Pete Simpson Jr. learned early that sometimes the most powerful thing someone can do on stage is say nothing. His first theatrical role at age 11 in Sheridan was as a mime in his family's production of "The Fantasticks.”
It foreshadowed what would become Simpson’s creative journey from stages across Wyoming to a 29-year run as Blue Man No. 9, the silent, blue-painted character who would make Simpson the most prolific performer in Blue Man Group history.
More than 5,000 performances across four countries, zero words spoken.
From his Brooklyn apartment, Simpson told Cowboy State Daily this week that when he was growing up as part of his family’s Spontaneous Theater Company, "I was probably the shyest of the lot. I was the quiet witness."
His mother Lynne’s assessment was direct: "My mom once said, way back when, 'He's going to grow up to be a wonderful, reserved librarian.'"
In February, Blue Man Group ended its epic run after 17,800 shows in New York City alone.
Since leaving his full-time gig with Blue Man Group, Simpson has taken on a bookish pursuit — transforming a 750-page tome about mathematics into something alive and entertaining.
In New York, Simpson said he still carries with him some “Rocky Mountain peace and sensibility” as he enters a new chapter in his creative life and continues to expand what it means to have a wildly successful career in experimental theater.
At the same time, the Wyoming theater community that launched the career of at least one blue mime continues to thrive.
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (Courtesy Photo) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com)
Blue Calling
Simpson's path to Blue Man Group began during graduate school at the National Theater Conservatory in Denver, where experimental theater videos opened his eyes to performance possibilities beyond conventional drama. When a classmate mentioned Blue Man Group — noting Simpson's drumming background — the suggestion took root.
Pete’s parents joined him in the audience to watch a Blue Man Group performance for the first time.
"I remember getting in the car afterward and having this silence in the back seat of the car, and I finally just leaned over to mom — will never forget this — and said, ‘Mom, I think I can do this one," Simpson recalled. "I was like, it's my wheelhouse — movement, high energy performance and drumming."
As Simpson moved through the audition process, he could feel the elements of a dream job coming together — one with origins witnessed by another University of Wyoming alum.
Patrick Willingham went to high school in Cheyenne and worked with Simpson on college productions in Laramie. When Pete arrived to audition for Blue Man Group, Willingham was pleasantly surprised to run into him.
“I was working with the three founders, running the business and sort of getting ready for our worldwide expansion,” Willingham told Cowboy State Daily about his early days working on the management side of Blue Man Group. “And as I was walking to the Astor Place Theater, where our offices were at that point in time, I walked up and I saw this kid.”
There was Pete, getting into a character he would inhabit for a long time.
"I still have an old VHS of me getting in blue for the very first time in front of the originals,” said Simpson, referring to the three original blue men. “You just see my head and wheels turning, trying to figure out what it is this character is.”
"It's really extraordinary that he sort of went from this kid in Wyoming, ended up working here for decades,” said Willingham, summarizing Simpson’s approach to breaking into the New York theater scene. “Show up, do the work, and away you go."
Willingham went on to have his own stellar career as part of the production team for hits like “Hamilton.”
Simpson said, “He and I kind of grew up in Blue together there for a little bit, which was wild.”
After he was hired as Blue Man No. 9 — there are now more than 100 — Simpson moved into the company's "crash pad" above the original Astor Place Theater.
It was a studio apartment with "an odd arrangement of bunks" where company members would appear at all hours.
"It was beaten to hell," Simpson said, comparing it to flow houses of "the old Bowery days." The accommodations embodied the scrappy, communal spirit that characterized Blue Man Group's early years.
For the next 29 years, Simpson inhabited this blue universe. He performed for audiences that included cultural luminaries like Joni Mitchell, David Bowie and Robert De Niro. Night after night, he would cover himself in blue makeup and step into a world where wonder was the primary mode of communication.
"You never know what a dream job is going to look like until you're in it. Especially in the arts,” he said.
The role demanded extraordinary stamina, both physical and psychological. Simpson found satisfaction in the repetition, in the nightly ritual of transformation that allowed him to explore the boundaries between performer and character, silence and sound.
The experience earned him an Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Performance in 2017 — recognition that reflected not just his Blue Man work but his collaborations with more than 20 different directors and companies.
Legacy and Recognition
Understanding Pete Jr. requires understanding the Simpson family's particular brand of community theater. His parents, Pete Sr. and Lynne, were theatrical nomads who followed academic opportunities across the West and Wyoming with the persistence of pioneers.
"Dad was finishing his U. of Oregon Ph.D. from abroad (Jackson) and then working various administrative/deanship positions at community colleges (Casper, Sheridan) in his push to get a position at UW (our Laramie years). For myself and sibs, it felt like a lot of movin'!" Simpson wrote in an email.
The Simpson family's contribution to Wyoming's cultural landscape has recently been recognized through significant honors from the University of Wyoming. Lynne Simpson received the Distinguished Alumni Award for five decades of arts advocacy, while the Pete and Lynne Simpson Student Enrichment Fund in the Humanities will support internship opportunities for students, with preference given to those pursuing experiences within Wyoming.
