Star Trek exhibit an immersive experience
Telus Spark goes all out with Star Trek exhibit
The scowling Klingon does not look like he suffers fools gladly.
He is a language instructor at the Starfleet Academy, barking orders at new recruits from a touchscreen at Telus Spark. On this particular morning, he is attempting to teach a hapless journalist the correct pronunciation of the Klingon insult Hab SoSII Quch, which translates to “Your mother has a small forehead.”
First try: “Try again!” Second try: “Incorrect, but moving on!” he says, exhibiting as much patience as a Klingon can muster.
The language station is only one of the exhibits at Telus Spark’s Star Trek: The Starfleet Academy Experience, which opens Saturday and offers a hands-on look at some of the science behind Gene Roddenberry’s pioneering sci-fi series and its many spinoffs. It’s a fully immersive experience that takes spectators through various tests and exercises to determine where they might fit upon graduating from Starfleet Academy.
How immersive? While the exhibit features props and costumes from every chapter of the Star Trek universe and Hall of Fame displays that feature its favourite characters, there is nary a mention that this world is fictional.
“You are not going see a reference to the actors and you’re not going to see a reference to what went on behind the scenes,” says Kat Dornian, whose name-tag refers to her as the Fluor Champion of Engineering Communication. “We are cadets in the Starfleet Academy and we’re training to be part of Starfleet. We’re not looking behind the scenes. We are in it.
Attendees are given a bracelet, which allows them to operate various tests and delve into experiences of the Star Trek universe. There’s a transporter display, where you can see yourself beamed out of the Enterprise. There’s a phaser challenge, medical quiz, planetary survey and even a version of the Kobayashi Maru, the character-testing exercise that Captain James T. Kirk admitted to cheating on in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. By the end, it will be determined how the participant can best serve Starfleet, whether it be in engineering, navigation, tactical, science, medical, communications or command.
“It’s so essential that what we bring to Telus Spark is interactive and hands-on,” Dornian says. “We want to get people exploring technologies and seeing how it relates to them personally.”
Telus Spark has pulled out all the stops, hiring new staff and more than a dozen volunteers. Even the volunteers were put through an interview process to ensure they were bonafide Trekkies (One reportedly speaks fluent Klingon).
A gala opening, held for VIPs Friday night, was to feature Star Trek actors Jonathan Frakes (Commander William Riker), LeVar Burton (Lt. Commander Geordie La Forge) and Garrett Wang (Ensign Harry Kim).
But the travelling exhibit is full of recognizable goodies from the series. Produced by EMS Entertainment and CBS, many of the props are on loan from German collector Martin Netter, who says he owns 150,000 pieces of Star Trek history and merchandise and, in the 1990s, was dubbed Mr. Star Trek by Paramount Germany.
There’s a few furry tribbles, phasers, Starfleet uniforms of all types and — perhaps the piece de resistance — a recreation of the Next Generation-era bridge of the enterprise.
“It’s absolutely amazing,” says Dornian. “You feel like you are a captain or a first officer and you can really play the part of being on a Star Trek.”
Star Trek: The Starfleet Academy Experience opens Saturday and runs until June 4. Visit sparkscience.ca