1 00:00:03,120 --> 00:00:06,040 Speaker 1: This is Alec Baldwin and you're listening to Here's the 2 00:00:06,120 --> 00:00:25,320 Speaker 1: Thing from iHeart Radio. That's PVC IV, a song featuring 3 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:31,040 Speaker 1: PVC pipes being played by three men with their flip flops. 4 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:34,440 Speaker 1: My guests today are some of the most famous performers 5 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:37,560 Speaker 1: in the world, though you've likely never seen their real 6 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:43,360 Speaker 1: faces nor heard their actual voices. Created by Matt Goldman, 7 00:00:43,479 --> 00:00:47,520 Speaker 1: Chris Wink and Philip Stanton in nineteen eighty nine, Blue 8 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:51,239 Speaker 1: Man Group began as a performance art piece inspired by 9 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 1: nineteen eighties counterculture. The show would eventually grow into the 10 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:00,880 Speaker 1: worldwide phenomenon we know it as today. In addition to 11 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:04,560 Speaker 1: the original Astor Place theater show, Blue Man Group has 12 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:10,920 Speaker 1: staged three world tours and taken up residency in Las Vegas, Chicago, Orlando, 13 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:15,280 Speaker 1: and Boston. The group has released five albums, received a 14 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:19,680 Speaker 1: Grammy nomination, and performed on numerous TV shows and in 15 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:24,400 Speaker 1: some of the most memorable commercials. This past weekend, Blue 16 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:29,080 Speaker 1: Man Group's original New York City show closed after seventeen 17 00:01:29,240 --> 00:01:36,640 Speaker 1: thousand performances over three decades. They're synonymous with creativity, ingenuity, 18 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:40,000 Speaker 1: and of course, a distinct shade of blue paints. 19 00:01:41,880 --> 00:01:45,120 Speaker 2: My name is Chris Wink and this voice is the 20 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:46,560 Speaker 2: voice of Philip Stanton. 21 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:48,000 Speaker 1: Where'd you grow up? 22 00:01:48,200 --> 00:01:49,080 Speaker 3: Well, I grew up in New York. 23 00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:53,800 Speaker 4: Actually, my dad came to Union Theological Seminary by Columbia, 24 00:01:54,160 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 4: became a minister. We were in Texas for five years. 25 00:01:56,560 --> 00:01:58,880 Speaker 4: He was in a parsonage, but then he got hired 26 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 4: back because he was a linguist guy, and he became 27 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:02,040 Speaker 4: a professor. 28 00:02:02,320 --> 00:02:04,040 Speaker 3: So I grew up by Columbia. It was a really 29 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:05,120 Speaker 3: interesting Union. 30 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: Yeah, and what about you. 31 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:10,600 Speaker 2: I was born in Lubbock, Texas. Group in Savannah, Georgia. 32 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:13,960 Speaker 2: My father was a minister also weirdly, but my father 33 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 2: also built churches, I say, a group in Savannah. But 34 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:19,880 Speaker 2: I really, you know, I grew up until I was 35 00:02:19,960 --> 00:02:22,640 Speaker 2: eight in Texas, So I'm kind of half and half 36 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:23,160 Speaker 2: in a way. 37 00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:28,800 Speaker 1: So when you were growing up, what was theater art? Creativity? 38 00:02:28,919 --> 00:02:31,200 Speaker 1: Performance art? I mean, people could be doing what you're doing, 39 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:34,120 Speaker 1: which is considered this highly creative thing. I'm not just 40 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:36,079 Speaker 1: saying this for your benefit. I moved to New York 41 00:02:36,080 --> 00:02:38,680 Speaker 1: in nineteen seventy nine, and by the time I was 42 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 1: in New York and you guys opened up on Lafayette Street, 43 00:02:40,880 --> 00:02:42,720 Speaker 1: which was before LaMaMa. When you were and when you 44 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 1: had the he were staked out there at the Lafayette. 45 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:47,399 Speaker 1: I mean everyone in New York went to go see 46 00:02:47,400 --> 00:02:50,639 Speaker 1: Blue Man. Now, prior to that, to this highly creative 47 00:02:50,639 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: thing you guys came up with, especially at that time, 48 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: we hadn't seen much like that at all. What was 49 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:58,880 Speaker 1: your diet creatively? What were you into? Well? 50 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:02,080 Speaker 2: I moved to New York to be kind of a 51 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:06,200 Speaker 2: traditional career in film and television. I wanted to study 52 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 2: acting and audition and everything. I didn't really know about 53 00:03:09,919 --> 00:03:13,440 Speaker 2: performance art. I was pretty innocent. Chris was actually the 54 00:03:13,480 --> 00:03:16,480 Speaker 2: first person I met on the first job that I 55 00:03:16,520 --> 00:03:18,920 Speaker 2: had when I moved to New York for a catering company, 56 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:21,840 Speaker 2: Glorious Food, and so we kind of hit it off 57 00:03:21,919 --> 00:03:24,320 Speaker 2: right away somehow, and I kind of learned about performance 58 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 2: art in the downtown scene through Chris, and having grown 59 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:31,720 Speaker 2: up a minister's son, I kind of inherited this feeling 60 00:03:31,760 --> 00:03:34,640 Speaker 2: that what you do has to say something to the world. 61 00:03:35,520 --> 00:03:40,040 Speaker 2: But I didn't want to be preachy, like my literally preachee. 62 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:42,839 Speaker 4: Like, especially back then, a lot of the performance art 63 00:03:42,880 --> 00:03:46,680 Speaker 4: was like intolerably preachy and just you know, some of 64 00:03:46,680 --> 00:03:50,760 Speaker 4: it was great, but I would say most performance art 65 00:03:50,800 --> 00:03:53,360 Speaker 4: I don't like, even back then, and at a certain 66 00:03:53,360 --> 00:03:55,680 Speaker 4: point we're saying, don't call us performance art because I 67 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:57,720 Speaker 4: like Larie Anderson, you know what I mean, she's a 68 00:03:57,720 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 4: performance artist. We're trying to come buying a bunch of 69 00:04:00,880 --> 00:04:04,640 Speaker 4: different forms, including vaudeville. You know, we do comedy. We're 70 00:04:04,680 --> 00:04:07,600 Speaker 4: not trying to get into the gallery. We're taking Captain 71 00:04:07,640 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 4: crunch and we're eating it. We're trying to be outsiders, 72 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:12,120 Speaker 4: to have some sort of exploration of the world. But 73 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 4: when I was young, and I think Phil is like 74 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:16,720 Speaker 4: this too, watching those Marx Brothers movies was a. 75 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:18,159 Speaker 2: Bit oh yeah, yeah. 76 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:21,040 Speaker 4: And I had graduated from what Bugs Bunny and Bugs 77 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:23,480 Speaker 4: Bunny's true for real. I had explored all these things 78 00:04:23,520 --> 00:04:26,040 Speaker 4: at Wesleyan, but I wasn't up that's where it went. Yeah, 79 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:28,799 Speaker 4: it was great because I I was a drummer. American 80 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:30,479 Speaker 4: Studies was just a way to get to stuff. I 81 00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:32,719 Speaker 4: studied film, lots of drumming there. 82 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:33,480 Speaker 3: I was a DJ. 83 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:35,800 Speaker 4: But when I got out, I was like, well, now 84 00:04:35,800 --> 00:04:37,520 Speaker 4: how do I get a job? You know, I liked 85 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:40,640 Speaker 4: technology and science, but as a layman, you know, so 86 00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:42,600 Speaker 4: I was like, well, I guess I'll work in advertising 87 00:04:42,680 --> 00:04:44,360 Speaker 4: or marketing. And I got on a track for that, 88 00:04:44,400 --> 00:04:46,120 Speaker 4: and I probably would have been you know, it was 89 00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:48,320 Speaker 4: kind of traditional. I was good at it, you know, 90 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:49,800 Speaker 4: and I would have been a regular. But I was like, 91 00:04:49,800 --> 00:04:53,919 Speaker 4: this is not making me happy. I quit that and 92 00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:56,120 Speaker 4: I said, I'm just going to be a waiter. And then, 93 00:04:56,279 --> 00:04:58,200 Speaker 4: you know, with my friends, we're going to create this 94 00:04:58,240 --> 00:05:05,120 Speaker 4: stuff that combines comedy, acting, drumming, technology, design, lighting, and art. 95 00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:07,640 Speaker 3: And you know, it's not going to make us a living. 96 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:09,719 Speaker 4: So we got to take this catering thing very seriously 97 00:05:10,400 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 4: and we just started doing it literally just as a joy, 98 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:14,840 Speaker 4: as a bliss, you know. And you know, one thing, 99 00:05:15,040 --> 00:05:17,560 Speaker 4: we'd have to find places to do it. So it'd 100 00:05:17,560 --> 00:05:20,200 Speaker 4: be like lea Mama or p S one twenty two whatever. 