Drummer Todd Waetzig grew up in St. Louis and moved to Boston to attend the prestigious Berklee College of Music. He knew his life was going to be about music but was still very much in the process of discovering and exploring what kind of musician he wanted to be. “I realized what I’m best suited to do is pursue rock drumming even though I was interested in so many different things, but rock music seemed a bit one-dimensional for what I wanted to do,” he says. “I had no idea how to break out of that.” Fortunately, a unique opportunity popped up when he was invited by another drummer to check out an intimate, avant-garde theater performance by Blue Man Group in Boston. He was captivated. He auditioned and joined the show's band and was soon shipped out to Las Vegas to help open the biggest Blue Man production yet at Luxor. The rest is percussive history.
What were your first impressions of the Blue Man Group?
I remember sitting there, right in the middle of the theater at the end of the show when there’s a lot of chaos, and just looking around thinking, “How could anybody not like this?” I was watching the drummer and I couldn’t figure out if he was improvising or if it was planned, but it was unlike anything I’d ever seen. It was pretty exciting.
You’ve been the show’s music director for about six years now. What was it like arriving in Las Vegas to begin this new adventure?
I’d never been to Las Vegas or to the desert. It was taking a chance, coming out here, and I never thought I’d be out here almost 20 years now, but it’s the best thing I’ve ever done and I really love it still. When I came out here, I immediately felt comfortable. And, at that point, it was the biggest show Blue Man had ever done. The size of the band increased from a trio to seven people, and everything Blue Man had built up to that point really exploded. And it escalated further a few years later when we did an arena tour and it became apparent that the Blue Man character is able to adapt to his surroundings.
The Blue Men are so recognizable now and the audience loves the characters, but it’s also driven by the music.
Very much so. There are more of us than there are them. But the Blue Men are obviously musicians as well. Even though there’s a lot of focus on the characters, there is a special interaction because they don’t speak. Music is Blue Man. It’s what they do, communicate through music. And we’re a loud band. It’s supposed to be a very visceral show from the audience perspective and the performer perspective. We’re tired when we’re done and if not, we’re not doing something right.
How much space do you have in the show for musical improvisation?
There has to be organization in music or else it won’t make sense. But there are parts, especially when the Blue Men are interacting with the audience, that are improvised because you never know what you’re going to get as far as a reaction from people. We’ve been practicing for many years now to be able to express ourselves musically to match what the Blue Men are doing.
That must keep the performance fresh for the musicians, but you’re probably always making small tweaks and changes to the music.
The music has changed quite a bit. What we try to do over time is continue to hone what we have to make it more engaging with the audience. Part of my job is to watch a lot of shows and it’s really interesting to be in a band where you get to watch that band. That doesn’t happen a lot for most people. I’ve been doing this for 20 years now and every time I go up there I want it to be better than the last time. To always be improving on something you really like to do, it makes you feel like you can do it forever, until my hands fall off.
Luxor, 7 & 9:30 p.m. daily, additional 4 p.m. show June 9, $59-$115.05, $175 VIP Behind the Blue package plus tax and fee. 702.262.4400
