Star Trek' boldly comes to the Tech Museum in San Jose

The Tech Museum is boldly going where only a few museums across the country have gone before.

On Oct. 23, the Tech will open "Star Trek: The Exhibition," a show of memorabilia and re-creations of sets from the "Star Trek" films and television series that has drawn big crowds at museums in Detroit, Philadelphia and San Diego over the past year. Tickets are already on sale, and Elizabeth Williams, the Tech's senior director of marketing, said the show will run at least through the Christmas holidays "and could go beyond that if things go well."

"Star Trek" is the latest blockbuster exhibit to come to the Tech, which has been aggressively pursuing traveling shows that fit into its science and technology emphasis. Most recently, the museum saw its attendance skyrocket with "Leonardo: 500 Years into the Future," an exhibit of the works of Leonardo da Vinci.

"Once again, we've successfully endeavored to bring our visitors an exhibition that everyone on the planet — and even strange new worlds — can relate to, learn from and enjoy," said Tech President Peter Freiss. "Housing the exhibition at the Tech Museum is perfectly logical."

To accommodate the "Star Trek" show — which will take up more than 15,000 square feet — the Tech will take over the adjacent Parkside Hall. (The hall is operated by Team San Jose, which is a partner in bringing in the show.)

The version of the exhibition that will come to San Jose is
Advertisement
larger than those that have been installed in other museums, although much of it is currently at the Detroit Science Center. "The producers of the show were very excited when they saw the space they had to work with, which is significantly more than they had in Detroit," said Williams, adding that additional exhibits are being put together in Los Angeles for the Tech showing.

The exhibit will include an authentic replica of the bridge from the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 (that would be the Enterprise from the original TV series), the actual shooting model of the Borg Cube (from the later TV series plus the film "Star Trek: First Contact") and all manner of costumes and props drawn from all five "Star Trek" TV shows and the 11 movies.

There will also be a "Star Trek" adventure full-motion flight simulator for those who want to experience a little warp drive.

And the show will have one new aspect for its San Jose visit: artifacts from the latest "Star Trek" film, which revitalized the franchise earlier this year.

"Many of the comments they got in Detroit about the show were about why the new film wasn't part of the exhibit and why it wasn't part of the historical timeline in the exhibit," Williams said. That gap in the space-time continuum will be plugged in the revised version.

Contact Charlie McCollum at 408-920-5245.

"Star Trek: The Exhibition"

When: Oct. 23
Where: The Tech Museum, 201 S. Market St., San Jose
Tickets: $25, adults; $19, ages 3-17; $22, seniors and college students. Includes admission to the museum. Tech members get 40 percent off. Now on sale; 408-294-8324, www.thetech.org.


"star trek: the exhibition"

When: Oct. 23
Where: The Tech Museum, 201 S. Market St., San Jose
Tickets: $25, adults; $19 ages 3-17; $22, seniors and college students. Includes admission to the museum. Tech members get 40 percent off. Now on sale: 408-294-8324, www.thetech.org.

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_13202319?source=most_emailed