After five years in residency at Westgate Las Vegas, magician Jen Kramer recently signed on for an extension of her family-friendly, sleight of hand-packed show at the historic resort. She remains the only female magician currently headlining in Vegas, but that’s only one of the unique qualities distinguishing her performance and personality.

A graduate of Yale University, Kramer continues to evolve her show in the intimate Westgate Cabaret, always playing up audience interaction and allowing spontaneous moments to fuel her creativity. And she’s just as excited to be living in Las Vegas and connecting with the community as she is to be onstage every week, doing what she loves.

You’re still the only female headlining magician in town, but your show is also unique because your audience truly is all ages. I really want it to be a show where you can come and have a great time whether you’re 8 years old or 80 years old. We’ve had three and even four generations [of families] come to the show together. And for me, that was a big goal in creating it—how to create magic that’s entertaining for people from all walks of life.

Your personality onstage also really sets you apart. You seem so cheerful and energetic, and that’s not something we see all the time, especially from magicians.

I definitely do get the smiley thing a lot (laughs). I think my baseline level of smileyness is pretty high, and when people get to know me better, it’s like, oh, this is just you. But I’m just super-grateful to get the chance to do something I love, and again, it’s about showing up as who you are. If I’m someone who’s an optimistic person who wants to bring joy to people through magic, regardless of what’s going on in their lives or going on in the world … if they can forget those worries and be immersed in this magical world and have fun, that’s what I’d love to be able to share.

Westgate has such an iconic entertainment tradition. Did things get extra crazy there after the Elvis movie showcased that history? Absolutely. It was so exciting to see the movie and think about all that history and what a truly legendary property it is, when you think about performers from Elvis to Barbra Streisand to Liberace. Just think of all the stories. I’m so grateful to do my show in such a historic, special place, and with such wonderful people.

You have a very focused strategy when it comes to updating the show, honing in on every little piece and trying to make it the best it can be. Is that still your approach after five years? It is. We’ve done close to 650 shows at the Cabaret now. Just a few days ago we had an idea for a new joke that can be part of the show, just something that came up spontaneously. That’s why I love audience participation so much, because audiences are really smart and they know when something special is happening just for them in the moment. When you’re having an improv-y, banter moment, it can lead you down different roads. It’s only because of that playfulness with the audience that we can discover that. And yes, we’re continually tweaking things, adjusting things, whether it’s the magic methods themselves or just an individual joke like this, doing some reverse-engineering to say, what do I want the audience to experience?

Do you feel like you’ve been in Las Vegas long enough for it to feel like home? Vegas absolutely feels like home. People often think of the shows, the nightlife, the casinos, and that is such an important part, but there’s so much to Vegas. It’s so multifaceted, and the community element has been one of my absolute favorite parts of the experience. It’s the magical capital of the world, and that’s been amazing for me, but beyond that, whether it’s in the entertainment world or the community as a whole, there’s such a sense of camaraderie, so many great chances to meet and connect with people. That feeling is something I’ve really loved since moving here that I probably wouldn’t have known about before.

THE MAGIC OF JEN KRAMER Friday-Sunday, 5 p.m., $19-$49. Westgate Cabaret, ticketmaster.com.

Click HERE to subscribe for free to the Weekly Fix, the digital edition of Las Vegas Weekly! Stay up to date with the latest on Las Vegas concerts, shows, restaurants, bars and more, sent directly to your inbox!