What would you do if you were in George Washington's shoes? Visitors to his Mount Vernon Estate now have a chance to put themselves in Washington’s boots and experience first-hand the leadership challenges that he faced on the battlefield and in the presidency.
Mount Vernon recently unveiled its new first-person interactive experience titled “Be Washington: It’s Your Turn to Lead” in its Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center.
“It’s never been more important, especially to younger generations, that we allow our guests to be a part of the story,” said Rob Shenk, senior vice president for visitor engagement at Mount Vernon, who led the team that developed the experience. “Allowing our guests to 'be Washington,' and to directly confront the challenging issues that he faced, will undoubtedly give them a deeper appreciation for why Washington is rightfully considered the essential leader of the founding era.”
Inside the immersive 1,200-square-foot Be Washington theater, participants take the role of George Washington as they seek to solve one of four crises that Washington faced – two from the American Revolution and two from his presidency. Each scenario unfolds upon a massive 30-foot 6K resolution screen.
As they learn about the situation, participants hear insights and opinions from some of the same historical advisers that Washington would have had access to, such as Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and Henry Knox. As they sift through differing recommendations, they are asked to rate each adviser’s persuasiveness. In the end, as Washington, the participants vote for which course of action they would take to solve the crisis. All votes are then tabulated and shared, in aggregate, on the main screen.
Chris Jackson, the actor who played George Washington in the Broadway hit “Hamilton” introduces each of the scenarios onscreen and describes the course of action that General or President Washington took. Featured scenarios include the Battle of Second Trenton, the Whiskey Rebellion, the Genet Affair and the Newburgh Conspiracy.
Be Washington took more than 20 months to plan, film, code and construct. Funding for the project was provided by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.
Mount Vernon worked with a group of award-winning partners to produce Be Washington. Solomon Group and Gallagher and Associates worked with Mount Vernon on the theater design and fabrication. Cortina Productions developed the interactive gameplay and produced the footage that makes up the four scenarios. Wide Awake Films provided some of the live action sequences for the Second Trenton scenario.
Admission to Be Washington is included in general admission to Mount Vernon Estate. Facilitated group sessions, for school groups or as part of Mount Vernon's leadership programs, are available by appointment. A web-version of “Be Washington” will be available for individual or classroom use this spring.
Photo by Mary Ann Barton
Ribbon-Cutting Feb. 8 at 'Be Washington' exhibit
Mount Vernon Estate hosted a 'Be Washington' ribbon-cutting ceremony on Feb. 8.