101 00:05:20,360 --> 00:05:22,839 Speaker 4: We would work for three weeks straight, you know, Phil 102 00:05:22,880 --> 00:05:24,479 Speaker 4: and I would do like fourteen hour shifts. And so 103 00:05:24,560 --> 00:05:26,680 Speaker 4: Matt had a job in a software company, and then 104 00:05:26,680 --> 00:05:28,640 Speaker 4: we would take off a week and we would build 105 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:30,080 Speaker 4: this thing. And then we'd go and we do one 106 00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:33,080 Speaker 4: night and about eighty percent of it would suck, but 107 00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:34,479 Speaker 4: there would be like a little bit in there that 108 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:34,800 Speaker 4: was good. 109 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:36,560 Speaker 3: Little nugget, you know, And so we were. 110 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:38,680 Speaker 2: Like, yeah, so we'd grab we'll keep that thirty seconds, 111 00:05:38,760 --> 00:05:41,080 Speaker 2: We'll keep that thirty combined it with another thirty seconds. 112 00:05:41,120 --> 00:05:43,400 Speaker 4: And the thing is, our performance art friends would have 113 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,159 Speaker 4: been like, no, it's your art. If the audience doesn't 114 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:48,919 Speaker 4: understand it, then there it's their problem. We're like, no, 115 00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:52,240 Speaker 4: we're about villions. The audience matters, you know, and I 116 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:56,480 Speaker 4: love that, and yes, vaudeville, you know. And in fact, 117 00:05:56,560 --> 00:05:58,560 Speaker 4: a lot of our early pieces were kind of we 118 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:01,320 Speaker 4: needed to make fun of the pretend justness of performance 119 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:03,520 Speaker 4: art a little bit, like when we catch these marshmallows 120 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:04,920 Speaker 4: and we put them on a pedestal and we say 121 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:08,640 Speaker 4: five thousand dollars, it's like, you know, really, you know, 122 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:11,679 Speaker 4: and we make the painting at the like the first 123 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:13,800 Speaker 4: two three pieces of the show, even to this day, 124 00:06:13,800 --> 00:06:18,200 Speaker 4: are kind of spoofing the pretentiousness of performance art in 125 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:20,440 Speaker 4: a way that the audience doesn't even get anymore, but 126 00:06:20,520 --> 00:06:22,800 Speaker 4: they don't care. And what we found too, is like 127 00:06:22,839 --> 00:06:25,560 Speaker 4: the jump cut to Burning Man, you got a piece 128 00:06:25,600 --> 00:06:28,040 Speaker 4: of art and you got a dude on a bike 129 00:06:28,120 --> 00:06:30,160 Speaker 4: that's all tricked out, and I think they're both art. 130 00:06:30,240 --> 00:06:30,839 Speaker 3: You know what I mean. 131 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:34,000 Speaker 4: To me, I don't care how much the museum has 132 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:35,719 Speaker 4: blessed it, you know what I mean. I think it's 133 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 4: just creative expressions are awesome, but the whole pretentiousness of 134 00:06:39,839 --> 00:06:41,200 Speaker 4: arts never really appeal to us. 135 00:06:41,440 --> 00:06:43,359 Speaker 1: I had this image of you with the catering company 136 00:06:43,520 --> 00:06:44,920 Speaker 1: and one of you has got your back to him, 137 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:47,240 Speaker 1: and you come over there and you go, Chris, why 138 00:06:47,279 --> 00:06:48,920 Speaker 1: did you paint all the eggs blue? 139 00:06:49,320 --> 00:06:49,480 Speaker 5: Right? 140 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 1: Everything starts getting blu erry. 141 00:06:51,839 --> 00:06:53,800 Speaker 4: Well, we wrote that piece where we're sitting at the 142 00:06:53,839 --> 00:06:56,360 Speaker 4: meal with the guests and then stuff starts shooting out 143 00:06:56,360 --> 00:06:59,120 Speaker 4: our chest all over the at a catering gig because 144 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:00,120 Speaker 4: we're sitting in our text. 145 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:03,160 Speaker 3: And I was thinking, like, wow, the only reason. 146 00:07:02,839 --> 00:07:05,560 Speaker 4: This is possible is because it takes so long for 147 00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:08,280 Speaker 4: the food to get to our anus. If it came 148 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:10,880 Speaker 4: right out, hopefully it would, it would make this whole 149 00:07:11,200 --> 00:07:13,760 Speaker 4: thing impossible. So we said, well, what if the blue 150 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:16,120 Speaker 4: man had a really short loop in that regard, and 151 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:18,280 Speaker 4: if he ate something it came right out, that would 152 00:07:18,320 --> 00:07:22,040 Speaker 4: be interesting, at least to us. So remember how many 153 00:07:22,040 --> 00:07:24,040 Speaker 4: times have people tell us so you can't do that piece? 154 00:07:24,520 --> 00:07:27,600 Speaker 2: Oh? Yeah, every time? Whenever we opened a show, they'd say, no, 155 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:28,400 Speaker 2: you can't do that in. 156 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:30,080 Speaker 3: People think that's too gross. 157 00:07:30,240 --> 00:07:33,800 Speaker 4: And we do that piece and everyone goes everyone goes ew. 158 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:35,840 Speaker 2: And then they go, yeah, that was great. Yeah, I 159 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:38,880 Speaker 2: mean it's true. Every every step of the way they'd 160 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:41,560 Speaker 2: say like, no, you have to change that. Yeah, nobody 161 00:07:41,600 --> 00:07:44,600 Speaker 2: in Vegas will like that, nobody in China will like that. 162 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:47,760 Speaker 1: Do that in France. But so you're catering together, and 163 00:07:47,800 --> 00:07:48,520 Speaker 1: where's Matt. 164 00:07:48,960 --> 00:07:51,520 Speaker 3: Well, Matt had a software job, and so you knew 165 00:07:51,520 --> 00:07:53,840 Speaker 3: each other from where, oh, from seventh grade? 166 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:56,360 Speaker 2: Yeah, I was the odd man out coming from. 167 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: You with Anna and you knew him from seventh grade? 168 00:07:58,720 --> 00:07:59,320 Speaker 1: What's cool? 169 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:01,680 Speaker 3: Fieldston with the field step in Riverdale. 170 00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:04,120 Speaker 4: We went to the school and there's all these like 171 00:08:04,400 --> 00:08:08,000 Speaker 4: celebrity kids and stuff, rich kids and all, and we 172 00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 4: felt like outsiders. But on the outside we looked like 173 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:14,320 Speaker 4: we fit in perfectly. There was sports and all we 174 00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:15,960 Speaker 4: were outside. Well, you know, he was like the captain 175 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:19,520 Speaker 4: of the soccer team, but we felt like imposters. They 176 00:08:19,520 --> 00:08:22,200 Speaker 4: were like, all right, we're just trying to make sure 177 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:24,800 Speaker 4: no one notices that we you know, we don't have 178 00:08:24,840 --> 00:08:26,360 Speaker 4: the money these kids have, and we don't. We don't 179 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:28,400 Speaker 4: feel like we fit in. So we created a character 180 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:30,920 Speaker 4: that embodied on the outside how we felt on the 181 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:34,160 Speaker 4: inside because we had managed to pull off a great disguise. 182 00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:36,679 Speaker 4: We were walking through the high and we weren't getting bullied, 183 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:36,880 Speaker 4: you know. 184 00:08:36,920 --> 00:08:39,839 Speaker 1: So it was art performing any of them? How did it? 185 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:42,800 Speaker 4: I was a drummer, first rock and roll and yeah, 186 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:46,200 Speaker 4: well new wave punk kind of, and I wasn't supported 187 00:08:46,200 --> 00:08:48,760 Speaker 4: at all. I feels I remember, couldn't do it there. 188 00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:50,959 Speaker 4: I had to get lessons outside, and to do theater. 189 00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:53,200 Speaker 4: You couldn't do theater during the day, so if you 190 00:08:53,360 --> 00:08:55,560 Speaker 4: were on a sport, you couldn't do theater. And then 191 00:08:55,559 --> 00:08:57,520 Speaker 4: there wasn't really any art I would I didn't have 192 00:08:57,559 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 4: any painterly art talent, so if you'd asked anybody there, 193 00:09:01,559 --> 00:09:03,680 Speaker 4: they wouldn't have said, oh, you know, he's likely to 194 00:09:03,720 --> 00:09:05,920 Speaker 4: be an artist. But I think we all shared the 195 00:09:05,960 --> 00:09:08,080 Speaker 4: idea of like, well, we don't need to be an 196 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:10,680 Speaker 4: artist capital a, but we have this creative impulse. We 197 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:13,839 Speaker 4: just don't have any like specific thing that's like, oh, 198 00:09:13,880 --> 00:09:16,160 Speaker 4: this is really talented. But what if we combine different 199 00:09:16,240 --> 00:09:19,960 Speaker 4: arts together and used our mediocrity to an advantage. 