A typical college student would not think twice when passing by the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery. With humble architecture and a meager amount of parking spaces, it’s easy to see why college students wouldn’t view it as anything more than a fancy recreation center or community building.
Despite several fascinating exhibits, what stands out more than anything in the museum the dome theater, which hosts a variety of shows. The most recent show, “LaserDome: Beyoncé,” offered a captivating feature of the iconic artist, Beyoncé Knowles.
The museum itself seems ultimately proud and excited for its out-of-the-box series. One of the engineers who cultivated the show introduced his masterpiece with humor and a touch of fake apathy—comparing the hasty readying of the show to an episode of “South Park.”
The museum’s website says the LaserDome series “has something for everyone – from the throwbacks of rock idols to the chart topping hits of today’s artists.“
Fort Collins Museum of Discovery is a city-sponsored museum and is located at 408 Mason Court.
With the amount of exclamation marks in the event description, as well as the incorporation of our lord and savior Beyoncé, high expectations were immediately made. Unfortunately, the show’s title is a bit misleading. The lasers weren’t actually lasers, but rather a projection of abstract colors, shapes and dizzying illusions that lured the mind into disassociation. Although the show did not exceed my ’70s laser show expectations, it was an otherworldly modern take on the experience.
It did a great job of holding the attention of older attendees who weren’t exactly there to shake it to Destiny’s Child’s “Bootylicious.” The projection of an intoxicating pink and green vortex while Beyoncé repeats the profound verse, “I don’t think you’re ready for this jelly,” was a definite highlight.
The hour-long experience was unbelievably detailed in terms of song variety. The production team had a solid mix of synchronized daydream sequences, throwbacks and current hits.
I would eagerly attend a potential part two. Upcoming LaserDome shows will include tributes to Garth Brooks and the Beastie Boys on March 8 and 22. For a more psychedelic experience, Phish’s night to shine is April 12.
Collegian reporter Miranda Moses can be reached at entertainment@collegian.com or on Twitter @mirandasrad.
