Thursday, 29th April 2010

Captain EO returns to Disneyland Paris, 12th June!

Remember last December, when Disneyland Paris clarified to Cast Members that they wouldn’t be following Disneyland Resort in California by bringing back the previous Captain EO 3-D film to what we’ve more recently known as Honey, I Shrunk the Audience?

Oh, but then 23rd February this year came and went, and the slightly re-titled ‘Captain EO Tribute’ opened in California, proving an immediate crowd-puller — especially compared to the tired old tricks of HISTA. As MiceAge calculated, the theatre was now welcoming not 1,500 to 2,500 visitors a day but more like 15,000 or 16,000, clearly using the space much more efficiently.

So it’s confirmed: ‘EO’ will return to ALL its former locations, officially opening (or re-opening) on 12th June 2010 at Disneyland Paris. This of course means we have to say goodbye to Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, which closes in just a few days’ time on 3rd May 2010, giving around six weeks for a swift changeover of the theatre to get it looking a little more like its original 1992 state.

Still don’t believe it? Here’s the press release:

‘Captain EO’ Returns to Disneyland Paris

Classic Attraction Featuring Michael Jackson to re-open in June

Captain EO returns to Disneyland Paris

LONDON 28 APRIL 2010 Due to the overwhelming response from both guests and Michael Jackson fans at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim since February, “Captain EO,” the classic musical spectacular that thrilled Disneyland Park guests from 1992-1998 will return to Disneyland Paris, Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland Resort this summer.

The attraction’s return to Disneyland Paris’ Discoveryland on 12 June 2010, provides new audiences with the opportunity to experience the original 3D production for the very first time, as well as a nostalgic look back for longtime fans wanting to see “The King of Pop” in a rare performance created for the big-screen.

Twenty-three years ago, at the height of his phenomenal entertainment career, Michael Jackson joined forces with Disney, producer George Lucas and director Francis Ford Coppola to create a groundbreaking 17-minute 3D film experience starring Jackson as Captain EO performing two original songs, and featuring Academy Award®-winning actress Anjelica Huston, and a cast of merry, mythical space characters with dual personalities who undergo magical transformations to become Jackson’s electronic band in conquering the forces of darkness.

The colorful Disney-created characters include: Hooter, the little green elephant-like creature who sneezes wild musical notes through his flute-like trunk; Fuzzball, the orange-haired space monkey with butterfly wings; the Geex, a golden-haired, two-faced personality with two left feet, one right foot and two shaggy heads named Idy and Ody; Major Domo, whose mirrored silver costume becomes a complete set of drums, and Minor Domo with his sparkling purple torso that turns into an electronic synthesizer played by Hooter.

For all its technology, “Captain EO” is first and foremost a musical spectacular and a thrilling space-fantasy adventure. The realism of the 3D process will once again make it seem that Jackson dances right out of the screen into the theater. It will boast a new 70mm print of the film and sound better than ever thanks to acoustical enhancements made to the theater since the film last played there. The total effect is one of motion, color and high energy filled with Jackson’s musical brilliance and various illusions to create an exciting and realistic journey in space for the audience.

During the journey, Captain EO and his merry crew discover a colorless planet where they are confronted by the Supreme Leader (Huston) and her forces of darkness. Using the power of music, dance and light to fill the planet and the theater with all the shades of the rainbow, the EO crew turns the black and white land into a magical world of color and happiness.

“Captain EO” makes use of more famous-name talents than any other film of its length ever produced. The production called on Hollywood’s finest choreographers, set designers, costume creators and special effects artists — all of them excited by the challenge of shooting this kind of imaginative film in three dimensions.

“Captain EO” will be presented multiple times daily at Disneyland Paris from 12 June 2010

Along with the video above, several stills have been dug out to accompany the press release:

Captain EO returns to Disneyland Paris

Captain EO returns to Disneyland Paris

Captain EO returns to Disneyland Paris

The attraction will also re-open at Tokyo Disneyland on 30th June and at Epcot in Florida on 2nd July, making Disneyland Paris the first park beyond California to welcome back the sci-fi adventure film. Something that, given the resort’s past reluctance to catch up (‘EO’ was already almost six years old when it opened, ‘HISTA’ took over five years after its Epcot debut) comes as even more of a surprise.

