The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) is an international non-profit association that represents creators, developers, designers and producers of themed entertainment. Its mission, as stated in its bylaws, is to facilitate dialogue and communication among its members, to stimulate knowledge and professional growth, and to expand the size, diversity and awareness of the themed entertainment industry.

Thea award

The Themed Entertainment Association annually presents the "Thea" award to projects whose achievement has been determined to be of "outstanding" quality. The award is for people or parks in the themed entertainment industry, selected by people from the industry.

15th Annual Thea Award Recipients

In 2009, Theas were awarded to the following:

• Lifetime Achievement Award: Robert L. Ward
• Thea Classic Award: EPCOT
  Epcot
  Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named...
  
  
• Museum: National Museum of the Marine Corps
  National Museum of the Marine Corps
  The National Museum of the Marine Corps is the historical museum of the United States Marine Corps. It is located in Quantico, Virginia and is open to the public with free admission. The museum had its grand opening on November 10, 2006 and is now the number one tourist attraction in Virginia,...
  
  
• Museum: The Newseum
  Newseum
  The Newseum is an interactive museum of news and journalism located at 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. The seven-level, museum features 15 theaters and 14 galleries. The Newseum's Berlin Wall Gallery includes the largest display of sections of the Berlin Wall outside of Germany...
  
  
• Museum Exhibit: Operation Spy at the International Spy Museum
  International Spy Museum
  The International Spy Museum is a privately owned museum dedicated to the field of espionage located within the 1875 Le Droit Building in the Penn Quarter neighborhood of Washington, D.C., across the street from the Old Patent Office Building and one block south of the Gallery Place Metro...
  
  
• Museum Exhibit, Limited Budget: Force of Nature at Arizona Science Center
  Arizona Science Center
  Arizona Science Center is focused on inspiring, educating, and entertaining people about science. The Center is located in Heritage and Science Park in the heart of downtown Phoenix. Home to over 350 permanent hands-on exhibits, the Center is able to provide their 400,000 annual visitors with...
  
  
• Learning Experience: Air Force One Discovery Center at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
  Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
  The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Center for Public Affairs is the presidential library and final resting place of Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th President of the United States. Designed by Hugh Stubbins and Associates, the library is located in Simi Valley, California, about northwest of...
  
  
• Science Center Audubon Insectarium
  Audubon Insectarium
  The Audubon Insectarium is an entomology museum in New Orleans, Louisiana. With more than 50 live exhibits and numerous multimedia elements, the facility is the largest free-standing American museum dedicated to insects.It opened in June 2008...
  
  
• Live Show: Finding Nemo - The Musical
• Live Show: The Legend of Mythica at Tokyo DisneySea
  Tokyo DisneySea
  is a 176-acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just outside Tokyo. It opened on September 4, 2001. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo DisneySea attracted an estimated 12 million visitors in...
  
  
• Event Spectacular: 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
  2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
  The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...
  
  
• Casino Attraction: Wynn Macau
  Wynn Macau
  Wynn Macau , owned by Wynn Resorts, is a luxury integrated resort in Macau Peninsula, Macau, People's Republic of China, offering gaming combined with a deluxe hotel, restaurants, designer shops, spa, and a "Performance Lake". It is the first Las Vegas-style integrated resort in Asia. It opened on...
  
  's Tree of Prosperity
• Technical: Muppet Mobile Lab
  Muppet Mobile Lab
  Muppet Mobile Lab is a free-roving, audio-animatronic entertainment attraction that has been tested at Disney California Adventure park in Anaheim, California and at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida; it is currently deployed at Hong Kong Disneyland in Hong Kong.Implemented on a Segway...
  
   at Hong Kong Disneyland
  Hong Kong Disneyland
  Hong Kong Disneyland is located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island. It is the first theme park located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and is owned and managed by the Hong Kong International Theme Parks. The park opened to visitors on 12 September 2005...
  
  
• New Theme Park Land: Jungala at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
• Attraction, Limited Budget: Bewilderwood
  Bewilderwood
  BeWILDerwood is an adventure park for families located in Horning, a parish in the English county of Norfolk. Self-described as a "curious treehouse adventure," the attraction is situated in a woodland area and features treehouses, rope bridges, slides, zip wires, a maze, and two special areas for...
  
