Observet́ oiles National Geographic and Au Diable Vert - The heavens align
The heavens align in such fascinating ways. So much is about timing, so much is left up to some strange, ever-adapting and evolving design and so much is about what we can measure, control, understand, learn from and manipulate.
For the team at National Geographic Observetoiles (the brand new initiative pairing the innovation of the team at Au Diable Vert, Glen Sutton’s beautiful and unusual camping experience and National Geographic) tending to the recently birthed world’s first outdoor augmented reality astronomy experience will be keeping them up nights.
Seventeen years ago my godson was keeping his parents up nights too. I was present at his birth, assisted by midwives at the Centre de Maternité de l’estrie. He changed my world. A few weeks ago he graduated from high school at my Alma Mater, Richmond Regional High School. I watched him take the stage to receive his diploma and to collect an award for visual arts. I was there as he signed the traditional grad wall; that just happened to be outside of the homeroom that housed our gang every morning for five years there. The background is black, with a large, gold, angular hour glass, and beside it is written, “What feels like the end is often the beginning.”
Fred Rogers, also known as his character Mr. Rogers, from PBS children’s show Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, said something very similar to that – “Often, when you think you’re at the end of something, you’re at the beginning of something else.”
For weeks leading up to my godson’s graduation, I toiled over a gift that could represent the pride I felt (and feel) over his achievement. I would give him the world.
I couldn’t do that, but I realized in the days leading up to the June 21st date, that I could actually give him space. And this didn’t mean personal space. This meant giving him the “final frontier”.
On July 1st, Tyler and I made our way through the remarkably untamed land of the aptly-named Scenic Road towards Au Diable Vert, with its charming campsites, with names such as Pooh Corner, Strawberry Fields, Grand Duc, and Highlands. We laughed our away along the steep, winding dirt road towards the main building, with its breathtaking view of sky and rolling green hills.
At what we thought was the top, we were invited to drive further up, to a parking area reserved for the Observetoiles events. We settled the car and walked up a roadway leading to the gated area where the impressive outdoor amphitheatre was located, featuring high-tech heated seats (not that we needed them this week, but very convenient for future chillier evenings).
We stood at the padlocked gates, advised that we had roughly a half hour to wait. Both lifelong sci-fi and fantasy fans, we talked about Harry Potter and Star Wars, including fan theories, our personal reviews of the films and favourites among them.
A short while later, we were greeted by a gentleman who opened the gates, and explained that we were welcomed to walk up to the observatory, where we could leave an I.D. card or car keys in exchange for the high-tech headsets that held a cellular phone used to display the augmented reality show. At the end of the show we were to return the cell phones in exchange for our personal items, but we would be allowed to keep the headsets, and would be instructed how to download an app to do our own stargazing. Talk about a bonus!
Tyler and I were the first to be served and to choose our seating. It turns out there wasn’t really a bad seat in the house. The sky was as clear as it could be considering the heat-wave we were in the throes of – just a slight haze in the air, over the majesty of rolling hills.
With the days yet long, night took longer to fall. We continued our geekspeak, this time venturing into the Marvel Universe and our thoughts on the unfolding of superhero cross-over storylines. At dusk, the presenters emerged onto the intimate stage before us, and explained how to use the headsets. We would have to place them on our heads, and tilt our heads to the right to activate the show, including the Star Chart application.
Astronomer Pierre Paquette guided us first through a show relating the details and stories of our solar system, while the planets seemed to spin before us. While there were some technical challenges, mostly related to timing (each person
activates their headset themselves, resulting in synchronicity issues between the details relayed by our guide and what each person visioned), however, the visuals were so impressive, that this was a minor blip. The presentation was done bilingually, dispelling some myths and explaining details about each planet making them even more spectacular.
Next, we began a star-gazing experience, with constellations mapped out in lines and points, featured within drawings representing their traditionallynamed formations. The night sky was visible to us as it is currently laid out; meaning that if we looked down, or behind us, we would see the star formations that are not visible in our night sky currently, but that are in constant motion, back during their designated seasons.
Mr. Paquette took us through the myths once used to explain the arrivals and departures of specific arrangements – Scorpio at this time of year, never sharing the sky with Orion, who was killed by the scorpion. We also saw Jupiter, Hercules, and the signs of the Zodiac.
For an hour we journeyed together, what looked like a full-house in the 184seating amphitheatre and Mr. Paquette helming us along the Milky Way and beyond.
Jeremy Fontana and his creative team at Au Diable Vert, in conjunction with National Geographic have truly brought the heavens to our heavenly region.
At the end of the presentation, Tyler and I extracted the phones from our headsets in exchange for my I.D. card. We headed off into the night, the windows down to catch a breeze, and talking about the importance of friends, and a memory for every year of his school experience. We discussed how we are both Scorpios, both born on a Tuesday. This time together felt like an end – yet we experienced it within the infinite expanses of space, under our own stars at home in the Townships. A new beginning awaits Tyler, one could almost refer to it as “a new hope” (a little something for the Star Wars fans), and this new Townships experience has the potential to grow into a tremendous tourist feature.
Thank you to National Geographic Observetoiles, Jeremy Fontana, Au Diable Vert and Pierre Paquette for a stellar experience, and congratulations Tyler Ruben Matthews, and to the RRHS Class of 2018! The sky isn’t the limit. Only our imaginations are .... so let’s continue to go beyond!
Observetoiles will be running nine months of the year, can host up to 184 guests in their state-of-the-art heated seating, features theatrical lighting and a high-performance sound-system. Cloudy nights will not stop the show, and guests are contacted should poor weather interfere with the show.
National Geographic LLC is a partnership between National Geographic and 20th Century Fox. NGP returns 27 percent of their proceeds to non-profit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education.
For more information and to book tickets for National Geographic Observetoiles, visit www.observetoiles.com or contact Au Diable Vert at (450) 5385639.