Of course, though 16th August 1998 was the last time you could see the 3-D George Lucas “space opera” in Paris, guests actually enjoyed it under the name of ‘CinéMagique‘ (probably making our Disney resort the only one to have had two completely different attractions share the same name). Like the Magic Eye Theater in California, this was the name given to the building — but also as the title on park maps and at the entrance. Captain EO just happened to be the film playing. So, in a round-about way, ‘Captain EO’ (or perhaps ‘Captain EO Tribute’) will be a brand new addition to the park maps come 12th June — that’s presuming they’re reprinted, since the current lot extend to 6th November but will now soon be out-of-date.

Captain EO‘s return to these parks will be on the same “limited time” basis as its reopening in California, though with no end date currently announced, serving both to celebrate Michael Jackson truly at his peak and to bide some time before a true follow-up to HISTA can be Imagineered. Rumours for California have suggested the interactive “living character” attraction Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor, but this already being at Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, would still leave Epcot needing a new filler for its Imagination pavilion, and for us, those Pixar monsters (even with a now-confirmed sequel on the way) might finally prove one step too far from the original Discoveryland concept.

But back to today — let’s say our fond farewells to HISTA, the mice tails and dog sneezes which so entertained us on our first visit, and prepare to welcome back an unexpected piece of the past — a rare chance for the visitors of today to experience some Euro Souvenirland history… in 3-D!

Pictures, video © Disney

Wednesday, 21st April 2010

Toy Soldiers hoisted up as Parachute Drop testing begins

Although the green army men’s parachutes themselves have yet to arrive, the six ride seats, each able to carry six trainee toy recruits, managed to stay up in the air for some time, before being lowered again back to the ground.

Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop

When the ride opens, the seats will rise and fall gracefully to simulate a lightly bouncing “parachute drop”, inspired by the famous scene in the original Toy Story — the first to be animated in the entire film — where the green army men jump through the bannisters of Andy’s staircase on their mission to relay news of his birthday presents.

Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop

Other visible progress on Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop can be seen with the fine mesh which is now covering the lower half of each of the six arms, from a distance thankfully giving the tower a bulkier, more solid appearance, hiding the thin, human-sized safety rails.

On the opposite side of the tower, a new first corner section connecting two of the arms together can be seen, with a staircase leading up to it, appearing to emerge from out of the tower itself. Concept art for the tower has differed on whether all of the arms will be joined together like this, even if purely for decoration. It would certainly make sense to create an even appearance all the way round, but so far no fixings for additional sections can be seen on the other arms.

Thanks to John for the pictures!

Sunday, 11th April 2010

PanoraMagique’s (real) new livery blown up… and lit up

Aérophile, the balloon’s operators (they also run the similar Characters in Flight at Florida’s Downtown Disney), dropped a casual mention of this new illumination effect into a recent news article describing how their two French balloons had stood up so well to storm “Xynthia” on 28th February.

Congratulating its helium-filled efforts, they described “a beautiful performance for this brave fighter which will soon take a deserved rest to get replaced by a new illuminated balloon.”

And so five years on from its launch in April 2005, weather beaten and colours faded, PanoraMagique mark I slowly, very slowly, disappeared…

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

…And it was a long wait for the replacement.

But then, on the crisp sunny day of 5th April, it appeared:

PanoraMagique balloon

The next afternoon, work began to inflate the balloon from the ground up. The colours already looked brighter — and thankfully close to their original 2005 design — but what would we see as the balloon raised up from the platform on Lake Disney…?

PanoraMagique balloon

First change — the stars are navy blue/black, instead of the original white…

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

Second change — white line between the two blues gone, sunburst design seems more pronounced…

PanoraMagique balloon

Third change — balloon graphics in the main emblem changed from deep red to a light yellow…

PanoraMagique balloon

Then, around six hours into the work, the new balloon was finally ready to be raised up, and the original passenger cabin fixed in place below.

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

Approaching midnight, the new lights inside the balloon are switched on, the spotlights on the platform switched off and we see another change to the balloon’s design — a rather monstrous-looking Tinkerbell, presumably enlarged (and changed from her original full-colour design to a single dark colour) to provide a good silhouette against the balloon:

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

If they had balloons in Tron, they’d probably look something like this.

PanoraMagique balloon

Et voilà — PanoraMagique mark II ready to take to the lovely blue skies over Lake Disney.

