Museum Exhibit Shows Children How Choosing Liquor Can Wreck Alcoholic’s Life

BOSTON —  Maxine’s singing career is in the hands of children at a Boston Museum of Science exhibit: Push one button and a sober Maxine belts out a song that wins the admiration of a talent agent; push another and a drunken Maxine slurs the words.

“You made the wrong choice,” Ben the bartender admonishes the youngster who put Maxine down the path to ruination. “You want to know why? You’re playing with fire here. Don’t expect an alcoholic, even a reformed alcoholic, to stop after one drink.”

“Ben’s Grille” is the first exhibit to address the issue of alcohol abuse, according to the museum.

Stories of Four People

The show uses three television sets hanging above a restaurant counter to tell the stories of four people who have trouble with liquor.

Maxine, a reformed alcoholic, is tempted under the pressure of an important audition. Her admirer, Sammy, is an alcoholic who tempts her because he is afraid to lose her. Jim makes a loud fool of himself when drunk. And Janice drinks after fights with her husband.

“We had all kinds of concerns at first, whether people would be upset about us talking about drinking in a museum,” said the head of exhibits, Larry Bell.

“We may have to change the program as we go along because of that,” he said. “We’ll wait and see.”

Children Are Asked

The narrator stops the story at crucial moments to ask the children what the characters should do, accept the drinks being pushed upon them or choose soft drinks instead.

When the child points to his choice on the screen, the space he touches--”soft drink” or “house wine”--determines which way the plot will turn.

A soft drink for Maxine leads to a stellar performance of “Route 66.” The house wine leads to a stumbling rendition of “Adieu” and a stern lecture from Ben: “You’re playing with fire here. Don’t expect an alcoholic, even a reformed alcoholic, to stop after one drink. You can get just as drunk on wine as you can on hard liquor.”

The $150,000 exhibit, two years in the making, was the brainchild of the museum and Multigroup Health Plan, a health maintenance organization. Former Boston Bruin hockey star Derek Sanderson, a reformed alcoholic, was an adviser.

Film Use Increased Cost

Bell said much of the cost of the show came from the 35-millimeter film used to give the scenes the authentic smoky atmosphere of a lounge, which would be lost on cheaper videotape.

But the museum shied away from making the exhibit seem like a real bar, he said.

“If you put a bar with stools in it, kids would play-act at it and order drinks, which is not an appropriate thing to do in a museum,” Bell said.

The exhibit does not condemn drinking. Ben the bartender preaches against liquor only for those who can’t handle it. The exhibit also offers children pamphlets telling them where they and their parents can get help.

Some May Avoid It

Bell said he expects children who find the exhibit troubling will simply avoid it the way snake-haters avoid the snake exhibit, but the topic may be easier for children to deal with on television than in person.

“In some ways it works better than a person talking to you live because you’re not as embarrassed as you would be talking to a live person,” he said.