Covert operation
New NYC museum will ensnare you in the world of spycraft
T HINK you could be James Bond? At Spyscape, a new museum opening in Hell’s Kitchen this weekend, you can actually see how you’d measure up to 007.
New York City’s first museum devoted to the art of espionage includes exhibits on famous spies and code breakers, displays of nifty gadgets and artifacts and blow-by-blow tutorials for how to catch a double agent. But the real draw is the selection of interactive games that test visitors’ own deception, encryption and intelligence skills — and determine what kind of spy they could be.
“We wanted people to come here and not just learn about the history of spying, but to see how it affects their lives today,” the museum’s chief of staff, Shelby Prichard, tells The Post. “So we created this immersive, multimedia experience.”
Upon entering the sleek, dark, neon-lit space, visitors get an “identity band,” which uses radiofrequency identification technology to track their Spyscape journies. After learning the 10 different spy types — such as spy catchers (who thwart enemy agents) and intelligence analysts (who make decisions based on collected data) — museumgoers head to the encryption gallery to find out about Alan Turing and the machine he built to help the Allies decipher the Nazis’ coded messages.
At the hacking, cyberwarfare and deception exhibits, among others, visitors can try out spying skills such as how to beat a lie-detector test in an interrogation booth, catch suspicious activities on surveillance feeds, or run through a tunnel filled with flashing lasers that need to be avoided and dismantled.
In the end, curious visitors can scan their wristbands and get a “debriefing” on their adventure — and find out what kind of spy they are destined to be. Amateur spies can also get some tips on how to use the skills they’ve picked up in their day-to-day lives.
“Working for Spyscape, I have learned a lot about how to better protect myself online and other skills,” says Prichard. “We take very seriously our role in helping people understand how they can apply the things they’ve learned here out in the real world.”
Daily, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets, $39 for adults, $32 for kids 3 to 12. Students free opening weekend. Spyscape, 928 Eighth Ave.; Spyscape.com.