Blue Man Group is an American

performance art Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, both popular and obscure. Its performers, known as Blue Men, have their skin painted blue. They are

mute Muteness is a speech disorder in which a person lacks the ability to speak. Mute or the Mute may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Mute'' (2005 film), a short film by Melissa Joan Hart * ''Mute'' (2018 film), a scien ...

during shows and always appear in groups of three. The company has continuing shows in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. A typical production employs seven to nine full-time Blue Men who are selected by audition. In addition to their stage shows, Blue Man Group has toured nationally and internationally, appeared on TV programs as characters and performers, released multiple studio albums, contributed to a number of

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

s, and performed with orchestras around the United States.

History

Blue Man Group grew out of a collaboration of three close friends,

Chris Wink Chris Wink (born 1961 in New York City, New York) is an American theater performer and director. He is one of the founding members of the Blue Man Group, as well as co-founder of Blue School. He has won numerous awards as a writer and performer, i ...

, Matt Goldman and Phil Stanton, on

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

’s

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

in 1987. Its first public appearance was a celebration of the end of the 1980s. The three wore blue masks and led a street procession that included the burning of a

Rambo Rambo is a surname with Norwegian (Vestfold) and Swedish origins. It possibly originated with '' ramn'' + '' bo'', meaning "raven's nest". It has variants in French (''Rambeau'', ''Rambaut'', and ''Rimbaud'') and German (''Rambow''). It is now best ...

doll and a piece of the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...

. MTV's

Kurt Loder Kurtis Loder (born May 5, 1945) is an American entertainment critic, author, columnist, and television personality. He served in the 1980s as editor at ''Rolling Stone'', during a tenure that ''Reason'' later called "legendary". He has contribute ...

covered the event, drawing attention to the group. What began as creative "disturbances" on the city's streets became a series of small shows at downtown clubs, and eventually a full performance at the

Astor Place Theatre The Astor Place Theatre is an off-Broadway house located at 434 Lafayette Street in the NoHo section of Manhattan. The theater is located in the historic Colonnade Row, originally constructed in 1831 as a series of nine connected buildings, of w ...

in 1991.

Themes

Blue Man performances have a number of themes, including: * ''Science'' and ''technology'', especially the topics of

plumbing Plumbing is any system that conveys fluids for a wide range of applications. Plumbing uses pipes, valves, plumbing fixtures, tanks, and other apparatuses to convey fluids. Heating and cooling (HVAC), waste removal, and potable water delivery ...

fractals In mathematics, a fractal is a geometric shape containing detailed structure at arbitrarily small scales, usually having a fractal dimension strictly exceeding the topological dimension. Many fractals appear similar at various scales, as illus ...

, human

sight Visual perception is the ability to interpret the surrounding Biophysical environment, environment through photopic vision (daytime vision), color vision, scotopic vision (night vision), and mesopic vision (twilight vision), using light in the ...

, DNA, and the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

* ''

Information overload Information overload (also known as infobesity, infoxication, information anxiety, and information explosion) is the difficulty in understanding an issue and effectively making decisions when one has too much information (TMI) about that issue, ...

'' and ''

information pollution Information pollution (also referred to as info pollution) is the contamination of information supply with irrelevant, redundant, unsolicited, hampering and low-value information. Examples include misinformation, junk e-mail and media violence. ...

'', such as when the audience is asked to choose one of three simultaneous streams of information to read * ''

Innocence Innocence is a lack of guilt, with respect to any kind of crime, or wrongdoing. In a legal context, innocence is to the lack of legal guilt of an individual, with respect to a crime. In other contexts, it is a lack of experience. In relation ...

'', as when the Blue Men appear to be surprised and perplexed by common artifacts of modern society or by audience reactions * ''

Self-conscious Self-consciousness is a heightened sense of awareness of oneself. It is not to be confused with consciousness in the sense of qualia. Historically, "self-consciousness" was synonymous with "self-awareness", referring to a state of awareness that o ...

'' and ''

naïve Naivety (also spelled naïvety), naiveness, or naïveté is the state of being naive. It refers to an apparent or actual lack of experience and sophistication, often describing a neglect of pragmatism in favor of moral idealism. A ''naïve'' may b ...

