$30 per person for the visit is high. Could be more reasonably priced for the visit, $15 or $20 would be pushing it.
All of the exhibits are in one room. Nicely organized and well lit together. Some of the collection is nothing more than personal objects that can still be purchased off eBay. Not sure o would call this a museum. I think of one of a kind items that are from the movie set or 1 of 1 items made for promotional or something like that.
The narration you can use is a nice feature but can be very distracting if others are near you listening to something else.
The immersion room is kind of an immersive experience, it is a rectangle room with all walls projecting a moving scene in poorly done graphics. The immersive experience entailed a Vincent Van Gogh that had nothing to do with the wizard of oz. Very odd to have included it in the self guided tour.
What would have helped is to create an experience like you are there in the set. When you walk to the front of the building it is weird, fake flowers, cardboard cutouts and the paint on the walls and ceiling was rough, not done with any professionalism and just kind of thrown together. Inside is a shop of sorts with many items to look and buy.
Overall it was nice to visit but would not go back or take anyone back to see, price too high to make it worth it. I would recommend setting the experience up like being a part of the movie. Take people through the experience not just show them books. Have them walk through the scenes hep them fee a part of it. Use the exhibits to highlight something memorable. That is what people are there for. To experience what they remember. Showing them the books is nice and interesting but give more time in presentation.
Одговор домаћина
Jul 2022
Rick, thank you for your detailed review. Let me address all the points that you touched on in your review with the hope that you consider reevaluating your opinion.
1. Price is high. I am not sure if you are aware that 99% of museums in the country could not be supported by admission price only and depends on the government or other subsidies to survive. We are not getting any support place and charging the appropriate amount to pay for the building employee, utilities, etc in order to keep the museum open for visitors to learn and enjoy. The Immersive Van Gogh costs anywhere else over $50 and $30 looks like a bargain since it also includes the museum and another Wizard of Oz Immersive experience.
2. Some of the collection is nothing more than personal objects that can still be purchased off eBay.
people can't buy one-of-a-kind puppets on eBay, since they are American history, Judy Garland's original coat, 1st known copy of the first edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, one-of-a-kind dolls from the 1925 silent movie, cast signed contracts, Original MGM script, signed books by Frank Baum, one of a kind photograph and more.
We specifically added many items that people might have in their collection for them to be proud to have items that are also displayed in the museum. Many visitors are happy to find memorabilia on the display and then hunt for them online. As far as MGM movie items, they are in the hands of private collectors and they do not have enough to open the museum to display them or part with them. Most of the items related to the movie cost millions. Ruby slippers - 5 million, Cowardly Lion costume $4.6 million. Judy Garland Dresses over $1.2 million, etc.
3. The narration you can use is a nice feature but can be very distracting if others are near you.
We encourage people to use earplugs with their phones, but most people do not use them. We do mention to every visitor to stay a few cabinets away from other visitors not to distract them.
4. moving scene in poorly done graphics. The immersive experience entailed a Vincent Van Gogh that had nothing to do with the wizard of oz.
My background in Computer science with over 30 years of experience in the field. You probably do not understand the complexity involved to make it happen in 2000 s.f room projecting to walls and floor. We utilize the latest fastest computer server and 31 laser projectors to make it happen. The immersive room is the first in the country on a permanent basis because no one wants to touch the complexity of the technology. The content design for Wizard of OZ is 20 times more complex compared to Immersive Van Gogh shown in the major city in the USA. For example, in the poppy field, there are 5 million poppies and each pixel is utilized to make it immersive. The reason we show Van Gogh is because we already invested in technology and show as a bonus, since many people already heard about the experience, but never had a chance to see it. We get many extra visitors because they want to experience Van Gogh and otherwise would not come for Wizard of Oz.
5. What would have helped is to create an experience like you are there in the set.
Walking in the set is a 30-year-old approach, They use this type of setting in another Wizard of Oz Museum in Kansas in 2002. It is an MGM right not to use any elements from the movie, this is why we are using the book as the base and trying to educate visitors about other elements in the book that have never been part of the famous MGM movie.
7. When you walk to the front of the building it is weird, fake flowers, cardboard cutouts, and the paint on the walls and ceiling was rough, not done with any professionalism and just kind of thrown together.
Fake flowers are poppies that are used in the story, cardboard cutouts are for people to take photos from outside. We do have full life-size characters inside to take photos with. This is an old building that we are leasing and was not planning heavily invest. We did paint to emerald color to give an impression of the Emerald CIty.
8. I would recommend setting the experience up like being a part of the movie. Take people through the experience not just show them books. Have them walk through the scenes hep them fee a part of it.
As I explain earlier, MGM has a right for anything related to the movie and we could not implement not to be sued. There are many books and various videos online about movies that people do not have to come to the museum to learn. This is not an MGM movie museum, we cover everything OZ that causes to make of that famous movie. Learning the history, and introducing additional elements in the book that was never implemented in the movie usually inspire curiosity in visitors, and many purchase books in the gift shop after the visit.
9. Use the exhibits to highlight something memorable. That is what people are there for. To experience what they remember. Showing them the books is nice and interesting but give more time in presentation.
You have your opinion about what you expected out of your visit. Many visitors love what we present to them and it shows in our reviews. Out 106 reviews and over 1000 visitors, 104 of them are 5-stars and you and one other person did not feel that way. The museum experience touches people's souls, we have visitors laughing, crying, and getting up from wheelchairs for a chance to skip yellow brick road in the Immersive room. We have witnessed kids hugging and kissing their parents for bringing them to the museum and even two years old that dressed up as Dorothy saying that everything is so COOL.
Do you know of any other attraction that touches the souls of so many people?