Though you can see why Characters in Flight landed in Florida, it’s easy to say that PanoraMagique has the upper hand. Not only does it have a more tasteful, classic livery (ignoring the new Tinkerbell flying ant), its location right in the centre of Disneyland Paris makes it perfect for looking out and seeing Disney landmarks close by, from above — not far away on the horizon.

One thing to remember when you’re 100 metres up, visible from 22 kilometres all around: don’t look down!

Images via PanoraMagique live webcam (Aérophile/Disney).

Saturday, 10th April 2010

Refurb roundup: Castle Bridge, Organ Music & Tea Cups

Fret over getting that perfect picture in front of Le Château no more — the bridge has reopened after a major two month rebuilding project, looking cleaned to fairytale perfection:

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Disneyland Paris refurbishments Disneyland Paris refurbishments

So clean, so crisp, in fact, that the castle behind looks even grubbier than it did before.

The project apparently included the complete rewiring of all the lights along the bridge, and as the scaffolding disappeared a couple of weeks ago now, the main window of the castle even had a nice surprise for us.

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

As if just being able to see it again after three years wasn’t good enough, the light behind its stained-glass design appears to have been tweaked to give a brighter, more even illumination, bringing out the beautiful colours right throughout the day. A big improvement on the patchy single spotlight before.

Back in Main Street U.S.A., Town Square Photography now has its decorative refurbishment overlay in place:

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

We’re already a month into this work, and there’s still a long time to go. The refurbishment of Town Square Photography is set to be completed on 2nd July, whilst the smaller Disney Clothiers, Ltd. restoration just along the street, which had almost a month head start, will be done by 18th June 2010.

Over in Fantasyland, this could be bad timing to catch those visitors whose interest has been reawakened by Tim Burton’s 3-D adaptation, but Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups is currently closed from 6th to 23rd April for a much-needed full refurbishment.

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Work should include repainting or resurfacing the turntable, which has been lacking its original bright colours for years, as well as cleaning the roof, repainting and replacing the lights and lanterns, along with other maintenance. The work was originally announced by Disneyland Paris to end on 2nd April, so this appears to have been pushed back.

Not strictly a refurbishment, since this is potentially something we’ll never seen returned — the Rainforest Cafe signage on the side of the building, next to where the brand new Earl of Sandwich counter service restaurant is due to be built, has disappeared:

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

After the concept art was published last year, temporary construction walls surrounded this railing a couple of months ago for a few days — only to suddenly disappear again. When construction does finally begin, there will need to be some serious infilling of this area of the lagoon, along with deconstruction of some of the rockwork seen above.

And finally… A real delight that has returned, after a lengthy absence, the Main Street Station organ:

Disneyland Paris refurbishments

Not only does it look all freshly-polished, the organ (via recorded sound effects) once again greets each arriving Disneyland Railroad train as it steams through the station, bringing back a missing piece of the Main Street’s original turn-of-the-century atmosphere.

Photos by Photos Magiques (more), Dlrpteam as credited.

Thursday, 1st April 2010

1,690 Days later… The paint arrives for Disney Studio 1

Last week, the scaffolding and tarpaulin covering finally expanded to cover the large number “1” at the top of the façade, as the first workers since July 2008 were spotted up high:

Disney Studio 1
Photo: Jake Sully, Disney Gazette forum

This weekend just gone, the first results — all the dirt and grime gone from the top of the number plaque, newly repainted at last:

Disney Studio 1

No photoshop, no joke — real progress at last! Congratulations, Disneyland Paris!

It’s been a long journey. After a master-stroke of corporate thinking between Euro Disney SCA and what was then Buena Vista International (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group) in 2005, the film distribution arm of Disney apparently paid its theme park operator cousin a nominal fee to use the front of Disney Studio 1 as a huge advertising billboard for new movie Chicken Little.

Eight months later, in April 2006, they continued their “sponsorship” with a new billboard, extending even further up the building, for Pixar’s Cars. Twenty-seven months — over two years — later, it was still there. With fans becoming exasperated, hope came in August 2008 when Studio 1 finally returned to its natural state… well, almost.

