Show Times Released for Festival of the Lion King in the New Harambe Theatre

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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Festival of the Lion King will be reopening on Sunday June 1, 2014 in the newly built Harambe Theatre in Africa at Animal Kingdom. Just like in it’s previous location, shows will run every hour on the hour beginning at 10:00 am.

Shows will run until 7:00 pm on all nights except for Saturdays when they close early to prepare for the hard ticket event Harambe Nights. On Saturdays the last performance will be at 4:00 pm. On Thursday June 5th shows will also end early (last performance at 4:00 pm) for a final dress rehearsal.

VIDEO: Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade Emotionally Closes 13 Year Run at Animal Kingdom

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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On Saturday, May 31st, Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park concluded 13 years of daily entertaining guests at the park. The parade is going away to accommodate a fair amount of construction around the park, both for infrastructure guests won’t really see and for the Rivers of Light nighttime spectacular that will debut before AVATAR opens in early 2017.

We recorded 2 angles of the parade, when it first stepped-off and began its final performance and again when the parade concluded and returned backstage for the very last time. Enjoy:

VIDEO: Festival of the Lion King “Roars” Into New Harambe Theatre at Animal Kingdom

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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On June 1st, 2014, Festival of the Lion King at Disney’s Animal Kingdom returned in a brand new venue, the Harambe Theatre in Africa, behind the Dawa Bar and Tusker House Restaurant. WDWNT Reporter John Corigliano was on the scene to get video of the show:

Not much has changed in the show, but the new lighting and such makes a big difference. Festival of the Lion King was moved to accommodate the construction of the AVATAR themed land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, set to open in early 2017.

Cameron Speaks – Pandora: The Land of AVATAR? Most Advanced Audio-Animatronics Ever?

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

“It’s going to be called, I believe, Pandora: The Land of Avatar”

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James Cameron recently spoke to the media at the Los Angeles Times Hero Complex Film Festival about the upcoming “AVATAR Land” project for Disney’s Animal Kingdom. According to /Film, he had the following to say:

It’s going to have floating mountains. It’s pretty cool. I’ve seen the model and the design work the Imagineering people have done is spectacular. They’ve got a quarter inch to the foot scale model of the whole park and I’ve looked at all the sight lines…it’s not a park, it’s a land within the park but a land is not just a ride. There will be several rides and a number of other attractions. It’s really just a place you’re gonna wanna go and hang out. It’s gonna be gorgeous. Of course it’s gonna be gorgeous at night and they’re using every new trick, every new bit of technology that they’ve created.

The animatronics for the Na’vi characters are gonna be fantastic. For example, their early animatronics would use 12 axis of motion and I think the most they’ve ever done was 32 axis recently. I think they’re up to 64 just in the face of the Na’vi characters. So it’s gonna be remarkable. They really see it as a major, major attraction.

If what Cameron says is to be believed, we may be in for something really special…

The AVATAR area at Disney’s Animal Kingdom is scheduled to open in early 2017.

Joe Hogarty’s 5/30/14 Disney Springs Photo Report (Double Shot of Starbucks, The Landing, Marketplace Bridge, ETC.)

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

WDWNT Reporter Joe Hogarty visited Downtown Disney (soon to be Disney Springs) on Friday and has a ton of great newsworthy photos to share with us, so let’s take a look:

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THE CRANE! THE CRANE!

Work continues on the West Side parking structure for Disney Springs

The Disney Springs logo is starting to pop up…

For now, you can find the logo only on some parking signs

Looks like they are up to the 7th level on the parking structure which should be completed in 3-4 months

Walls still up where Food Truck Park will be located

The West Side Starbucks has opened

Along with the Downtown Disney Anaheim location, this is one of the very first locations with the new store look

It looks great inside

Touch-screen allows guests at other Starbucks locations to interact with guests in Orlando… for now it’s just Anaheim

They seem happy to finally be open 🙂

Not much change to see on the bridge to what’s left of Pleasure Island

BET Soundstage Club signage remains

Vertical construction in The Landing section is progressing nicely, but there isn’t much time left before it opens in early 2015

The backside of Portobello is being worked on as it will soon be visible to guests via a new walkway to the Marketplace from The Landing

Some new façade also going on the back of Raglan Road

Some pavement work happening outside of Fulton’s

Looks like the first pieces of the Marketplace bridge have arrived

A large concrete island is now floating out in the water, probably the location where the bridge will turn

The small Starbucks location in the Marketplace by World of Disney has also opened

Don’t forget, Car Masters Weekend is coming up fast! Get it, FAST?!?

