Backlog Blog: Blue Man Group!

Dereck and I went to church down in Tokyo a few weeks ago (as we do every so often...), and afterward we decided to walk down to the neighborhood of Roppongi. Roppongi is known for its night life, and being a young persons' hang out spot, so we weren't surprised to see it very empty on a Sunday afternoon. But we could tell that it was a very nice area and looks like it would be a lot of fun at night, so we'll have to make it down there sometime after dark to party!

While wondering around Roppongi we came across the theater where the Blue Man Group performs. If you are not familiar with them, check out this link. We were looking at the sign showing showtimes and ticket prices and noticed the show that started in about an hour had available seats. We were deciding if we should go or not (it's quite a spendy impulse buy!) when an American man came up to us asking if we were wondering how to get tickets. I said we were still deciding if we wanted to go or not and asked him if he'd seen the show. He then laughed and said "I'm in it. I'm a Blue Man"... it was then when I noticed his strangely colored blue eyes (had to be contacts) and the bits of blue makeup still on parts of his neck and ears. Turns out he just had finished the earlier show and was just heading home, his replacements were coming to do the later show. We ended up talking to him for about 15 minutes, he was a very nice guy!

We decided to just bite the bullet and go to the show- there aren't many times where you meet a member of the cast while stumbling upon a world famous show in the middle of Tokyo. It ended up being a great decision, we absolutely loved the show. It was hilarious from the beginning... the first 5 or so rows have to wear clear plastic ponchos so they don't get paint/water/etc on them during the show (its a very strange show...). We just watched for 20 minutes or so as all these Japanese people got stuck trying to put their ponchos on. I can't even explain how funny this was...

The actual show was amazing. The acting, drumming, and music were fantastic. There were not many parts that we didn't understand, since the Blue Men don't talk at all during the show. They express everything through music, gestures, and facial expressions. Perhaps the funniest part was when they involved people in the audience in the production. It really showed how multi-talented the actors are, they are musicians, actors, and improv comics as well. It was an experience to remember for sure!

 One of the Blue Men

Dereck giving a 'great job' handshake!

Me with the fabulous band!