  
• Attraction, Limited Budget: The Forgotten Mine at Park Molenheide in Houthalen-Helchteren
  Houthalen-Helchteren
  Houthalen-Helchteren is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. Houthalen-Helchteren consists of: Houthalen-centrum, Houthalen-Oost, Laak, Meulenberg and Lillo. On January 1, 2006 Houthalen-Helchteren had a total population of 29,945...
  
  , Belgium
  Belgium
  Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
  
  
• Attraction: The Simpsons Ride
  The Simpsons Ride
  The Simpsons Ride is a simulator ride featured at the Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood theme parks. The ride is based on the animated television series The Simpsons. It was first announced in 2007 and replaced the Back to the Future: The Ride at both locations...
  
   at Universal Studios Florida
  Universal Studios Florida
  Universal Studios Florida is an American theme park located in Orlando, Florida. Opened on June 7, 1990, the park's theme is the entertainment industry, in particular movies and television. Universal Studios Florida inspires its guests to "ride the movies," and it features numerous attractions and...
  
   and Universal Studios Hollywood
  Universal Studios Hollywood
  Universal Studios Hollywood is a movie studio and theme park in the unincorporated Universal City community of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood movie studios still in use...
  
  

14th Annual Thea Award Recipients

In 2008, Thea Awards for Outstanding Achievement were awarded to the following:

• Attraction: Shuttle Launch Experience, Kennedy Space Center
  Kennedy Space Center
  The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
  
  
• Attraction, Limited Budget: Awakening of the Temple, Aztec On The River
  Aztec On The River
  -History:Built in 1926, the Aztec Theatre is a notable example of the impressive exotic-theme motion picture palaces constructed in the United States during the economic boom of the 1920s. The Kellwood Corporation, owned by Robert Bertrum Kelly and H.C...
  
  
• Attraction Rehab: Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
  Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
  Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is an attraction located in the Tomorrowland area of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, which opened on June 11, 2007...
  
  , Disneyland
• Themed Training Experience: Battle Stations 21, U.S. Navy
• Interactive Adventure: Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure, Walt Disney World
• Technical Achievement: Kà
  Ka
  -Language:* Ka * Ka * Georgian language, ISO 639-1 code ka* A glyph in the Brahmic family of scripts-Media and entertainment:* Ka * Kà, a Cirque du Soleil show* Mister Mosquito, a video game, known in Japan as Ka...
  
   by Cirque du Soleil
  Cirque du Soleil
  Cirque du Soleil , is a Canadian entertainment company, self-described as a "dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment." Based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul in 1984 by two former street performers, Guy...
  
  
• Science Center, Limited Budget: Cosmos at the Castle, Blackrock Castle Observatory
  Blackrock Castle
  Blackrock Castle, formerly Mahon Castle, is a 16th century castle located about 2km from the heart of Cork city on the banks of the River Lee. The "Cosmos at the Castle" project is a centre for scientific research, outreach and communication. The project is a joint venture between , and a private...
  
  
• Exhibit, Limited Budget: Cleveland Avenue Time Machine, Troy University
  Troy University
  Troy University is a public university that is located in Troy, Alabama, United States. It was originally founded in 1887 as Troy Normal School. Its main campus enrollment is 7,194 students. The total enrollment of all Troy University campuses is 29,689...
  
  's Rosa Parks Library and Museum
• Traveling Exhibit, Limited Budget: CSI: The Experience
  CSI: The Experience
  CSI: The Experience is a traveling exhibition about crime lab forensic science and technology inspired by the hit television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.- Development and location :...
  
  
• Exhibit: Noah's Ark at the Skirball
  Skirball Cultural Center
  The Skirball Cultural Center is an educational institution in Los Angeles, California devoted to sustaining Jewish heritage and American democratic ideals. Open to the public since 1996, the Skirball Cultural Center is dedicated to exploring the connections between 4,000 years of Jewish heritage...
  
  , Los Angeles
• Museum: Discovering the Real George Washington, Mount Vernon
  Mount Vernon
  The name Mount Vernon is a dedication to the English Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon. It was first applied to Mount Vernon, the Virginia estate of George Washington, the first President of the United States...
  
  
• Heritage Center: Chain of Generations Center, Jerusalem
• Event Spectacular: Songs of the Sea, Sentosa
  Sentosa
  Sentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay , is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some five million people a year...
  
