Astor Place Theatre — Attraction in New York

I have to write a review from two perspectives; as a wife having fun with her husband AWAY from kids and as a mother of four :

REVIEW FOR COUPLES/ADULTS:Went to New York alone to visit my husband working out there and I was in charge of the entertainment and this was one of the shows I was interested in because I’ve heard about it before and I seen a couple of videos here and there online and it was so entertaining and I assumed I was going to get the same in person. The show was entertaining however it seems like it was extremely short. I thought it was like a 30 or 45 minute show only. There’s no adult beverages for sale. I have to say my expectations were a little high for the show and it was nothing like I’ve seen or heard online. I was in the first row and was swearing a poncho provided the Pancho got stuck on the stage in front of me and it’s dark and one of the employees came to me and yelled at me to put my feet down and I thought she was talking to somebody else, but she was yelling at me. I told her my feet weren’t even up against the stage It was the Poncho but she already had walked away, it got stuck on the stage from the liquid that flew on us. I felt like a kid being yelled at. They had people from the audience participate, but it was people from all the way in the back that took a little time away from the show and we were right in the front and I was hoping my husband was able to have some kind of interaction to have a core memory forever at least, but that didn’t happen. Would I go to this show again? Maybe in Vegas if it’s a rated R version but other than that no. But again, they did an awesome awesome job.

REVIEW FOR FAMILIES: as a mother if my kids were younger than 10, this is a great entertaining show for the family because it’s short simple there’s no talking. It’s just funny guys painted and blue having fun and they were very entertaining. I wish I would’ve seen more though. lots of family with their little kids. It’s a small theater so if the kids need to go to the bathroom, it’s not that far. It’s a little crowded so the kids are not able to run...

Summary: Disappointing overall for adults. Occasional creativity and impressive visual effects outweighed by overused slapstick humor, gross childish humor, sluggish pace, and awkward audience interactions.

Details: I went to the show with high expectations after seeing Blue Man Group in Portland, Oregon 8 years ago, which I thought was excellent. Many of the same aspects in Portland that I liked were still present in NYC--the bright paint with percussion, Drumbone performance, neon band, etc. But almost everything seemed lackluster. The sound quality was only okay. The artificial fog that we were warned about in NYC (and that I saw in Portland) never appeared. The strobe lights were painful, rather than exciting. And the jokes seemed to drag on forever. The novelty of the Blue Men wandering out onto the audience chairs would have been funny if only for 30 seconds, but after several minutes I was thoroughly bored.

In addition, many of the jokes seemed to be unnecessarily gross. I'm in the medical field and am not particularly bothered by references to the human body, but it felt as though the Blue Men were stuck in the oral phase of human development--everything needed to go inside their mouths and be spat out again. Funny the first time, not so much repeated over and over. Maybe it was my seat in the nosebleed section in Portland, but I don't remember ever being grossed or bored.

I left with the impression that the show had found that children were its most enthusiastic supporters, and that the bar of humor and effects had since been oriented primarily towards that age group, and that...

One of my friends took me here as a surprise for my birthday to see Blue Man Group. I have always wanted to see them. The theater is very intimate, and honestly there isn't a bad seat in the house, you can see the entire show. The group was AMAZING! The show is interactive, and lots of fun. They incorporate science into their show, but it is far, far from boring. The performers will come into the audience during the show every now and then, which is 90 minutes long, with NO intermission, but honestly you don't even notice the time passing. I'm not sure if there is an entrance for anyone who has mobility issues, however, there is a larger restroom for anyone using a wheelchair. The only drawback is a very small ladies room, which can have a line both before and after she show. However, even with this, I had a wonderful time, laughed and sang. One more important note: if anyone suffers from migraines or epilepsy, think carefully about going to see the show, because there is a part where there are flashing lights, which might trigger an episode. I am not sure if they change the performance every now and then, or if every show incorporates these lights, so a call to the theater would be a good idea, if there are any concerns. Seeing this show was one of the BEST birthday gifts I was ever...