200 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:21,680 Speaker 1: The three of you together would riff about this. 201 00:09:22,040 --> 00:09:24,520 Speaker 4: Well, we talked about like because Matt was like the 202 00:09:24,520 --> 00:09:26,720 Speaker 4: same thing, Like, he hadn't even done any training in art. 203 00:09:26,760 --> 00:09:29,319 Speaker 4: I had studied art history and stuff, but I couldn't 204 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:32,079 Speaker 4: draw a bird, you know, I have a nine year 205 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:37,040 Speaker 4: old level drawing ability. And so we were like, maybe 206 00:09:37,080 --> 00:09:40,240 Speaker 4: if we kind of mixed different mediums together we could 207 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:42,320 Speaker 4: find a form of expression. And Phil was like, well, 208 00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:44,440 Speaker 4: I'm an actor, but I'm also a builder. And he 209 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 4: was the one with a saw on the screw built 210 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:49,160 Speaker 4: the drums, and they were like, you know, that's just 211 00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:51,680 Speaker 4: as much a form of creation as anything else. 212 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,880 Speaker 2: I think it's an important story about the creative impulse. 213 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:57,400 Speaker 2: Going back to the kind of art stacked at the 214 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:00,680 Speaker 2: top of the show, the spoof on art, there's another 215 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:03,280 Speaker 2: layer to it that I think it's important to mention. 216 00:10:03,400 --> 00:10:07,640 Speaker 2: It's it's like this simple, out of the box sort 217 00:10:07,679 --> 00:10:10,079 Speaker 2: of creativity. You know, you take a gumball on make 218 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:12,160 Speaker 2: a painting. It's not a great painting, but it's a 219 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:16,000 Speaker 2: creative impulse. And I think that's one thing to mention 220 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:18,440 Speaker 2: about that at its core, Blue Man is sort of 221 00:10:18,480 --> 00:10:23,479 Speaker 2: a celebration of our human attributes, you know, our creativity, 222 00:10:23,520 --> 00:10:27,240 Speaker 2: our curiosity and our innovation and our innovation in our 223 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:29,079 Speaker 2: desire for community. It's kind of those you. 224 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:30,920 Speaker 3: Take a gumball, make a pinion and you're actually innovating. 225 00:10:31,480 --> 00:10:35,800 Speaker 2: It's not a miss misuse exactly, and that's misappropriation. 226 00:10:35,880 --> 00:10:37,480 Speaker 3: That's what could be more human than that. 227 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:39,800 Speaker 4: That's what's gotten us here, is that like tinkering with 228 00:10:39,880 --> 00:10:41,880 Speaker 4: stuff that's sort of divergent thinking. 229 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:43,559 Speaker 3: As Sir Kit Robinson. 230 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:45,400 Speaker 1: I just want to say, if you hit that more time, 231 00:10:48,559 --> 00:10:51,080 Speaker 1: how does it start? How does it start? Covering yourself 232 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:53,680 Speaker 1: in blue paint and going and having a nervous break 233 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:54,320 Speaker 1: down our stage. 234 00:10:54,640 --> 00:10:57,160 Speaker 4: So we started with the characters like, all right, let's 235 00:10:57,320 --> 00:10:59,320 Speaker 4: see what it's like to be blue, and we would 236 00:10:59,360 --> 00:10:59,880 Speaker 4: just do socials. 237 00:11:00,280 --> 00:11:03,400 Speaker 3: We walk around blue, yeah, blue, the way you ended 238 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:04,160 Speaker 3: up in the show. Yeah. 239 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:06,880 Speaker 4: At first we talked a little bit, just so we 240 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:09,760 Speaker 4: wouldn't get beaten up or something arrested. Yeah, So we 241 00:11:09,760 --> 00:11:11,400 Speaker 4: would just be like and the people say, what's going on, 242 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:14,040 Speaker 4: We're like, we're trying to find figure that out. And 243 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:16,839 Speaker 4: then we would go to a bar and like people 244 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,400 Speaker 4: were like, you guys look interesting. And what we found 245 00:11:19,520 --> 00:11:20,840 Speaker 4: is if it had just been one of us blue, 246 00:11:20,840 --> 00:11:22,360 Speaker 4: people would have been like, oh, that's weird. I don't 247 00:11:22,440 --> 00:11:25,160 Speaker 4: even but the three of us identically, they're like, oh, 248 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:27,360 Speaker 4: now this is interesting. What what what do you got here? 249 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,040 Speaker 4: I always said, well, we're hoping you'd buy us a drink, 250 00:11:30,040 --> 00:11:31,439 Speaker 4: and they'd be like, all right, I'll do that, and 251 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:32,800 Speaker 4: then they would buy us a dream and would talk 252 00:11:32,840 --> 00:11:33,160 Speaker 4: to them all. 253 00:11:33,320 --> 00:11:35,400 Speaker 2: The best thing though, is when people would just kind 254 00:11:35,400 --> 00:11:37,880 Speaker 2: of like shake their head yes, you know, as if 255 00:11:37,880 --> 00:11:40,559 Speaker 2: they got something, and they were like, I don't know 256 00:11:40,559 --> 00:11:42,679 Speaker 2: what they're something's resonating. 257 00:11:42,760 --> 00:11:46,160 Speaker 4: But we wanted to go inside because it got cold, 258 00:11:46,360 --> 00:11:50,120 Speaker 4: and let's start creating pieces. So we'd create five minutes 259 00:11:50,120 --> 00:11:51,920 Speaker 4: of something out of time. And we put the drums 260 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:54,080 Speaker 4: in pretty early on. I mean it was selfish because 261 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:57,000 Speaker 4: I was a drummer, but also we wanted so we 262 00:11:57,040 --> 00:11:58,960 Speaker 4: have an outsider character, but we didn't want it to 263 00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:02,079 Speaker 4: be like a robe or an alien with like theorem 264 00:12:02,160 --> 00:12:05,840 Speaker 4: and tech music. We also had this idea that the 265 00:12:05,840 --> 00:12:09,000 Speaker 4: blue Man maybe came from our ancient past, Like we 266 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:12,000 Speaker 4: wanted there to be a tribal primal quality so that 267 00:12:12,040 --> 00:12:14,280 Speaker 4: maybe people go as an alien, but actually that's me 268 00:12:15,000 --> 00:12:17,319 Speaker 4: that's the tribal past that we've left behind as we've 269 00:12:17,320 --> 00:12:20,439 Speaker 4: become so modern. That's as about as intellectual as we 270 00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:22,640 Speaker 4: would get. But that's why when you go to the show, 271 00:12:23,000 --> 00:12:25,280 Speaker 4: it isn't sort of techno music, even though I like 272 00:12:25,320 --> 00:12:28,000 Speaker 4: some of that, you know, it's this tribal, primal thing 273 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:30,120 Speaker 4: that is this undercurrent. 274 00:12:30,600 --> 00:12:32,480 Speaker 3: We have comedy and this and that, but there's a 275 00:12:32,520 --> 00:12:34,000 Speaker 3: boom doon to kadom to katoom. 276 00:12:34,240 --> 00:12:37,040 Speaker 4: So it was kind of another impulse that we had 277 00:12:37,040 --> 00:12:38,959 Speaker 4: that we shared was this sort of sense of here 278 00:12:39,000 --> 00:12:42,440 Speaker 4: we are in this city, walking around feeling weird, and 279 00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:46,720 Speaker 4: like where's the damn cave? Where's the fireplace with the drums? 280 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:48,320 Speaker 4: You know, like what do we do as a culture? 281 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:49,880 Speaker 4: Why do we throw all that stuff out? I mean 282 00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:55,400 Speaker 4: we we left behind organized religion but there's no well 283 00:12:55,440 --> 00:12:58,320 Speaker 4: it would be Christianity and that was Jewish but we 284 00:12:58,160 --> 00:13:00,680 Speaker 4: and there's nothing against religion, but just didn't work for 285 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:02,440 Speaker 4: us as an organized thing. But so we didn't have 286 00:13:02,480 --> 00:13:04,400 Speaker 4: any where do you go for like, you know, you 287 00:13:04,400 --> 00:13:06,199 Speaker 4: go to a rock show, but like where's but I. 288 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:08,920 Speaker 2: Don't know, you know, we should make a fomentary where, 289 00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:12,360 Speaker 2: you know, And just since since blue mant there have 290 00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:16,560 Speaker 2: been like six new species discovered. We should make a 291 00:13:16,559 --> 00:13:20,160 Speaker 2: documentary because of bla right, because we should make a 292 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:22,880 Speaker 2: documentary as if as if we were discovered as a 293 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:23,680 Speaker 2: new species. 294 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:25,920 Speaker 1: Species was there, but it was hiding. Let me ask 295 00:13:25,960 --> 00:13:29,000 Speaker 1: you this, though, seriously, which is that this notion that 296 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:31,120 Speaker 1: mad for me in acting and so for when you 297 00:13:31,160 --> 00:13:33,760 Speaker 1: when you love something and what you'll give because you 298 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:35,160 Speaker 1: guys wind up giving a lot. You have to put 299 00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:36,920 Speaker 1: the appliances on and do all this stuff all the 300 00:13:36,920 --> 00:13:38,959 Speaker 1: time for years and years and years. But you want 301 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:41,720 Speaker 1: to get to that. What was it about this early 302 00:13:41,760 --> 00:13:44,640 Speaker 1: on that you invested in? Yeah, no, it's a big 303 00:13:44,640 --> 00:13:46,720 Speaker 1: committment every night for the years. 304 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:49,800 Speaker 4: Years because you know, we were really doing it out 305 00:13:49,800 --> 00:13:53,320 Speaker 4: of a love of this thing. We'd seen Bill Moyer's 306 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:56,600 Speaker 4: interviewing Joseph Campbell and heard that shot that was heard 307 00:13:56,600 --> 00:13:59,640 Speaker 4: around the world to follow your bliss was the theme 308 00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:01,360 Speaker 4: of a lot of the you know. 309 00:14:01,559 --> 00:14:04,120 Speaker 2: The thing it wasn't is a hope that we would 310 00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:05,240 Speaker 2: ever make a living from it. 311 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:08,480 Speaker 4: Yeah, we had no idea, but we were finally being 312 00:14:08,480 --> 00:14:13,480 Speaker 4: able to finally had an outlet for the disparate things 313 00:14:13,480 --> 00:14:16,440 Speaker 4: that we were interested in and we had a way 314 00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:17,600 Speaker 4: to hang out together. 