'' imitation of cultural norms, such as attempting to stage an elegant dinner of

Twinkies A Twinkie is an American snack cake, described as "golden sponge cake with a creamy filling". It was formerly made and distributed by Hostess Brands. The brand is currently owned by Hostess Brands, Inc. (), having been formerly owned by privat ...

for an audience member; or following the Rock Concert Instruction Manual with the expectation that following instructions is all it takes to put on a rock concert * ''Rooftops'', or climbing to the top, a metaphor for the directive that Stanton, Wink and Goldman drew from

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...

and

Bill Moyers Bill Moyers (born Billy Don Moyers, June 5, 1934) is an American journalist and political commentator. Under the Johnson administration he served from 1965 to 1967 as the eleventh White House Press Secretary. He was a director of the Counci ...

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

program ''

The Power of Myth ''The Power of Myth'' is a book based on the 1988 PBS documentary ''Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth''. The documentary was originally broadcast as six one-hour conversations between mythologist Joseph Campbell (1904–1987) and journalist B ...

'', namely "following your bliss".

Theatrical productions

Skulptur Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 4 (Tierg) Buddy Bär

Current productions

Germany *

at the Bluemax Theater (2006–present) United States *

at the

(1991–present) *

at the

Charles Playhouse The Charles Playhouse is a theater at 74 Warrenton Street Boston in the Boston Theater District. The venue comprises an approximately 500-seat mainstage, which hosts the long-running Blue Man Group, and a 200-seat second stage that hosted ''Shear M ...

(1995–present) *

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

at the

Briar Street Theatre The Briar Street Theatre is a theatre located in Chicago, Illinois, and is home to the long-running Blue Man Group. Originally the carriage house for the Marshall Field and Company horses, the space was purchased by Walter Topel and reconstructed ...

(1997–present) *

at the

Luxor Luxor ( ar, الأقصر, al-ʾuqṣur, lit=the palaces) is a modern city in Upper (southern) Egypt which includes the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of ''Thebes''. Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open-a ...

Hotel and Casino (2015–present) Touring shows * World Tour (2016–present) – a celebration of life in full color * Speechless Tour (2019–present)

Previous productions

Australia *

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

at the Sydney Lyric Theatre (2013) Austria *

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

at Museumsquartier (2010) Canada *

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

at the

Panasonic Theatre The CAA Theatre, formerly the Panasonic Theatre, is a theatre located at 651 Yonge Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is operated by Mirvish Productions. On December 1, 2017, Mirvish Productions announced a marketing partnership with CAA South ...

(2005–2007) Germany *

at the Theater am

Potsdamer Platz Potsdamer Platz (, ''Potsdam Square'') is a public square and traffic intersection in the center of Berlin, Germany, lying about south of the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag (German Parliament Building), and close to the southeast corne ...

(2004–2006) *

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

at the Metronom Theatre (2007–2008) *

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

at the Apollo Theater (2008) Japan * Tokyo at the Roppongi

Invoice An invoice, bill or tab is a commerce, commercial document issued by a sales, seller to a buyer relating to a sale transaction and indicating the product (business), products, quantities, and agreed-upon prices for products or Service (economic ...

Theatre (2007–2009) * Tokyo at the

Roppongi is a district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan, famous for the affluent Roppongi Hills development area and popular night club scene. A few foreign embassies are located near Roppongi, and the night life is popular with locals and foreigners alike. It is ...

Blue Man Theatre (2010–2012) Netherlands *

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

at the Theater Fabriek (2006–2007) Norwegian Cruise Line *

Norwegian Epic ''Norwegian Epic'' is a cruise ship of the Norwegian Cruise Line built under that line's F3 Project by STX Europe Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France. When built she was the List of largest cruise ships, third largest cru ...

(2010–2015) Sweden *

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Göta Lejon Göta Lejon is a theatre located at 55 Götgatan in the district of Södermalm in Stockholm, Sweden. History Göta Lejon was built in the years 1926–1928 according to drawings by architect Birger Borgström. (1890–1964). Architecturally, the ...

(2010) Switzerland *

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

at Musical Theater Basel (2008) *

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

at Theater 11 (2010) United Kingdom * London at the

New London Theatre The Gillian Lynne Theatre (formerly New London Theatre) is a West End theatre located on the corner of Drury Lane and Parker Street in Covent Garden, in the London Borough of Camden. The Winter Garden Theatre formerly occupied the site until 196 ...

