“Curatorial accuracy doesn’t have to be stuffy, dry or at the expense of a great visitor experience. The new Donald W. Reynolds Museum & Education Center at Mount Vernon proves that. This museum recently hit the 1 million attendance mark – its highest in five years – and has been named for a top industry award – the “Thea” - because we’ve created something uniquely compelling that tells the story of our first president, George Washington,” said Dennis Moore of Dennis Earl Moore Productions (DEMP).
Leading entertainment design and film production company DEMP provided essential design and media services for the acclaimed new heritage center documenting the life, work and legacy of George Washington, located in Mount Vernon, Virginia USA, close to the nation’s capital.
The Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center will receive the prestigious Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement (AOA) in the Museum category, given by TEA (Themed Entertainment Association), an international trade alliance representing the makers of compelling experiences and places. The Thea awards will be officially presented March 8, 2008 at TEA’s 14th Thea Awards Gala, a black-tie, “who’s who” night for the attractions industry at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California.
According to Mount Vernon’s executive director James C. Rees, and education director Ann Phillips Bay, many visitors who arrive at Mount Vernon today have gaps in their understanding of George Washington the man, his life, his times and his accomplishments. The mission of the new museum is to fill in those gaps with educational displays and experiences that draw on the full range of exhibitry: a combination of classic display techniques such as theatrically lit, lifesize wax figures in historic tableaux, and important artifacts in display cases; as well as state-of-the-art multimedia and interactive experiences, including the piece de resistance – the “4-D” Revolutionary War Theater – and the stirring Legacy Theater, which surrounds the audience in a 13-projector format. These two outstanding shows were written, designed and produced by DEMP, which also designed many other aspects of the 23-gallery, 17,000-square-foot, visitor experience.
Visitors are educated – but they are also enthralled, engaged, and entertained at the Donald W. Reynolds Museum & Education Center. The real George Washington – man, boy, president, farmer, Renaissance man of his time – does emerge. And with the 2008 presidential election fast approaching, it is worth looking at how Washington originated the office.
Dennis Moore brought to the project extensive experience on heritage projects, including the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument in Kearney, Nebraska (recipient of a 2001 Thea Award) and a distinguished background as an IMAX® filmmaker (he produced and directed the influential Flyers and Living Planet for Francis Thompson). The most popular feature in the Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center is the DEMP-produced, 110-seat Revolutionary War Theater, which immerses its audience in a 14-minute telling of three key battles: Boston, Trenton and Yorktown. Through compelling narration and skillful use of historic images, artifacts and battle maps, the story unfolds with both drama and curatorial accuracy. Audiences are given a sense of Washington’s thoughts and actions as well as the conditions the soldiers experienced. In-theater effects include lighting, fog, falling snow and rumbling seats that evoke cannon fire. “The effect is exhilarating,” wrote Desson Thomson in the Washington Post. “It’s as if you’re watching the American Revolution from Washington’s own strategy table.”
The last stop in the exhibit hall is the Legacy Theater, a moving conclusion using images, music and the spoken word. General Colin Powell (retired), presidential historian David McCullough and the Grammy-winning Brooklyn Youth Choir are among those who pay tribute to Washington in this five-minute wrapup, written, designed and produced by DEMP. It is presented in ultra-high-def video, in a 360-degree wraparound cinema using 13 projectors.
The core design team was made up of three firms: DEMP, Christopher Chadbourne & Associates and Museum Design Associates. Preliminary engineering, technical design and AV design for exhibits and theaters were done by DEMP. This included four unique soundscapes and the presentation environments for 14 History Channel videos. Design & Production of Lorton, VA was subcontracted to do the final engineering and installation under DEMP’s contract and direction. Art Guild, Inc. was the exhibit fabricator. Lighting designer was Available Light. Studio EIS of Brooklyn created several forensic sculptures of George Washington at age 19, 45 and 57, working closely with forensic anthropologist Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz.
About Dennis Earl Moore Productions
Dennis Earl Moore Productions (DEMP) is an entertainment design and film production company based in Brooklyn USA and headed by Dennis Earl Moore. With an eye for accuracy and an instinct for engagement, the company creates unique projects for education, corporate, retail and entertainment venues. Services include concept, content, script and story development; design, engineering and integration; immersive audio and video; and all-format media production as well as installation. DEMP stresses teamwork and the appropriate use of technology to create one-of-a-kind guest experiences. Curatorial accuracy is a company hallmark. More info: Call 718-875-8024 or visit www.dempinc.com.
About the Donald W. Reynolds Museum & Education Center
From the time of its opening in October 2006, the Donald W. Reynolds Museum & Education Center, made possible by a $24 million donation by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, has received enthusiastic reviews in the mainstream media, including feature stories in the Washington Post, the New York Times and American Heritage. It is part of a recent $110 million expansion of the interpretive exhibit areas within George Washington’s Mt. Vernon Estate & Gardens, the 50-acre complex on the site of George and Martha Washington’s former home. More info: www.mountvernon.org.
About TEA and the Thea Awards
The TEA (formerly Themed Entertainment Association) is a nonprofit, international alliance founded in 1991 and now representing some 6,500 creative specialists, from architects to designers, technical specialists to master planners, scenic fabricators to artists, and builders to feasibility analysts working in nearly 500 firms in 39 different countries – the makers of compelling experiences and places. The Thea Awards, presented annually to some 15 qualifying projects around the world, recognize creative excellence and are considered the industry’s highest honors. Visit www.TEAConnect.org