Loyally Yours - A Criss Angel Web Site

MINDFREAK

"Most of us are identified by our occupation: doctor, lawyer, teacher, salesman, actor, musician--each is easy to understand in one simple word. But what if your job were so complex, there were no words in any language to define it? You'd do what I did. You'd make one up." -- Criss Angel

MINDFREAK is a term that Criss Angel coined to describe not only his profession, but the reaction that people have to his demonstrations. Criss is more than just an "illusionist" or "magician"; he needed to find a term that accurately describes everything that he does. He came up with a single word: "MINDFREAK." While the A&E TV show popularized MINDFREAK, the term did not originate with the show. Criss originally used the word as the title of his off-Broadway show, and also as the name of one of his early TV specials. Criss has taken "Mindfreak" on the road, and rebranded his successful Las Vegas show to incorporate the famous phrase. Read on for a complete history of the word that made Criss Angel famous - YOU MINDFREAK !!!

MINDFREAK - Off-Broadway

The first commercial use of "MINDFREAK" was Criss' successful off-Broadway show. As the story goes, Criss morgaged his mother's home in order to produce the show. 9/11 had just occured, and many people told him not to go ahead with the show because shows were closing all the time and people were not paying to see performances, especialy one as unique as Angel's. But that did not deter him - he went ahead with the show, and it was a success, with an almost two year run, ending in 2003.

MINDFREAK - TV Special

During Criss' theatre run, parts of the show were filmed for a TV special called "Criss Angel MINDFREAK." Not to be confused with the A&E show, this one-hour special features Criss peforming his signature magic, in addition to revealing parts of the theatre show. His 2002 Submerged demonstration was also featured, which earned him rave reviews and an early taste of fame.

MINDFREAK - A&E TV Series

After Criss' Broadway run and TV special, he caught the eye of network A&E and they decided to produce a half hour TV special featuring the illusionist. Criss softened his image and got to work, performing demonstrations to spectators and small audiences, very few who knew who Criss was. The show's first season debuted in the summer of 2005 and was a smash hit for A&E. It catapaulted Criss to fame and stardom that he had not yet experienced. People started to recognize him on the streets, the crowds grew, and the demonstrations grew more and more spectacular, wondrous, and, well, MINDFREAKy. ;)

The TV series has currently finished its 6th Season on A&E. Below is a rundown of all of the episodes that have aired (and not aired). To learn more about the show and to read synopses of each episode, please visit A&E's web site. To read about some of my favorite demonstrations, visit the Demonstrations section below!

Total Episodes: 107

Season 1
Episode Total: 20 (15 + 3 extras + 2 unaired)

1. Burned Alive
Mindfreak Season 1 2. Levitation
3. Wine Barrel Escape
4. SUV Nail Bed
5. Body Suspension
6. Buried Alive
7. Hellstromism
8. Superhuman
9. Blind
10. Tesla Strike
11. Oasis
12. Building Walk
13. C4 Crate
14. Radio Prediction
15 Chicken

Extras:
1. Halloween Special (1 hour)
2. Uncut
3. Up Close

Unaired:
1. Bullet Catch
2. Russian Roulette

Season 2
Episode Total: 21

Mindfreak Season 2 1. Building Float
2. Vanish
3. In Two
4. Walk On Water
5. Easy Rider
6. Party
7. Bike Jump Vanish
8. Chad's Story
9. Celebrity Minds
10. Metamorphosis
11. Animal Magic
12. Back To School
13. Sucker
14. Prophecy
15. Motorcycle Roulette
16. Military Salute
17. Straightjacket Keehaul
18. Shark Cage Escape
19. Magician of the Year
20. Celebrity Seance
21. My Secret Cabaret

Season 3
Episode Total: 26 (20 + 6 "Lost Episodes")

1. Luxor Light (1 hour)
2. Steamroller
3. Prisoner Transport Escape
Mindfreak Season 3 4. Screwed
5. Motorhead
6. Animal 2
7. Quad Drag Escape
8. Raging Bull
9. Car Crash Escape
10. Sucker 2
11. Drowned
12. Naked Jail Escape
13. Burning Man
14. Rollercoaster Thru Criss
15. Underwater Car Escape
16. The Loyal
17. Mentalism
18. The Kid in Criss
19. Cement Block
20. Seance

"Lost Episodes":
1. Mayhem in the Making
2. Thunderbirds
3. H20 Teleportation
4. Mexico Barrel Escape
5. Most Memorable Mindfreak Moments (1 hour)
6. Fantasy

Mindfreak Season 4 Season 4
Episode Total: 18

1. Walk On Lake (1 hour)
2. Building Implosion Escape (1 hour)
3. Skeptic
4. Nail Gun
5. Barrel Drop
6. Cremation
7. Spirit of New Orleans
8. Escape Over Bourbon Street
9. Impenetrable
10. Close Up
11. Premonition
12. In Your Face
13. Mindfreaking with the Stars
14. Tronik
15. Billionaire Prediction
16. 24 Hour Birthday Bash
17. Car Wreck Vanish (1 hour)
18. Silverton Final Attempt

Mindfreak Season 5 Season 5
Episode Total: 5
All episodes are 1 hour

1. White Death
2. Death Field
3. Terminal Velocity
4. Mass Levitation
5. Death Crash

Mindfreak Season 6 Season 6
Episode Total: 6
All episodes are 1 hour

1. Grand Canyon Death Jump
2. Luxor Walk
3. Cement Shoes
4. 100 Gone
5. Smash
6. Levitation Vanish

Want to know some of my favorite Mindfreak demonstrations? Check out my list here!

Mindfreak LIVE

In 2014, after years of performing at the Luxor in Las Vegas, Criss created a new 90-minute magical production called "Mindfreak LIVE" and had a sold-out run of shows at Foxwoods Resort Casino and in cities across the United States.

The outstanding success of this touring show prompted Criss and Cirque du Soleil to transform their longstanding Vegas production Criss Angel BeLIEve to Criss Angel Mindfreak LIVE. The show is currently performing preview performances and is expected to premiere on June 30, 2016.