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By Cathy Hamaker, Children's Museum Exhibit Developer
Cathy has developed permanent exhibits like Beyond Spaceship Earth and ScienceWorks, as well as traveling exhibits like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Secrets of the Sewer. Coincidentally, Cathy has ancestry from the circus capital of Indiana, Peru. In this blog, Cathy talks about the accessibility of interactives in the exhibit, Circus—Starring YOU!
There’s a lot of whirling and twirling going on in Circus—Starring YOU!, and we’re happy to have it. When planning and building this exhibit, we wanted to focus on human performance, so likewise, we want all humans to be able to put on a show! It’s important to the Exhibits team that we make the experiences available to everyone. Consider an example of a child who is unable to walk. If a parent knows their child can be lifted out of their chair, they can sit on the seated lyra ring within the exhibit and swing around and back-and-forth on the ring. If they need help, there will be staff to assist. When choosing classic circus acts to be featured in the exhibit, we had to prototype and test to find a balance (pun intended) between safety, thrill, and accessibility for all.
Take an act like the tightrope walk. We first tested a wire cable about two inches off the ground. Unfortunately, even having it the slightest bit above ground created potential for severe injury. We still have the tightrope, but now it simply lays on the ground. Because the cable is thick, stepping on it still requires a level of balance.
In addition to the actual tightrope, we have a virtual-reality tightrope. The advancements of virtual-reality technology have created and enhanced experiences for people who may be too fearful or physically unable to try an experience in reality. Someone who is afraid of heights can try the high-wire balancing act without fearing a fatal fall. A person in a wheelchair can have the sensation of being high above the ground and looking down into a cheering crowd. Our virtual-reality tightrope is a perfect example of increasing access to these unique experiences within the exhibit.
But wait, there’s more! Check out these adaptations to the interactives in Circus—Starring YOU!:
- Rolla bolla - Our rolla bolla has handholds to assist in balancing.
- Digital interactives - Our digital interactives have audio and captioning.
- Juggling - We’ve built two juggling simulators (each at different heights) so that visitors can practice the hand-eye coordination required in juggling. These simulators don’t even require grasp, just the ability to push.
The atmosphere alone in Circus—Starring YOU! is immersive and amazing. The sights, smells, and sounds of the circus captivate audiences. It’s a place where families of all shapes and sizes get to be stars and put on a show beneath the Big Top. The exhibit is now open and the show will go on until Nov. 2017!
Learn more about the creation of this exhibit in the blog post, “Behind-the-Scenes Exhibit Development.”
