'Penguins' documentary, penguins exhibit, arrive March 1 at Science Spectrum
Posted: February 15, 2014
The 2013 film “Saving Mr. Banks” reminded us that Dick Van Dyke had danced with animated penguins as far back as 1964 in the Disney musical “Mary Poppins.” As recently as 2011, visual effects helped Jim Carrey act and dance opposite these real flightless, aquatic birds in “Mr. Popper’s Penguins.”
Animated films found penguins singing and dancing in “Happy Feet” in 2006 and surfing in “Surf’s Up” in 2007. The animated penguins introduced in 2005’s “Madagascar” became such viewer favorites that they would be featured in sequels and star in their own direct-to-DVD spinoffs.
The award-winning 2005 documentary “March of the Penguins,” narrated by Morgan Freeman, romanticized the devotion of real Emperor penguin parents.
Yet another documentary, “Penguins, A Tale of Love and Survival in Penguin City,” opens March 1 at the Science Spectrum’s Omni Theater, 2579 S. Loop 289. Narrated by David Attenborough, 87, a British naturalist and broadcaster, the 43-minute film focuses on one King penguin and his journey through his species’ central rite of passage while returning to Penguin City, his birthplace in the sub-Antarctic — population, 6 million penguins.
However, Lubbock’s Science Spectrum will, from March 1 through June 15, also introduce four very real African Rock penguins in an exhibit called “Penguin Plunge!”
They will live in a state-of-the-art penguin habitat constructed inside the Science Spectrum. That habitat, according to James Nesmith, administrative manager of the Science Spectrum for 17 years, “includes both water and land inside the enclosure.” More than 2,500 gallons of water flow inside the penguin habitat.
\
In 2013, the Omni opened the documentary “Flight of the Butterflies,” and a greenhouse built to house live butterflies attracted more than 42,000 people during its three-and-a-half months in Lubbock.
The Science Spectrum has fared well with robotic dinosaurs, and its annual, four-day Critter Fest attracted 10,000 critter fans in 2013. Nesmith, 41, said, “With no zoo in Lubbock, our animal and natural history exhibits always seem to do well here. “This is the first time for the Science Spectrum, and I think the first time for the city of Lubbock, to bring in a traveling penguin exhibit.”
Temperature- and humidity-controlled, the penguin habitat is “much more labor intensive” than past exhibits, said Nesmith.
So Kevin Rhodes, lead animal curator for Lubbock’s Science Spectrum, will be sent for a full week to the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., to study the care of African Rock penguins. In turn, Rachel Cain, one of the Gulfarium’s animal keepers, will accompany the four birds to Lubbock and oversee the introduction to their new penguin habitat.
Visitors will be able to watch these penguins eat, swim, play and sleep. The Science Spectrum’s animal caretakers and educators will deliver daily presentations for visitors, covering such topics as what a penguin eats, how they avoid predators, how they raise their young and how they communicate with one another.
Nesmith indicated that, more often than not, penguins are very active. “The only time they are not,” he said, “is during a two-week molting process, when they shed feathers and grow new feathers.
“During that period, they still will swim around and eat. They’re just not as playful.”
Insider tips for this exhibit:
■ Admission is on a first-come, first-served basis. To avoid possible lines, consider arriving early in the day.
■ Strollers are allowed inside the exhibition space, which also is wheelchair accessible.
■ The museum will stay open until 6 p.m. during spring break, March 15-23.
■ Call 745-2525, ext. 234, to reserve group rates for groups of 10 or more.
After spring break, said Nesmith, a very limited number of passes will admit visitors backstage for 30 minutes, where they can see how penguins are cared for and fed, and receive a one-on-one photo opportunity.
The number of backstage passes is limited; early pass purchases are recommended. Backstage passes are $25 for the general public and $20 for children between the ages of 3 and 12 and seniors age 60 and older.
Daily ticket prices:
■ Penguin exhibit, with “Penguins” film and Science Spectrum museum: $17.50 for general public, and $13.50 for children and seniors.
■ Penguin exhibit, with either the “Penguins” film or Science Spectrum museum: $12.50 for general public, and $9.50 for children and seniors.
■ “Penguins” film only: $8 for general public, and $6.50 for children and seniors.
source
No comments:
Post a Comment