It was a big day for Star Tours recently, as Star Wars creator George Lucas, joined by producer Rick McCallum, paid a visit to Disneyland Park to take a few test rides on the attraction with our Walt Disney Imagineering team. After experiencing adventures to several of the Star Wars worlds aboard the Starspeeder 1000, George and Rick gave the team a big thumbs up on their progress. George even took a moment to pose with the Audio-Animatronics figure of C-3PO in the Starspeeder cockpit!
Splash Mountain at the Magic Kingdom re-opened from refurbishment today with new logs utilizing lap bars to keep guests in the seats. WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee was on the scene and remarked they are”comfy, have plenty of room, and no different then those you would find at Big Thunder Mountain”. You can judge for yourself in this video and enjoy a full ride-through Chic-A-Pin Hill:
The Blue Sky Cellar recently reopened with a new exhibit featuring the new upcoming Little Mermaid Attraction. I was able to grab a short video last Friday of the new exhibit. More video and photo’s will be posted later this week.
WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee was on the scene at the Magic Kingdom today, where it seems all the excitement was. Not only was artist SHAG previewing his work for Walt Disney World’s 40th anniversary and Splash Mountain testing logs with lap bars before it re-opens tomorrow; the rescued Chilean coal miners were paraded in grand fashion down Main Street, U.S.A.! Here is a video of all the festivities:
Today we have the first photo report from our newest WDWNT Reporter Coral Rivera! Coral brings us park hopping for a few newsworthy pictures in her very first update:
A limited release ear hat available, retailing at $79.95
I’m going to tell you about a new show at Disneyland park that takes the façade of “it’s a small world” and does some amazing things. It turns it into an animated, coloring pad; it coaxes the singing dolls from inside the attraction to appear outside in the show; and it weaves hundreds of guest photos into a giant, surprise mosaic.
Even after I tell you about it, and we share a video sneak-peek of tonight’s first show, I must admit the real thing is so much better.
If you can get here, quit reading now and get here to see “The Magic, The Memories and You!” The nightly, 10-minute spectacular utilizes projection technology and animation to transform the architecture of “it’s a small world” in ways that will make you wonder what happened to the walls.
The nightly show combines guest photos from that day in Disneyland park with photos and videos taken from Disney’s “Let the Memories Begin” online hub. Classic Disney music is woven into the new “Let the Memories Begin” theme song, creating a musical and visual journey that traces the family vacation experience from surprise announcements through arrival and fun at the Disneyland Resort.
The show finale features a burst of fireworks over “it’s a small world.”
That’s what it looks like. It’s harder to tell you what the show feels like. Watching the photos will remind guests of all ages of their most cherished Disney memories, as a kaleidoscope of images is projected onto the “it’s a small world” attraction.
WHO: As part of the thousands of photographs projected each night, roughly 500 photos will be of guests who made memories in Disneyland park that day – resulting in a different “The Magic, the Memories and You” presentation each night.
WHERE: An ideal place to see the projections will be from the Fantasyland esplanade, which runs from the front of “it’s a small world” to the entrances of the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Mad Tea Party attractions.
WHEN: Tonight’s 6 p.m. “preview” show is a special preview, followed by the official debut at 7:30 p.m. The current show schedule is:
7:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday
8 p.m. and 9:10 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays
Show times are at www.disneyland.com and are subject to change or cancellation
HOW TO PARTICIPATE: Your photo will be considered for that night’s unique show if you have your photo taken by a PhotoPass photographer during the day. You will have the option to decline participation in the show.
Tell us about some of your favorite photo moments at the Disneyland Resort.
And here is the official press release for “The Magic, The Memories, and You:”
ANAHEIM, Calif., January 27, 2011 – Starting tonight, the façade of “it’s a small world” in Disneyland park is being transformed each night into a breathtaking display of moving, ever-changing photography, video, animation and music as Disneyland celebrates guests’ memories with an innovative new show – “The Magic, The Memories and You!”
