California Adventure’s “Frozen – Live at the Hyperion” Stage Musical Gets Opening Date, Sing-Along Closing

WDWNT on March 5, 2016

“Frozen – Live at the Hyperion,” the new musical adaptation based on Disney’s blockbuster animated film, will officially open at the Hyperion Theater at Disney California Adventure park on May 27, 2016.

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The Creative Entertainment team, led by Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Entertainment Portfolio Executive Dana Harrel, is hard at work bringing to the stage a production that stays true to the emotional journey of Anna and Elsa while presenting a unique take on the material through elaborate costumes and sets, stunning special effects and show-stopping production numbers. To bring this vision to life, Dana and her team are collaborating with some of the most noted talents working in theater today including Director Liesl Tommy (Broadway’s “Eclipsed”), Writer Chad Beguelin (Tony Award® nominee for “Disney’s Aladdin” and “The Wedding Singer”), Musical Supervisor and Arranger Jason Michael Webb (Musical Director for Broadway’s “The Color Purple”), Puppet Designer Michael Curry (Tony Award® winner for “Disney’s The Lion King”) and more.

With “Frozen – Live at the Hyperion” coming this summer, Disney will be closing “For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration.” Fans of the sing-along will want to catch it one last time, before it melts away forever on April 17, 2016.

Ginnifer Goodwin Wants Zootopia to be a New Land at Disney Parks

WDWNT on March 5, 2016

If you read my review of Zootopia earlier this week, you no doubt know that I absolutely love this film. While somewhat embarrassing to admit, by the opening night of the film last evening, I had already seen the movie 4 times and I’m not completely certain that I won’t be seeing it again before it leaves theaters honestly. While I love the animated films of the Walt Disney Company, my first love has always been the theme parks, so when I see a new animated movie, I often drift into a daydream and think about what it could possibly bring in a three-dimensional environment. Needless to say with how much I loved the film, I REALLY, REALLY want to see Zootopia at the domestic theme parks, but Ginnifer Goodwin (voice of Judy Hopps) definitely wants it more…

Goodwin is the voice of Judy Hopps, the optimistic first-ever Bunny cop of the ZPD

Goodwin (who also stars in ABC’s Once Upon a Time) is a lifelong Disney fan and was even tapped to help open New Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom back in 2012. Ginnifer has been waiting on the call to be a Disney animated character her entire career and literally accepted the job the second John Lasseter began to ask her over the phone. Goodwin admittedly calls Lasseter her personal “Walt Disney”, and is constantly “bugging” him (in her own words) to let her remain at the Disney studios is some capacity for the rest of her career. However, she is also constantly “bugging” John to make Zootopia a reality at Disneyland.

Goodwin and Lasseter together at the 2015 D23 Expo

Ginnifer admittedly visits Disneyland at least once a month (which makes her pretty endearing to this Disney fan), her favorite attraction being the Haunted Mansion, but it sounds like she could very easily have a new favorite attraction should the world of Zootopia come to life at Disney Parks. When I asked Goodwin about if she would like Zootopia in the parks and what kind of presence it should have, she excitedly told me she wanted a Zootopia-land, “I want all of the world!”

Since she visits Disneyland at least once a month, the voice of the ever-optimistic Judy Hopps obviously is dreaming of the Cars Land treatment for her first full-length Disney animated feature. After seeing the movie a few times, I’m in complete agreement. While I don’t necessarily think Zootopia would be a great fit for Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure, I think Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be itching for a more kid-friendly world after the opening of Pandora: The World of AVATAR next year, a niche that could easily be filled by, oh, let’s say a sprawling, mammal-filled metropolis?

The city of Zootopia is big and immersive, perfect for a theme park

The city of Zootopia is big and immersive, perfect for a theme park

The level of detail in the world seen in the movie would undoubtedly translate amazingly to the theme park realm, so I have no doubt after you see Zootopia that you will be dreaming of visiting Tundra Town or Sahara Square someday soon on a Disney vacation. Well, you can take solace in knowing that Ginnifer Goodwin wants that too.

