Friday 9 February 2018

World's first Klingon tourist centre opens in Stockholm

Submitted for your approval, more evidence that you can't be a satirist anymore, as reported by Lee Roden of The Local (Sweden), January 16, 2018 (links in original):

The world's first "Klingon tourist centre" is set to open in Sweden, in a collaboration between a Stockholm theatre and an organization which calls itself the Klingon Institute of Cultural Exchange.
The doors of "Visit Qo'noS" will open at Turteatern in southern Stockholm on February third, allowing humans to learn about the culture and customs of the fictional warrior race from Star Trek until late March.

No stone has been left unturned at what Turteatern's Theresa Jonasson told The Local is the "first Klingon centre in Alpha Quadrant" (which apparently is the part of the Milky Way where Earth lies, in Star Trek lore).

"The visitors check in at the reception desk, where they will get some tourist information, such as a visitor map of the Klingon capital First City. They will then be invited into the ceremonial presentation hall. The non-hologram live-act presentation is performed by the four Klingon ambassadors Ban'Shee, Mara, Morath and Klag, all from the House of Duras," she explained.

"The visitors/audience will be introduced to the Klingon culture and customs and acquire lifesaving tips to apply when interacting with Klingons. There will also be a singalong, dancing, Klingon opera, and scenes from the famous Klingon play Romyo je joloywI' (better known on Earth as Romeo and Juliet), by Shex'pir. The visitors will also get a taste of Klingon martial arts in an authentic battle re-enactment, as well as be invited to try Klingon cuisine such as Gagh and blood wine."

Even by science fiction standards, Star Trek fans are known for being a particularly passionate bunch, and the Stockholm theatre has been careful to try to meet their high expectations when it comes to costumes and staging. It has also called upon the help of Klingonska Akademien (The Klingon Academy), an Uppsala-based society with expertise in the Klingon language, who has even written a Klingon-English dictionary.

The tourist centre project is the brainchild of Turteatern's artistic director Nils Poletti, who Jonasson claims was put in contact with the mysterious Klingon Institute of Cultural Exchange by (dead) jazz composer and self-proclaimed Saturn native Sun Ra.

Jonasson was reluctant to give too much more away, but did make a point of reassuring diehards that the Klingons will be of the more traditional kind:

"The most common question is if the Klingons look like the Klingons in the new Star Trek TV series Discovery, which of course they do not. That series is offensive for Klingons, and should not be mentioned during the presentation."

The galaxy's only conveniently reachable Klingon tourist centre has already caused some excitement, selling out its first date and being featured by a number of international science fiction sites.

For any readers fluent in alien languages, a message from the Klingon Institute of Cultural Exchange in Klingon can even be found here.

For more on Star Trek, see my post Star Trek: Discovery prohibits any mention of God (August 5, 2017).

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