If your idea of a great Broadway show includes Las Vegas and cruise-ship revues, “The Illusionists” should provide abundant satisfaction during its run at the Hippodrome Theatre.

For some of us, this intermittently entertaining, sometimes cheesy production is more likely to start feeling every now and then like being shackled and submerged in a water tank, a la Harry Houdini (and one of the stars of “The Illusionists”) — only without being able to escape quickly enough.

Although it boasts an ensemble of seven magicians with distinctive personas, a whole bunch of gyrating dancer-assistants in Mad Max-ish gear, a mostly thumping soundtrack and a big video screen providing close-ups of the various acts, the show doesn't conjure up a fully magical experience.

“The Illusionists,” which had a very lucrative run on Broadway, is more about “American Idol”-style slickness and wham-bam visual distractions. Don't be surprised if you find yourself watching the TV screen more than the actual performers onstage. There's a lot of conditioned response going on here.

That said, the legerdemain does get very impressive at times, especially the subtle variety demonstrated by the elegant, regally calm Yu Ho-Jin, a.k.a. The Manipulator. He spins out a marvelous sequence starting with a white scarf that transforms into a prismatic deck of cards.

In the same vein, Kevin James, designated The Inventor, achieves several captivating sequences with what appears to be no more than an ordinary piece of paper. James also offers various takes on sawing and re-attaching bodies.

For showier, how-did-he-do-that stuff, it's hard to top James More, The Deceptionist (the titles get pretty silly). His breathless routine includes disappearing/reappearing stunts, each increasingly implausible and more perilous-looking. One of the feats may have you suspecting that there's more to More than meets the eye — an identical twin, maybe?

Speaking of breath, Andrew Basso apparently has it to spare. He's not called The Escapologist for nothing. He tackles the famous Houdini routine, doing his upside-down underwater escape in full view of the audience.

The homage could do with less build-up, but the actual bond-breaking, one of the precious few moments blissfully devoid of a blaring soundtrack, delivers sufficient suspense.

Ben Blaque, billed as The Weapon Master, does pretty cool stuff with crossbows and an apple, one-upping William Tell. But, as with several other parts of “The Illusionists,” there's something formulaic and stilted about the act.

The most tedious participant is Dan Sperry, so-called Anti-Conjuror, who puts the icky in tricky. Done up Marilyn Manson-style, he performs weird stuff with and to his own body.

Sperry also contributes worrisome business with birds (at least one mechanical) and a stupid rabbit-out-of-a-hat routine aimed squarely at teenage boys. His routines, including one with an unsuspecting audience volunteer, aim to be dryly amusing. They're just long.

But this overstuffed show, directed by Neil Dorward, gets an invaluable lift from Jeff Hobson, alias The Trickster. He holds his own in the magic department, especially when it comes to some shtick with a cloth bag, an egg and a volunteer.

But the quick-witted Hobson's main talent is emceeing. A cross between Liberace and Paul Lynde, he adds an element of spontaneity, charm and good old camp humor throughout the proceedings. He almost makes the show's weak spots disappear.

“The Illusionists” runs through Sunday at the Hippodrome Theatre, 12 N. Eutaw St. Call 410-547-7328, or go to ticketmaster.com.

tim.smith@baltsun.com