Theater Review: 'Blue Man Group'

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - Blue Man Group is a treat for the senses. There's drumming on pipes, colorful paint flying everywhere, bright lights and visuals that keep your eyes glued to all parts of the stage - and it's all presented creatively with humor. You'll find yourself smiling and laughing throughout the complete hour and forty minutes of the show. A show that was developed in the downtown clubs of New York is now the show to see in New York, Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Orlando, globally in Tokyo and numerous European cities, and finally here in San Francisco.

Unlike any other, it's like being at a rock concert, comedy show, and the middle of a weird dream all at once.

You know it's going to be a different show even before it begins - they set the tone with a very humorous intro having the audience read along funny announcements that usually go ignored before other theater performances.

Audience members sitting in the first few rows are also given ponchos to wear, giving you a clue that this show could get messy.

The performance begins and you know you're in for a treat - reflections of silhouettes dancing and drumming, marshmallows being thrown (and impressively caught!) in their mouths, paint shooting out of their mouths and chests to create works of art, a Twinkie snack break and a volunteer from the audience being covered with paint and thrown against a giant canvas.

But it's the facial expressions of these voiceless Blue men that make each scene hilarious. Something about their wide-eyed, completely blank, blue faces convey an innocence and naivety that is irresistible, endearing, and very funny.

With the absence of the "fourth wall" that separates the performers and the audience, the Blue men are always interacting with theatergoers so you're always part of the fun - and you may even appear on stage.

This always-evolving theater piece offers a statement on our digital world filled with texting and iPhone Apps and shows 2-D figures breaking out of that world of no human interaction and entering 'real life.'

You don't even realize you're getting a lesson on life while you're being entertained.

- Connie C. Kim, CBS San Francisco Reviewer

Blue Man Group
May 24 - June 19, 2011
Tue – Sat at 8 PM
Wed, Sat & Sun at 2 PM
1 hour and 40 minutes with no intermission

Golden Gate Theatre
1 Taylor Street
San Francisco, CA CA 94102

For tickets click here or call 888-SHN-1799 (888 746 1799).

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)