City-Wide "Pop-up" Play Kicks Off With Slithering Arrival

CALGARY, July 3, 2012 /CNW/ - An 11 meter-long mechanical snake called Titanoboa emerged today at the Calgary Canoe Club, surprising Canoe Club Youth Program members and visitors.

This appearance is the first of several expected sightings, each one introducing a large-scale, engineered creature in Beakerhead's city-wide "pop-up" play. As the "pop-up" play continues to reveal itself over the course of the week, Calgary will witness an unprecedented performance of art meets engineering, unfolding on a city-wide stage.

This public spectacle, courtesy of ambitious engineering and audacious creativity, is a preview for an annual spectacle that will launch September 11 - 15, 2013, called Beakerhead. The preview, "Daisy's Dilemma," will unfold at several venues throughout the city daily with a grand finale on July 8. The public sightings are free of charge and everyone is welcome.

Today's sighting of the 455 kilogram mechanical snake, which is powered by electricity and slithers along the ground, raises questions - Why is this creature visiting Calgary? Are there others? How does he work? Who is he looking for?

"This one could stump even the most experienced zoologists or engineers," teases Jay Ingram, co-founder of Beakerhead and a well-known science broadcaster and writer. "Calgary attracts technology and engineering talent, but I don't think anyone has seen this kind of engineering in Calgary before."

The snake's name, Titanoboa, which literally means "titanic boa", is a genus of snake that lived approximately 60 million years ago. It is the largest snake ever discovered.

After his visit to the Canoe Club, Titanoboa will be making his way today to Heritage Town Square, at the front of Heritage Park Historical Village at 1 p.m.

For additional details regarding Beakerhead's pop up play sightings, follow the drama on Twitter @beakerhead, #BangOn and on Facebook.

About Beakerhead

Beakerhead is an annual, city-wide, interactive movement that explodes with creativity and technology. It brings together the arts and engineering sectors from across the city, province, country and world to build, compete and exhibit interactive works of art, spectacle, and entertainment during an annual week-long international happening each fall. The first Beakerhead will take place in Calgary September 11 - 15, 2013. For more information please visit www.beakerhead.org or follow @beakerhead on Twitter.

Beakerhead is grateful to its visionary start-up partners Suncor Energy Foundation and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta.This Beakerhead preview has been made possible by the City of Calgary Strategic Initiative Fund with generous support from Devon Energy, WorleyParsons and Victoria Park BRZ.

Paula Worthington
Brookline Public Relations, Inc.
Office: 403 538 5641 ext. 104
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Sophie Pilon
Brookline Public Relations, Inc.
Office: 403 538 5641 ext. 110
Cell: 403 815 7340
[email protected]