-Morris, Anthony Cox, Jimmy Sigmon, Terrell Arnold

Journey behind the scenes of Las Vegas’ only black male revue show and uncover the often complicated lives of its male strippers with the no-holds-barred documentary, BLACK MAGIC LIVE: STRIPPED. Through the eyes of owner Eurika Pratts and CEO Jean-Claude LaMarre, and its all-black staff and cast, explore the challenges, struggles and growing pains the show and its core group of dancers have overcome during their four successful years on the Strip. 

Black Magic Live: Stripped has a provocative title to draw you in, and you do get glimpses of the revue show and the performances that make it so exciting, but the majority of the documentary looks at the dancers involved in this.  The documentary goes in depth on several dancers who all came to the show for various reasons.  I liked seeing their very different backgrounds and why they decided to dance.  And I liked hearing their stories about dancing in the show and what it means to them personally and professionally.  Their stories highlight both how competitive this field is but also how close the show performers are.  It really does feel like a family endeavor, one where everyone looks out and cares for each other.

And before this the documentary gives a quick look at the history of the show and how it came to Vegas.  I really liked this as well, hearing about the strange resistance and racism that the show encountered  even in a city that has plenty of diverse visitors and all male revue shows.  Getting Black Magic Live going in Vegas was not an easy task, but the crew kept at it.

And although I liked hearing about the dancers, I would have enjoyed hearing more about the show as well.  I wanted greater detail in how the show has evolved, how the sets have moved, and how it has changed over time.  I really liked the focus on the dancers, as their stories are interesting and varied, but it felt like a longer introduction to the show before we heard about the dancers would have given greater context to their stories.  I also would have liked to see an example performance, to really get a feel for what this show was like.  You get plenty of clips and stories, but nothing start to finish.  Even seeing one set would have been illustrative to help understand the show. 

Black Magic Live: Stripped highlights the stars of the show, the dancers, and gives an in-depth look at these performer's backgrounds and personal and professional growth in this all black male revue.

Rent it.

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Black Magic Live: Stripped is available on virtual cinema on September 3, 2021 and on VOD on September 7, 2021.  

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