315 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:19,200 Speaker 3: And it was really pleasant. 316 00:14:19,200 --> 00:14:21,720 Speaker 4: When does it become a show, Well, it starts out 317 00:14:21,720 --> 00:14:24,080 Speaker 4: as bits, you know, and then little by little somebody 318 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:27,600 Speaker 4: invites us to perform somewhere up in Rochester or La Mama. 319 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:30,080 Speaker 4: This by the way. At La Mama. One of your 320 00:14:30,080 --> 00:14:32,920 Speaker 4: brothers came. He was with Oliver Platt, my brother Billy's 321 00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:35,680 Speaker 4: very good films. Yes, yes, So they came together very 322 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:38,000 Speaker 4: early on and were very supportive, and it was really 323 00:14:38,120 --> 00:14:40,440 Speaker 4: nice to see people being supported. They kind of encourage you. 324 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:42,080 Speaker 4: They were like, you know, I get it. A lot 325 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:44,240 Speaker 4: of it didn't work, you know, but keep going, you know. 326 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:47,400 Speaker 4: And you could see that even people that had gone 327 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:51,360 Speaker 4: on to do films and stuff, I understood the gestation period, 328 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:54,840 Speaker 4: you know. Dustin Hoffman came Yea and invited us to 329 00:14:54,840 --> 00:14:56,920 Speaker 4: come to his office and he said, you know, all 330 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:00,600 Speaker 4: my work is about how actors have to work, and 331 00:15:01,360 --> 00:15:03,080 Speaker 4: I love that you guys. I could just tell it. 332 00:15:03,120 --> 00:15:05,840 Speaker 4: You're like, you were just doing this out of your love. 333 00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:08,200 Speaker 4: And we were like, you're right, you know, and he's like, well, 334 00:15:08,680 --> 00:15:11,560 Speaker 4: keep going, and then all right, that's the end of 335 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:13,960 Speaker 4: the meeting. And then we never saw him again, but 336 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:16,360 Speaker 4: it was so sweet that he took a little bit 337 00:15:16,400 --> 00:15:18,160 Speaker 4: of time to just say. It reminded me when I 338 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:20,080 Speaker 4: was young, he said we would go and do all 339 00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:22,480 Speaker 4: these things. It's just because we. 340 00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 3: Loved worked hard, and we worked hard. 341 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:26,280 Speaker 4: There's been a couple of times over the years where 342 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:27,520 Speaker 4: someone will come up to me and they want to 343 00:15:27,520 --> 00:15:28,080 Speaker 4: get the secret. 344 00:15:28,360 --> 00:15:30,200 Speaker 3: Ah, you guys made it up here. What's the secret? 345 00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:30,920 Speaker 3: You know, how did you do it? 346 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:33,360 Speaker 4: They want me to give them an answer so they 347 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:35,440 Speaker 4: can just take it, and then like, okay, I'll do that, 348 00:15:35,520 --> 00:15:38,120 Speaker 4: and it's like a shortcut, and I'm like, I don't 349 00:15:38,160 --> 00:15:40,400 Speaker 4: know what to tell you. Follow what you love and 350 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:43,760 Speaker 4: work really hard and who knows what will happen. 351 00:15:43,800 --> 00:15:46,480 Speaker 3: I mean, but that's all I can offer because I 352 00:15:46,520 --> 00:15:49,640 Speaker 3: can't say, here's the recipe. We didn't know it would 353 00:15:49,640 --> 00:15:51,800 Speaker 3: work out. It could have easily not worked. Yes, you 354 00:15:51,840 --> 00:15:52,320 Speaker 3: know what I mean. 355 00:15:52,440 --> 00:15:54,480 Speaker 2: We were having fun and you know a lot of 356 00:15:54,520 --> 00:15:56,880 Speaker 2: them is just trying to crack ourselves up. Yeah, but 357 00:15:57,000 --> 00:15:59,239 Speaker 2: we took cracking ourselves up seriously. 358 00:15:59,400 --> 00:16:01,880 Speaker 1: Now, what about yourself? Like if you said to me, 359 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:05,560 Speaker 1: what is the ultimate extension? Maybe that's the wrong phrase. 360 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:08,640 Speaker 1: What is the truest. I mean your artists. Was this 361 00:16:08,760 --> 00:16:12,480 Speaker 1: your artistic expression, whether other forms of artistic expression you 362 00:16:12,480 --> 00:16:15,760 Speaker 1: were playing with, dreaming of, thinking of, and this is 363 00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: how it ended up. 364 00:16:16,960 --> 00:16:20,400 Speaker 2: Well, what I discovered through it is a love of 365 00:16:20,600 --> 00:16:23,600 Speaker 2: Even though I had it in my background, I disregarded 366 00:16:23,600 --> 00:16:27,240 Speaker 2: it as important, the ability to work with tools and 367 00:16:27,800 --> 00:16:31,800 Speaker 2: understand hardware and you know, pipes and things like that. Yeah, 368 00:16:32,080 --> 00:16:34,840 Speaker 2: I thought, well, I'll leave all that behind, that's useless. 369 00:16:35,400 --> 00:16:38,640 Speaker 2: But through Blue Man, I discovered my love of like 370 00:16:38,800 --> 00:16:42,360 Speaker 2: making shit and being a creator of stuff, you know. 371 00:16:42,840 --> 00:16:46,480 Speaker 2: So that's kind of what I'm embarking on now is 372 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:49,720 Speaker 2: I have a lot of ideas for like useful objects, 373 00:16:50,120 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 2: and I'm just going to try to execute all of 374 00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:54,640 Speaker 2: that stuff that's in my head. I'm trying to follow 375 00:16:54,680 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 2: the the way that Blue Man started to follow what 376 00:16:57,160 --> 00:17:00,520 Speaker 2: makes me happy right now, you know. And so that's 377 00:17:00,600 --> 00:17:03,200 Speaker 2: it for me. I'm kind of pursuing what I found 378 00:17:03,280 --> 00:17:05,840 Speaker 2: through Blue Man to be sort of my real pursuit. 379 00:17:08,520 --> 00:17:12,560 Speaker 1: Blue Man groups Chris Wink and Phil Stanton. If you 380 00:17:12,680 --> 00:17:17,199 Speaker 1: enjoy conversations with eccentric Las Vegas performers, check out my 381 00:17:17,280 --> 00:17:21,280 Speaker 1: episode with Penjelette of the world famous Penn and Teller. 382 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:24,520 Speaker 5: You have to know that my mom and my dad 383 00:17:24,600 --> 00:17:29,400 Speaker 5: never said hell or damn or any absent in the house. Hardcore, 384 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:33,840 Speaker 5: no alcohol, no heller, damn. When I started doing card tricks, 385 00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:37,359 Speaker 5: my father was like, you won't be gambling though. You 386 00:17:37,359 --> 00:17:39,520 Speaker 5: can do card tricks, but I don't like having a 387 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:41,119 Speaker 5: deck of cards in the house. I would say, Dad, 388 00:17:41,119 --> 00:17:44,199 Speaker 5: I'm just doing manipulations and tricks. Well, that's fine. 389 00:17:44,880 --> 00:17:48,439 Speaker 1: To hear more of my conversation with Penjelette, go to 390 00:17:48,600 --> 00:17:52,040 Speaker 1: Here's the Thing dot org. After the break, Chris and 391 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:55,560 Speaker 1: Phil talk about debuting Blue Man Group in Las Vegas 392 00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:59,800 Speaker 1: and how an unlikely series of computer ads helped explode 393 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:16,520 Speaker 1: the group's popularity. I'm Alec Baldwin and you're listening to 394 00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:31,679 Speaker 1: Here's the Thing That's drum Bone from Blue Man Group's 395 00:18:31,760 --> 00:18:36,840 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety nine debut album audio. When Matt Goldman, Phil Stanton, 396 00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:40,399 Speaker 1: and Chris Wink first began performing, there were only three 397 00:18:40,680 --> 00:18:45,439 Speaker 1: Blue Men. Eventually, the original trio would train and hire 398 00:18:45,520 --> 00:18:49,720 Speaker 1: other performers to don the Blue Cape. I was curious 399 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:53,480 Speaker 1: what was involved with running Blue Man Groups organization off 400 00:18:53,480 --> 00:18:56,520 Speaker 1: stage and what projects they've been working on since. 401 00:18:58,040 --> 00:19:00,800 Speaker 2: Well at blue men. We were trained, we were writing 402 00:19:00,800 --> 00:19:04,840 Speaker 2: new material, we were directing, and well actually wandering a company. 403 00:19:04,920 --> 00:19:07,000 Speaker 4: One of the reasons I left is that we remember 404 00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,600 Speaker 4: the earlier story. I went into marketing and advertising, and 405 00:19:09,760 --> 00:19:10,920 Speaker 4: I got to get the fuck out of this. 406 00:19:11,280 --> 00:19:14,760 Speaker 3: I don't do my art. Jump cut to twenty fifteen. 407 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:17,680 Speaker 4: I'm the fucking marketing guy, right Phil, and I'm like, 408 00:19:17,720 --> 00:19:18,600 Speaker 4: what the fuck happened? 409 00:19:18,760 --> 00:19:20,560 Speaker 3: I'm begging marketing. They tricked me. 410 00:19:21,160 --> 00:19:23,080 Speaker 4: Of course I gotta get the So I wanted to 411 00:19:23,080 --> 00:19:25,280 Speaker 4: go back to being a scrappy artist a little bit. 412 00:19:25,320 --> 00:19:27,840 Speaker 4: So I started making shit in my bathroom. I made 413 00:19:27,840 --> 00:19:31,320 Speaker 4: this sort of infinity room with hanging neon stuff, and 414 00:19:31,359 --> 00:19:33,879 Speaker 4: that ended up turning into wink World, which is a 415 00:19:33,880 --> 00:19:36,320 Speaker 4: psychedelic funhouse. So I've been doing and it's all the 416 00:19:36,320 --> 00:19:38,600 Speaker 4: things I learned to bluem and it combining kids. 417 00:19:38,880 --> 00:19:39,440 Speaker 3: I have kids. 418 00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:40,240 Speaker 1: How old are they? 419 00:19:40,119 --> 00:19:44,720 Speaker 4: They're twenty and sixteen and I stepdaughter who's eighteen. 