(2005–2007) United States * Live at Luxor in Las Vegas (2000–2005) * "How to be a Megastar" national arena "rock concert" tour (2003) * Las Vegas, Nevada at The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino (2005–2012)Ogunnaike, Lola
"For the Blue Man Army, Recruitment Is on the Rise"
''The New York Times'', 10 October 2005. * "How to be a Megastar 2.0" (2006) *

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

at the

Blue Man Group Theatre The Blue Man Group Theatre (previously named the Blue Man Group Sharp Aquos Theatre until 2012) was an indoor theatre located at Universal Orlando Resort's CityWalk, which housed a live show and residency by the Blue Man Group, featuring their ...

Universal Orlando Resort Universal Orlando Resort, commonly known as Universal Orlando or simply Universal, formerly Universal Studios Escape, is an American theme park and entertainment resort complex based in Orlando, Florida. The resort is operated by Universal Par ...

's CityWalk (2007–2021) * North America (2010–2016) * Las Vegas at the Blue Man Theatre at Park MGM (2012–2015) *DECA International Career Development Conference, Orlando, Florida (April 27, 2019)

Music and tours

In 1999, the group released ''

Audio Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to: Sound *Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound *Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum *Digital audio, representation of sound ...

'', their first studio recording. Although it contained some of the music from their stage productions, it was chiefly a collection of full-length instrumentals featuring new instruments. In 2002, the group participated in

Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...

's Area2 tour, giving a more rock-oriented performance than in the theatrical shows. Songs developed during this tour appeared on 2003's album '' The Complex''. Unlike ''Audio'', ''The Complex'', released in 2003, featured a variety of vocalists and guests including

Tracy Bonham Tracy Bonham (born March 16, 1967) is an American alternative rock musician, best known for her 1996 single "Mother Mother". Raised in Eugene, Oregon, Bonham is a classically trained violinist and pianist, and is also a self-taught guitarist. Sh ...

, Dave Matthews,

Gavin Rossdale Gavin McGregor Rossdale (born 30 October 1965) is an English guitarist and actor, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Bush. He helped form Bush in 1992; on the band's separation in 2002, he became the lead singer ...

and

Venus Hum Venus Hum is an electronic pop music group from Nashville, Tennessee, consisting of vocalist Annette Strean and multi-instrumentalists Kip Kubin and Tony Miracle. Miracle has a rare heart condition which results in perpetually hearing his own hea ...

. The record spawned its own 2003 tour, "The Complex Rock Tour," the first headlined by Blue Man Group. The tour deconstructed the traditional

rock concert A rock concert is a performance of rock music. During the 1950s, several American musical groups experimented with new musical forms that fused country music, blues, and swing genre to produce the earliest examples of "rock and roll." The coin ...

experience into its often clichéd parts and was chronicled in a 2004 DVD release. The tour featured Tracy Bonham and Venus Hum as supporting acts. The DVD included a

surround sound Surround sound is a technique for enriching the fidelity and depth of sound reproduction by using multiple audio channels from speakers that surround the listener ( surround channels). Its first application was in movie theaters. Prior to sur ...

mix of some of the studio recordings. Blue Man Group launched its second tour, "How to Be a Megastar Tour", on September 26, 2006. It featured some new material as well as material from the original Complex Rock Tour, and featured Tracy Bonham as opening act and vocalist. DJ/ VJ

Mike Relm Michael Wong (born 1978), better known by his stage name Mike Relm, is an American disc jockey, turntablist, Music video director, director, and VJ (video performance artist), VJ from San Francisco, California. Biography He has performed with no ...

was the opening act for the tour's second leg, which ended April 22, 2007 in

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in th ...

. The third leg of the tour began in May 2007 and included performances in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

, and

Monterrey Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is anchor ...

, Mexico;

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, Argentina;

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil; and

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

, Chile. The fourth leg, using "2.1" in its title, included more U.S. and Canada dates. The tour visited France,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, Canada, Germany, and a few other European countries through 2008. From August 19–23, it visited Taipei, Taiwan to promote its

2009 Summer Deaflympics The 2009 Summer Deaflympics (), officially known as the XXI Summer Deaflympic Games and commonly known as Taipei 2009, is an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 5 to 15 September 2009 in Taipei, Taiwan (Republic of China). I ...

