For those of you who go to college football games because you love the half-time show, Royce Hall is hosting the perfect show for you. For those of you who demand that the marching band return to the sidelines as soon as you return from the concession stand, you will find that this show gets redundant really quickly.
“Blast!,” which is being performed nightly at Royce Hall through Sept. 1, is a musical ensemble spectacular in three main elements: drums, brass and visual. This 2001 Tony Award-winner for Best Special Theatrical Event tries to show a link between color and music by melding choreography, music and lighting to give the audience six vignettes of drum-songs, brass-numbers and drill routines.
The stage is open with a back wall designed as a two-story wall of drummers. Three cubes containing drum sets are placed on top of another three cubes, each lit a different color. The brass section wears dark jumpsuits that lend a German-industrial appearance, and the flag teams run around in colorful dance outfits looking like silly musical performers.
When the three groups work in concert, their precision is actually quite impressive. However, the lack of any bond between the performers and the audience gives the groups a distant, plastic image. The show, also currently being performed in a 30-minute version at Disneyland, is a perfect fit for the Magic Kingdom, with the performers’ parade-ready smiles permanently affixed to their faces.
Another problem with the production is that the performers move in the exaggerated style of old musical theater, making them seem antiquated, thus falling short of the innovative, modern appeal that they are going for.
The cast doesn’t speak during the two-act show, but if it did, it would say, “I’m in a Broadway musical, so I run like Martin Short with a ferret in his trousers.”
Although the routines became repetitive and annoyingly noisy, the featured solos offered brief glimpses of a few performers’ individual abilities. However, the problems with the solos mirrored those of the overall production – while loud and exciting, they lacked originality and technical skill. They were spectacles, and only marginally better than street performers on the Santa Monica Promenade and the Venice Beach Boardwalk.
While there are occasional moments of humor and an impressive musical transition, there is a distressing lack of memorable moments. “Blast!’s” disposable saccharine fanfare is better suited for a Las Vegas showroom or family amusement park.
The performers are all recent and former college marching band members between the ages of 21 and 33, and they definitely project a high level of enthusiasm and dedication. According to “Blast!’s” visual ensemble leader Deborah Barrington, the group trained 12 to 16 hours a day for three months in preparation for the production.
In spite of the performers’ zeal and hard work, after seeing “Blast!” it becomes painfully obvious why the football game lasts three hours and the half-time show is limited to a mere 15 minutes.
For tickets, visit the Central Ticket Office, the Royce Hall box office or call (213) 365-3500. Ticket prices range from $42-$67, with a limited number of $22 student discount tickets.