One-Night-Only “Villains Unleashed” Hard Ticket Event To Be Announced

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

We told you in 2013 that the Limited Time Magic Friday the 13th “Unleash the Villains” event was a test for a possible hard-ticket event to be added to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in the not-too-distant future. Well, Walt Disney World is expected to begin ticket sales for annual passholders and Disney Vacation Club members tomorrow, June 5th, for the very first “Villains Unleashed” after hours party to be held on August 23, 2014 from 8PM-1AM. Tickets will be sold to the general public starting June 9th.

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Ticket prices for APs and DVC members will be $67 adult/$62 child in advance, $71 adult/$66 child day of.

No further details are available at this time as the event has not been officially announced yet. We expect the event to carry over some of the more popular offerings from Friday the 13th, 2013, which you can watch below:

Tickets On Sale Now; Entertainment Line-Up Revealed for “Villains Unleashed” Event at Hollywood Studios

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

As we reported yesterday, the “Villains Unleashed” party at Disney’s Hollywood Studios did indeed have tickets for annual passholders and Disney Vacation Club members go on sale today, even though the event has still not been formally announced by Disney at this point. Today, we got some details on the event offerings that will take place during the party on August 23rd from 8PM until 1AM:

  • Special Fantasmic! pre-show
  • Star Wars villains character zone
  • Hades Hangout and Dance Party
  • Themed variety show in the Theater of the Stars
  • Villainy in the Sky fireworks
  • Appearances by over 50 villains, some in meet & greets
  • Specialty merchandise, food, and beverage

Tickets are on-sale now at this link, but you must be logged in as a Walt Disney World passholder to do so.

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PHOTOS & VIDEO: Tinker Bell Moves to Town Square Theater at the Magic Kingdom

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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A few weeks ago, Tinker Bell’s Nook in the former Adventureland Veranda restaurant at the Magic Kingdom was closed and Tinker Bell has now flown on over to Town Square Theater on Main Street U.S.A.. Tinker Bell’s new home replaces the Princess meet and greet area in Town Square Theater which was shuttered in the Summer of 2013 when Princess Fairytale Hall opened in New Fantasyland.

The journey begins with a cast member initiating a magical Pixie Dust effect, shrinking you down to the size of a pixie…

It’s nothing groundbreaking, but it doesn’t appear to be a permanent home for Tinker Bell either. If there are plans to move the meet and greet again at some future time, it is unclear where or when that would be,

Rumors indicate that the meet and greet was moved so that the Adventureland Veranda could once again become a restaurant (since the Magic Kingdom constantly has table service restaurants that are completely booked for reservations at busy dinner times). Only time will tell if this rumor comes to fruition.

PHOTOS & VIDEO: Highly Anticipated Marketplace Co-Op Store Opens at Downtown Disney

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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Earlier today, the Marketplace Co-Op store at Downtown Disney we have been reporting about anxiously for several months finally opened to the public:

Our first stop inside is Centerpiece

Plenty of Polynesian and Adventureland inspired pieces

So much glassware

There’s an entire rack of Little Orange Bird merchandise

Plates

Some new, smaller signs were introduced

Tiki Room coasters

Trophy Room is pretty much the remains of Team Mickey

D-Tech on demand features pre-packaged electronics and cases, as well as 125 pieces of art that you can make into a new phone case

So many choices

Seems easy enough

On to Beautifully Disney…

Plenty of spa products, including some previously only available at Aulani

Zoey and Pickles is items focusing on tweens

Our last stop is Cherry Tree Lane

If all of this wasn’t enough to excite you about the Marketplace Co-Op, we also have a full video walk-through:

VIDEO: Mark Hamill Recalls Memories of Playing Luke Skywalker & The Joker at Star Wars Weekends 2014

WDWNT on June 29, 2014

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For one weekend only, a bit of Star Wars royalty dropped-by Star Wars Weekends 2014 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. A special “Conversation with Mark Hamill” was held in the Premier Theater on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and we were lucky enough to catch the very last presentation of the show yesterday afternoon. Please enjoy our video of the entire presentation:

Pretty cool, huh?