, with most of the show's dialogue accompanied by subtitles. After

Typhoon Morakot Typhoon Morakot, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Kiko, was the deadliest typhoon to impact Taiwan in recorded history. The eighth named storm and fourth typhoon of the 2009 Pacific typhoon season, Morakot wrought catastrophic damage in Taiwa ...

hit the island in mid-August, the group held an extra show to benefit flood victims. Blue Man Group performed with

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...

at the 2007 Latin Grammy Awards and again with

Michel Teló Michel Teló () (born 21 January 1981) is a Brazilian sertanejo singer-songwriter and actor. Before his solo act, he was a lead singer in various bands, most notably Grupo Tradição. His biggest national and international hit "Ai Se Eu Te Peg ...

at the 2012 Latin Grammy Awards. In 2008, they collaborated on the track "No More Heroes" with Dutch DJ and producer

Tiësto Tijs Michiel Verwest (; born 17 January 1969), known professionally as Tiësto ( ), is a Dutch DJ and music producer from Breda. He was voted "the Greatest DJ of All Time" by '' Mix'' magazine in a 2010/2011 poll amongst fans. In 2013, he was ...

for the remixed version of the ''

Elements of Life ''Elements of Life'' is the third studio album by Dutch DJ Tiësto. It was released on 6 April 2007 (see 2007 in music). The album contains collaborations with Jes of Motorcycle, Julie Thompson of Holden & Thompson, Charlotte Martin, Christian B ...

'' album. Announced in 2009, Blue Man Group began performing for the first time at sea on Norwegian Cruise Line's ship ''Epic''. From July 2010 to March 2015, ''Epic'' alternated 7-Day Eastern and Western Caribbean sailings from Miami with nightly Blue Man Group shows. A Blue Man Group national tour in 2010 visited various cities in the United States, Canada and Latin America. The tour included elements from their then-current theatrical performances, and new elements created for the tour. To celebrate their 20th anniversary, the group gave a special performance with Dave Matthews at the Astor Place Theatre in New York City, collaborating on the song "Sing Along." To celebrate Blue Man Group's 25th anniversary, a global tour began in Singapore in March 2016. It continued through Asia and Oceania in 2016 and opened for the first time in South Africa in February 2017. It was announced that the tour will continue on to Abu Dhabi and Switzerland later in 2017. In April 2016, Blue Man Group released ''

Three 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...

'', their third studio album. Building on the group's previous albums, ''Three'' draws inspiration from the group's 25-year history. In May 2017, Blue Man Group collaborated with the

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

channel

The Slow Mo Guys ''The Slow Mo Guys'' is a science and technology entertainment web series from Thame, England, United Kingdom created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. It has been described as the biggest channel for slow motion videos on YouTub ...

for a video of several objects being destroyed with bowling balls, including busts of the Blue Men. A Blue Man " signed"

Gavin Free Gavin David Free (born 23 May 1988) is an English actor, director, cinematographer, and internet personality. He is best known for his work at Rooster Teeth—where he formerly served as creative director—featuring in many of their projects, ...

lab coat A white coat, also known as a laboratory coat or lab coat, is a knee-length overcoat or smock worn by professionals in the medical field or by those involved in laboratory work. The coat protects their street clothes and also serves as a simple ...

(the cleaner of the hosts') by wiping his head on the right shoulder. On April 27, 2019, Blue Man group gave a special performance at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, during the Grand Opening Session of DECA's International Career Development Conference. In February 2021, it was revealed that Blue Man Group had collaborated with American pop band

AJR AJR may refer to: * AJR (motorcycle), Scotland * AJR (band), a pop band from New York City, United States *Abdominojugular test, to measure venous pressure * Academy for Jewish Religion (New York) * ''American Journal of Roentgenology'' * ''Americ ...

on a song called "Ordinaryish People", included on their album ''

OK Orchestra ''OK Orchestra'' (stylized in all caps) is the fourth studio album by American pop band AJR. It was released on March 26, 2021, by the band's own label AJR Productions. The album was produced by group member Ryan Met. The album features the Blue ...

'' released on March 26, 2021. A music video featuring Blue Man Group was released on February 9, 2022.

