NON-BRANDED CONTENT

In highly competitive markets along the west coast where many of the nation's premier fairs and expositions directly compete with iconic theme parks such as Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood, imaginaTOURS has been developing WOW ATTRACTIONS that result in a "self'branded" approach to driving annual attendance.  Many of these events are produced for high capacity attendance and a limited run of 2-3 weeks, yet the production budgets can be very limited.
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The California State Fair, a 17 day event, held annually at the Cal Expo located in Sacramento, would typically generate attendance of over 1.2 million guests.  The management of the Cal Expo and the California State Fair enlisted the help of imaginaTOURS to conceptualize, fabricate and operate unique content that met their criteria - it had to be big, memorable, offer educational value, but most important, be fun and engaging for their guests.

As you'll see below, the results have been well received by both the clients and their guests.

Wonders Of The World - China

Wonders of the World - China 
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The 2001 theme for the California State Fair was Wonders of the World which encompassed 3.5 acres of open space to build out stylized versions of iconic landmarks that would be supported by theatrical sets, props and costumed actors.  The overall goal was to not only convey the mystery of each "wonder," but also showcase the beauty and culture of each country.  We scaled the elements to reflect both the budget and available space.  The "wonders" included The Great Wall of China, Pyramids of Egypt, France's Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal, and the Roman Coliseum.

Scenic elements for China: The Great Wall, two pagodas, festival dragon, beautiful gardens with Koi pond, lanterns, walking bridge, a mock archeo dig and an area for the emperor to receive his guests (including a throne for photos and meet & greet).

Showcase of China's contributions to culture included: block printing, shadow puppetry, history and meaning of the Zodiac calendar and its symbols, use of gun powder for fireworks, chopstick agility, dragon dance (mounted on rack so guests could make the dragon dance), a Chinese dress-up area, a mock archeo dig where you dig for remnants of the Terracotta Warriors, regularly scheduled performances of cultural dance, and Fun with Pandas (lifelike panda puppets).

Services included: Concept development, design and fabrication, installation & dismantle, casting and event management that included all aspects of daily operations.

Based upon the popularity and success (attendance increase over the previous fair), the WONDERS of the WORLD returned in 2002 for an encore engagement.

Wonders Of The World - Egypt

 Wonders of the World - Egypt 
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The 2001 theme for the California State Fair was Wonders of the World which encompassed 3.5 acres of open space to build out stylized versions of  iconic landmarks that would be supported by theatrical sets, props and costumed actors.  The overall goal was to not only convey the mystery of each "wonder," but also showcase the beauty and culture of each country.  We scaled the elements to reflect both the budget and available space. The "wonders" included The Great Wall of China, Pyramids of Egypt, France's Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal, and the Roman Coliseum.

Scenic elements for Egypt:  Stylized recreation  of the Great Pyramid and the tomb of Khufu, the Sphinx,  a large open air Egyptian Temple and mock archeo dig.  The surrounding area was themed to reflect the Egyptian Delta and even featured an over-sized "throne" made out of stone - producing a great photo opportunity along with a special location for a meet and greet with the pharaoh himself.

Showcase of Egypt's contributions to history included: how the Egyptians built the Pyramids (tests of strength moving an Egyptian stone), spell your name or decipher the mystery code using the hieroglyphic rubbing stations, challenge the pharaoh to a game of Mancala, participate in a mummy wrapping ritual with an Anubis, dig for remnants of a lost civilization in the mock archeo-dig, Egyptian dress-up area, explore the burial tomb and antechamber, listen to ancient Egyptian storytellers, learn how to decorate the walls of the tombs and listen to narratives delivered by the Pharaoh, his servants, and the host archaeologist.

​Services included: Concept development, design and fabrication, installation & dismantle, casting and event management that included all aspects of daily operations.

Based upon the popularity and success (attendance increase over the previous fair), the WONDERS of the WORLD returned in 2002 for an encore engagement.

Bandwagons & Ballyhoo - America's Greatest Folk Art Exhibition

When Wisconsin's beloved Circus World Museum realized they could no longer afford to stage their annual circus street parade through downtown Milwaukee, they turned to imaginaTOURS for a fresh, but more economic approach to generating awareness and showcasing their collection.  

