Peter Yarrow of "Peter, Paul & Mary" fame, joins with singer Amanda Palmer to bring down the house at the Brooklyn Bowl Monday, with a rendition of "If I Had a Hammer."

There’s nothing like the Brooklyn Bowl in Vermont, but there’s one in Brooklyn, and Monday night it was all about Vermont. The popular NYC performance venue and the long-running performance artists, Blue Man Group, presented an evening benefit for “Vermont Storm Relief.”

There is a strong Central Vermont connection with the New York Blue Man Group. Three performers, Brian Scott, Chris Bowen, and Isaac Eddy, all hail from the Randolph area. Eddy and Bowen performed for Monday's benefit; Scott was “bald and blue” for the Berlin show that evening. Eddy and another Vermonter, Blue Man wardrobe head, Zea Barker of Wallingford, conceived Monday's event, and then enlisted Brooklyn Bowl's manager, James Robb, committed his space and enthusiasm two weeks ago.

The Brooklyn Bowl is a huge venue. Inside the cavernous space are a blue ribbon diner, bowling alleys, a bar, a performance area, and large welcoming areas where, for this event, a showcase of Vermont products supported the cause. Donors included businesses as diverse as Burton Snowboards, Braintree’s Quaker Hill Granola, and The Center for Cartoon Studies.

With the Brooklyn Bowl pledging gate receipts and Blue Man Group putting up money and huge staff support, Barker and Eddy went shopping for more corporate sponsorship and a headlining performer. Amanda Palmer, an edgy and very popular New York punk rocker in the “Brechtian” vein, and a friend of Zea Barker, readily agreed.

Next, Cabot of Vermont came aboard as a major sponsor. .

“Once again the farmers came through,” enthused Eddy. “Cabot's involvement was huge. The farmers covered our expenses, guaranteeing that our gate and auction proceeds would all go to the relief effort.”

On stage, Palmer's talents were joined by others, including The London Souls, Sonya Kitchell, D.J. Spirit Bear and Blue Man Group. Hilarious was an impromptu Palmer/Blue Man on-stage rave with Vermont maple sugarmaker Max Cantor, from Deep Mountain Maple in West Glover.

The surprise of the evening was when Peter Yarrow, of Peter, Paul and Mary fame, took the stage and paid homage to Palmer, thanking her “for being a voice for the people, for standing in solidarity, for being here tonight.” Then, magically, Yarrow and Palmer together sang “Blowin' in the Wind,” and “If I had a Hammer.” Said Eddy of this performance, “This was the moment in the night that made the whole event truly special. I just held my wife and sang along, watching Peter and Amanda make magic.”

In addition to the donated items from Vermont, many artists donated work for the benefit. They included Brookfield’s Ed Koren, who designed the poster, and numerous others including photographers Mikael Kennedy, Brian Scott, Elise Rasmussen and Bob Eddy. Original art was given by Samuel Rowlett, Alec Longtreth, Brett Haines, Amanda Palmer, and Jennifer Kahn. Darkcloud, a Vermont-born Brooklyn street artist, designed t-shirts and contributed an artwork. Finally, Long Trail Brewing contributed beer for the evening.

Throughout the Brooklyn Bowl—even in the bowling alley section—were movie screens, some 30 of them, showing photographs of Irene’s devastation in Vermont. All of them came from the pages of The Herald of Randolph.

At the heart of the welcoming area, were Stuart Comstock-Gay and Scott McArdle of the Vermont Community Foundation, which has helped coordinate much of the philanthropic response following Irene.

“The energy of this evening is just incredible,” said Comstock-Gay. “These people are enthusiastic, they are concerned, and they care … What's become very clear to us is that when people are given a taste of Vermont, they care about Vermont. Vermont is a beacon of inspiration and hope.”