Business in Blue: The Intersection of Imagination, Technology, and Play — Baron Von Opperbean’s River of Time
October 24, 2025
Business in Blue Podcast
On the Business in Blue podcast, hosted by Leia Harper and produced by the University of Memphis Fogelman College of Business, BVO CEO Jee Vahn Knight and CCO/Co-Founder Marvin Stockwell discuss the revitalization of the historic Mud Island Museum. The episode explores how imagination, technology, and play are driving the creation of Baron Von Opperbean & the River of Time—an immersive multiverse experience rooted in Memphis creativity.
“We’re honoring the legacy of Mud Island by allowing visitors to create a story for themselves within Memphis’s own multiverse.”
— Jee Vahn Knight, CEO, BVO
Full Episode Transcript
Read the full conversation below…lightly edited for clarity and flow.
Host (Leia Harper): Welcome back to Business in Blue. I’m your host, Leia Harper, and today we’re diving into something truly imaginative: Baron Von Opperbean and the River of Time - an immersive storytelling experience coming soon to Mud Island. In the studio I’m joined by Marvin Stockwell and Jee Vahn Knight, two creative forces helping bring this project to life. Welcome!
Marvin Stockwell: Thank you!
Jee Vahn Knight: Thanks so much for having us.
Host: How are we feeling?
Both: Excited to be here! Feeling great - it’s a gorgeous day.
Host: Icebreaker time. If you could travel to any moment in time - past or future - where would you go, and why?
Marvin: Oh gosh… I’m suddenly cataloging all the bands I’d love to have seen in their prime - some early ’80s punk rock. Hard to pick!
Jee: I might go witness historic launches during the Apollo era. We exceeded what we thought humanity could do. I worked with some of those artifacts for years; standing next to them as museum pieces is one thing - but imagining them actually leaving Earth and returning still blows my mind.
Host: Love it. Mine’s silly - I’d go back to the early 2010s to see Justin Bieber live.
(laughter)
Host: Before we dive in, what are your roles with BVO?
Marvin: I’m one of the co-founders of Baron Von Opperbean and the River of Time -BVO for short. We’re building an immersive experience inside the former Mississippi River Museum at Mud Island in downtown Memphis - 33,000 sq ft, with two giant boat replicas that we’ll redevelop as part of the experience. We’re currently building toward an ~8,000 sq ft opening phase early next year. Think open-world video game, but in real space - a mix of physical set pieces, projection mapping, screens - so you don’t just consume a story; you live it. You’ll have agency, interact with in-universe actors, and even speak with AI characters - holographic NPCs trained on our lore.
Host: Jee, your role?
Jee: I’m the CEO of BVO, recently invited to captain this band of pirates through launch. My mandate is two-fold: 1) build an entertainment brand that can be truly transformative, and 2) build one of the best companies in Memphis to work for - ethical, people-first, and rooted in our community. It’s not enough to create a beautiful guest experience - we also want a great workplace for Memphians.
Host: Where did the inspiration come from to turn Mud Island into an immersive storytelling experience?
Marvin: It started with our Chief Visionary Officer, Christopher Reyes, who opened Quadrant 360 in 2020 - 4,000 tickets in two days, visitors from eight states. That showed strong demand. Memphis is a family-friendly entertainment desert - you drive 5 hours to City Museum in St. Louis or all the way to Florida for Disney. People want experiences they can do together. We saw both a market gap and a mission: bring people together to play and problem-solve in a real space.
Host: For someone who’s never experienced this, how do you explain “interactive/immersive” exhibits?
Jee: “Immersive” is a spectrum. A gallery can be immersive if you lose yourself in the art. Meow Wolf is an interactive gallery - art first, with rooms you explore. Theme parks are more fixed -rides are similar for everyone, often more about physical thrills than narrative. We’re in between: an immersive playground set within a creative universe. Like City Museum, you bring your imagination to play - but here you’re also a character with choices. Each visit changes based on what you explore and how you interact. It’s sensory, physical, and story-driven - you’re not just a passenger.
Host: How do you balance creative vision with business realities?
Jee: We’re location-based entertainment. The business runs on four pillars: tickets, merchandise, food & beverage, and events. My job is ensuring we have the capital runway so Christopher and Kathryn can create without being stifled - iterate spaces, follow the story, bring in new artists and collaborators. Marvin drives audience through the door, and the creative team delivers the magic.
Host: You’re going to open job opportunities for Memphians. How does that feel - and what roles are you looking for?
Jee: It’s my favorite part. In my last leadership role, crossing 10 full-time employees (most with families) was a proud moment. Jobs matter - and so does the ecosystem around them: restaurants, lodging, transportation, parking, tours, fabrication shops, digital artists. We want to be a reason talent moves to Memphis.
Right now we need physical production (set builders, theater fabricators), digital production (systems engineers, Unity/Unreal devs, 3D and motion), and performers (voice and on-camera). Every guest-facing role is in-universe - we train for that.
Marvin: We’re tech-forward, but we won’t put core experience on phones or headsets - notifications break immersion. We want guests fully in-world for the whole visit, with real agency.
Host: Marvin, as a Memphian - how are locals responding?
Marvin: Genuine excitement. Early on, some investors simply loved that something was happening on Mud Island. Over time, excitement balanced: both for the immersive concept and for Mud Island’s comeback. It’s a 52-acre park and a crown jewel that needs polishing. We believe BVO can be a catalyst - and shout-out to Mahogany (great restaurant on the island). With more cohesive assets around us, it could be an all-day destination.
Host: Why Memphis?
Marvin: We’re Memphians and homers. Christopher’s long history - Live From Memphis - championed local creatives and broadcast their work before streaming was “a thing.” BVO carries that collaborative ethos forward: we want Memphis’ creative community to feel, “We did this.”
Jee: Economically, the parallels with Santa Fe (where Meow Wolf began) are striking: a regional gap in family entertainment and a distinct creative identity. When Meow Wolf opened, it quickly became the #1 tourist attraction in New Mexico, reshaping the state’s tourism. Memphis sits among Nashville, St. Louis, Little Rock, Jackson—a big region hungry for accessible, family-friendly experiences. With our music and cultural legacy, this is the next chapter of Memphis’ creative economy over the next decade.
Host: Jee, your Memphis story?
Jee: I’m California-raised (born in Korea, adopted young), lived in DC, Houston, New Mexico. My husband’s a blues-rock guy. On a 2018 road trip - Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis - Memphis just felt real. We chose Memphis. People ask “why Memphis?”- but to us it was obvious: the culture, the art, the people, the trajectory.
Marvin: And the universe kept nudging us together. Folks kept telling Jee, “Are you working with BVO?” - until she finally reached out. We’re lucky she did.
Host: Last topic: advice for college students who want to get involved.
Jee: Two things. 1) Your gifts die in your comfort zone. If it scares you, say yes - it’s the signal you’re about to level up. 2) People call it “luck,” but luck = being open and aware when opportunity passes by - and grabbing it. Stay engaged with people and community.
Marvin: Setbacks can create headspace. A 2021 layoff hurt, but it freed me to launch my PR consultancy, take road trips with my kids, start a podcast, and be available when Christopher began exploring BVO. Sometimes what you “lost” made room for what you were meant to find.
Host: What can we expect before the grand opening - ads, appearances?
Marvin: Follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook - search BVO or Baron Von Opperbean. Our hub is BVOEXP.com for links. We host tours and events in the River Room - some public, some private. Watch our socials and the press.
Host: I can’t wait - I’ll be one of the first in line and bringing friends. Thank you for being bold and brave enough to take this on. And to our listeners - thanks for watching Business in Blue: all things business, all things Memphis.