Discography

* ''

'' (1999) – Blue Man Group's first album is certified gold (500,000 units) and was nominated for the

Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album The Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album (previously: Best Pop Instrumental Album) is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording arti ...

. * '' The Complex'' (2003) – Blue Man Group's second full-length studio album features collaborations with various musicians including Dave Matthews,

, and more. This album charted four songs on the ''Billboard'' charts. * ''

Live at The Venetian – Las Vegas ''Live at The Venetian – Las Vegas'' is a Music download, digital album by Blue Man Group, released through the iTunes Store on July 25, 2006. The 10-track album is a compilation of various live recordings of the group's performances at The Vene ...

'' iTunes exclusive (2006) * ''

THREE 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...

'' (2016) – Released in April 2016 as a completely instrumental album (like ''Audio''), the single Giacometti was released on blue vinyl originally. New instruments such as the "Snorkelbone", "Chimeulum", "Pipeulum", and "Tone Spokes" are introduced on this album.

Videography

* ''

The Complex Rock Tour Live ''The Complex Rock Tour Live'' is a live DVD by Blue Man Group in support of their album, '' The Complex'' with footage from their shows in Dallas. It features almost all of the songs from that album, one song ("Drumbone") from their older album, ...

'' DVD (2003) – live concert footage taken from shows in

Grand Prairie, Texas Grand Prairie is a city in Dallas, Tarrant, and Ellis counties of Texas, in the United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It had a population of 175,396 according to the 2010 census, making it t ...

* ''Scoring Reel'' – a scoring DVD only available in 2004 * ''Robots'' (2005) – performed on soundtrack for movie * ''Inside the Tube'' (2006) – one-hour documentary created for

. Features interviews with Stanton, Wink, and Goldman describing the Blue Men, and video clips from various theatrical performances. In "Inside the Tube," press notes state, "the three founders discuss the improbable journey they took from building drums and tube instruments in their living room to having one of the most popular shows in Las Vegas, a gold album, and a successful arena-sized rock tour. The program takes an intimate look inside Blue Man Group's unique creative process and provides never before revealed insight into some of the underlying themes of their work. The founders also cite some of their influences, including a public PBS program that impacted them at a pivotal moment in their career

Available through the PBS store and also as an extra on the ''How To Be A Megastar Live!'' DVD. * ''

How to Be a Megastar Live! Blue Man Group is an American performance art company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, bot ...

'' (2008) – live concert footage from Blue Man Group's newest tour. It was released on DVD on April 1 and Blu-ray on November 4, 2008. The DVD version includes an additional audio CD of many of the show's songs. * ''

Space Chimps ''Space Chimps'' is a 2008 computer-animated science fiction comedy film directed by Kirk DeMicco in his directional debut, and written by DeMicco and Rob Moreland. It features the voices of Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels, Patrick W ...

'' (2008) – performed several songs on the soundtrack for the movie

Books

* In 2016, Blue Man Group released their first book, ''Blue Man World'' published by

Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers Black Dog & Leventhal (and its imprint Tess Press) is a book publisher located in New York City. The company was founded by J.P. Leventhal in 1992 or 1993. It publishes general non-fiction but is best known for comprehensive illustrated informati ...

Television

Advertising

Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 seri ...

– Blue Man Group appeared in advertisements for the

Pentium III The Pentium III (marketed as Intel Pentium III Processor, informally PIII or P3) brand refers to Intel's 32-bit x86 desktop and mobile CPUs based on the sixth-generation P6 microarchitecture introduced on February 28, 1999. The brand's initial p ...

Pentium 4 Pentium 4 is a series of single-core CPUs for desktops, laptops and entry-level servers manufactured by Intel. The processors were shipped from November 20, 2000 until August 8, 2008. The production of Netburst processors was active from 2000 ...

, and

Centrino Centrino is a brand name of Intel Corporation which represents its Wi-Fi and WiMAX wireless computer networking adapters. Previously the same brand name was used by the company as a platform-marketing initiative. The change of the meaning of the ...

line of processors. *

TIM Brasil TIM S.A. is a Brazilian telecommunications company, subsidiary of TIM S.p.A., which provides mobile and fixed telephony services. TIM Brasil was founded as a company in 1995, started commercial operations in 1998 and since 2002 has consolidat ...

