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| Fantasmic! | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Disneyland | |
| Area | Frontierland |
| Coordinates | 33°48′42″N117°55′16″W / 33.8117216°N 117.921144°W /33.8117216; -117.921144 |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | May 13, 1992 |
| Disney's Hollywood Studios | |
| Area | Sunset Boulevard |
| Coordinates | 28°21′41″N81°33′30″W / 28.3612559°N 81.558249°W /28.3612559; -81.558249 |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | October 15, 1998 |
| Tokyo DisneySea | |
| Area | Mediterranean Harbor |
| Coordinates | 35°37′34″N139°53′11″E / 35.626199°N 139.886346°E /35.626199; 139.886346 |
| Status | Closed |
| Opening date | April 28, 2011[1] |
| Closing date | February 29, 2020 |
| Replaced | BraviSEAmo! |
| Replaced by | Believe! Sea of Dreams |
| Ride statistics | |
| Attraction type | Live show |
| Designer | Disney Live Entertainment |
| Theme | Disney Films |
| Music | Bruce Healey[2] Don L. Harper (Tokyo DisneySea version) |
| Duration | 22–30 minutes[3][4] |
| Sponsor | PANDORA (California; 2024–present) |
| Host | Mickey Mouse |
 Assistive listening available | |
 Closed captioning available | |
Fantasmic! is a nighttime show atDisneyland andDisney’s Hollywood Studios. The show formerly operated atTokyo DisneySea. It featuresfireworks, characters, live actors, water effects,pyrotechnics, lasers, music,audio-animatronics, searchlights, decorated boat floats and mist screen projections. The narrative ofFantasmic! is a voyage throughMickey Mouse’s imagination that culminates in a battle against theDisney Villains.
Fantasmic! originated at Disneyland in 1992 afterWalt Disney Creative Entertainment was asked to create a nighttime spectacular involving water and fireworks to reinvigorate the space in front of theRivers of America. The area was reworked, including terracing the walkways to accommodate viewing and modifying part ofTom Sawyer Island to allow the show’s staged live action segments. The producers employed the resources ofWalt Disney Imagineering andWalt Disney Animation Studios.
A second version featuring new scenes opened atDisney’s Hollywood Studios six years later in 1998 as part of a Sunset Boulevard expansion.[5] A third version premiered atTokyo DisneySea in 2011, replacingBraviSEAmo!. An updated version of Disneyland’sFantasmic! debuted in 2017, featuring a re-recorded soundtrack in addition to new scenes, lighting, choreography and costumes. A third version premiered at Disneyland in 2022 with new clouded lasers and searchlights in the viewing area. A revamped version premiered at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2022 with new scenes and special effects. After a fire destroyed the animatronic dragon in April 2023, a fourth version premiered at Disneyland in May 2024 with a new Maleficent and Sorcerer Mickey battle sequence.
Fantasmic! takes place on the waters of theRivers of America atDisneyland and on a stage across the waterway onTom Sawyer Island.
The show begins withMickey Mouse being transported into hisdream. He dances and orchestrates various water fountain, pyrotechnic, projection, laser and lighting effects to the show's theme. Mist screens rise from the water, acting as projection surfaces for various scenes from Disney movies. The show then transitions into a jungle scene fromThe Jungle Book, featuring a 100-foot-long (30 m) puppet ofKaa and three floating barges carryingKing Louie andblack-lit monkeys (that debuted in the Tokyo version) across the river stage. The song transitions into "Hakuna Matata". The music then segues into adubstep rendition of "Pink Elephants on Parade" fromDumbo, as animated pink elephants appear onscreen and in the form of performers on the island. The scene then transitions to "Friend Like Me" fromAladdin. Sorcerer Mickey watches theGenie perform tricks. Then they go under the sea as they head into the world ofThe Little Mermaid andFinding Nemo. A bubble floats by andJiminy Cricket appears onscreen, searching underwater forPinocchio. An animatedMonstro appears suddenly, accompanied by a heavy musical score as he crashes through water. The sea morphs into the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" flood scene. As Mickey looks around in the dark and asks "What's going on?", a ship caught in a storm appears.
A cannon is fired fromSailing ShipColumbia, portraying itself as the Jolly Roger. TheLost Boys and thepirates participate in a stunt sequence withPeter Pan,Wendy Darling,Captain Hook andMr. Smee and it ends with the fountains that projecting thecrocodile chasing Hook away. As the scene concludes,Tinker Bell draws the moon, with projections ofPrince Naveen,Tiana,Prince Philip,Aurora,Snow White and theprince. The projections turn to clouds asAladdin andJasmine are on the stage while a rendition of "A Whole New World" plays. Then three small barges arrive carryingBelle and theBeast,Ariel andPrince Eric, andRapunzel andFlynn Rider, with the accompanying signature melody from each film — "Beauty and the Beast", "Part of Your World", and "I See the Light".
Mickey's dream takes a turn for the worse. Themagic mirror appears onscreen and tempts Mickey to enter the darker realms of his imagination. When asked if he has the courage, Mickey accepts the challenge, and the mirror traps Mickey inside. TheEvil Queen calls all thevillains to partake in Mickey's nightmare, invoking a riledUrsula who joins the Queen's plot to destroy Mickey. Ursula calls uponChernabog, who summons deceased spirits. Chernabog then summonsMaleficent, who threatens Sorcerer Mickey as she rises from the pillar. Onstage, Maleficent sets the waters ablaze, summoning fire onto the river. Mickey defeats Maleficent, destroying the villains in the process.
Tink reappears with theMark Twain Riverboat approaching with fireworks, and a black-and-white Mickey fromSteamboat Willie appears. Mickey then appears again to conduct a final set of fireworks and water fountains before leaving in a bright blast offireworks.