Pete Jr. said the fund reflects a family philosophy about the relationship between education and community — the belief that cultural vitality isn't confined to major metropolitan areas, that meaningful work in the humanities can happen anywhere.
He’s excited to see his parents celebrated in their golden years by the university where he and his father once performed together in “Hamlet.”
“I am a smiley person like my dad,” said Pete Jr., describing his lot — including his mother Lynne and uncle Alan Simpson, the late, legendary U.S. senator.
“We’re sunshiny-faced folks who love to say, ‘Hi.’ Not just, ‘How are you doing?’ But, ‘Tell me about your family,’” he explained.
For Pete Jr., the end of his long run with Blue Man Group is allowing him to take on a variety of new work. He has a project in October in Idaho and back in New York City, he’s returning to his experimental roots.
Experimental Math
A copy of Douglas Hofstadter's "Gödel, Escher, Bach," the 750-page exploration of consciousness, mathematics and art was given to him "as a practical joke" due to its notoriously indecipherable text.
For most, it’s more doorstop than a creative touchstone, but somehow Simpson took a shine to it.
"I thought, ‘What if I just make a piece out of this where, you know, just Hail Mary, what is it?’" Simpson said, describing the innovative performance he’s producing at a space called Mercury Store. The work will incorporate movement, music, text and singing.
“I'm throwing everything at this,” he said.
Other upcoming projects include a Broadway workshop opposite Rosie Perez, and the eight-hour adaptation of "The Great Gatsby" that he's performed with the theater company called Elevator Repair Service.
To all of it, Simpson brings a little bit of his home state with him.
"I like to think there still is, you know. I’m trying to be a good Wyoming boy out here," he said. "You never kicked that stuff out."
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (Courtesy Photo) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com) 
Wyoming's Pete Simpson Jr. performed more than 5,000 times without saying a word as Blue Man No. 9 in the world-famous Blue Man Group. Over a 29-year run, he became the longest-tenured member of the unique experimental theater troupe. (nyctourism.com)
Wyoming Breeding Ground
The homegrown theater world that nurtured Simpson's early career ambitions continues to grow and evolve in ways that — like Pete Jr. himself — place value on the experimental.
For Anne Mason, who studied under Simpson during a teaching stint at the University of Wyoming and now runs the grassroots theater organization Relative Theatrics in Laramie, Simpson's career path represents something both inspiring and instructive for young Wyoming artists.
"It's very unique to see the way in which Pete dons the blue face, body paints, and found his footing through that, through that avenue," Mason said, reflecting on how Simpson carved out his niche in experimental performance rather than following traditional theater pathways.
Mason credits the Simpson family with creating the foundation that makes such careers possible.
"They are so instrumental in the development of theater as a possible industry here in Wyoming," she explained. "It's very minimal. But we wouldn't have anything close to what we have if it weren't for what the Simpsons did."
As someone who now mentors young performers, Mason draws from Simpson's example when counseling students about their futures.
"I've really focused on, whenever I work with students who come through the university in particular, or young actors who I've directed, ensuring that they define their own version of success," she said, whether that means pursuing Broadway-level achievement or finding fulfillment in regional theater.
That philosophy is bearing fruit across the state. Leean Kim Troske, director of literary programs at Denver Center for the Performing Arts and a University of Wyoming graduate, told Cowboy State Daily a thriving theater ecosystem continues to nurture new talent.
"My experience of Wyoming theater is that it is alive and well, and that younger generations have continued to carry the torch and make great art throughout the state," said Troske, who served as a keynote speaker at this year's Wyoming Fringe Festival in Casper.
Troske points to both established institutions and emerging companies as evidence of the scene's vitality. There are theaters in towns like Sheridan "where people who I was an undergraduate with now lead that theater company," she noted, alongside newer ventures like Mason's Relative Theater and the Lyric Theater in Casper, which hosted its second annual Fringe Fest this past summer.
“Fringe festivals are an excellent avenue for many experimental artists, performance artists," Troske explained. "Fringe Festivals include a variety of genres of performance that can range from music to comedy to experimental theater, to performance art to traditional theater."
At the Casper festival, Troske witnessed firsthand how Wyoming's dispersed theater community comes together to support new work.
"I got to see a variety of artists from all over the state of Wyoming in one weekend, which was a really fantastic experience," she said.
Through Mason's consulting work, she has identified "almost 40 theater organizations or theater groups" across Wyoming — "one in almost every county."
Sometimes performers who got their start at one of these little companies follow the path to New York City partially blazed by Simpson, Willingham and a few other UW graduates.
"The thing about people from Wyoming, we are nice people,” said Willingham. “And that gets you ahead in so many things, I always thought.”
"Anytime I get word of a Wyoming kid, if their name is connected to the University of Wyoming, I do what I can. Like, ‘Let's have coffee. Let's talk about what you want to do, how you picture it happening,’” said Simpson. “Just talk about navigating this crazy city in this crazy business. I will always try and offer that to kids from Wyoming and anybody. Because of course, it's Wyoming. It’s special.”
Contact David Madison at david@cowboystatedaily.com
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