420 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:46,160 Speaker 1: And when you were in the house and doing your things, 421 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:46,640 Speaker 1: they just go. 422 00:19:46,880 --> 00:19:49,679 Speaker 4: Dad, there it goes again. They won the jackpot and 423 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:52,560 Speaker 4: they don't know it. I'm like, come on, let's get 424 00:19:52,560 --> 00:19:56,919 Speaker 4: all this shampoo and genius and We're like, oh, that's 425 00:19:56,960 --> 00:19:59,280 Speaker 4: just weird. Don't do that, dad. 426 00:19:59,520 --> 00:20:02,679 Speaker 2: You have kids, yeah, fifteen and seventeen, you might have 427 00:20:02,760 --> 00:20:04,880 Speaker 2: young kids. Yeah. 428 00:20:04,920 --> 00:20:07,560 Speaker 4: But to answer to the other question is that absolutely 429 00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:09,280 Speaker 4: it was was my fan. I couldn't think of a 430 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:11,760 Speaker 4: better fantasy than Blue Man and what I'm doing now, 431 00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:15,600 Speaker 4: which is to synergize things together symphony right, the word 432 00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:19,000 Speaker 4: implies sort of like bringing things together, right, and so 433 00:20:19,440 --> 00:20:24,360 Speaker 4: bringing disparate things. You know, what's the phrase something bedfellows, uncommon, 434 00:20:24,400 --> 00:20:28,960 Speaker 4: bed strange, strange, bed friends. That has been the best 435 00:20:29,119 --> 00:20:31,159 Speaker 4: reward of all this. It's great that we've had this 436 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:34,359 Speaker 4: whatever success, but the fact that we got to work 437 00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:36,920 Speaker 4: for many years, you know, doing something we loved. 438 00:20:36,760 --> 00:20:39,440 Speaker 2: And then the joy of performing in front of people. 439 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:41,159 Speaker 4: It's like, that was the fun thing about last I 440 00:20:41,200 --> 00:20:43,119 Speaker 4: haven't performed in a while and I missed that and 441 00:20:43,160 --> 00:20:44,040 Speaker 4: that has a drummer. 442 00:20:44,040 --> 00:20:45,400 Speaker 3: I like that too, So. 443 00:20:45,359 --> 00:20:47,760 Speaker 1: What have you been doing that? Just all individuals. 444 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:50,520 Speaker 3: We create these I've got these things in Wink world. 445 00:20:50,640 --> 00:20:54,879 Speaker 4: They're like, it's like a psychedelic ride at a tripped 446 00:20:54,880 --> 00:20:56,040 Speaker 4: out acid carnival. 447 00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,600 Speaker 3: Not that I ever have done drugs are psychedelics. 448 00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:02,919 Speaker 2: I actually haven't seen Wink World. Yet when did it 449 00:21:02,960 --> 00:21:05,320 Speaker 2: start right before the pandemic? No, right in the middle 450 00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:07,000 Speaker 2: of it, in the middle of it. So, yeah, I 451 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:08,960 Speaker 2: got out of travel most by accident. 452 00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:11,760 Speaker 3: It was the perfect thing for you know, social distancing. 453 00:21:11,880 --> 00:21:14,439 Speaker 1: But you guys are out of time. Once you are questing, 454 00:21:14,520 --> 00:21:17,240 Speaker 1: the things become really really huge, and you're gonna go 455 00:21:17,280 --> 00:21:20,320 Speaker 1: out on the road. Now, describe to me if you 456 00:21:20,320 --> 00:21:21,920 Speaker 1: I'm assuming some of you were all if you were 457 00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:24,639 Speaker 1: involved in some casting sessions, who's going to go out 458 00:21:24,680 --> 00:21:26,920 Speaker 1: on the road or who's going to replace you eventually 459 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:28,119 Speaker 1: on the show? What's that like? 460 00:21:28,200 --> 00:21:30,440 Speaker 4: Well, we didn't have understudies for the first We did 461 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:33,440 Speaker 4: the first three years without an understudy, or at least 462 00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:35,359 Speaker 4: the first two, and then after a certain point the 463 00:21:35,400 --> 00:21:38,320 Speaker 4: stage matages like you know, you guys should have an understudy, right, No, No, 464 00:21:38,359 --> 00:21:39,840 Speaker 4: we're really the only ones. 465 00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:42,080 Speaker 2: Yeah, we thought of ourselves as a band, you know, 466 00:21:42,160 --> 00:21:42,800 Speaker 2: like the beating. 467 00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 4: Because well, I'm going to train the drummer just in case, 468 00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:47,960 Speaker 4: and so we go whatever, But we're not going to 469 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:48,360 Speaker 4: help you. 470 00:21:48,359 --> 00:21:49,960 Speaker 3: You can train the drummer if you want, but he's 471 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:50,439 Speaker 3: not going on. 472 00:21:50,440 --> 00:21:52,840 Speaker 4: He's not going on ahead, so then fills at home, 473 00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:55,879 Speaker 4: you know, as you do before a show, using a 474 00:21:56,000 --> 00:21:59,600 Speaker 4: router to just do something, and apparently he routed his 475 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:01,160 Speaker 4: finger almost all the way off. 476 00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:03,880 Speaker 3: It shows up. It's like hanging by a thread. 477 00:22:04,680 --> 00:22:07,800 Speaker 2: You can't go on and no, I did, I did this? 478 00:22:08,119 --> 00:22:08,600 Speaker 3: Did the show? 479 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:10,720 Speaker 2: I see? Then you went to the hot and I 480 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:13,639 Speaker 2: needed surgery. So so weirdest thing about it, Like, like 481 00:22:13,640 --> 00:22:16,520 Speaker 2: I said, we thought of ourselves as a band. So 482 00:22:16,760 --> 00:22:19,600 Speaker 2: the first moment that we saw someone else play the character, 483 00:22:19,680 --> 00:22:22,720 Speaker 2: it's like, duh. We created a bald and blue character 484 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:25,600 Speaker 2: who is anonymous, and you know, other people and other 485 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:27,399 Speaker 2: races should play this character. 486 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:29,399 Speaker 3: We were. We would go around what it's about. 487 00:22:29,440 --> 00:22:31,280 Speaker 4: We would go around and brag about how much we 488 00:22:31,320 --> 00:22:33,200 Speaker 4: didn't have a big ego because of the blue man, 489 00:22:33,320 --> 00:22:35,600 Speaker 4: but we had this this thing. We're the only ones 490 00:22:35,640 --> 00:22:36,679 Speaker 4: that could do it. And then this guy comes in. 491 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:41,800 Speaker 4: He does it great, Like fucking a man is always 492 00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:44,280 Speaker 4: so humiliate. And also, you know, when you fail at 493 00:22:44,280 --> 00:22:46,800 Speaker 4: a piece like this business that we're in, you can 494 00:22:46,840 --> 00:22:49,479 Speaker 4: kind of get a big ego, but ultimately it's humbling, 495 00:22:49,600 --> 00:22:53,680 Speaker 4: right like because you at some point you realize like all. 496 00:22:53,640 --> 00:22:56,600 Speaker 2: Right, yeah, and then we thought we realized hey, we 497 00:22:56,640 --> 00:22:58,040 Speaker 2: can beat the McDonald's of them. 498 00:22:59,480 --> 00:23:01,120 Speaker 4: No, But it was funny because you remember when Pin 499 00:23:01,200 --> 00:23:03,440 Speaker 4: and Teller came and they were like, God, you guys. 500 00:23:03,240 --> 00:23:04,879 Speaker 3: Are so lucky because you could get other people to 501 00:23:04,880 --> 00:23:05,359 Speaker 3: do the show. 502 00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:09,480 Speaker 2: And we're like, no, no, we could cut the I'm 503 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:10,680 Speaker 2: the blue Man on the laft. 504 00:23:10,560 --> 00:23:13,840 Speaker 3: But something Actually, Penn and Teller we call him up. 505 00:23:13,840 --> 00:23:15,840 Speaker 3: We're like, hey, you remember what you said about us. 506 00:23:16,480 --> 00:23:18,520 Speaker 4: We think we wanted to open a show in Vegas, 507 00:23:18,680 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 4: and it's like, yeah, come on out. So they were 508 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:23,399 Speaker 4: the ones that showed us around Vegas, introduced them to 509 00:23:23,440 --> 00:23:27,160 Speaker 4: their manager, and then he got us the basically set 510 00:23:27,200 --> 00:23:27,479 Speaker 4: us up. 511 00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:29,080 Speaker 3: And so we owe that to Pen and Telly. 512 00:23:29,119 --> 00:23:31,680 Speaker 1: So I can't think of anything slightly more disparate here, 513 00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:34,320 Speaker 1: but enlightened me, which is to go from Lafayette, cross 514 00:23:34,320 --> 00:23:36,199 Speaker 1: the street from the public doing that show to go 515 00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:38,600 Speaker 1: to Vegas. Different crowd, so different. 516 00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:40,680 Speaker 4: By the way, By the way, we thought we'd gone 517 00:23:40,680 --> 00:23:42,159 Speaker 4: on the Tonight Show a couple We thought we were 518 00:23:42,200 --> 00:23:44,920 Speaker 4: sort of, you know, known, But we get out there. 519 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:48,520 Speaker 4: We open up as a headliner in a big theater 520 00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:52,359 Speaker 4: and empty and we're like, oh, oh, when you're a 521 00:23:52,359 --> 00:23:55,840 Speaker 4: headliner people supposed to know you are ship. We left 522 00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:58,520 Speaker 4: one thing out. The one thing we left what happened. 523 00:23:58,560 --> 00:23:59,960 Speaker 4: So we're like, all right, we gotta do something fast. 524 00:24:00,160 --> 00:24:02,080 Speaker 4: We got something fast. We're like, oh, we got to 525 00:24:02,080 --> 00:24:03,879 Speaker 4: get on some more tonight. We went on tonight. You 526 00:24:04,960 --> 00:24:06,520 Speaker 4: helped a little bit. First, we get a call from 527 00:24:06,520 --> 00:24:09,119 Speaker 4: the Lakers, we want you to perform at halftime, and 528 00:24:09,119 --> 00:24:10,040 Speaker 4: we're like, we'll do anything. 