2008 Woodie Awards
Blue Man Group performs colorful show at Qwest
Andrea Vasquez
Issue date: 3/31/08 Section: Features
What's mute and bald and blue all over? There are three men who fit this description that have been spotted in Nebraska.
The Blue Man Group performed last night at the Qwest Center in Omaha.
The blue men, along with their eight-person band, guided the audience through "How to be a Megastar, version 2.0." The blue men and audience members alike learned how to make a great rock concert through songs, dance, classic rock moves such as the fist pump and lots of percussion.
Between the three blue men and the three percussionists in the band, at times there were up to six people contributing to the beat that resonated throughout the auditorium and pounded in everyone's chests. But the blue men's instruments didn't look like the ones the band members used.
PVC pipes of all shapes and sizes, twisted in loops or fitted together to slide like a trombone, were used in place of the blue men's drums.
Long poles that looked like they could be used to pole vault were instead whipped through the air for a whoosh that complemented and even led an entire song.
Three drum sets, two guitars, one bass, one keyboard and two vocalists constituted the band that outnumbered, but didn't eclipse, the Blue Man Group. Instead, the blue men were like an accessory that stole the show.
Using everything but words, the blue men made jokes, conveyed emotion and relayed some more serious messages.
Vocalists sang several songs that were accompanied by animated music videos on the big screens. Most of the songs' lyrics commented on the monotony of everyday working life and the loneliness that can come with feeling unsatisfied and unfulfilled. Some of the serious undertones temporarily brought down the energy of the show, but the blue men always brought it back up with an upbeat song.
Audience members were also kept on their toes by sporadic interaction with the blue men. At the beginning of the show, the blue men, in search of a credit card and finding none among themselves, turned to the audience and searched through a woman's purse to triumphantly produce her Visa.
Two audience members also went home with souvenir custom-made merchandise - but they had to earn them. One man's shirt was decorated with paint that a blue man squirted from the paint balls he held in his mouth. Another woman returned to her seat with a chewed marshmallow sculpture erected on the top of her cap.
Light works were an integral part of the show. Whether it was the red and yellow lights illuminating the splashes of water on the drums or the animated figures projected on the otherwise darkened blue men, lighting added another dimension and heightened the multi-sensory experience.
In the massive Qwest Center auditorium, the sounds and visuals of the Blue Man Group - along with the estimated 7,000 people in the audience - filled the space and gave everyone an experience they could literally feel right down to the bass.
andreavasquez@dailynebraskan.com
The Blue Man Group performed last night at the Qwest Center in Omaha.
The blue men, along with their eight-person band, guided the audience through "How to be a Megastar, version 2.0." The blue men and audience members alike learned how to make a great rock concert through songs, dance, classic rock moves such as the fist pump and lots of percussion.
Between the three blue men and the three percussionists in the band, at times there were up to six people contributing to the beat that resonated throughout the auditorium and pounded in everyone's chests. But the blue men's instruments didn't look like the ones the band members used.
PVC pipes of all shapes and sizes, twisted in loops or fitted together to slide like a trombone, were used in place of the blue men's drums.
Long poles that looked like they could be used to pole vault were instead whipped through the air for a whoosh that complemented and even led an entire song.
Three drum sets, two guitars, one bass, one keyboard and two vocalists constituted the band that outnumbered, but didn't eclipse, the Blue Man Group. Instead, the blue men were like an accessory that stole the show.
Using everything but words, the blue men made jokes, conveyed emotion and relayed some more serious messages.
Vocalists sang several songs that were accompanied by animated music videos on the big screens. Most of the songs' lyrics commented on the monotony of everyday working life and the loneliness that can come with feeling unsatisfied and unfulfilled. Some of the serious undertones temporarily brought down the energy of the show, but the blue men always brought it back up with an upbeat song.
Audience members were also kept on their toes by sporadic interaction with the blue men. At the beginning of the show, the blue men, in search of a credit card and finding none among themselves, turned to the audience and searched through a woman's purse to triumphantly produce her Visa.
Two audience members also went home with souvenir custom-made merchandise - but they had to earn them. One man's shirt was decorated with paint that a blue man squirted from the paint balls he held in his mouth. Another woman returned to her seat with a chewed marshmallow sculpture erected on the top of her cap.
Light works were an integral part of the show. Whether it was the red and yellow lights illuminating the splashes of water on the drums or the animated figures projected on the otherwise darkened blue men, lighting added another dimension and heightened the multi-sensory experience.
In the massive Qwest Center auditorium, the sounds and visuals of the Blue Man Group - along with the estimated 7,000 people in the audience - filled the space and gave everyone an experience they could literally feel right down to the bass.
andreavasquez@dailynebraskan.com
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