It’s become a tradition that the Super Bowl MVP gets to do the “What’s Next” Commercial and take a ticker-tape parade down main street. This year, Disney World is building up the excitement with a special pre-parade segment. It will run ahead of the “Celebrate… Read More »Disney World Limited Time Magic Super Bowl Tie-ins at the Magic Kingdom
After the Haunted Mansion film failure, it seemed that Disney was taking a break from theme park inspired movies (other than the POTC). Recently though, this niche genre that only The Walt Disney Company can provide has seen a resurgence. Word of Mr. Toad’s Wild… Read More »Big Thunder TV Show Gets Pilot Order at ABC
A new Bus Depot at Magic Kingdom to allow for larger buses and therefore more capacity to move guests during peak transportation times at the resort. A recently filing at the local water district shows there will be 8 new load and unload zones added… Read More »New Bus Depot at Magic Kingdom to allow for Larger Bus
Everyone knows that Disney World and Disneyland go all out for the holidays. Overlays on It’s A Small World and Haunted Mansion, the Spectacle of Dancing Lights, the Candlelight Processional, etc…they shove Christmas down your throat, but in a good way. We also receive the… Read More »Christmas is great…but why isn’t Easter at the parks?!
As part of the New Fantasyland grand opening event, I had the opportunity to interview Imagineer Chris Beatty who was creative director for the expansion. During the roundtable discussion Beatty explained the process of designing a new attraction with a focus on the Seven Dwarfs… Read More »Imagineer Chris Beatty on Creative Process Behind New Fantasyland
The domestic Disney Parks announced their 2013 marketing promotion “Limited Time Magic” with a giant ice sculpture castle in Times Square back in October. It was announced that for 52 weeks there would be something special going on in the parks. It might be a… Read More »Boy Band Medley Sung By Dapper Dans – Limited Time Magic Demo
It took major star power and two ceremonies to officially open the newest area of the Magic Kingdom. Enchanted Forest and Storybook Circus were dedicated in a special ribbon cutting ceremony and then a larger celebration was held on the stage at Cinderella Castle. The star of “Once Upon a Time” kicked off the “happily ever after” at the grand opening. Ginnifer Goodwin, who plays Snow White on the hit ABC-TV drama, joined pop star Jordin Sparks and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Tom Staggs in ceremonies filled with favorite Disney characters, daytime fireworks and timeless melodies from classic Disney films.
“Walt Disney once promised that Disneyland, and by extension all of our parks, would never be complete as long as there is imagination left in the world,” Staggs said. “New Fantasyland is a spectacular addition to the Magic Kingdom that delivers on Walt’s promise. We’re thrilled to take guests beyond the walls of Cinderella Castle to discover new worlds featuring iconic Disney characters and stories in ways that are more imaginative, more interactive and more immersive than ever before.”
Earlier in the morning there was a smaller ceremony where the New Fantasyland section was dedicated by Tom Staggs with Sparks and Goodwin doing the official honors of cutting the ribbon.
Last night, the media was invited to get acquainted with New Fantasyland expansion at the Magic Kingdom at a special party. When Tom Staggs moved from Disney CFO to Chairman of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts he played an important role in moving the expansion away from a princess and pixie dominated attraction mix and into the more balanced mix of attractions it will become when the Mine Train opens in 2014. So it was great to have him give an introduction to the expansion, even if reading off the teleprompter isn’t quite second nature to him yet.
The presentation featured a few clips of Imagineers sharing their excitement for the land and a special new computer simulation of what riding the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster would be like.
Here is the presentation given to the media in its entirety. If you just want to see the new version of the virtual Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride, I’ve highlighted that in it’s own video below the jump
That was it. The media will get a larger presentation on what’s new and what’s next on Friday morning. So stay tuned.
Read More »New Fantasyland Introduction From Tom Staggs