529 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:12,919 Speaker 3: We got to get keep this show up. And he goes, yeah, how. 530 00:24:12,760 --> 00:24:15,200 Speaker 4: Many is it on TV? Like non, they don't really 531 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:17,679 Speaker 4: televise the half timething. Then why are we doing it? Well, 532 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:21,919 Speaker 4: you know it's la and there's people. I'm like, well, okay, 533 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:23,840 Speaker 4: we'll do it. And he goes, but one thing, do 534 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:27,840 Speaker 4: you mind being gold and purple? That wouldn't be the 535 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:30,400 Speaker 4: blue mag up right, Yeah, but you know it's the Lakers. 536 00:24:30,440 --> 00:24:32,200 Speaker 4: You know those are colors, you know, And we're like, 537 00:24:32,560 --> 00:24:34,399 Speaker 4: what are you talking about? And we couldn't believe it. 538 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:36,040 Speaker 4: So we were just hung up, you know, and we 539 00:24:36,080 --> 00:24:38,280 Speaker 4: didn't do it. So then Intel calls, can you guys 540 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:39,600 Speaker 4: want you to do our ads? 541 00:24:39,840 --> 00:24:40,000 Speaker 2: Oh? 542 00:24:40,080 --> 00:24:42,440 Speaker 4: Yeah, because your logo is blue. You know, there's more 543 00:24:42,480 --> 00:24:44,320 Speaker 4: to a blue man than the blue color, you know. 544 00:24:44,560 --> 00:24:47,440 Speaker 4: So we said no, and then the guys says, no, listen, 545 00:24:47,560 --> 00:24:49,120 Speaker 4: I'm the head of the whatever. I always I want 546 00:24:49,160 --> 00:24:50,760 Speaker 4: to I want you to say no to me in person. 547 00:24:50,840 --> 00:24:52,520 Speaker 4: And as he comes in, why'd you say no? 548 00:24:53,080 --> 00:24:54,760 Speaker 3: It's just blue? And I don't know. 549 00:24:54,760 --> 00:24:57,080 Speaker 4: We were at the blue Man group and we appreciate it, 550 00:24:57,119 --> 00:24:59,600 Speaker 4: but like and he goes, no, no, it's not because 551 00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:01,520 Speaker 4: it's blue. We're trying We don't have a product. We're 552 00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:04,240 Speaker 4: selling the chip inside the computer. But our brand, what 553 00:25:04,240 --> 00:25:07,199 Speaker 4: we're trying to represent is smart, innovative, fun, and we 554 00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:10,280 Speaker 4: think that's what you represent. And we go, well, that's interesting, 555 00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:12,760 Speaker 4: and I said, but we'd have to have our name 556 00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:13,360 Speaker 4: in every ad. 557 00:25:13,520 --> 00:25:16,120 Speaker 3: Is oh shit, we can't. We can't do that. I said, Well, 558 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:18,840 Speaker 3: he comes back, is all right, we'll do it. 559 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:22,439 Speaker 4: So every single Intel commercial had our name in it 560 00:25:22,520 --> 00:25:26,200 Speaker 4: at the beginning for four seconds, contractually, and they played 561 00:25:26,200 --> 00:25:29,679 Speaker 4: it around the world and about three months later sold 562 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:31,040 Speaker 4: out every night in Vegas. 563 00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:31,479 Speaker 1: Wow. 564 00:25:31,720 --> 00:25:34,960 Speaker 2: Yeah. But but there is one thing a cultural context 565 00:25:35,080 --> 00:25:37,320 Speaker 2: to keep in mind too, is that there was no 566 00:25:37,359 --> 00:25:41,760 Speaker 2: precedent for artists being in the advertising world at that time, right, 567 00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:45,159 Speaker 2: you know, right, not even musicians didn't really even license. 568 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:46,920 Speaker 2: Everybody avoided that to commercials. 569 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:48,800 Speaker 1: Now when we were in my business, you go to 570 00:25:48,880 --> 00:25:51,320 Speaker 1: Japan and do Suntorial week commercials, they give you a 571 00:25:51,359 --> 00:25:52,680 Speaker 1: million dollars for one week. 572 00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:55,600 Speaker 3: We were proud of those bits. I mean you should. Yeah, people, 573 00:25:55,800 --> 00:25:57,240 Speaker 3: you can google them into it. 574 00:25:57,240 --> 00:25:59,800 Speaker 2: It was a great like thirty second medium toward. 575 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:01,240 Speaker 3: Oh, you know, it reminds me something. I want to 576 00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:02,639 Speaker 3: tell you about Vegas really quick now. 577 00:26:02,560 --> 00:26:03,960 Speaker 1: Now I want to hear a lot about that. Yeah. 578 00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:06,680 Speaker 4: So I remember a time when we started out in 579 00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:10,240 Speaker 4: the East Village and downtown and then there we were 580 00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:13,560 Speaker 4: one night in Vegas, a couple a little bit into 581 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:15,919 Speaker 4: the run and it was Rody a week and there 582 00:26:15,920 --> 00:26:17,880 Speaker 4: are all these guys in the audience with their hats 583 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:20,119 Speaker 4: on kebo heyes, and they didn't take them off. It's like, no, 584 00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:22,919 Speaker 4: it's I'm gonna fucking sit here in the audience with 585 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:25,080 Speaker 4: my cowboy hat on and no one's gonna tell him 586 00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:25,320 Speaker 4: not to. 587 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:28,440 Speaker 3: These guys are like steal, you know, done, and they. 588 00:26:28,640 --> 00:26:31,040 Speaker 4: And the show's over and we were directing at that 589 00:26:31,080 --> 00:26:33,840 Speaker 4: point that people are walking out and this. 590 00:26:33,760 --> 00:26:36,320 Speaker 3: Guy comes by and he goes, I don't know what 591 00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,200 Speaker 3: that was. But I locked it. 592 00:26:38,720 --> 00:26:41,320 Speaker 4: And we're like, all right, this is a new chapter, 593 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:42,879 Speaker 4: you know what I mean, Like like we were glad 594 00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:45,120 Speaker 4: that we were getting to different group. 595 00:26:45,560 --> 00:26:48,240 Speaker 1: So you're in Vegas, and how do you change? Meaning 596 00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:49,720 Speaker 1: I have a picture of you like in your room. 597 00:26:49,720 --> 00:26:51,760 Speaker 1: Now you're in your dressing room in Vegas, the other 598 00:26:51,800 --> 00:26:53,560 Speaker 1: place to paint this feeling. And now you're like on 599 00:26:53,560 --> 00:26:55,719 Speaker 1: the phone with your decorator going, this is not eagles 600 00:26:55,800 --> 00:27:00,560 Speaker 1: Nests the small paper, I said, eagles Nest. What happens? 601 00:27:00,600 --> 00:27:01,160 Speaker 3: Well, we didn't. 602 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:04,240 Speaker 4: I mean, we passed it on to the local crew 603 00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:07,160 Speaker 4: and you know, cast and everything. The fun thing about 604 00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:10,000 Speaker 4: Vegas was that the challenge was it was a bigger stage. 605 00:27:10,440 --> 00:27:12,840 Speaker 3: And so we're like, all right, how do we make. 606 00:27:12,720 --> 00:27:17,280 Speaker 4: This bigger without losing you know, the intimacy and the 607 00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:20,520 Speaker 4: real creative idea behind it. 608 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:22,919 Speaker 3: And so we said, well, let's see, shadows could be 609 00:27:22,960 --> 00:27:24,280 Speaker 3: really big, and so we. 610 00:27:24,200 --> 00:27:26,320 Speaker 4: Started playing with lights and a scrim kind of old 611 00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:28,720 Speaker 4: old school stuff, you know, but like, all right, let's 612 00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:31,199 Speaker 4: make this. And so we made the character really big 613 00:27:31,680 --> 00:27:33,840 Speaker 4: just by standing in front of lights and like you know, 614 00:27:33,960 --> 00:27:37,439 Speaker 4: drumming and the drumming on a scrim from behind. You know, 615 00:27:37,640 --> 00:27:41,359 Speaker 4: big this is pretty cool. So we had fun. And 616 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:43,560 Speaker 4: every time we've done a different kind of venue or 617 00:27:43,560 --> 00:27:46,439 Speaker 4: even the rock tour or whatever, it was fun to learn, like, 618 00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:48,159 Speaker 4: all right, what is this venue? 619 00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:49,320 Speaker 3: What are the challenges? 620 00:27:49,840 --> 00:27:52,320 Speaker 4: Actually, if you the aster when we were at La 621 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:54,239 Speaker 4: Mama and we moved to the Astro place, they had 622 00:27:54,240 --> 00:27:54,920 Speaker 4: this balcony. 623 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:57,600 Speaker 3: The balcony is ah, God, the balcon's kind of a bummer, Like, 624 00:27:57,680 --> 00:27:59,239 Speaker 3: you know, how do we deal with it? And then 625 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:00,879 Speaker 3: we're like, well, we can actually have a guy go 626 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:03,560 Speaker 3: up there. We can connect things, you know. So that's 627 00:28:03,920 --> 00:28:06,080 Speaker 3: we always looked at the saw. 628 00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:07,200 Speaker 2: Them as creative opportunity. 629 00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:09,480 Speaker 1: That's right. Yeah, So I'm gonna I'm going to jerk 630 00:28:09,560 --> 00:28:11,399 Speaker 1: us in a different direction, which is now that Matt's 631 00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:13,520 Speaker 1: out here, let's talk about Matt. Matt on the things 632 00:28:13,520 --> 00:28:15,000 Speaker 1: about Matt we want to say, I. 633 00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:17,000 Speaker 4: Don't know how he got food poisoning, but good thing 634 00:28:17,000 --> 00:28:18,280 Speaker 4: he didn't have it before the show. 635 00:28:18,359 --> 00:28:18,840 Speaker 3: Last night. 