A Massachusetts firm that organizes and markets traveling “edutainment” exhibits about King Tut, the Dead Sea Scrolls and the human body has announced plans to open a 15,000-square-foot exhibition space on the Portland waterfront in late June or early July.
The Portland Science Center will occupy two floors of a building at 68 Commercial St., said Joe Gold of The Gold Group in Salem, Massachusetts. Exhibits will be comparable in scope to a traveling “Harry Potter” exhibition that attracted big crowds at Boston’s Museum of Science, and museums around the country, about five years ago.
Gold said Tuesday there is no firm opening date yet, and he is not ready to announce the first exhibition. Gold said the science center will be a “family attraction with edutainment content,” meaning it will combine entertainment with education. He said tickets for each exhibition will likely be no more than $20 for adults and $15 for children.
The center will be in a leased space in a building on Maine Wharf, near the Maine State Pier, owned by Stephen Goodrich, who confirmed the lease. The new building will also house a restaurant, on the bottom floor. The center will generally house one large exhibit at a time, and probably two exhibits per year, Gold said.
Gold said the kind of exhibits that will be at the science center will typically have 125 to 250 objects or specimens, plus interactive components. There will also be lesson plans distributed to local teachers.
Recent exhibitions promoted by Gold’s company have included “Body Worlds,” exploring the body and its various systems; “Tutankhamun: The Golden King and Great Pharaohs,” featuring artifacts representing 2,000 years of Egyptian history; and “Spy,” about the creation and activities of America’s various spying groups, including the CIA.
“The American public has come to expect more than objects under glass when looking at these kind of exhibits,” said Gold. “At (the Portland Science Center) people can immerse themselves in the subject.”
The Portland Science Center will hold a job fair Friday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 68 Commercial St. Jobs available include managers, customer service, exhibition staff and retail positions.
Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at:
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