“To the Moon!” Laser Show
The American Space Program in the 1960s
Laser Spectacles created a multimedia/laser experience for the LBJ Library and Museum in Austin, TX, from August 27, 2008 until July 20, 2009. The show, part of an exhibit called “To the Moon!”, ran daily every 20 minutes from 9:40 AM to 4:20 PM. The exhibit explored America’s race to land a man on the moon in the 1960’s; the laser show was the finale of the exhibit, and gave visitors a new experience of floating in outer space.
The show was in a rather small room by laser standards, but it was totally dark and totally white, perfect for moving laser projections. The directive given by the curator, Sandy Cohen, was to create a new experience for the viewers, such as the astronauts had while floating above the earth for the first time.
Only optical laser effects were used; no scanners, mirrors, or smoke were used in this show. The laser beams were passed through rotating pieces of glass and diffraction gratings.
Video projection was used to create elements of earth orbital views, and a new laser projector called the “Blisslight” was used to create an intense laser star field.
The soundtrack was comprised of music by popular bands of the 60’s, including Pink Floyd, the Beatles, Procul Harum, Tommy James and the Shondells, Donovan, The Zombies, and the 5th Dimension, overlayed with quotes from JFK, LBJ, and the astronauts.