An Event Series for Adults 21+

Explore hands-on science. Visit with local presenters and community experts. Sample delicious food and drink.  Tickets are available for purchase on-line or at WonderLab. The WonderLab AfterHours Series is presented by Griffin Realty, Inc.

AfterHours: Chocolate

Saturday, Feb. 18, 2023 | 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Discover delicious chocolate combined with the science of carnival rides. Play beloved games for sweet treats. Learn about the physics behind common carnival rides. Attend talks from local  nutritionists and chocolatiers with their spin on chocolate carnival treats.

Individual Tickets for this Event are Sold Out.

Granfalloon logo with piano keys for Wonderlab Afterhouse

AfterHours: Granfalloon

Saturday, May 20, 2023 | 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Take a deep dive into the murky waters of humans and machines through the science of Kurt Vonnegut’s foreboding book Player Piano. Dissect technological conundrums with IU Luddy School professors. Get jiggy with live music.
Ticket prices: Member $20 / Non-member $30 / Access Pass $10.

Game On Logo with 5 floating game die for Wonderlab AfterHours event

AfterHours: Game On!

Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023 | 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Enjoy a night playing tabletop games and exploring the science behind SciFi. Ever been interested in gaming but never had the chance to learn? Now is the time: Game on! Enter WonderLab’s MetaZoo tournament, explore the museum with an adventure-based game, play science-based D&D mini-sessions, and much more.
Ticket prices: Member $20 / Non-member $30 / Access Pass $10.

Game On Logo with 5 floating game die for Wonderlab AfterHours event

Tabletop & SciFi

Games of all types; card, board, and table top. Mini figure painting, the Science of Superheroes, and more! Join us for a night of Game On!

  • Adults 21+ Valid ID required
  • Saturday, October 21
  • 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Ticket prices per person:
$20 Members/ $30 Non-Members/ $10 Access Pass

Gaming, Making, & Adventure

Have you ever noticed how much STEM there is in board games? Join us and find out.

Do you have a design for a costume? Need a little extra space to do so? Enter the Maker Space and work with Local Makers, Joshua Streiff and Vic Streiff, to complete, or make progress, on your build.

Compete in our MetaZoo tournament, run by Local MetaZoologist Nick Maesch of Common Room Games, and win yourself a WonderLab themed mat designed by WonderLab’s David Frew.

Ah, the highs and lows of mini figure painting. Get helpful insight, and guidance from Common Room Games.

Search high and low throughout WonderLab to discover the mysteries hidden within.

Join Jess-Miller Camp as they run Starfinder/Pathfinder mini sessions.

Jump into the world of Monster of the Week mini sessions with Michael Turpin.

Logan Jessee will take you back to where it all began with Dungeons & Dragons mini sessions.

Oversized pawns, mini-horse sized knights, a giant queen, what is going on with this massive chess board? Fight rooks yourself with an oversized chess set provided by Common Room Games.

Josh Streiff
Cybersecurity Staff Director for the Security & Privacy in Informatics, Computing, and Engineering (SPICE) Center as well as the Indiana University project manager for the Cybercorps Scholarship for Service, Indiana University

By day, Josh works at Luddy School, running IU’s Hacker House and making educational games for youth. In his off time, Josh is a Game Master for family and friends, Maker and Prototyper, and runs his business, Wild Endeavor.

Vic Streiff
Sewist, Knitter, Maker, and Gamer

Vic is a sewist, knitter, and Maker who has been involved with both the Maker and Gamer communities in Bloomington. You can find Vic at Discardia‘s monthly Mending Day event at the MCPL, and participating at Trashion/Refashion where she and her family put their Maker skills to work.

A Night of Delight

Build your own rollercoaster, learn how to beat those tricky carnival games, dive into the chemistry of chocolate, eat delicious truffles, and more!

  • Open to adults 21+
  • Saturday, February 18
  • 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Ticket prices per person: Individual Tickets for this Event are Sold Out.

Event Series Combo Tickets are No longer Available

Linda Armes
Chocolatier, Bloomington Chocolate Company

Have you ever wondered what goes into making new chocolates? Do you want to know more about what makes good candy? Join Linda Armes as she takes us on an adventure to design and discover new truffles.

Erin Hosien
MA student in Food Studies, Associate Instructor of Human Biology

Ariana Gunderson
PhD student in Anthropology

Does chocolate fit in well rounded diet? What historical importance does chocolate serve? Join Erin Hosien and Ariana Gunderson as they get into the anthropology of chocolate and learn how to make Schoko-Fruchtspieß.

Tasty Treats and more at the event:

Spin the wheel of questions and answer correctly for a Crumble Coffee & Bakery sample.

We’ve all lost to this tricky game at one point or another, but not at AfterHours: Chocolate. Play Balloon Darts and win yourself a tasty confection.

Get into the physics of a thrill ride when you build your own marble roller coaster.

What makes up Chocolate? Find out about the chemical properties of Chocolate with Dr. Laura Brown, Dr. Jill Robinson, & Dr. Martha Oakley

Create your own, functioning, moving, carnival ride.

Try your hand at answering these STEM Riddles. Answer your riddle correctly and win a sample from Bloomington Chocolate Company.

Try your hand at ring toss. Whoever makes the most out of 10 has a chance to win a prize.

Delicious sandwiches provided by Roly Poly Sandwiches.

Step right up and take your chances at Cornhole, with footballs. Make a toss and win a sample from PopKorn.

Libations provided by Upland Brewing Company.

Granfalloon logo with piano keys for Wonderlab Afterhouse

Player Piano

Debate moral conundrums and artificial intelligence, play with obsolete technology, get jiggy with live music, and more!

  • Open to adults 21+
  • Saturday, May 20
  • 7 – 9:30 p.m.

Tickets prices per person:
$20 Members/ $30 Non-Members/ $10 Access Pass

Nathan Ensmenger
Associate Professor at Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering

Join Nathan for a talk about the history of automation, labor, and computing, including the events and stories that inspired Kurt Vonnegut to write Player Piano, his first novel!

Brian Wood
Lecturer at Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering

Join Brian for a talk and virtual reality demo entitled “The Intersection of AI, Automation, and Literature: A Student-led VR Project.”

Activities, Presentations, & Trials

What tune can you tap out on the Big Piano?

Find a new book at the Morgenstern’s table

What technology do you remember aging into obsolescence? What even is a landline? Play snake on a Nokia. Type on a typewriter. Write with a quill and ink. Find the hidden message in the phone book. Explore the evolution of computer technology.

Have you ever wanted poetry but, like most of us, don’t have the skill or talent to make it happen? Look no further than The Bloomington Writers Guild; they will be providing poetry on demand at AfterHours: Granfalloon. Get your own, bespoke, typewriter poem from The Bloomington Writers Guild.

… as a chatbot. Interact with the quick wit, cutting critique, and the sense of being of Kurt Vonnegut … as a chatbot.

Is an AI creative? Does it have a mind of its own? Should it be responsible for the consequences of its creation? Explore moral quandaries with Technology on Trial.

Listen to and talk with musician Jonathan Rickert, a graduate of IU Jacobs School’s Center for Electronic and Computer Music, as he performs original pieces of electronic music.

The WonderLab AfterHours Series is presented by Griffin Realty, Inc.