I went to see Ricky Jay in person for the first time on December 1. A couple of weeks ago, I saw an ad in the Reader (there’s a preview of the show on their blog) about his new show: “A Rogue’s Gallery: An Evening of Conversation and Performance”, and eventually decided to buy a ticket, even though it was expensive ($80 after the fee, and this without Ticketmaster!), and the seat was in the very last row of the balcony. I really couldn’t bring myself not to go; I saw a recording of his first off-breadway show, “Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants”, a couple years ago and was blown away. He lives in Los Angeles and performs just a few times a year at most, usually there or in New York. My friend Craig, who’s the only person I know who’s a bigger magic enthusiast (See how I didn’t say nerd? You’re welcome!) than I am, talked me into going. Ricky Jay performs vanishingly rarely in Chicago, and being in his 60s, probably won’t take the show on the road that much longer. I needn’t have worried about the seat; the Royal George Theater’s main room seats around 500, but in any case I could see the man quite clearly without the binoculars I brought.