San Diego is in for a special treat as the North American premiere spot for the travel exhibition, ILLUSION, on show at the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center until Jan. 11, 2015. The exhibition was created by Science Gallery at Trinity College Dublin and combines techniques used by magicians and explored by neuroscientists to uncover the many ways our minds are fooled by sensory deception. ILLUSION is curated by psychologist, author and magician Richard Wiseman, and researched by deception artist Paul Gleeson. There are more than 20 installations that will distort your senses and mystify logical thinking. One of our favorites is, “YOU. HERE. NOW.” A dynamic portrait is created representing the viewer utilizing visual imagery from select news organizations on the web. You have to pause for a bit to allow the scanning of the local news Web sites before you notice your image emerge. Your image will be constructed with several tiny fragments that are in a continuous state of flux. Snap a pic with your camera and view it after. The experience of the exhibit will remind you that not everything is as it seems. Adjacent to the exhibition is the Illusion Playground, a collection of the Fleet’s hands-on, interactive exhibits. We attended the ILLUSION VIP Premiere Party May 8 where we got exclusive access to the exhibition and treated to a special performance by an illusionist along with food, drinks and music. For more information about this mind-bending new exhibition, visit www.rhfleet.org/exhibitions/illusion.
Asian Cultural Festival of San Diego
The Asian Cultural Festival of San Diego now in its fifth year had a new location this year on Convoy Street, between Clairemont Mesa Blvd. and Raytheon Road. The festival was hosted and presented by the National Asian American Coalition and produced by Silk Road Productions. The free, pet friendly event included martial arts, ethnic dances, cultural exhibitions, games, and of course, food! This year’s logo was inspired by the Year of the Horse. Many of the local politicians, including Mayor Kevin Faulconer, were in attendance to mingle with the community. It was a great opportunity for everyone to come together in celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. For more information, visit asianculturalfestivalsd.com.
Heathers: The Musical
If you’re looking for a guilty pleasure while traveling to New York this summer go see Heathers: The Musical. Written by Kevin Murphy and Laurence O’Keefe, the play is based on Daniel Waters’ screenplay for the 1988 Michael Lehmann movie that has become a cult classic. You have your stereotypical cliques like the jocks, nerds, hippies and the popular girls; in this case they’re the Heathers and they rule Westerburg High. They’re mean to the not-so-popular kids, yet those kids want to be just like them. Veronica gets the opportunity to join the Heathers when they discover her talent for forgery. Internal conflict ensues when the Heathers decide to play a trick on Veronica’s best friend whom she now continuously cancels on. She also meets outcast J. D. Dean who has never remained in a school long enough to make friends or even be noticed. The popular kids start dying off when these two get together and the result is unexpected. They are praised as heroes due to the emotional suicide letters Veronica forges. J.D’s desire to kill aims higher than Veronica can take. Walking out the theater two guys who had watched the show couldn’t help but think, “OMG, if they make a play about mean girls that’s what it’s totally going to be like”. Totally probable, considering that Heathers is the original mean girls crew. For more information, visit heathersthemusical.com
