Museums

Abracadabra

Posted at May 27, 2008 15:38

By Stefani Kronk

THE MAGIC HOUSE, St. Louis Children’s Museum, makes its own
magic—disguising learning as fun. Enticed by activities that encourage
interaction, children can hardly contain their excitement as they enter
a life-size world of make-believe. Water gardens, giant pin screens that
make three-dimensional impressions, and hair-raising moments caused
by touching an electrostatic generator are only some of the things that
children experience; all the while, the museum’s hands-on exhibits
teach them important math, science, and literacy skills.

Started in 1979 by two young mothers, The Magic House was the
first totally interactive children’s museum in the region and is uniquely
located in a Victorian home. The home was built in 1901 for George
Lane Edwards, the first president of the A. G. Edwards and Sons brokerage
firm. After several expansions in the years since the museum
opened, The Magic House is undergoing the largest transformation
to date. This renovation will more than double the museum’s exhibit
space and expand its services. New exhibits will include “whodunit”
capers, inviting children to become a super-sleuth and crack the case
on an art-forgery crime. A stately courtroom complete with judges’
robes and gavels will encourage role-playing and teach participants
how the judicial branch operates. Time tunnels with whizzing gears
transport visitors to a different time and place, bringing history alive.
Kids can pen their own sonnets and verse and attach their leaf-shaped
pieces of paper to a six-foot-tall wire-sculpture tree, blooming with
original poetry. Activities, such as Patriotic Karaoke, conducting water
experiments, or playing the Pandrums (an instrument that creates
music from kitchen pans), take learning from ho-hum to holy cow! An
important feature not open to the public will be the exhibit fabrication
workshop, enabling The Magic House to build and maintain exhibits
as well as launch a traveling exhibit program.

Since opening, The Magic House has been consistently rated as
one of the top children’s museums in the nation. In 2005, The Magic
House received a prestigious award from Zagat Survey as the number
one family attraction in the nation in child appeal. This distinction
elevated The Magic House above every other children’s museum and
family attraction, including the Magic Kingdom, SeaWorld, and the
San Diego Zoo.

The award-winning museum will be open during the renovation,
and visitors will have access to favorite exhibits, says Kim Geminn,
Director of Marketing for The Magic House. Children can work in a
grocery store or pizza parlor, be a bank teller or a construction worker.
At KIDS-TV, the Magic House’s television station, kids can experience
what it’s like to be a news anchor. Visitors can surround themselves
with a giant soap bubble or create a masterpiece in the art studio.

Although this local attraction is big in popularity, it is small in size.
The Magic House is less than half the size of the average children’s
museum, according to the Association of Children’s Museums.
With more than four hundred thousand visitors annually, The Magic House
has more visitors per square foot of space than any of the two hundred
children’s museums that are members of the association.

The small space coupled with the large number of visitors pose
many challenges for the top-ranked museum, Kim says, “On busy
days, there is a line to get in, and once visitors are inside, the space is
very crowded. Children can’t enjoy the exhibits to the fullest extent.
Plus, parents are uncomfortable with large crowds because it is more
difficult to watch their children. Our goal is to create a better atmosphere
for guests while they’re here.”

Launched in June 2005, the So Much More—Right Next Door
fifteen million-dollar expansion project will add a 32,000-squarefoot
expansion. Space for the expansion comes from an adjacent
condominium complex and allows the proposed renovations to connect
to the original historic home. Planned improvements include a
glass Victorian conservatory welcome center, new galleries to house
traveling and permanent exhibits, a Star-Spangled Center highlighting
educational programs on citizenship, and an interactive outdoor
play garden.

This is the feature that excites Kim the most. “In the play garden,
there will be a hopscotch path and a wading pool. It takes you back
to a time when kids played outside and not inside with video games,”
she says. “I hope it will get kids interested in very simple activities
they can do outside.”

Enhanced visitor amenities, such as additional free parking, large
restrooms, and a cafe, will also be added.

The Magic House is located at 516 S. Kirkwood Rd. at St. Louis. Visit
www.magichouse.org or call 314-822-8900 for more information.

December 2007

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