5 Odyssey Set Directors Together in One Place! It Will Bring a Tear to Your Eye. Flightmares at The Space Place: Another Year, Another Success! Meet the Last of the Young Astronauts. This Week's Imaginarium Theater

     The Troubadour welcomes Matt Ricks onto our staff with his first article below. Matt is well suited for the job based on his demonstrated mastery of Space Center trivia and history. In fact, Matt and Sir Kyle Herring EOT (Old Timer Extraordinaire), are the Space Center's resident historians. Both have in their temperature and humidity controlled vaults items held in trust for that day when the Space Center opens a museum. 

     Matt is married to Tabitha. Tabitha is the Space Center's volunteer coordinator / supervisor. This conveniently gives The Troubadour feet on the ground for the most recent and juiciest news.  Welcome Matt!  We look forward to hearing from you regularly. 

     Are you interested in joining our staff?  The Troubadour needs reporters and photographers at all the space centers. Remember, I'm getting old and don't get around as much as I use to :)  

A Disturbance in the Space Time Continuum at Jordan and Brylee's Reception 

     This is The Troubador's field reporter Rick Matthews here, with a news story of a recent spacetime disruption.  

The Odyssey's Great and Power

Left to Right: Mitch, Natalie, Nathan, Tabitha, and Christine

     Two weeks ago, I received an assignment from HQ to report on a known upcoming spacetime event.  According to the monitoring station that watches for major events, marriages between Space Center kind usually cause quite the disturbance.  I was tasked to go to the source and monitor the situation, and report back any interesting findings or news.  In this case, the event was Jordan and Brylee's wedding.
     As I was en route to the event, I received a message from HQ, "The readings from the event are already exceeding our forecasts.  Something bigger is happening there.  We are deploying additional reporters."
     As I arrived, I noticed the "bossman" reporter pull in as well, who must have been sent in by HQ.  He may seem feeble, but he quickly hobbled toward the entrance of the reception before me.  As he walked past with his tricorder in hand, we nodded to each other.  We both knew this was going to be a remarkable event.
     I pulled out my own trusty tricorder before I walked in to make sure I got all the data I could.  As I walked in I could tell that something was different about the festivities.  I'd been to Space Center weddings before, but at this one, there was an unusual readings coming from some of the attendees.
     As I mingled with the other wedding goers, I began to find out why the readings were so high.  In attendance at the wedding reception, was not one, not two, not even three, but five Odyssey Set Directors past and current.  They eventually found each other.  Luckily I was on scene to capture the moment when the spacetime disturbance was the greatest.

     After snapping the photo, I quickly tried to scatter them.  According to my tricorder readings, spacetime was beginning to warp, and any additional time in such close proximity could be the start of a nova event.  Before I scattered them, they insisted on one last photo together.

     Of course you can't become a set director of the Odyssey without being a little bit of an oddity yourself.

    It was a near miss for disaster; a close attempt by Fortuna to wreak havoc.  After I reported my findings to HQ, I realized why this gathering of set directors was so significant.  It is amazing to consider that with this group of 5 set directors, their time at the Space Center spans almost 10 years, 3 different physical sets of the Odyssey, 2 different school buildings, 3 different directors of the Space Center, thousands of crew members, countless hours flown, and a dozen or so new and unique stories.
     There were 2 set directors missing from the decade lineup there that night.  I was able to compile a short report of Odyssey Heads over the past 10 years.

Christine: 2011-2013
Emily: 2012-2013
Tabitha: 2014-2016
Devin: 2016-2016
Natalie: 2016-2017
Nathan: 2017-2018
Natalie: 2018-2022
Mitch: 2022-Present

     In addition to the 5 Odyssey Set directors, there were at least 5 other set directors of other ships present at the reception as well.
     When all is said and done, the festivities were lively, the refreshment were consumed, and we wish the newlywed couple to live long, and prosper.  It truly takes an influential couple to bring so many notable space center folk together.  And so we wait for the next major ripple in the continuum...

Flightmares at The Space Place. Another Successful Season!

The crew from that abandoned starship, you know, the 

one your mother told you never to beam aboard.

     Last night was the last night for The Space Place's Flightmares Halloween Spectacular.  Flightmares were held most Friday and Saturday nights throughout October. The program is a tradition at Renaissance Academy.  The 5 hour long missions are geared to scare the outer space Bejeebers out of the crews.  

The Unlucky Captain

     It's all hands on deck for Flightmares.  The staff often outnumber the crewmembers.  A make up artist is on hand to add that special touch to the volunteer and staff's space zombie appearance. 

The Unlucky First Officer

     Don't worry if you missed this year's production.  Halloween will be back again in a year's time and so will Flightmares. 

These two did a great job wondering around the school

in the dark. They are masters of "That Walk" zombies do.

I believe they watched an episode of "The Walking Dead" to 

get it down just right :)

 

The Last of the Young Astronaut Squadrons.  Finally...

     Today I'd like to introduce you to the final two Young Astronaut squadrons at Renaissance Academy's The Space Place.  In total you've meet 207 Young Astronauts and Voyager Club cadets.  They are spread out in 24 squadrons of between 7 and 10 members each covering grades 3 to 9.

     Lejana Funk (Bracken's wife) is the captain of both squadrons.  All 3rd grade squadrons have either an adult or a high school student as captain.                                                         

The 3rd Grade Tiger Squadron

The 3rd Grade Scorpion Squadron

 

Imaginarium Theater

The Week's Best Videos From Around the World Edited for a Gentler Audience