The problem with ascendency being locked and how it could be fixed

As someone who tries to avoid looking for information before making game decisions, I find the ascendency being locked a terrible design choice as it is currently implemented.
That being said, being able to change it like we can in POE 1 wouldn't feel right. There should be at least one thing you can't change to make a character special.
With that in mind, I had an idea to address this problem. Instead of doing the trial as your character, it would be interesting to give players a character with a premade build that can showcase the best points of the ascendency. Having the player complete half of the trial with each ascendency would give people like me and new players a good idea of how the ascendency plays.

Another way to do it would include a class-specific side quest that does the same through Act 1 and Act 2, introducing the ascendencies and allowing players to have a taste before doing the actual trials.

A third option would be to have the player test each ascendency as a requirement to free the boss instead of just clicking to break the seals. Something similar to the quest to open the belly of the beast, but with a premade character.

This could be made optional after the first time, to avoid making the campaign even longer.

Narration would probably be good, so players don't have to stop and read everything. A mix of lore about the person we are "playing as" and the playstyle of the ascendency.