Disney Studio 1

Disney Studio 1 Disney Studio 1

Disney Studio 1
Cars on an official photo (2007), Chicken Little concept (2005),
Refurbishment cover (2008), Original façade (2004)

• 16th March 2002 – 8th August 2005: Original, uncovered façade (41 months)

• 8th August 2005 – 4th April 2006: Chicken Little advertisement (8 months)

• 4th April 2006 – 1st July 2008: Cars advertisement (27 months)

• 11th July – Today: Refurbishment covering (20 months)

Total time covered by billboards/scaffolding: 55 months

It was given a complete covering of scaffolding from end-to-end and one of the look-a-like tarpaulin masks we’re now used to seeing on refurbishments. Let the clean-up begin! But then — more trouble. Owing to what the resort would only term “technical difficulties”, the refurbishment covering stayed in place for month, after month, after month. Inside word suggested the project to repaint and uncover the façade was hit either by legal troubles with contractors or safety worries from departments within the resort.

And so we waited, until now, when it looks like our park landmark might finally be in preparation for its first close-up since July 2005. Only opened in 2002, we’ve known this tribute to Walt Disney’s Hyperion Studios for longer with scaffolding attached than without.

It’s time to put that right.

Photos 1-2: as credited; Other Photos: DLRP Today.com/Disney
Thanks to mouetto, DCP for exact billboard dates.

Thursday, 1st April 2010

PanoraMagique’s Mickey & friends makeover revealed

At least, that’s what’s happening if you believed our… April fool! …

Any fans checking out the PanoraMagique website last Monday would have been given the shock of seeing the balloon crashed to the ground, losing air and surrounded by people. No worry, a quick look at the homepage revealed the Disney Village attraction to be “closed for maintenance”.

We captured stills as the original 2005 balloon breathed out its last gasp of helium…

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

PanoraMagique balloon

So, where’s it gone?

At five years old, and no longer having its original, bright red and yellow colour, it appears to be time for a brand new balloon. The lifespan of these unique flying systems is more limited than your average Disney ride, since they were originally only intended as temporary observation attractions. When PanoraMagique opened in 2005, the operators signed a 7-year contract with Disneyland Paris. But, with the same company now also operating Characters in Flight at Walt Disney World, this is likely to have been extended.

So far, rumours have suggested that the new balloon on its way to Paris might have a slight innovation upon its predecessor — being lit from inside, possibly using LEDs, so that it can “glow” at night without the need for fierce spotlights from below.

However, we can reveal this isn’t the only change on the way to PanoraMagique — the whole look of the balloon is set to be refreshed with a brand new livery. These brand new, exclusive concepts below show the new, more colourful design for the helium bubble that will be setting the trend for the next five years:

PanoraMagique balloon

Yes, you guessed it — there’s Mickey Mouse. The balloon itself looks set to become a yellow and pink colour, with a blue band, whilst oversized character faces will smile down from each side.

As the detailed concepts for the ticket booth above show, the balloon also appears to be receiving a new name, or at least a sub-title, becoming “PanoraMagique… with Mickey & Friends!” on official nomenclature to signify the change. Only limited modifications will be made to the booth itself, with images of the balloon updated and new 3-D (or “2.5-D” relief) characters added either side of the signage, similar to those recently added to Walt Disney Studios Store.

PanoraMagique balloon

The basket itself, which doesn’t require replacement, looks to be keeping the same design.

Don’t think that this is a drive to increase patronage of PanoraMagique, though — as the second balloon in Florida shows, it has been a big success since its launch in 2005, attracting balloonists even on the cloudiest of days. Such a success, in fact, that it has become a real “icon” for the whole of Disneyland Paris, visible for miles around and from within both parks.

So, in effect, the resort wishes to capitalise on the balloon’s success — by using it to draw more guests into the quiet Lake Disney and Disney Hotels area. The hope is that, by placing giant character faces on the balloon, more families with young children will be tempted to go for a stroll around the lake area and visit other hotels, whereas now they are proven to turn back after Café Mickey.

The launch of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show… with Mickey & Friends! last April — and its subsequent success in turning around the fortunes of the flagging 17-year-old show — may well have set a precedent. As too may have the Mickey’s Magical Party decorations which, though unpopular amongst fans, apparently produced positive feedback from guests who appreciated seeing the characters on Sleeping Beauty Castle as they walked up Main Street.

Now, these familiar faces will be visible day and night, from everywhere in Disneyland Paris.

