Las Vegas came to Columbus on a cold, windy November night. It came in the form of The Blue Man Group. The show opened with the likes of Mike Relm, a renowned DJ from San Francisco. Relm used a mixture of video pop culture and several eras of rock music. He dazzled the Columbus crowd with a synchronized performance on a turntable and digital equipment utilizing clips from “The Office, “Pee Wee‘s Big Adventure“, ”Nacho Libre” and even “Napolean Dynamite”. The entertainer added a soundtrack from varied and eccentric sources like AC/DC, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin, and others. His act was well polished, comical, and showed that redundancy can be fresh. He also proved that spinning records can be a viable art form.

The back drop curtain used to feature the opening acts video became the foreground for the main feature, using light and shadow. The Blue Man Group opened a rock show like no other. When the curtain fell the crowd was exuberant as the three blue men appeared bewildered and dumb founded. Of course, that is their trademark. The three blues soon interacted with the crowd, using an audience members’ credit card for a $4000.00 purchase of an instructional video, appropriately titled, “How To Be A Rock Megastar”. The theme was set and supported by this accomplished band . It was evident that Blue Man Group had come a long way since introducing themselves as three guys with bright blue face paint, drumsticks and PVC tubing. This was a SHOW!!!

The Blue Man Group really knows how to work a crowd and found themselves amongst their fans early and often; going as far as to incorporate them on stage making a mouth blown painted T-shirt for one fan and a taffy sculpted hat for another young fan. Great music, fantastic sound, an incredible lightshow, which included a lighted multi-colored dress worn by the female vocalist, made for an aural and visual feast. The show was never dull from beginning to end!

To truly create Las Vegas in Columbus the only things missing were the card tables and the slot machines. If you are a fan of avant-garde art, you must see this “Vegas” show LIVE!!!

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Review by Aaron Ambrose
Photos by David Heasley