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entertaining u newspaper: your monthly guide to entertainment
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by dick kerekes
dickkerekes@yahoo.com
One of the most unique shows I have ever seen arrived in April at Universal Studios in Orlando. I had missed seeing “Blue Man Group” in Las Vegas a couple of months ago, so I was excited to learn it was coming. I had heard so much about it from other theatre critics who saw it at our annual American Theatre Critics Convention.
I know many readers have seen the commercials for this group and wonder, “What is the Blue Man Group?” It is an hour and forty-five minutes of continuous, unusual entertainment performed by three mute and bald men with bright blue heads. It is high-tech, vaudeville-type performance art.
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The group performs bizarre skits, between playing drums drenched in colorful paint, with the Blue Men wearing welding helmets. The three guys are talented percussionists and play an assortment of PVC piping accompanied by a four-piece band, all dressed in dayglow clothing while perched high above either side of the stage.
The Blue Men display an amazing ability to catch things in their mouth. One throws paint balls across the stage to another who catches them in his mouth and then squirts them on a canvas to create a very interesting art piece.
The Blue Men somewhat resemble aliens, and perhaps for this reason they never talk, never smile, but have a deadpan expression as they explore worlds new to them, like eating Twinkies with a fork.
I listened to an album of their music as I drove down to Orlando. It was interesting to listen to, but I appreciated it much more coming back to Jacksonville, when I could recreate in my head what was happening with the music.
The first several rows in the theatre reminded me of a Gallagher show, as it is the splash zone and patrons are given plastic material to protect them from flying food and water. Sometime after the midpoint of the show, the audience is showered with a flash flood of crepe paper and toilet paper, which is moved along, over and by everyone, winding up in gigantic piles in the first 10 rows.
The Blue Man Group started in the l980s on the streets of New York, created by Chris Wink, Phil Stanton and Matt Goldman. Their popularity led to a full-length show that is still running off Broadway. Blue Man Group shows are now in Chicago, Boston, and New York. The Orlando show has been very successful. I went to the 6 pm Saturday show and was surprised at how many from the crowd were repeat visitors. It is the kind of show that, if you enjoyed it, you just can‘t wait to take your friends and relatives so they can share the fun. I would love to see it again.
Although it is in Universal, you can attend without purchasing park tickets since the entrance is right off the free City Walk attraction at the park’s entrance. You can take the kids; it will be like a giant cartoon for them.
After the show the Blue Men and the band came in to the lobby. No, they don’t talk. They continue to remain anonymous but will graciously pose for pictures.
Want more information? Go to blueman.com and you’ll find all the performance times and dates. Don’t miss this extraordinary show, which won’t leave you feeling blue at all.
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EU Critic’s Choice Awards
