The morning I flew out to film Penn & Teller: Fool Us, all planes across the country had been grounded because of an airline update. Somehow, my flight still made it through—smoothly and right on time. When I landed, the Fool Us driver picked me up at the airport, and it all started to feel real: I was here to work, film, and perform on one of the most iconic stages in magic.

Brent Braun and I took an elevator up and spotted the show’s poster—one of those “wow, it’s really happening” moments. 

We filmed some B-roll footage for my documentary intro, which included scenes of me in the penthouse pretending to watch TV drama. 

My intro referenced my work with children, though because they can’t film anyone under 18, one of the assistants stepped in to help.

Later, I filmed extra shots in the green room.

At stage rehearsal - everything went flawlessly. I might have even set a record for shortest rehearsal time!

Brent stood in the wings cheering me on, and the stage manager was incredible to work with.

Before the taping, I waited downstairs with other magicians I’d never met, kept separate to avoid spoilers. Once makeup touched me up for camera, it was go time.

My segment involved just a deck of cards and an envelope, so I had to bring the energy myself. Walking onto that stage was beautiful and oddly calming—I even had to shake myself up a bit! So, I danced, did a little shimmy, waved to Penn and Teller, and nodded to Brooke Burke. Brooke gave me this look—like “You got this, girl”—and I’ll never forget that.

The trick went perfectly. Because everything is timed and pre-approved by producers, I had to stick closely to my script. I wonder if most people realize that you don’t just walk on stage and perform a trick—there are months of Zoom calls, consultations, and creative adjustments behind the scenes. The concept stayed the same, but the routine evolved and refined over several months before it ever hit the stage.

During the interview, Brooke mentioned my best friend (who was secretly in the audience!), and although that part didn’t make the final cut, it was such a special moment. 

No one knew I was in Vegas—I’d told everyone I was visiting my best friend in LA, and she and her husband met me there.

“Well, Amanda, I love your accent so much, and I love this, and the outfit—everything. That is great. And the trick is really wonderful because it plays to something that Teller and I—but especially I—are obsessed with.

I love magic tricks with multiple outs. So you did that really smooth thing at the end where you had multiple outs that were exactly the same, which led us down the wrong angle and made it kind of rough for us...

...But I think we worked it out, even with your charming accent and your wonderful, wonderful psychological advice.

It’s a really good trick. We know versions of this—it’s usually not broken down into multiple cases—and that made it really nice.

You did a great job. So charming. So delightful. And I think we snuck in a few words that we passed by kind of quickly.”

— Penn Jillette, Penn & Teller: Fool Us

What didn’t air was a touching moment with Penn—when asked what advice I’d give, I said, “This too shall pass.” It’s something I believe deeply, in good moments and hard ones. Penn smiled and told me his mother used to say the same thing. On stage, I practiced mindfulness—just trying to take it all in

Brooke Burke wrapped up my segment with the sweetest words: “  You're very cool Amanda. Come back and see us—we really enjoyed that.” Hearing that on air was such an incredible moment!

As I was leaving the stage, I ended up doing a dance move called The Pancake—I’m still not sure how it happened! I had joked about dancing off stage, and the stage crew playfully encouraged me to do it. The best part is, in the video, you can actually hear Brooke Burke laughing at my silly little dance moment.

Afterward, Teller came backstage and told me I brought “a flavor they hadn’t had on the show before.” He even said, “See you soon.” That meant the world to me.

When it was all over, I met my best friend, Brent, and her husband in the lobby for photos, and then we went out for sushi—I was a hungry bear!

 I even kept my promise to meet the sound guy at the bar afterward (he was hilarious). 

Later, I wandered the hotel with a fellow performer and a friend consultant, still rocking my Fool Us glam, snapping a few fun photos.

The next day, I headed to LA for some downtime with my best friend. I hit the beach, visited The Magic Castle, and I even performed at a few events in San Diego before heading home—still glowing from one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life.