– Blue Man Group was the face of TIM Brasil, a telecommunications company in Brazil.

Programming

* ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...

'' (1992–94, 1997–2001, 2003–2005, 2007) Blue Man Group appeared on the premiere of Leno's version of the Tonight Show, prompting him to state, "This is not your father's Tonight Show." They appeared on the show 17 times, often involving audience members and celebrity guests, including

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

and

Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocaly ...

. One Blue Man Group episode won an

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for ''The Tonight Show''. * ''

The Drew Carey Show ''The Drew Carey Show'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from September 13, 1995 to September 8, 2004. Set in Cleveland, Ohio, the series revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionalized ...

'' (2001) – During the episode "Drew Live III," the Blue Man Group experimented on Drew Carey as he slept on the train, making it look like he had sex with his nemesis, Mimi Bobeck. At the end of the show, it was revealed that their motive was for Drew to kill himself out of embarrassment so that they, along with

John Ratzenberger John Dezso Ratzenberger (born April 6, 1947)About John
from Ratzenberger's official website is an Americ ...

, could take over the show. * ''

Arrested Development The term "arrested development" has had multiple meanings for over 200 years. In the field of medicine, the term "arrested development" was first used, ''circa'' 1835–1836, to mean a stoppage of physical development; the term continues to be use ...

'' (2004) – The show approached Blue Man Group about appearing in an episode. The collaboration grew to a storyline where Tobias longed to be a part of Blue Man Group, and, ultimately, his father-in-law "hid from the law" performing as a Blue Man in Las Vegas. * ''

Scrubs Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," o ...

'' (2006) * ''

This is Emily Yeung. ''This is Emily Yeung.'' is a 2006 Canadian children's television series created by J. J. Johnson and Blair Powers. It is produced by Toronto's Marblemedia and Sinking Ship Productions in association with Treehouse TV, and is the follow-up to th ...

'' (2006) * ''

Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman ''Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman'' (sometimes shortened as ''Fetch!'') is an American live-action/animated television series that aired on PBS Kids Go! and is largely targeted towards middle school children. It is a reality-game show that is hosted by ...

'' (2007) * ''

Space Pirates Space pirates are a type of stock character from space opera and soft science fiction. The archetype evolved from the air pirate trope popular from the turn of the century until the 1920s. By the 1930s, space pirates were recurring villains in t ...

'' (2007) * ''

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

''’s ''

Shake It Up Shake It Up may refer to: * ''Shake It Up'' (Boney James & Rick Braun album), 2000 * ''Shake It Up'' (The Cars album), 1981 ** "Shake It Up" (The Cars song), the title song * "Shake It Up" (Divine song), 1983 * "Shake It Up" (Koda Kumi song), ...

'' (2012) – Blue Man Group guest stars. * NBC's ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is a televised American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distribut ...

'' (2012) – For the season finale, BMG performed "Shake Your Euphemism". * NBC's

Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...

(2015) – Blue Man Group performed on a live broadcast from Universal CityWalk. At the end of the performance, Al Roker helped the Blue Men fire confetti from the stage. * NBC's '' I Can Do That'' (June 2015) – Alan Ritchson and Joe Jonas trained to become Blue Men. * NBC's ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

'' (October 2015) – During the "Telephone Booth" skit, a Blue Man was a celebrity from the "mystery bench" and was placed in the telephone booth with Hugh Jackman after his opponent, Shaq, answered a question correctly. The trapped Blue Man wrote "help" with blue paint from his head on the telephone booth wall. In another "Telephone Booth" skit, two members of the group joined Jimmy Fallon in his booth after Dwayne Johnson, aided by Romanio Golphin Jr, answered a question correctly. Only two members of the group entered the booth, while the other wandered around the stage, due to the booth also being occupied by WWE wrestler Big Show. * Telemundo's ''La Voz Kids'' (July 2016) – During the live finale, Blue Man Group performed alongside the show's top 6 finalists. The kids sang "Applause" by Lady Gaga and three Blue Men and Blue Man Group band members provided the music. *

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

Tiny Desk Concert Tiny Desk Concerts is a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of ''All Songs Considered'' host Bob Boilen in Washington, D.C. The first Tiny Desk Concert came about in 2008 after Boilen and NPR Music editor Stephen Thom ...