BANDWAGONS & BALLYHOO - America's Greatest Folk Art  - They once toured the country as part of the greatest advertising campaign ever created – the American Circus Parade; these ornate and priceless circus wagons from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s all beautifully restored, will be touring the country for the first time as part of an exhibition showcasing American Folk Art.  Included in this exhibition are incredible examples of wood-carving and design, fabulous one-of-a-kind circus lithographs and posters, plus the premiere of a never before seen photo essay commemorating the time when “circus day” and its advance advertising and subsequent parade, would bring American cities, both large and small to a complete standstill.  An original exhibition produced by imaginaTOURS in conjunction with Circus World Museum and the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Days Of The Dinosaur - Time Travel To The World Of Dinosaurs

The ultimate family-adventure is found within this totally immersive and interactive exhibition featuring state-of -the-art robotic dinosaurs that not only move; but they appear to breath, blink and vocalize.  Travel back in time 240 million years to the Triassic period and continue through the Jurassic period, the “golden age” of the dinosaurs, until their last period: the Cretacic, 60 million years ago.  The exhibition is scalable and modular and can range between 35,000 and 50,000 square feet, featuring up to 50 dinosaurs staged in nine oversized themed vignettes that relate to specific time periods (in chronological order).  This exhibition can be enhanced with guided tours led by paleontology students, and you can add exclusive interactive elements that include riding a baby dinosaur, immersive themed photo opportunities, 3D Cinema, and a participatory mock dino-dig.  All content is presented as a balanced mix of both scholarly information and fun.  This unique approach to presenting the subject of DINOSAURS has played to record breaking crowds around the world - appearing in Paris two years in a row.  An all-new exhibition format represented throughout North America by imaginaTOURS in conjunction with Ake Music and Entertainment.

Pirates Playground Adventure

PIRATES PLAYGROUND ADVENTURE
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The 2003 theme for the California State Fair was a tribute to the Carnival in Rio and it encompassed 2 acres of open space.  Within this area a number of specialty vendors including imaginaTOURS provided services such as authentic Mardi Gras parade floats, an animal sanctuary featuring animals and birds found in the South American Rain Forest, as well as a themed experience focused on pirates.  imaginaTOURS was selected to create, build and operate the pirate themed elements which were named Pirate Playground Adventure.

Scenic elements for Pirate Adventure: Stylized replica of a pirate ship, an island environment with buried treasure and themed with palm trees and boulders, signage and over-sized treasure chest, pirate canons, crows nest, map making table, freestanding FUN FACT signage with illustrations of Pirate Hall of Fame, along with other set pieces that made for great photo ops allowing guests to pose with pirates (costumed character actors).  Playmobil table with scaled-down pirate ships, pirates and other toys and accessories to play with in a themed diorama with water.

Pirate Playground activities included:   Pirate storytelling and singing, digging for buried treasure, map making, pirate dress-up area, make a Jolly Roger flag - hoist the flag and learn to tie nautical knots at the "crows nest," learn how to hoist a sail, fire the pirate canon (target a broadside), engage with imaginative play at the Playmobil play table, 

Services included: Concept development, design and fabrication, installation & dismantle, casting and event management that included all aspects of daily operations.

3D Mystery Manor

I-X Indoor Amusement Park - An annual event staged indoors at one of the largest exhibition facilities in the U.S.
The event is in essence an "indoor amusement park" that features over 60 portable amusement park rides and attractions within a temporary presentation that runs for approximatly four weeks each spring.  Annual attendance exceeds 150,000 guests.  In 2011, management wanted to create a family friendly event to celebrate Halloween (Trick or Treat Street).  In advance of making that financial commitment, they needed to find a kid-friendly "haunted house" experience that would not be too scary, or too expensive to operate (typically a haunted house requires anywhere between 12 and 20 actors to bring it to life).  

imaginaTOURS responded to the challenge by developing a self-contained fun house that not only tempered the "fear factor" by focusing on visual illusions that would challenge these young guests, but we also eliminated all labor by integrating black lights, use of florescent colors and incorporating  3D glasses.  As guests tried to navigate the hallways and various rooms - they would encounter a mirror maze, upside-down rooms, vanishing hallways, spinning vortex, laser-type effects, 3D wall portraits and other visual obstacles.

The 3D Mystery Manor was introduced at the 2010 I-X Indoor Amusement Park and then reintroduced as a core feature of that year's Trick or Treat Street event drawing 22,000 guests over two weekends.  It continues to thrill and delight guests at each of the annual events.​

Here Be Dragons

Visitors immerse themselves in a dragon world that mixes fantasy with reality as they travel through time, history and myth to explore dragons in Medieval times, Asia and in Paleontology.  History, folklore, art, literature, science and live animals bring Here Be Dragons to life.  Come explore human-dragon cultural connections.  Bookings include: Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend, Indiana; Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum of Natural History; International Museum of Art and Science; Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History; Chicago Zoological Society, Brookfield Zoo; Delaware Museum of Natural History.

Produced by Build 4 impact, fabricated by the Weber Design Group.

International Princess World 

The International Princess World is an all-new experience that combines visual storytelling with the latest in virtual and augmented reality. This all new show is a celebration of all things princess related. And it encourages young women to focus more on living a purposed life (self-empowerment) and a lot less on outer beauty.