Blue Man Group to end run in New York City after more than 30 years

The Blue Man Group will conclude its off-Broadway New York run in February 2025 after playing 17,000 plus performances over more than 30 years.

The group is known for its iconic blue-faced, bright-eyed bald humanoids that perform a myriad of stage antics, such as paint-splattering, drum-playing and marshmallow-catching. They are set to play their final performance on 2 February.

It was announced that the show will also end its Chicago run on 5 January, but carry on in other cities, including Las Vegas, Boston and Berlin. The performers are scheduled to recommence a run of shows in Orlando, Florida, in 2025 following postponements from the coronavirus pandemic.

“I am honored and humbled to be part of the historic evolution of Blue Man Group, which started in New York back in 1991, and so it is with deepest gratitude to announce the final performances in Chicago,” said Jack Kenn, the group’s managing director, in a statement obtained by ABC7 Chicago.

The closure of the New York production was announced in a press release. No reasons for the sudden closure were included in the statement.

The announcement comes at a time when theaters around New York and across the country are struggling to stay afloat amid dwindling ticket sales and shrinking audience sizes compared to pre-pandemic shows.

Blue Man Group was formed in the 1980s as a sort of performance-art experiment. The group had their New York debut in 1991 when they landed a residence at the Astor Place Theatre, where they still perform to this day.

Cirque du Soleil acquired Blue Man Group in 2017.