Game of Thrones fans are anxiously awaiting April, when the show returns for its sixth season. During this time between the end of the last season in mid-June and the new season’s kick-off, fans may be feeling some withdrawal symptoms. We want to help!
Game of Thrones Exhibition
For the past three years, HBO took the show on the road, creating an international Game of Thrones exhibition, allowing fans across the world to enter the world of Westeros themselves. The exhibition features costumes, props and interactive activities in a setting that brings the show to life. Last year, we were contracted to manage the on-the-ground logistics and operations of the 2015 tour, an amazing experience. From about a week before the show opened to the public, until a few days after, when the whole thing was packed, crated and sent on the next city, we were there to make sure things went smoothly. In the most “international” of the gigs in our mobile marketing tour history, we were able to spend most of last year in Europe and still earn a little cash on the side.
Fans getting a close look at some costumes
2015’s Games of Thrones Exhibition cities were London, Stockholm, Tel Aviv, Madrid, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Paris. Between many of the shows, we stayed in Europe, taking advantage of a few days (or weeks) of downtime to explore! Road trips around south west England and from Milan to Pisa were some of our favorites! Of course, whenever it was possible we visited Game of Thrones filming locations. We’ll tell you more about that in a future post!
The Game of Thrones Exhibition set being dismantled in Paris.
Building and Unbuilding the Set
The build of the 9000 square-foot set took 15 people (including us) three full days to complete. Tearing it all down and packing it into its 75 giant crates was a bit quicker at two days. The video below is a time lapse of the Game of Thrones exhibition in Paris being torn down. To see a time lapse of a live event click here.
The dragon eggs were always popular.
Original Props and Costumes
During the event, which was always free, several thousand fans per day passed through the exhibit. They all registered and pledged affiliation to one of four family Houses before the event, a smart marketing move. Once inside, video displays gave fans a behind the scenes look at production of the show. Costumes displayed ranged from Margaery’s wedding dress (which took over 200 hours to make!) to the Mountain’s armor. Props like Daenerys’ dragon eggs and Joffrey’s crown were displayed under plexiglass cases. People moved through different environments reflecting areas of Westeros: from Mereen in the south through King’s Landing and on to the North, Castle Black and finally the Wall. Below is a slideshow with some prop and costume details for you superfans!
Oculus Rift “Ascend the Wall.”
Fans being “Torched by a Dragon.”
Sitting on the “Iron Throne.”
Interactive Elements
In several interactive areas, fans could receive a video involving them being surprised by a fire-breathing dragon or being transformed into a White Walker. One of the highlights of the exhibition was a 4D Oculus Rift virtual reality experience where fans could “Ascend the Wall.”
Daniel Portman (Podrick Payne) signs autographs for fans in Amsterdam
Liam Cunningham (Davos) at the Game of Thrones Exhibition in Amsterdam
Cast Appearances
On occasion, an actor or two would drop by on our opening day for an appearance. Obviously, fans really enjoyed and appreciated being able to interact with the cast members. A few of the notable appearances were John Bradley (Samwell Tarly), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister), Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth), Daniel Portman (Podrick Payne), Ian Beattie (Meryn Trent), Tom Wlaschiha (Jaqen H’ghar), Michiel Huisman (Daario Naharis) and Kerry Ingram (Shireen Baratheon).
Great! I hope they will broaden the exhibition location list this year. Can’t wait to see something
something like that.
Wondering whether they showed the real stuff from the the series?
Hi Stan, as a matter of fact all of the costumes and props were the actual pieces they used during filming. It was pretty cool to see everything up close. Are you a big fan? I’m so ready for it to be April and the season 6 premiere!