Guests of all ages will be reminded of their Disney memories, and may even see themselves in the nightly show, as a kaleidoscope of larger-than-life images is projected onto the classic Fantasyland “it’s a small world” attraction. Included in the thousands of photographs each night will be approximately 500 photos of guests who made memories in Disneyland that very day – resulting in a different “The Magic, The Memories and You!” presentation every night.
“Disneyland has been making very special memories for families and guests of all ages for more than 55 years,” said Disneyland Resort President George A. Kalogridis. “Now guests recalling and cherishing those memories will become stars of the show as well.”
After the sun goes down, the 10-minute spectacle combines that day’s photos with photos and videos taken from Disney’s “Let the Memories Begin” online hub, and brings them to life with the help of amazing new projection technology that transforms the architecture of “it’s a small world” in never-before-seen ways. Classic Disney music is woven into the new “Let the Memories Begin” theme song and, via some magical effects, even the singing dolls from inside the “it’s a small world” attraction find their way outside to appear in the show. The finale features a burst of fireworks over “it’s a small world.”
“We’re really taking it to the Nth degree and we’re doing it for our guests,” observes show director Alan Bruun, associate creative director, Disney Destinations Entertainment. “Some guests will spot their own photographs in the show, and yet our goal is for everyone watching the show to be able to say, ‘These are my memories. I recognize that moment, that emotion.’ ”
The visual and musical journey that takes place in “The Magic, The Memories and You!” traces the family vacation experience, from planning and travel all the way through arrival and fun in Disneyland. The show closes, appropriately, with a classic Disney memory. A similar show featuring guest images projected onto the soaring spires of Cinderella Castle premiered Jan. 18 in the Magic Kingdom park, Walt Disney World Resort, Florida.
Disney Parks guests also are becoming the stars of television commercials. For the first time, Disney Parks is featuring the home videos and snapshots of real guests telling their own Disney stories in television ads and other marketing.
At the online memories hub that launched Sept. 23, guests have been celebrating their only-at-Disney memories by sharing their stories and by uploading photos and videos. To access the site, visit www.DisneyParks.com/memories.
Vacation memories hold a special place in the hearts of families, according to a recent survey of Americans and Canadians conducted by Ypartnership, a leading research firm that tracks consumer insights and trends in travel. Nine out of 10 parents polled said they plan their vacations with the express hope of creating a lasting family memory. And most memories don’t fade with the passage of time. Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed said they think back “often” or “very often” on their most cherished vacation memories.
WDWNT Reporters Banks Lee and Taylor Martina bring us the latest installment of our Fantasyland Expansion Video Updates, recorded on January 27, 2011 at the Magic Kingdom:
When the Blue Sky Cellar reopens on Jan. 28, don’t miss the walls.
Yes, I said the walls of Blue Sky Cellar.
This building in Disney California Adventure park previews the “blue sky” ideas of Imagineers, with models and sketches that reflect the evolving landscape of the theme park. But before you peek at all the Imagineers’ handiwork, take a moment to enjoy the new artwork on the walls of the entryway. (And find out how you can purchase your own copy very soon.)
The posters are part of a rich tradition within Disney Parks worldwide – a tradition that dates back to 1956 and the original park, Disneyland.
In the summer of 1956, Disneyland was about to enter its second summer. Most people had little knowledge of what Disneyland really was, and they knew even less about the attractions inside the park. According to an upcoming book, “The Poster Art of Disney Parks” by Walt Disney Imagineering’s Danny Handke and Vanessa Hunt, the posters were a fast, clear and visually attractive way to convey an image of each attraction.
Over the years, the style of the various attraction posters has come to reflect the time period in which they were created, as well as the tone and visual palette of the attractions and themed land where they were located.
This tonal tradition is carried on in the latest series of posters featuring the Paradise Pier attractions. With a nod to the classic travel poster aesthetic, the new attraction sequence graphically conveys the excitement and character of each Paradise Pier attraction.
This newly released artwork is the first of several scheduled attraction art releases. Additional series releases are scheduled within months of the initial Paradise Pier series. The first California Adventure attraction posters will be available at retail locations throughout the park on Jan. 28.
Are you familiar with the Disney Parks attraction posters? Let us know if you have a favorite among the hundreds that have been created over the years.