636 00:28:19,119 --> 00:28:22,719 Speaker 4: I was so wonderful, so magical, and we weren't planning 637 00:28:22,760 --> 00:28:25,040 Speaker 4: on doing Someone just said, you know, this guy is 638 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:25,840 Speaker 4: this last show. 639 00:28:25,920 --> 00:28:26,560 Speaker 3: He's Larry. 640 00:28:26,600 --> 00:28:29,080 Speaker 4: He's been playing since the beginning and we were He's 641 00:28:29,080 --> 00:28:30,560 Speaker 4: with us from the first thing we did. 642 00:28:30,800 --> 00:28:32,760 Speaker 2: Wrote a lot of the music with us, and he's. 643 00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:34,160 Speaker 3: Been in and out of the show on and off 644 00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:34,480 Speaker 3: for years. 645 00:28:34,520 --> 00:28:37,000 Speaker 4: But so someone's like, his last show is coming up, 646 00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:38,920 Speaker 4: I'm going to go in the drummer you guys want 647 00:28:38,920 --> 00:28:39,920 Speaker 4: to go into and we're. 648 00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:40,480 Speaker 3: Like, I why not? 649 00:28:40,640 --> 00:28:42,880 Speaker 4: So this all came together really last minute. But it 650 00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,720 Speaker 4: was fantastic, so much fun. 651 00:28:45,880 --> 00:28:47,400 Speaker 1: Uh did you have to cours? 652 00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:48,440 Speaker 5: No. 653 00:28:49,320 --> 00:28:51,720 Speaker 2: I would have never thought in a million years I'd 654 00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:54,720 Speaker 2: be back on stage though, and I'm glad I did again. 655 00:28:55,440 --> 00:29:00,040 Speaker 1: The theater, the immediacy, people, the routine, you know. So 656 00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:04,400 Speaker 1: what's interesting, especially for any show that is musical comedy, 657 00:29:04,440 --> 00:29:07,080 Speaker 1: not always necessarily the case with drama. Because when I 658 00:29:07,080 --> 00:29:09,480 Speaker 1: did Street Car Name Desire, I'm Broadway in nineteen ninety two, 659 00:29:09,760 --> 00:29:11,480 Speaker 1: you were thinking the show, if this isn't going over, 660 00:29:11,520 --> 00:29:14,720 Speaker 1: this isn't working well, and then you realize they were listening. Oh, 661 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:16,640 Speaker 1: they were listening intently. So when the show was over, 662 00:29:16,800 --> 00:29:19,040 Speaker 1: they all burst out sobbing and applauded and stood up 663 00:29:19,080 --> 00:29:21,640 Speaker 1: and went crazy. But during the show, nothing but with 664 00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:24,200 Speaker 1: you and comedies and musicals, you know exactly what you're 665 00:29:24,240 --> 00:29:26,440 Speaker 1: gonna do you know exactly how they're going to react. 666 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:29,680 Speaker 1: I mean, it's all such a wonderful toy. 667 00:29:29,480 --> 00:29:30,360 Speaker 3: But it's true. 668 00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:33,640 Speaker 4: It's funny as humans. It's a weird quirk when we 669 00:29:33,720 --> 00:29:36,000 Speaker 4: are laughing. When we're with something funny, we make a 670 00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:38,640 Speaker 4: sound and we don't like complain that other people are 671 00:29:38,640 --> 00:29:40,800 Speaker 4: making this weird sound. If an alien came down and 672 00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:43,720 Speaker 4: what are they doing. Oh they're laughing. Something's funny. But 673 00:29:43,800 --> 00:29:47,680 Speaker 4: with something sublime you might go, but pretty much you're silent. 674 00:29:48,160 --> 00:29:50,240 Speaker 4: So the actor has no idea that they could just 675 00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:53,400 Speaker 4: be bored or they could be being moved deeply. And 676 00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:56,800 Speaker 4: so we've had a similar experience our show. We like, 677 00:29:56,920 --> 00:30:00,400 Speaker 4: we hope that it's from the ridiculous to the sublime once. 678 00:30:00,200 --> 00:30:03,640 Speaker 3: In a while, but we don't know. You don't know 679 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:04,720 Speaker 3: the way you do it. 680 00:30:04,760 --> 00:30:10,520 Speaker 1: Comedy Chris Wink and Phil Stanton of Blue Man Group. 681 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:14,160 Speaker 1: If you're enjoying this conversation, tell a friend and be 682 00:30:14,240 --> 00:30:17,760 Speaker 1: sure to follow Here's the thing on the iHeartRadio app, 683 00:30:17,960 --> 00:30:22,560 Speaker 1: Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. When we come back, 684 00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:25,960 Speaker 1: Chris and Phil talk about what it's like to create 685 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:29,760 Speaker 1: a world famous show but still remain anonymous in their 686 00:30:29,840 --> 00:30:42,360 Speaker 1: Daily Lives. I'm Alec Baldwin. 687 00:30:42,200 --> 00:30:43,720 Speaker 3: And this is here's the thing. 688 00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:57,360 Speaker 1: That's the founding members a Blue Man Group performing Rods 689 00:30:57,400 --> 00:31:02,880 Speaker 1: and Cones from their nineteen ninety nine album Audio. One 690 00:31:02,880 --> 00:31:06,000 Speaker 1: of the many innovations from Blue Man Group was the 691 00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:11,200 Speaker 1: creation of musical instruments made from PVC pipes. I was 692 00:31:11,280 --> 00:31:14,640 Speaker 1: curious how such a unique idea took shape. 693 00:31:15,360 --> 00:31:18,080 Speaker 4: We were down on Canal Street and there was like, 694 00:31:18,280 --> 00:31:19,720 Speaker 4: I don't know, we were just going to build something, 695 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:22,200 Speaker 4: and we started playing with these pipes and we're hitting them, 696 00:31:22,440 --> 00:31:23,720 Speaker 4: like these make a pretty good sound. 697 00:31:23,760 --> 00:31:26,600 Speaker 2: In those days, there were like industrial supply places on 698 00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:28,920 Speaker 2: Canal Street, so we would go down there because we. 699 00:31:29,240 --> 00:31:31,480 Speaker 3: Like to the other than niche hotels. 700 00:31:32,520 --> 00:31:34,000 Speaker 4: But yeah, we were just playing with them, and then 701 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:37,479 Speaker 4: we started hitting them with flip flops, and you know, 702 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:42,000 Speaker 4: I wanted to as a drummer, We wanted to drum musically, 703 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:46,920 Speaker 4: but xylophones and celestis they have weird overtones that I 704 00:31:46,960 --> 00:31:50,880 Speaker 4: didn't like, and the PVC has a pure single tone. 705 00:31:50,920 --> 00:31:54,800 Speaker 1: The show numerous times, yeah, a couple of times, the 706 00:31:54,840 --> 00:31:58,160 Speaker 1: final show yesterday, they're they're coming to They're out. 707 00:31:58,040 --> 00:31:59,280 Speaker 3: Of town, right now. 708 00:31:59,240 --> 00:32:00,960 Speaker 1: They got to come in for the Yeah, and it's 709 00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:02,560 Speaker 1: gonna be the end. They're not gonna do it anymore. 710 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:06,800 Speaker 4: Well, there's still Vegas show, but we're not planning to 711 00:32:06,840 --> 00:32:09,080 Speaker 4: do anything else, so this probably must. 712 00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:12,760 Speaker 1: They pay you one billion dollars. Get up there at 713 00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:18,920 Speaker 1: the Royal alber Hole. Now you've had artistic triumph, but anonymity, 714 00:32:19,680 --> 00:32:22,280 Speaker 1: and then you became very famous people from doing the show. 715 00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:25,480 Speaker 1: But do you find that that's made you comfortable or 716 00:32:25,560 --> 00:32:27,080 Speaker 1: I mean, because you don't seem the people who were 717 00:32:27,080 --> 00:32:29,120 Speaker 1: like fame seekers on the onset. 718 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:31,000 Speaker 4: I mean, it's wonderful to be able to just ride 719 00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:34,080 Speaker 4: the subway and move around and the character is famous, 720 00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:36,680 Speaker 4: but we're not. There's times when it's annoying. I want 721 00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:38,680 Speaker 4: to get into a club or something and like now 722 00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:40,800 Speaker 4: who are you? I'm like, forget it. 723 00:32:42,560 --> 00:32:45,600 Speaker 1: Now, your wives had to raise a family. And I 724 00:32:45,600 --> 00:32:48,320 Speaker 1: think about this because I still love doing plays. I 725 00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:50,960 Speaker 1: love theater. I love it. It's the most fun. Movies 726 00:32:50,960 --> 00:32:53,880 Speaker 1: are challenging, but they are rarely fun. They're challenging to 727 00:32:53,960 --> 00:32:56,280 Speaker 1: fit it together. And then you do a play and 728 00:32:56,320 --> 00:32:57,640 Speaker 1: you're like, well I didn't like the way I did that. 729 00:32:57,640 --> 00:32:58,600 Speaker 1: I'm gonna do this tomorrow. 730 00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:01,480 Speaker 4: It's fair in my room and make no right iterative, 731 00:33:01,560 --> 00:33:04,080 Speaker 4: which is wonderful, luxury, all this stuff. 732 00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:06,920 Speaker 1: But you're away from your family every night. What was 733 00:33:06,960 --> 00:33:08,440 Speaker 1: it like for you all of those years where you're 734 00:33:08,680 --> 00:33:10,320 Speaker 1: you're doing a show every night forever. 735 00:33:10,760 --> 00:33:12,960 Speaker 3: Well, when we first did the run, I was I 736 00:33:12,960 --> 00:33:13,800 Speaker 3: didn't have kids yet. 737 00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:15,560 Speaker 2: Same for me, it was it was more. 738 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:20,800 Speaker 3: Yeah, no, after our long run, we had more flexibility. 739 00:33:20,840 --> 00:33:21,760 Speaker 1: That runs how long? 740 00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:24,240 Speaker 3: Well that was we did twelve hundred shows in a 741 00:33:24,320 --> 00:33:26,160 Speaker 3: row without a break. 742 00:33:26,880 --> 00:33:28,960 Speaker 2: And then we still perform for years, but not every 743 00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:30,920 Speaker 2: night because yeah, we have more abilities. 