  
• Traveling Exhibit, Limited Budget: Walking with Dinosaurs: The Live Experience
• Event Spectacular: Peter Pan's Neverland, Universal Studios Japan
  Universal Studios Japan
  , located in Osaka, is one of four Universal Studios theme parks, owned and operated by USJ Co., Ltd. . The park is similar to Universal Orlando Resort, since it contains many of the same rides. Most visitors are Japanese tourists or tourists from other Asian countries such as Taiwan, Hong Kong,...
  
  
• Thea Classic Award: SeaWorld San Diego
  SeaWorld San Diego
  SeaWorld San Diego is an animal theme park, oceanarium, and marine mammal park, located in San Diego, California, United States. The park is owned by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, a division of The Blackstone Group....
  
  

13th Annual Thea Award Recipients

In 2007, Theas were awarded to the following:

• Lifetime Achievement Award: Bob Rogers
• Thea Classic Award: Madame Tussauds London
  Madame Tussauds London
  Madame Tussauds London is a major tourist attraction located in Central London. It is famous for recreating famous people, or celebrities, in wax. It is the original Madame Tussauds attraction, having been situated on Marylebone Road since 1884. It was set up by wax sculptor Marie Tussaud...
  
  
• Museum Touring Attraction: Ashes and Snow
  Ashes and Snow
  Ashes and Snow by Canadian artist Gregory Colbert is an installation of photographic artworks, films, and a novel in letters that travels in the Nomadic Museum, a temporary structure built exclusively to house the exhibition. The work explores the shared poetic sensibilities of human beings and...
  
  
• Live Show: Believe at SeaWorld
  SeaWorld
  SeaWorld is a United States chain of marine mammal parks, oceanariums, and animal theme parks owned by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. The parks feature captive orca, sea lion, and dolphin shows and zoological displays featuring various other marine animals. There are operations in Orlando,...
  
  
• Brand Retail Experience: Boudin at the Wharf
  Boudin Bakery
  Boudin Bakery is a bakery based in San Francisco, California, known for its sourdough bread...
  
  
• Attraction: Expedition Everest
  Expedition Everest
  Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain is a roller coaster attraction at Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando...
  
  
• Aquarium: The Georgia Aquarium
  Georgia Aquarium
  The Georgia Aquarium, located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, at Pemberton Place, is the world's largest aquarium with more than of marine and fresh water housing more than 120,000 animals of 500 different species...
  
  
• Simulated Experience: The Great Glass Elevator
  Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: The Ride
  Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: The Ride is a dark ride located in the Cloud Cuckoo Land area of Alton Towers theme park, Staffordshire, England. It is based upon the famous Roald Dahl book of the same name, and takes its thematic inspiration from the illustrations of Quentin Blake...
  
   at Alton Towers
  Alton Towers
  Alton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
  
  
• Children's Museum: Kidspace Children's Museum
  Kidspace Children's Museum
  Kidspace Children's Museum is located next to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, housed in the former Fanny Morrison Horticultural Center....
  
  
• Live Event: "Move, Live" - Toyota Pavilion at Expo 2005
  Expo 2005
  Expo 2005 was the World's Fair held for 185 days between Friday, March 25 and Sunday, September 25, 2005, in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, east of the city of Nagoya. It was a Specialized International Exhibition under the scheme of the 1972 protocol of the Convention relating to International Exhibitions...
  
  
• Aquarium Exhibit/Limited Budget: The Real-Cost Cafe at Monterey Bay Aquarium
  Monterey Bay Aquarium
  The Monterey Bay Aquarium is located on the former site of a sardine cannery on Cannery Row of the Pacific Ocean shoreline in Monterey, California. It has an annual attendance of 1.8 million visitors. It holds thousands of plants and animals, representing 623 separate named species on display...
  
  
• Museum Touring Exhibition: Robots: The Interactive Exhibition
• Attraction: Ski Dubai
  Ski Dubai
  Ski Dubai is an indoor ski resort with 22,500 square metres of indoor ski area. It is a part of the Mall of the Emirates, one of the largest shopping malls in the world, located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates...
  
  
• Museum Exhibit: U-505 Submarine Exhibit at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry
  Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago)
  The Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
  
  
• Zoo Exhibit: Zoomazium at Woodland Park Zoo
  Woodland Park Zoo
  Woodland Park Zoo is a zoological garden around the Phinney Ridge neighborhood of Seattle, Washington. Occupying the western half of Woodland Park, the zoo began as a small menagerie on the estate of Guy C. Phinney, a Canadian-born lumber mill owner and real estate developer...