Twilight at the Museum

by Dr Susanne Turner, Curator 

This February half-term saw the return of Twilight at the Museums – an annual event in which, before the pandemic at least, the museums of Cambridge opened their doors after dark and armed visiting families with torches to explore their galleries with the lights turned down low. To mark the first in-person return of this firm family favourite, we at MOCA turned our Cast Gallery into Hades – dialling up the spooky ambience with atmospheric multi-coloured lighting. 

Visitors did not enter Hades lightly: their task was to complete a series of challenges, through which they would meet some familiar faces from ancient myth, in order to avoid a permanent stay in the land of the dead. First up, they met Persephone, who asked them for a song in return for safe passage through her realm.

Next, they visited the Fields of Asphodel, where they hunted down the footprints of a certain three-headed beast. Then they came upon King Minos who, weighed down with the task of judging every lost soul, begged that they might help him to come up with some suitably gruelling punishments. Turn the corner in the dark and the next task was to find Hermes (in statue form, this time: not every god grace the gallery with their presence) – and then they came upon the Greek hero par-excellence, Hercules himself, who needed a little help finding Cerberus.

​​​​​

Their final labour took them on a quick tour of the rivers of the Underworld, which had a clue hidden among them. Last but not least, our families were confronted with Charon – a terrifying figure who gifted them two golden (chocolate) coins and warned them they would need them on their next visit to Hades, from which there would be no escape! 

The event was hugely popular: just under 200 caregivers and children came through our doors on that dark, mysterious half-term night. Now we’ve got about a year to plan the next one!