While an incredible celestial spectacle might be just a couple of months away when the “Great North American Solar Eclipse” covers Chicago, the city’s beloved Adler Planetarium has just announced a new sky show of its own.
Adding to a plethora of wonderful exhibitions taking place in Chicago right now, Niyah and the Multiverse follows the journey of an imaginative Chicago pre-teen on a visually stunning, Afrofuturist voyage through the multiverse.
Opening this Saturday (February 17th), the exciting new sky show marks the first new production for the Adler since 2019 and joins Adler Planetarium’s roster of events and shows including the ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ exhibition which just got extended through to the end of the year.
“If there are countless other universes out there, where does Niyah fit in? What about you? Niyah lives in a city called Chicago on a planet called Earth, and she has a lot of questions about space and time”, reads the Ader Planetarium release.
“How can a special mask help us understand who we are in the world? Do we really need ALL the laws of physics? How is the multiverse like the blues?”
Niyah and the Multiverse will take guests on a journey through the mind of Niyah with stories from her parents and ancestors, her favorite comic books, and her science class all swirling around in her imagination before she comes face-to-face with her grown-up self—an astrophysicist who studies multiverse theories.
In addition to present and future Niyah, her friend Luis and a curious cat named Bast accompany her on an Afrofuturist journey through the multiverse which is designed to inspire theories and thought.
According to the planetarium “Niyah and the Multiverse is the capstone of a years-long collaboration between the Adler team and experts in Afrofuturism and African cultures.”
“The show features an original script by Chicago-based writers Taylor Witten and Ytasha Womack; the talent of local voice actors; and art, music, and photography from local and international partners.”
The planetarium does warn that the show’s many immersive graphics can cause motion sickness so brace yourself if you’re easily susceptible to a bit of dizziness.
Check out the trailer below:
Niyah and the Multiverse will play daily during public open hours in the planetarium’s Grainger Sky Theater. Tickets to the show cost $15 per person and must be purchased in advance online. Alternatively, entry is included as a sky show choice with any Museum Entry + packages.
Tickets and more information can be found at www.adlerplanetarium.org.
[Featured image courtesy of the Adler Planetarium]