• Never been on PanoraMagique? Watch our HD video of a flight here!

Webcam photos © PanoraMagique/Aérophile, Concepts © Disney.

Tuesday, 30th March 2010

New Generation decoration mixes old habits, new ideas

These days it only happens at Halloween and Christmas, but there was a point in the recent past, around the time of The Lion King Carnival and similar events, when it seemed Main Street Station was never without decorations.

But, those seasonal logos have made a comeback. As spotted in a behind-the-scenes video, concepts prepared by the Entertainment department called for a return to Main Street Station decorations — although we couldn’t quite get a good look at them. Last week, they began to appear.

New Generation Festival decorations

First with a new idea, at least for seasonal decorations at Disneyland Paris: Ruffled semi-circular fabric bunting in red and yellow, a common way Main Street is decorated for Halloween in the overseas parks — where there’s no orange paint in sight — and a welcome idea for Paris.

And then, the old tradition: A large logo plaque and sculpted character models.

New Generation Festival decorations

Models that are, it’s been noted… a little off-model. The tacked-on Mickey is oversized compared to his new friends, and we’d better be careful what we say about that Woody and his eyes… there must be something in the s’mores at Cowboy Camp!

So far (perhaps there’s more to come?) there are only additional characters to the left of the main logo, with Tiana and Frog standing in front of one window and Remy in front of the other.

New Generation Festival decorations

New Generation Festival decorations

As we saw in the concept art, the Baroque style of the logo frame is continued through the new Main Street lamppost decorations, although the colour scheme seems to have become darker and less symmetrical.

The final colours of the ribbons under each frame are blue, yellow, red, green and purple, rather than the fresher pattern of purple, white, yellow, green, yellow, white and pink promised…

New Generation Festival decorations

New Generation Festival decorations

New Generation Festival decorations

Still, we can probably all agree this is how Main Street should be decorated. A big, big improvement on the mess last year; at last a reasonably subtle way to extend the year’s theme and bring the current advertising campaign into the parks.

Perhaps, then, it simply fell to Main Street Station to be this year’s sacrificial piece of Disneyland Park for the less successful decorations, now that the castle is finally off-limits. At least, better to have Woody frightening children there than from somewhere on our dear château!

Now, about Tinkerbell…

Photos by Dlrpteam for DLRP Today.com

Tuesday, 30th March 2010

New Generation Festival Press Launch – In the Parks

Press events are both loved and loathed by Disneyland Paris fans, particularly those frequent French visitors who might have the chance to visit almost every weekend.

On the one hand, it’s a break from the norm — the chance to see special photo set-ups and even catch sight of some VIPs. On the other, it means disruption throughout the parks, areas closed off and prime parade and show viewing points cordoned off from paying guests, while badge holders are often given free reign to skip queues on the most popular attractions. Maybe they’re a necessary evil.

Anyway, it’s not all glitz and glamour — take those celebrity photos with the blue New Generation Festival backdrop we posted the other night. Thought that might be some plush backstage area or a warm photo studio? No, it was the glamorous locale of the Moteurs… Action! queue area… !

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Surprisingly, performances of the stunt show itself weren’t interrupted by the press event, although numerous preparations for the spectacular nighttime launch ahead were visible inside the arena — such as this large lighting rig running along the roof span:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Projectors, cameras and other equipment were not-so-inconspicuously hidden under black sheets in various areas of the stadium seating:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Back outside, Backlot had welcomed a fun retro trailer to serve as an outside broadcast unit for “LFM”:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Celebrities and VIPs from various nations could be spotted all over the parks throughout the day, with film crews, reporters and cameras trailing them to the various picture-perfect locations like the Toon Town backdrop:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Meanwhile, Buzz Lightyear made a quick move from meeting the guests in Toon Studio (left) to meeting the VIPs and film crews in the temporary Backlot photo studio (right):

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

The fully-refurbished Monsters Inc. location in Toon Studio had a special lighting set-up for the celebrity shots taken here with Sully:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

And then, the roping-off began:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

A huge area around the Place des Stars Stage was cordoned off for press only, leaving regular, paying guests struggling to see the single performance of Disney’s Stars ‘n’ Cars, the park’s only outdoor entertainment spectacle:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

At least, it was well-patronised come show time:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

The president of Disneyland Paris, Euro Disney CEO, Philippe Gas was also in attendance to see Rémy and Emile join the production:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Despite his no doubt hectic schedule, he even took time to make a surprise appearance at a unique meeting of Disneyland Paris fans which was organised for the day — you can read a report here.

