I have never been a great fan of exhibits that chronicle a person’s life with glass cases full of their favorite things. For some reason, I feel a disconnect in thinking that I learn a whole lot about someone from looking at say, his or her old clothes or shoes.

I am thinking about this because Diana, A Celebration has come to Kansas City. Coinciding with a major royal wedding this spring, the event handlers are hopeful for record attendance.

With the sound of Candle in the Wind/Goodbye England’s Rose in the background, the exhibit has a collection of personal effects that highlight Diana’s life. There are school report cards, toys, family photos, the wedding-dress-with-10,000-pearls-and-the-25-foot-train, a dozen or so designer gowns and a tiara or two. Sorry but the

Celebration doesn’t hold a candle to the recent Dinosaurs Exhibit. Now there was something: the huge loud dinosaurs, the full size skeletons, and the eggs from 245 million years ago.  If it’s between a garage sale and Jurassic Park, where would you rather be?