InPark Magazine: For those who have been to a theme park anytime in the last decade, it is impossible not to notice the significant role of audiovisual systems and media. Designers of theme parks and out-of-home attractions are continually pushing the envelope to create memorable experiences and provide options that differentiate an experience from what’s available in the home or elsewhere.
4 comments:
When I started reading this and it described the early days of dark rides, I thought back to when I used to go to Kennywood as a kid and would ride the Old Mill. It was simple skeleton animatronics that filled most of the ride, and I was consistently entertained because that the was the standard and it was what I expected to be thrilled by. I think it’s interesting thought how the article states that the wow factor is high and I don’t know if I entirely agree with this statement. The wow factor is high to the older generations but the wow factor is at the normal level for the generation that has grown up with 4-D rides. They expect these things while older generations expect the music and props. Going back to the example of the Old Mill, this dark ride has now been turned into a ride called Garfield’s Nightmare in order to connect with generations that like these cartoons and bright neon colors and 3-D glasses.
AV design in themed entertainment has really changed how people view the ride experience now. Rides used to just focus on the coaster and there was not a lot that went into the queue or the music that was playing. Themed rides have become very popular now especially with new technology. With the combination of the ride, media, sound, and 4D effects rides have become full experiences that transform you into a different world. I personally liked the ride at Harry Potter World because the car moved on a track and also was held by an arm to move it around in any direction. The different video screens you were moved to helped put you in a different scene. Everything was synced together very well especially when you got spat on by a creature and felt the heat from the fire-breathing dragon. All of the AV elements helped to create an immersive experience for the audience.
Crossover between the specific work we do in theatre and the world at large is always fascinating to me, and theme parks are a great example of this. For example, when I rode the Little Mermaid ride at Walt Disney World, the clamshells take you into a large room where catwalks crisscrossed the ceiling and Source 4s lit the room. AV design in theme park attractions also are a cool way to see the new methods of immersing people, and it won't be a surprise when theatre experiences in the same vein as Sleep no More borrow from this kind of tech. Venues such as the haunted house discussed in the article are the kind of thing that will scare you, but also leave you in complete awe as to how that kind of thing is possible, which is the way I want people to view my work. There's something to be said for the typical theme park experience, like Kennywood, where it's just Rollercoasters and steep drops all the way around. Future exhibits (and theatre productions, for that matter), though, will need to innovate and push the limits of what we think is possible to truly stay competitive in a world where attention spans get shorter every second.
As someone who is a total amusement park and roller coaster geek, I find the evolution of high tech rides very exciting. As their name suggests, “rides” have traditionally relied on the physical aspect to entertain passengers. On the other hand, “dark rides” have relied on the story telling aspect, or other wow-factors, to entertain. With physically exciting roller coasters now adopting the techniques of dark rides, a new breed of high tech, fully immersive experience is being created – combining the physical with the psychological. What started as cheap tropes at “theme” parks has evolved into sophisticated story-telling, with ride designers adopting somewhat theatrical techniques in the process. For freelance designers, the rise of such attractions could mean good news for employment opportunities. On a larger scale, collaboration between the amusement park industry and theatre industry could also yield exciting results. Immersive attractions (my mind jumps to “Tomb” by 5-Wits Boston) are a whole area of entertainment that theme parks have begun to look into, and theatrical designers may be a great fit for creative teams working on such projects.
Post a Comment