In Wichita Barbie exhibit, picture yourself in iconic package and different careers

Barbie has had more than 200 jobs over the past 60 years, and this week she’ll add another job to her resume: being the focus of this summer’s Exploration Place exhibition.

“Barbie: You Can Be Anything: The Experience” opens Friday, May 23, and will run through Sept. 14 at the science museum. Tickets are $12 with discounts available.

Also on Friday, the 2023 “Barbie” movie will be featured at this week’s RiverFlix series at Exploration Place. Bring your own seating starting at 6 p.m. to claim a spot in the Wichita Foundation Amphitheater. The movie starts at sunset. Admission is free.

While the exhibit is built around the iconic 11.5-inch-tall Barbie doll, Exploration Place director of exhibits Brooke Rowzee-Graham said the exhibition has a bigger message.

“When people think of Barbie, everybody thinks of girls, which is true. But the core message of this exhibit is that anyone can be anything that they want to be,” she said. “It’s not just for girls. It’s important for boys too to imagine a future without limitations.”

Rowzee-Graham said she also expects the exhibition will have multigenerational appeal. After all, baby boomers grew up with Barbie, given that she hit the shelves in 1959, when Mattel’s co-founder Ruth Handler realized doll choices for her daughter were limited.

The exhibition shows Barbie’s growth through the decades, displaying her various careers by five categories: leader, problem-solver, creator, nurturer and adventurer.

Visitors will learn the histories of some real-life role models that inspired Barbie’s careers, from Kansas-born aviator Amelia Earhart to NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson to 2016 Olympic gold medalist Laurie Hernandez.

Along with the 30 or so Barbies on display, the exhibition includes 15 interactive displays, where visitors can role-play or picture themselves in some of Barbie’s past jobs and adventures.

There’s a 10-foot climbing wall for kids to pretend they are rock climbers; Barbie officially became a rock climber in 2020. It’s been 50 years since Barbie with a surfboard hit the shelves and in one display, visitors can get photos on a surfboard. There are also opportunities to play at being a fashion designer, pilot, vet and more.

Another fun photo op will be the Barbie box photo booth, where visitors can picture themselves as a doll in a box.

For those who want some non-Barbie-related fun and games, Exploration Place has built an exhibition called Game Yard in the small gallery adjacent to the traveling exhibition.

“It’s a bright, playful indoor space that captures the energy of outdoor games,” Rowzee-Graham said. That includes oversized Jenga and Connect Four games.

Also, within the Game Yard, museum staff have brought back its Draw Life activity, where visitors color pictures of animals and then scan them to see them roam around on a projected wall display.

‘Barbie: You Can Be Anything: The Experience’

Where: Exploration Place, 300 N. McLean Blvd.

When: Friday, May 23 - Sept. 14; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily with extended hours until 8 p.m. Thursdays. The museum will remain open on all federal holidays this summer.

Admission: $12 for ages 12-64, $10 for ages 3-11 and 65 and older, free for members and those ages 2 and under for all exhibits. Other packages including admission to other Exploration Place activities are available. Through the Blue Star Museum program, active-duty military and their families are free through Sept. 1.

More info: (316) 660-0600 or exploration.org