Review of “Diana: A Celebration” at the Frazier History Museum
My mother and I headed off to the Frazier History Museum for the
“Diana: A Celebration” exhibition. The
exhibit is here in Louisville until January 13,
2013. It comes directly from the Althorp Estate in England, the
Spencer Family’s 500-year-old ancestral home, where it is on display
every summer. Here at The Frazier Museum, you can experience nine
galleries, 7,500 square feet, and over 150 objects, including Diana’s
royal wedding gown, designer dresses, and other personal items.
The exhibition celebrates the legacy of Diana, Princess of Wales. It
is very positive, upbeat, and focused on her whole life from her
family’s matriarchs to Diana’s birth, childhood, marriage, and charity
work. There is nothing negative in the exhibit with very little
emphasis on her death. The little amount of funeral display is placed
in the middle of the exhibit so that it is not the last thing on your
mind as you leave. We rented the audio tour for $5 which I felt was
worth it. The audio provided extra information on items and allowed
you to hear the voices of designers who discussed her wedding gown and
some of the 28 gowns on view.
We spent over an hour inside. There is a lot of reading involved, so I
would not recommend this exhibit for young children. There are benches
throughout the exhibit if you need a rest, the galleries are spacious
as well as an elevator to and from the exhibit that is on the 3rd
floor of the museum making it stroller and wheelchair friendly.
Pictures and Video are not allowed inside the Diana exhibition (as
well as no food or drink).
The exhibition is open most days from 9 to 5pm (10 to 5pm Sunday) with
late nights on Wednesdays. The cost of the exhibition is $10 (children
4 to 14) to $21.50 (adults), and this includes the rest of the Frazier
Museum as well. I felt like it was well worth it. Advance ticket
purchase is highly recommended due tickets being date and time
specific, with only a limited number of tickets sold per hour. Ticket
holders may enter the exhibition any time during the one-hour window
designated on their ticket. There is no limit on the time visitors can
spend inside “Diana: A Celebration,” however once you leave the
exhibition, a new ticket is required for re-entry. There is a small
Althorp gift store area at the exit of the exhibit and restrooms are
at the end, just outside the exhibit (so be sure to hit the bathroom
before you enter the Diana exhibit!).
One more word to the wise, don’t stand too close to the Beefeater at
the entrance to “Diana: A Celebration”, or you WILL set off the
alarms!