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PHOTO REPORT: Disneyland & California Adventure 2/1/16 (Kylo Ren Arrives, Refurbs, Star Wars Construction, ETC.)

WDWNT on February 15, 2016

Disneyland Reporter Tim Alcoser visited the Disneyland Resort this past weekend and has some newsworthy photos from around the parks to share with us today, so let’s take a look:

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Autopia is closed for refurbishment as Honda will now be the sponsor

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“it’s a small world” is currently closed to remove the holiday overlay

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Big Thunder Trail is now closed to accommodate Star Wars construction

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BUT YOU CAN PIN TRADE!!!

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Looking at the path from the other end near Big Thunder Mountain

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Construction workers wasting no time getting to work

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The docked Mark Twain

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Haunted Mansion is back open

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While the Jungle Cruise is closed, guests can attend skipper school

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Even though it was advertised for February, Kylo Ren started greeting guests at Star Wars Launch Bay at Disneyland

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The Zootopia Sneak Peek is now open in the “it’s tough to be a bug” theater at DCA

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You can hear Imagineers actively testing Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters, so it should open very soon

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Tim got a unique view of Paint the Night from the Train Station, so we thought it might be cool to share some pics from that spot
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Mardi Gras decor up in New Orleans Square

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Goodnight Disneyland

PHOTO REPORT: Disneyland Resort 2/12/16 (AP Days, Rollickin’ Roadsters, Refurbishments, ETC.)

WDWNT on February 15, 2016

Disneyland Reporter Tim Alcoser visited the two parks this week and has a number of newsworthy photos to share with us from his trip, so let’s take a look at what’s new and exciting around the Happiest Place on Earth:

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Welcome back to the Disneyland Resort

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AP days are ongoing throughout the month

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The Diamond Celebration continues through September

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Annual passholders could get this map and button set during the Main Street and Mickey Mouse days

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“it’s a small world” has returned

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More people were trying to ride the Jolly Trolley than when it actually functioned…

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Tim caught the Soundsational daytime parade, now in its 5th year

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The Autopia refurbishment rolls on as Honda is set to become the sponsor

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The last of the Tomorrowland 1998 paint scheme is being erased as blues and whites are applied

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Tuppence a bag…

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Tim spotted some activity towards the back of the Rivers of America

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Looks like they may be surveying the area before they start bulldozing for Star Wars land

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Attraction posters now adorn some walls around the river

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This sign is particularly interesting as it has been altered to say the Disneyland Railroad. Could elements of the old mine train be coming to the new path of the Disneyland Railroad?

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The Hungry Bear Restaurant remains open through the construction

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Tim attended one of the AP Days screenings at the Opera House, which included free popcorn and water

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Some work being done to the ticket booths outside of the parks

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Moving back to DCA, testing continues on Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters

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We expect the attraction to open any day now

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Back to Disneyland, where the Haunted Mansion is running FastPass service again

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While World of Color- Celebrate! is not the best version of the show to date, it is very photogenic

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Goodnight!

Series of “Classic Live-Action Film” Vinylmation Including TRON, Rocketeer, 20,000 Leagues, & More Coming 2/19

WDWNT on February 15, 2016

We haven’t posted about new Vinylmation in a long time, but this series is too cool not to talk about…

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Figures include characters from The Black Hole, Pirates of the Caribbean, Condor Man, the Rocketeer, TRON, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and the Shaggy Dog. There is also a chaser figure and variants that are yet to be revealed. The figures will be released on February 19th (D Street at DLR, Pin Traders at WDW) and retail for $12.95 each blind box.