(September 2016) – Blue Man Group performed tracks from their studio album ''Three'' during a Tiny Desk Takeover * NBC's '' Best Time Ever'' with

Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an American actor, singer, writer, producer, and television host. Primarily known for his comedic television roles and dramatic and musical stage roles, he has received multiple accolades throughout ...

(October 2016) – The Blue Men played instruments alongside Neil Patrick Harris, who got in on the drumming. By the end of the performance, Harris and episode co-host

Shaq Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...

were doused in blue paint. * AMC's '' Halt and Catch Fire'' (August 2017) – In this drama about the first decade of personal computing, Blue Man Group performs at engineer and businessman Gordon Clark's 40th birthday party. * Tru Tv's

Impractical Jokers ''Impractical Jokers'' is an American hidden camera Reality television#Hidden cameras, reality show with improvisational elements. Produced by NorthSouth Productions, ''Impractical Jokers'' premiered on truTV on December 15, 2011 starring the m ...

Season 8 episode 5 punishment in the episode "Blue Man Dupe" At a Blue Man Group Concert, Q is forced to rudely ask strangers to get out of their seat; because he thinks that the seat is his, where he later finds an error on his ticket. Later, Q must sit in the front row when the show starts in just his clothes, unlike in a poncho—like everyone else, and get disgusting substances all over him, and made a mess of with things like toilet paper. * CNBC's ''

Deal or No Deal ''Deal or No Deal'' is the name of several closely related television game shows, the first of which (launching the format) was the Dutch ''Miljoenenjacht (Netherlands), Miljoenenjacht'' (''Hunt/Chase for Millions''). The centerpiece of this f ...

'' had them support Max Reynolds during his gameplay. Blue Man Group has also performed on various shows such as an appearance on

The Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

(with Jill Scott and

), The Emmy Awards, The Latin Grammy Awards, ''

The Royal Variety Show The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal ...

'' (for

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

), '' Wetten, dass..?'' (Germany), ''The Voice'' (Germany), ''

Regis and Kathie Lee ''Live with Kelly and Mark'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts since ...

'', ''

Regis and Kelly ''Live with Kelly and Ryan'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts since ...

'' and ''

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...

''.

Awards and nominations

* 1991

Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards originally given by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City. In September 2014, the awards were jointly presented and administered with the A ...

(winner) * 1992

Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience The Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. Due to their unusual nature, these product ...

(winner) * 1992 Lucille Lortel Special Award * 2000

(nominee) * 2000 Eddy Award (design) * 2010 OBIE Advertising Award * 2011 Off Broadway Alliance Awards' ''Audience Choice Award for Best Long-Running Show'' (winner) * 2012 International Emmy Award nomination for Arts Programming (nominee) * 2014 ''

Drum! {{italic title ''DRUM!'' is a North American educational drumming magazine. It features artist profiles, product reviews, lessons and advanced transcriptions covering rock, pop and related styles of music. The magazine was launched in 1991 wi ...

'' Magazine Readers Choice Award – Best Percussion Ensemble (winner) * 2015 ''Drum!'' Magazine Readers Choice Award – Best Percussion Ensemble (winner) * 2021 'Blue Man Group X Friends Anniversary' The Telly Awards - Silver Winner: Craft Branded Content
/ref>

Notes

References

"Blue Man Group: Color them cool"
– ''Orlando Sentinel'', January 5, 2007
"Toronto’s Blue Period?"
– ''kapiTal'' magazine, December 2006
"Who killed Blue Man Group?"
– ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', September 29, 2006
"Canuck unions blue over group"
– ''Variety'', June 16, 2005

– ''Fortune Small Business'', March 2003
"Chris Wink – The Visionary Roots of Blue Man Group"
– ''The Evolver'', February 2019

External links

* Official websites
GeneralGermanyJapanSwitzerland
* * * Unofficial fan communit
podcast feed

{{Authority control Musical groups from New York (state) Percussion ensembles American street performers Virgin Records artists American performance artists Performance artist collectives Performing groups established in 1987 Obie Award recipients Masked musicians 1987 establishments in New York City Cirque du Soleil Las Vegas shows Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020

History

Themes

Theatrical productions

Current productions

Previous productions

Music and tours

Discography

Videography

Books

Television

Advertising

Programming

Awards and nominations

See also

Notes

References

External links