744 00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:34,080 Speaker 4: My kids were young, we were we were able to 745 00:33:34,160 --> 00:33:35,920 Speaker 4: pull it off. But yeah, it was, it was. It 746 00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:39,440 Speaker 4: was crazy. But but you mentioned though we opened the 747 00:33:39,480 --> 00:33:41,960 Speaker 4: show and we kept working on the bits for the 748 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,160 Speaker 4: whole three years, like but the most year. We got 749 00:33:45,160 --> 00:33:48,240 Speaker 4: a lot of the best nuances that you don't write 750 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:50,000 Speaker 4: them in a writer's room, you know, you write them 751 00:33:50,040 --> 00:33:52,480 Speaker 4: on stage. I always wonder about that because I, you know, 752 00:33:52,520 --> 00:33:55,280 Speaker 4: I haven't had a film experience, but man, as an 753 00:33:55,280 --> 00:33:58,120 Speaker 4: actor in film, you get one or two chances. We 754 00:33:58,160 --> 00:34:00,480 Speaker 4: got a chance to like work out stuff over and 755 00:34:00,720 --> 00:34:03,440 Speaker 4: even even last night, We did stuff that was in 756 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:05,960 Speaker 4: the show when we opened way back, and we added 757 00:34:05,960 --> 00:34:07,800 Speaker 4: some iterations just because we knew a lot of the 758 00:34:07,800 --> 00:34:09,799 Speaker 4: people there would have seen it all. But it was 759 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:12,440 Speaker 4: so fun to like try a couple of different things out, 760 00:34:12,480 --> 00:34:15,200 Speaker 4: you know, like they call it a play, but where's 761 00:34:15,239 --> 00:34:17,840 Speaker 4: the play. We're trying to put the play back in play, 762 00:34:17,880 --> 00:34:20,320 Speaker 4: you know, like the iteration and the play of like, no, 763 00:34:20,800 --> 00:34:23,120 Speaker 4: you can't do that with a you know Shakespeare, I'm 764 00:34:23,120 --> 00:34:25,400 Speaker 4: gonna I'm gonna play with his words. I mean, I 765 00:34:25,440 --> 00:34:26,320 Speaker 4: can do something better. 766 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:28,880 Speaker 1: I did a play once about Puccino. The play was 767 00:34:28,880 --> 00:34:31,319 Speaker 1: written by a friend of Pacino, about Pacino, and I 768 00:34:31,360 --> 00:34:34,919 Speaker 1: did the play and I played Pacino. Oh Wowchino comes 769 00:34:34,920 --> 00:34:39,280 Speaker 1: on to just exhaust and just to completely malign the director. 770 00:34:39,560 --> 00:34:42,440 Speaker 1: He's doing a scene and in the scene, the character 771 00:34:42,520 --> 00:34:45,560 Speaker 1: reads Shakespeare, but he changes all the words. Director goes, 772 00:34:45,600 --> 00:34:47,759 Speaker 1: what are you doing? And the Patina car goes, I 773 00:34:47,880 --> 00:34:50,960 Speaker 1: just sold I'd riff I'd do a little riffing. I'm 774 00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:55,640 Speaker 1: gonna riff on Shakespeare. That's what I'm gonna do, is share. 775 00:34:55,960 --> 00:34:58,480 Speaker 1: And this is in the play, and you're fucking crying 776 00:34:58,560 --> 00:35:00,200 Speaker 1: listen to this anyway, In the time you have. I 777 00:35:00,280 --> 00:35:01,840 Speaker 1: think got one more quick question, which is that what 778 00:35:02,040 --> 00:35:04,879 Speaker 1: stuff you saw back then? Because you guys are known 779 00:35:04,920 --> 00:35:07,080 Speaker 1: as one of the most original shows. It's so original, 780 00:35:07,160 --> 00:35:09,520 Speaker 1: and everybody they loved you. I was in a New 781 00:35:09,600 --> 00:35:11,640 Speaker 1: York where everybody in the whole fucking town saw you. 782 00:35:11,719 --> 00:35:13,839 Speaker 1: Everybody came down there to see that. Just with your 783 00:35:14,360 --> 00:35:16,680 Speaker 1: cred now and who you are creatively, one of the 784 00:35:16,680 --> 00:35:18,680 Speaker 1: things you saw that you've been impressed with you, Man, 785 00:35:18,719 --> 00:35:20,000 Speaker 1: that's really cool. I like that. 786 00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:24,040 Speaker 2: The most recent thing that really blew me away was Hamilton, right, 787 00:35:24,600 --> 00:35:26,280 Speaker 2: very I mean that's not unusual. 788 00:35:26,400 --> 00:35:29,200 Speaker 3: And I liked Firs, the Brutus stuff. Where's a bruta 789 00:35:29,440 --> 00:35:34,160 Speaker 3: was margin? They did some really nice stuff, I thought. 790 00:35:34,600 --> 00:35:37,239 Speaker 4: But I mean, god, there's there's a lot of good 791 00:35:37,280 --> 00:35:39,279 Speaker 4: stuff out there and little bits and pieces. When you 792 00:35:39,320 --> 00:35:41,239 Speaker 4: go to Berning, man, you just see some dude on 793 00:35:41,280 --> 00:35:42,600 Speaker 4: a bike that's inspired. 794 00:35:42,760 --> 00:35:46,080 Speaker 2: Yeah. When we first started, Broadway was not the place 795 00:35:46,200 --> 00:35:51,319 Speaker 2: for innovation. No, you know, we were Downtownwntown, Lovetown was 796 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:54,839 Speaker 2: very separated, you know, and downtown was the place for 797 00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:59,600 Speaker 2: innovation and creativity really, but now you know, Broadway is 798 00:35:59,600 --> 00:36:01,160 Speaker 2: a place for great innovation. 799 00:36:02,360 --> 00:36:04,560 Speaker 1: I would count On one hand, the shows I saw 800 00:36:04,840 --> 00:36:07,160 Speaker 1: that were super creative and really really knocked me down, 801 00:36:07,400 --> 00:36:09,920 Speaker 1: and yours is one obviously that's for a lot of people. 802 00:36:09,960 --> 00:36:11,319 Speaker 1: And the other one, I mean, it's gonna sound with 803 00:36:11,400 --> 00:36:13,359 Speaker 1: Lion King. When I saw my. 804 00:36:13,239 --> 00:36:16,440 Speaker 2: Mouth was on, My mouth was on that opening sequence 805 00:36:16,560 --> 00:36:18,320 Speaker 2: is one mouth was open greatest. 806 00:36:18,120 --> 00:36:22,080 Speaker 4: Julie Taymour, and then Michael Curry was the Oh I 807 00:36:22,120 --> 00:36:26,120 Speaker 4: built the puppets, but she visioned them genius stuff. And 808 00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:29,040 Speaker 4: then my kids make fun of me because I took 809 00:36:29,080 --> 00:36:32,440 Speaker 4: them when they were younger to gazillion bubbles. Oh all right, 810 00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:35,040 Speaker 4: so this is the cheesiest show of bubbles everywhere lasers are. 811 00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:37,799 Speaker 4: But I was just at the end, you know, I 812 00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:40,080 Speaker 4: just like, look at all these bubbles and they looked over. 813 00:36:40,200 --> 00:36:42,840 Speaker 4: I was crying a little bit because it was just beautiful. 814 00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:45,840 Speaker 4: Bubbles are amazing. They're perfectly round. I mean, and my 815 00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:48,480 Speaker 4: kids like, dah, that's that's crazy. You were crying at 816 00:36:48,480 --> 00:36:49,240 Speaker 4: gazelle bubbles. 817 00:36:49,239 --> 00:36:52,600 Speaker 3: I'm like, it was. I know it's cheesy, but there 818 00:36:52,640 --> 00:36:54,399 Speaker 3: was a gazillion of them. Man, there was a lot. 819 00:36:54,719 --> 00:36:57,680 Speaker 1: What's the stuff you put on yourself to turn grease paint? 820 00:36:58,040 --> 00:37:01,319 Speaker 1: Regular showiness? Because showed probably grace. Yeah, and it comes 821 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:03,600 Speaker 1: in a bucket or a tube or a big big 822 00:37:03,640 --> 00:37:06,520 Speaker 1: tub pail, big tubs. If someone applies it to you, 823 00:37:06,880 --> 00:37:10,839 Speaker 1: we do I just out and makes it look. 824 00:37:11,200 --> 00:37:12,080 Speaker 3: Yeah, if we kind of do it. 825 00:37:12,600 --> 00:37:15,799 Speaker 2: We were never trying to go for blue skin. It's 826 00:37:15,840 --> 00:37:17,080 Speaker 2: like we actually. 827 00:37:16,760 --> 00:37:20,120 Speaker 4: Opened the show without a wardrobe person. I believe they 828 00:37:20,120 --> 00:37:23,000 Speaker 4: cut that cost. We were on our own completely. It 829 00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:25,919 Speaker 4: is a crazy thing. When we first opened, we would 830 00:37:25,960 --> 00:37:28,719 Speaker 4: have to wear neutrial gloves on our hands and then 831 00:37:28,760 --> 00:37:30,600 Speaker 4: we would take other We couldn't put the blue in 832 00:37:30,640 --> 00:37:32,480 Speaker 4: our hands because they would get everywhere. Yeah, So we 833 00:37:32,520 --> 00:37:35,120 Speaker 4: had to wear these, you know, surgical gloves or whatever, 834 00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:37,440 Speaker 4: and so people would have to dye them with this 835 00:37:37,520 --> 00:37:39,360 Speaker 4: writ dye that was nasty and and they have to 836 00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:41,279 Speaker 4: try to keep it from getting on the inside. Because 837 00:37:41,920 --> 00:37:45,440 Speaker 4: so at some point someone called the new Trial company 838 00:37:45,640 --> 00:37:49,480 Speaker 4: and glove company said, hey, can you guys dye these fours. 839 00:37:49,760 --> 00:37:51,400 Speaker 3: They didn't have blue gloves back then. 840 00:37:51,600 --> 00:37:53,719 Speaker 4: So they made blue gloves for us because we were 841 00:37:53,800 --> 00:37:55,759 Speaker 4: ordering so many and and we said we ordered for 842 00:37:55,800 --> 00:37:56,920 Speaker 4: three cities. 843 00:37:56,760 --> 00:37:58,239 Speaker 3: And we're ordered like three years worth. 844 00:37:58,360 --> 00:38:00,560 Speaker 4: If you'll do this, they did it, and then they 845 00:38:00,640 --> 00:38:04,160 Speaker 4: decided to make him available to the public. And when 846 00:38:04,160 --> 00:38:06,160 Speaker 4: you go out and see all the people in Ozzen 847 00:38:06,239 --> 00:38:07,439 Speaker 4: wearing the blue gloves. 848 00:38:07,200 --> 00:38:08,000 Speaker 2: That's us. 849 00:38:08,080 --> 00:38:08,760 Speaker 3: It's true. 850 00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:09,880 Speaker 2: That's so funny. 851 00:38:09,920 --> 00:38:10,799 Speaker 3: It didn't happen before that. 852 00:38:15,719 --> 00:38:19,040 Speaker 1: My thanks to Blue Man Groups, Chris Wink and Phil Stanton. 853 00:38:19,640 --> 00:38:22,800 Speaker 1: You can still see Blue Man Group in Boston, Las Vegas, 854 00:38:22,920 --> 00:38:28,399 Speaker 1: Orlando and internationally. I'll leave you with Club Nowhere, from 855 00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:32,960 Speaker 1: Blue Man Group's nineteen ninety nine debut album, audio by 856 00:38:33,040 --> 00:38:35,600 Speaker 1: Alec Baldwin. Here's the thing that's brought to you by 857 00:38:35,680 --> 00:38:49,400 Speaker 1: iHeart Radio. 858 00:39:02,800 --> 00:39:02,840 Speaker 3: The