'Defy reality' at this new interactive Paradox Museum at the American Dream mall

Want to grow? Want to shrink? Want to converse with a disembodied head, come apart like a human kaleidoscope, or cut yourself in half?

Of course you do.

And the Paradox Museum New Jersey, featuring 70 interactive, walk-through optical illusions, is at your service.

The attraction, which opened at American Dream at East Rutherford on Thursday, is one of three in the U.S. (the others are in Miami and Las Vegas). And this one is particularly tailored to New Jersey.

"In every venue, we have what we call a reverse room," said Anthony Sposato, sales and marketing manager for Paradox Museum New Jersey.

"In Miami we have a reverse gym. In Las Vegas, we have a reverse gentlemen's club. In New Jersey, we have our reverse diner. It appears that you've stepped into a diner that's been turned on its side."

That's just one of the many mind-bending things you'll encounter at the 13,000 square foot venue — though "optical illusion" doesn't begin to cover some of the weird things in the place. "Optical illusion" is actually a term the staff avoids.

"We steer away from the word illusion," Sposato said. "What we're giving our guests is the intersection between illusion, science, magic and technology."

Paradox — "a situation, person, or thing that combines contradictory features or qualities" — may sum it up better.

"We allow guests to defy reality, experience the impossible, to challenge what they think they know," Sposato said.

Illogical, captain

"How quaint the ways of paradox! At common sense she gaily mocks!" So muses Frederic in "The Pirates of Penzance" when he learns he was born on leap year — and therefore, at age 21, is about to celebrate his fifth birthday! Most amusing. Until he learns that he won't be legally of age until his 21st birthday, which will occur when he is 88.

Paradox can be disconcerting.

"We're allowing our guests to experience things that challenge reality," Sposato said. "It's pretty profound."

The discombobulations come in all shapes and sizes. You might be split — prism-like — into your constituent colors. You might find yourself "standing" at an angle.

"Guests will be able to come in and blend their bodies with those of others," he said. "They'll experience traveling through our Paradox Tunnel, which gives you the appearance of swinging through space while being firmly rooted on the ground. We have our Ames Room, which allows people to grow and shrink in size."

That's Ames, as in Adelbert Ames Jr. — the scientist who exploited the principles of forced perspective in the trick room he devised in 1946.

All of the exhibits at the Paradox Museum are founded on scientific principles: perspective, refraction, and not least, human psychology. Our minds, making assumptions and filling in blanks, can show us things that aren't there.

"For example, the first image you see in the museum is a series of circles with cutout lines in them," Sposato said. "Your brain fills in the gaps, and you see a three-dimensional cube."

To the rescue

But be assured, you won't go down the rabbit hole unaided. The 90-minute tour through wonderland will be assisted by staffers. They'll explain the science behind each uncanny sight.

They'll also help you to take smartphone shots that will make you the envy of your friends, and demonstrate several unique Snapchat filters to help your pictures pop.

"They'll tell you the best way to lay out the picture," Sposato said. "They'll help you take eye-catching pictures that explode online. Our guides are really a huge part of the storytelling process."

Go...

Paradox Museum New Jersey, Level 1, Court A, American Dream mall, 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford. All tickets $19 through Thursday August 17. Thereafter $24, all ages, for New Jersey residents; $29 adults and $24 children for all others. www.paradoxmuseumnewjersey.com.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paradox Museum at American Dream mall makes you part of the illusion