Titanic’s immersive sets dock at Atlanta’s Exhibition Hub starting July 19

“For me, it’s the personal stories of the people on board,” Zaller, executive producer of the experience, told the Exhibition Hub earlier this month. “What makes it extremely fascinating is that it is a modern Greek tragedy, a mythological account of the human experience. He continues to teach us lessons and attracts us. We also want to capture the myth and lore surrounding the story.

Credit: RODNEY HO/[email protected]

Credit: RODNEY HO/[email protected]

Atlanta has hosted other Titanic exhibits in the past. Zaller helped write the one held at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center in 2006. He also helped produce the most recent one in 2012 at Atlantic Station, which featured 200 artifacts.

“This exhibition takes those great elements of more traditional blockbuster experiences, the objects, the sets, the settings and layers them on top of our technological expertise with immersive experiences,” Zaller said.

This new film also broadens the scope of the 1912 tragedy to include other players such as the RMS Olympic, a sister liner which was built in Ireland at the same time as the Titanic and is identical in every way, but unlike the Titanic, sailed the seas for 24 years.

There is information about the Carpathia, the ship that rescued hundreds of Titanic survivors, and the SS Californian, a British ship that did not help despite its relative proximity. There is also a section on the journey of the iceberg that eventually hit the Titanic.

There will also be props from the 1997 film “Titanic,” a hit James Cameron film that introduced the story to a new generation. “It’s a great film, a great reference point,” Zaller said. “It continues to attract people because it’s still a hot topic. Every part of humanity is represented on this ship. We all find something of ourselves there.

He thinks participants still want to see physical objects. “We place them in reconstructions of scenic elements of the ship, all to scale. We will take you to the bridge and the crow’s nest where you can try to spot the iceberg. We’ll put you in the lifeboat while you watch the Titanic sink.

Zaller gave the Atlanta Journal-Constitution an exclusive look at some of the artifacts earlier this month, including:

Credit: RODNEY HO

Credit: RODNEY HO

– Tools used to build the Titanic at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland (now Northern Ireland)

– A time voucher from a shipbuilder employee to track their work hours

– Historic invitations to the Titanic launch party on May 31, 1911

– A negative of an advertisement for Vinolia soap which touts the use of the soap for the first class passengers of the Titanic.

Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@aj

Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@aj

– A letter from the Titanic’s engineer Arthur Gee, who sent it to a halt before the ship sank. Gee perished with the ship.

― First, second and third class porcelain pieces.

– A photograph of one of the Titanic’s lifeboats being raised into the Carpathia.

– One of eight deck chairs recovered from the wreck of the Titanic that did not sink.

The items come from the collections of the British company White Star Memories, Spencer Knarr and Kevin Saucier, all serious collectors of Titanic-related memorabilia.

“We hope this tour lasts a long time,” Zaller said once she leaves Atlanta.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO

“Titanic: an immersive journey”

Opening July 19. Open every day except Tuesday, hours vary depending on the day. Tickets starting at $30. Atlanta Art Center, 5660 Buford Highway NE, Doraville. feverup.com