BLUE MAN GROUP Comes to San Francisco May 24th - June 19th
By: Linda Hodges May. 18, 2011
On days when Kalen Allmandinger is feeling blue, it's actually a really great thing. In fact, he's required to be blue because he's part of the world renowned performance extravaganza known as Blue Man Group. This trio of bald, silent (think Charlie Chaplin on steroids), blue-latex-coated performers first took the world by storm in 1991 and hasn't stopped since. Created by Chris Wink, Matt Goldman and Phil Stanton, Blue Man Group is set to appear at San Francisco's Golden Gate Theatre May 24 - June 19.
Broadway World's Linda Hodges got a chance to catch up with Kalen Allmandinger to talk about all things blue. That interview follows.
BWW: Hi, Kalen, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with Broadway World's San Francisco Bay Area fans! We were most recently green with Elphaba but we're excited about going blue with the Blue Man Group.
BWW: Well, we're glad you're here. Now, Kalen, you've been with BMG for over ten years. It must be wonderful to be part of something that brings such joy to audiences all over the world. The show has evolved over time. Are you still surprised by the new ideas for the show? Do you all share in the creative process?
KALEN: I'm always excited when we change things up. That's one of the reasons I was so looking forward to being a part of this tour. There is a lot of new stuff. The creative process is a big collaborative effort.
BWW: Do audience reactions ever dictate new directions for the creators to take?KALEN: The audience reactions can certainly have an effect on a show as it is unfolding and as the creators of the show were developing the original material, I'm sure the audiences played a huge role in shaping the show.
BWW: You take the audience on an amazing, guided, interactive tour of sorts. Does a level of trust have to be reached before the "tour" can really take off?
KALEN: Certainly, and I think if we are just going through the motions the audience calls BS and doesn't trust us. If we are simply being there and having honest emotional responses to what is happening, the audience is hooked in and ready to come with us.
BWW: The SHNSF website says of the show that, "Adults enjoy the humor, social commentary and depth of the character. Even the hardened theatre critic finds a deeper message behind the fun and mess." Is it hard to get across social commentary without speaking?
KALEN: We have a large technical element in the show including voice over and text and video which help to convey the message. The Blue Man doesn't directly comment on things -- he doesn't really have an agenda -- but the overall effect includes a message.
BWW: I feel like the blue make-up allows audiences to enter into a different reality.
KALEN: It certainly helps me to enter into a different head space as the character. It makes us look very "other," and propels us into the character immediately.
BWW: What do you think would happen if you came out and did the show without the blue?
KALEN: One thing that makeup helps do is to take away ego. I think if there was no makeup, each performer's ego would be more present. Part of what makes the character intriguing is the fact that he is silent. Not everything is spelled out. There's a mystery there.
BWW: Do you think you'd get a completely different reaction in another color?
KALEN: I've never tried it, but I would imagine so. Red, for example, might make us look angry.
BWW: Is it hard to project emotion with the blue make-up?
KALEN: The only thing not covered by make up or a costume is our eyes and the blue helps to focus attention there so that we can be pretty subtle and still be understood across a whole theater.
BWW: I'll bet you've heard every joke and pun about being "blue." Is that the price of fame and being a blue man???
KALEN: I guess so!
Blue Man Group
May 24 - June 19, 2011
SHNSF Golden Gate Theatre
http://www.shnsf.com/shows/bluemangroup
Photo courtesy of Paul Kolnik
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