VIDEO: Disney Introducing New Line of Amazing Travel Accessories This Spring

WDWNT on January 30, 2016

The always entertaining Steven Miller of the Disney Parks Blog shared a video today introducing “TAG”, or “Travel Accessories Gear”, a new line of items coming soon to the Disney Parks:

Among the highlights of the new line are…

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Vintage style luggage tags

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This amazing luggage strap (artwork seen below)

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And this stylish Haunted Mansion neck pillow and sleeping eye mask set!

There are many more items featured in the video above as well, so you should probably check it out if any of these pieces look interesting to you.

The full line of Disney Parks TAG items will arrive this Spring at the Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts.

Star Wars: Season of the Force Extended Through Summer 2016; How Long is it Staying?

WDWNT on January 30, 2016

Disneyland Park has officially extended the Season of the Force event through Summer 2016 as of today.

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While Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple and Star Wars Launch Bay are set to be perennial attractions for the park, Path of the Jedi, the automatic Jakku sequence on Star Tours, and Hyperspace Mountain will be sticking around also.

Rumors indicate that Hyperspace Mountain will leave for Ghost Galaxy in September, but will likely return again in November to promote Rogue One which will be released theatrically in December 2016. When will normal Space Mountain return? It may not until the Star Wars-themed land is completed honestly, but that is purely speculation at this point.

Star Tours will remained locked on Jakku as the first destination through at least September 2016, but we are expecting a Rogue One sequence to be added to the ride around November 2016, which perhaps will randomize the earlier sequences for the attraction again. There has been no word on if the Jakku sequence lock has been extended for Walt Disney World.

EDITORIAL: How Does Star Wars: The Force Awakens Affect Star Wars Land?

WDWNT on January 27, 2016

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With the immense popularity of the seventh installment of the famous Star Wars franchise firmly in place as a Hollywood mega-blockbuster, the question now is on minds (or maybe just mine) “what is in store for Star Wars Land?”

We knew that the Imagineers in charge of the Star Wars-themed land were taking major influences from Episode VII (as well as the 2 further episodes that lie ahead), but we wonder now is if the newest iteration of the franchise will take over as the only focus in the upcoming land. It had been speculated that the new area in Hollywood Studios and Disneyland would take its cues from both the new trilogy as well as the original trilogy, but clearly the new land falls somewhere in the timeline between episodes 7, 8, and 9. We know that Disney is constantly looking to cater to the next crop of fans, so is it possible that Star Wars Land will focus entirely on the new trilogy and leave the older films completely out of the equation?

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The most likely scenario has the new land’s attractions focusing solely on the newer films, with a few hints of the original trilogy mixed in for nostalgia. With the recent announcement of the placement of the land within both parks, Star Tours will be left out of the equation as its own separate entity on both coasts. We are not sure of many of the details, but it definitely seems as though “The Force Awakens” and its subsequent sequels will not only have a major impact on film history, but also on the future of the Disney theme parks.

Closed Disneyland Attractions Offering New Experiences During Star Wars Land Construction in 2016

WDWNT on January 27, 2016

When January 11th brings the close of the Disneyland Railroad, the Mark Twain Riverboat, Sailing Ship Columbia and the Jungle Cruise (the first three related to Star Wars-themed land construction), the attractions will begin to operate in a new form as limited-time-only special experiences.

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The Main Street and New Orleans Square Train Stations will allow guests to get up-close with the historic steam engines that have circled Disneyland park for decades, learn about these amazing machines firsthand from train engineers and take a picture with an engine. Each engine will be accompanied by knowledgeable train engineers, who will share facts, details on how the engines operate, stories from the history of the Disneyland Railroad and more.

While the world-famous Jungle Cruise undergoes refurbishment early this year, the skippers will still share their stories, adventures and humor with Disneyland park guests in front of the attraction. They will recount tales from their travels while the Jungle Navigation Company headquarters readies for reopening later in 2016.

New, limited-time experiences aboard the Mark Twain Riverboat and Sailing Ship Columbia will be offered later in the year, so even though these attractions won’t be running per usual, guests will get the chance to see them in an entirely new way.