With the show over, the Ratatouille car left Place des Stars last…

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

And then veered left to turn into the cordoned-off Hollywood Boulevard…

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Pulling up alongside the Toy Story car to provide a backdrop for more photos and VIP interviews:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

This was only the second time since the launch of “The Celebration Continues” in 2008 that events have centred so squarely on Walt Disney Studios Park, but there were still plenty of events elsewhere. Over in Disneyland Park, the Town Square gazebo was surrounded by special lighting and wrapped in vines for celebrity photos with Princess Tiana:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Whilst the familiar viewing platform for photographers and film crews was placed at the far end of Main Street, facing Central Plaza, for the inaugural performance of Disney Showtime Spectacular — with unfortunate grey skies:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

Classic photo spots, such as the castle hill, were also in use:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

But finally, back at the studios, the doors closed for the general public:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

As Disney Studio 1 become a self-contained press holding area, regular guests had to leave the park via the backstage gates between Production Courtyard and Front Lot — views of off-limits areas hidden by a row of temporary planters:

New Generation Festival Press Launch - In the Parks

And then, with guests heading home, the real show began

Photos by Dlrpteam for DLRP Today.com

Monday, 29th March 2010

All Stars Showtime Express Spectacular – official video clips

Disney All Stars Express

Easy to criticise as just another rehash of the previous character trains, but at least more visually appealing than last year’s Minnie’s Party Train. And don’t forget WALL-E — this is the first time this masterpiece of a character has been integrated into a Disney parade or park event anywhere in the world.

Earlier updates:

Disney All Stars Express rolls onto the parade route
First photos, full set of official photos and first video clips

Disney Showtime Spectacular

Already earning rave reviews from returning visitors and winning over many who weren’t too keen on last year’s hub show, Disney Showtime Spectacular makes the clever move of dressing Mickey and the gang up for each musical number, with their Incredibles superhero outfits in particular being very unique in the Disney park world and sure to be remembered.

Earlier updates:

Showtime Spectacular in even more photos… and HD video!
Full 20-minute video of the show and full set of official photos

First look at Disney Showtime Spectacular on Central Plaza!
First photos by Photos Magiques of the very first performance

You can also watch and subscribe to all the latest videos on our YouTube channel.

Videos © Disney

Monday, 29th March 2010

Tiana’s musical meeting, first parade – pictures and video

Imagine the royal scraps backstage! Even with its two articulated floats, the finale of Disney’s Once Upon a Dream Parade is now having to accommodate no less than five couples.

For Belle, previously leading the float with a profusion of red roses and the beastly incarnation of her love, it means moving further back (or perhaps, being “promoted” to stand alongside Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty) and seeing her Beast transformed back into a human prince, allowing him to move more easily.

And so the roses of 2007…

Princess Tiana at Disneyland Paris

…become the wild, yellow flowers of the bayou for Tiana and Naveen!

Princess Tiana at Disneyland Paris

The podium has also been modified with a new raised platform and safety railing, decorated with more yellow flowers, to give guests a better view of the couple. This is their first appearance on a permanent Disney parade float anywhere in the world.

Princess Tiana at Disneyland Paris

The Princess and the Frog has been welcomed into the parade with a new section of music added to the float’s medley: a new recording of Ma Belle Evangeline, with Tiana speaking over the top about — you guessed it — dreams.

The second half of the video above features the new musical meet ‘n’ greet on Town Square, which does appear to have so far replaced the previous Mary Poppins show. As you can see in the video, there’s a new (and nicely designed) noticeboard nearby to advertise the meeting times.

Princess Tiana at Disneyland Paris

Princess Tiana at Disneyland Paris

With no performance numbers like the Mary Poppins show, this new character event sees Tiana and Naveen meet guests in the gazebo, for a perfect photo with the Main Street backdrop, as one of the park’s live bands play dixieland jazz renditions of songs from the film (heard but not seen in the video).

Tout suite! Are you “goin’ down the bayou” to meet Tiana?

Photos, video © Disney

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