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| The heart of the saga: Luke versus Vader. The classic scene recreated at the new STAR WARS exhibition at London's famed Madame Tussauds. Images: freerange/Madame Tussauds. |
We're now only days away from the official UK launch of the supreme and lavish STAR WARS experience at Madame Tussauds, London, opening it shield doors to the public, sending us by hyperspace into the worlds created by George Lucas, from May 16th, 2015.
Here's the latest publicity info on the sneak peak that a select group of fans enjoyed earlier this week:
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| Slave Leia and Jabba the Hutt get to meet the fans. |
TUESDAY MAY 12, 2015. Fans came face-to-face with some of the biggest heroes and villains from the Star Wars universe today, when Madame Tussauds London gave a sneak peak of its major new experience, which allows fans to step right into some of the most iconic moments in film history. The group was able to walk into 11 atmospheric scenes covering a galaxy of locations, including the swamps of Dagobah, Jabba the Hutt’s Throne Room and the flight deck of the Millennium Falcon, featuring a cast of legendary characters as amazingly life-like wax figures.
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| In the fires of doom: Anakin Skywalker. |
Officially opening this Saturday (May 16, 2015), the new experience represents a significant expansion at the world famous attraction and has been created in close collaboration with Disney and Lucasfilm. The attention to detail has paid off as fans today gave the experience a resounding thumbs-up. James Burns, founder of the website Jedi News, was particularly impressed: "The attention to detail is stunning and it’s so exciting to see so many of the film’s most favorite scenes brought to life in such an imaginative and immersive way. Disappointed, you will not be!"
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| Han always shot first! |
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| A certain Wookiee gets some hair treatment. |
Fans travelled from far and wide to be the first to step into the new Star Wars experience this morning. Jordan Cuff travelled from Cambridge and said it was well worth a visit. “I thought it would be amazing but it’s not amazing it is absolutely phenomenal, the attention to detail is absolutely wonderful.” Fellow fan, Jay Athem from Harrow on the Hill agreed, commenting “As a Star Wars fan it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to be totally immersed in the universe. It is a very tactile exhibit and I think Princess Leia is going to be very popular.”
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| The greatest Jedi versus Sith showdown of the Prequel Trilogy recreated. |
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| No "Selfies" for this Sith! |
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| Smile, Obi-Wan! |
“We are delighted, and I have to confess relieved, by fans’ reactions today,” commented Madame Tussauds London’s General Manager, Ben Sweet. He added: “The Star Wars films are so loved, and fans so passionate, it was a huge responsibility to get this right. It has taken over 180 sculptors, hair artists, colourists, set designers and prop makers more than a year to create the experience - everyone wanted to make it as authentic as possible. We were given rare access to the Star Wars archives at Skywalker Ranch in California, which was invaluable, and the artistic team poured over stills and footage day and night to ensure the likenesses of our wax stars are spot on and the sets as reminiscent of the actual film scenes as possible. We hope people will become immersed in the Star Wars story, and interact with their favourite characters, in a totally new and exciting way.”
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| Kids and Kid-ults will love the new Yoda on Dagobah. |
In the new experience fans can wield a lightsaber with Anakin Skywalker amidst the lava of Mustafar; feel the Force alongside Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn when they take on Darth Maul on Naboo; join the captive Princess Leia and the evil Jabba the Hutt in his Throne Room; hang out with Han Solo in the legendary cantina, before stepping onto the Millennium Falcon with the Wookiee warrior, Chewbacca; and witness the ultimate battle as father and son, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, embark on their final duel. The famous moment where Darth Vader reveals he is Luke’s father is also featured, as well as the hugely popular droids C-3PO and R2D2, as well as Vader’s sinister Stormtroopers.
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| "I am your father!" |
The figures alone cost around £2.5 million to create with the smallest, Jabba the Hutt’s sadistic court jester, Salacious B. Crumb, standing just 41.2cm tall (including 14cm long ears). Jabba himself is the largest, measuring 2.9m long, 1.5m high and weighs in at a whopping 35 stone. The hairiest is 2m tall Chewbacca, taking nearly 1000 hours for a team of 10 expert hair inserters to create his head-to-toe Wookiee hair using real yak hair in painstakingly accurate detail.
Entry to Star Wars at Madame Tussauds London is included in the main ticket price, which starts from £24.75 for adults and £21.60 for children when booked online - advance booking is strongly recommended. Find out more at www.madametussauds.com/london.
A similar, but smaller-scale experience has also opened at Madame Tussauds Berlin, featuring some of the same Star Wars character, but in different specially recreated scenes.
Star Wars exhibit arrives at Madame Tussauds in London | Daily Mail Online
A look at the Berlin exhibition: Fotostrecke: Star Wars at Madame Tussauds : Berlin begrüßt Darth Vader & Co. Bild 1 von 37 - Panorama - Stuttgarter Nachrichten
With thanks to freerange and Madame Tussauds for their support.
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