The original Disneyland soft opening and press premiere were scheduled to begin on Wednesday, April 29, 1992, and continue through the weekend. By late afternoon,rioting began in Los Angeles following the acquittal of the Los Angeles police officers involved in theRodney King beating. Promotional materials with the catchphrase "Be There When the Night Ignites" were quickly pulled from public circulation.[6]
Disneyland'sFantasmic! has undergone several technical refreshes. A new sound system debuted in the summer of 2007, along with new show barges featuring LED lighting arrays. A complete overhaul of the lighting system debuted in the spring of 2008. The three mainland lighting towers, which rise hydraulically from pits in the ground prior to the show, were rebuilt with pull-out slides for the newClay Paky Alpha Spots and Washes and redesigned for the new Strong Gladiator IV followspots. The footlights on the mainland side at water level were replaced with LED fixtures. Refurbished pyrotechnic barges were given new technologies derived from Disneyland's Air-Launch Firework (ALF) system.[7]
In 2008, the three original 70mm projectors were replaced with high definition (HD) digital projectors. A new audio-animatronic dragon (nicknamed Murphy by fans, afterMurphy's law, when the dragon experienced multiple delays in 2009) was built to replace the previous dragon which had been a mechanical dragon's head mounted to the top of a Genie boom lift where the man basket used to go and two wing assemblies that were raised up and were flapped manually with poles. The new dragon was designed to be a full-bodied replica of Maleficent's final form inSleeping Beauty, standing at 45 feet tall.[8]
In early February 2010, the entireRivers of America were drained. Both theMark Twain and the Sailing ShipColumbia were refurbished, and the track along which the ships travel was replaced. The show's underwater effects underwent maintenance as well, and the laser effects for the finale were upgraded. On August 28, the second-generation dragon broke again, partly collapsing during a performance.[9] It was restored to the show on November 12.
Fantasmic! and other attractions were closed on January 11, 2016, due to the construction ofStar Wars: Galaxy's Edge.[10][11] It reopened on July 15, 2017.[12] This version features some scenes that are inspired by the defunct Tokyo DisneySea version ofFantasmic!, along with the "Imagination" song as part of the post-show. The show was remastered, featuring a new sequence with segments fromAladdin,The Lion King andTangled.
In December 2023, Disneyland announced that thePirates of the Caribbean segment would revert to thePeter Pan segment.[13]
On April 22, 2023, during the performance of the show, the audio-animatronic Maleficent dragon caught fire. It became engulfed in flames which resulted in its destruction. TheFrontierland area was evacuated, with no injuries being reported according to theAnaheim Fire Department.[14] The show returned in 2024 without the audio-animatronic dragon.[15]
The Florida version of the event and show takes place at the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater, with a rocky mountain and a façade of trees serving as the setting. The narrative of the Walt Disney World version is fairly similar to that of Disneyland's original version and defunct Tokyo DisneySea version, with the show's introduction and conclusion nearly identical. However, there are some notable differences throughout the rest of the show.
Hollywood Hills Amphitheater is a purpose-built seat riverside amphitheatre atDisney's Hollywood Studios located at theWalt Disney World Resort, in Florida, that showcases the nighttime spectacularFantasmic! It is located off of Sunset Boulevard, betweenThe Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and the Theater of the Stars, where theBeauty and the Beast stage show takes place. TheFantasmic! stage in Florida is significantly larger than Disneyland's, featuring a man-made, 50-foot-tall (15 m) mountain on which Sorcerer Mickey stands and from which the dragon emerges. The amphitheater has 6,900 seats, with room for an additional 3,000 people standing.[16] The moat around the island itself can hold 1,900,000 U.S. gallons (7,200,000 L) of water.[16]
Pop Secret became the official sponsor ofFantasmic! at Disney's Hollywood Studios.[17] Prior to this,Fantasmic! was the only nighttime fireworks show at Walt Disney World without a sponsor, withWishes gaining sponsorship fromPandora Jewelry in 2014,[18] whileIllumiNations: Reflections of Earth was sponsored byGeneral Electric from 1999 to 2003 and sponsored bySiemens from 2005 until 2017.[19][20]
In March 2020, this version ofFantasmic! was temporarily closed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Walt Disney World reopened it in July with the lagoon drained.Fantasmic! reopened a short time later.[21]
The show was later remastered in 2022 featuring a new heroics sequence with segments fromPocahontas,Aladdin,Mulan,Moana andFrozen. The duration is twenty-nine minutes long.[22]
The Florida version used to have a four-minute-long substitute show that played when inclement weather prohibited the presentation of the regular show.[23] The alternative show does not showcase any of the performers, floats, or puppets due to the dangerous conditions that are posed to the performers because of the possibility of rain accumulating on the stage. Instead the ancillary show is a brief summation of the conventional show; including a fountain display synchronized to "Little April Shower", a sequence integrating the "Night on Bald Mountain" music, and a finale orchestrated with all of the usual pyrotechnics and musical fanfare from the original show's conclusion.[24][25]
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Fantasmic! debuted at Tokyo DisneySea on April 28, 2011, replacing theBraviSEAmo! show in the Mediterranean Harbor.[26] The show was originally planned to debut on April 23 with the park's 10th Anniversary "Be Magical!" celebration, but was delayed by theGreat East Japan Earthquake in the previous month. Originally, Fantasmic! was planned in 2001 for the park and the story would be themed around Tokyo DisneySea but was scrapped and instead DisneySea Symphony debuted. It is said that of the barges were reused from Tokyo DisneySea's former nighttime Christmas show "Candelight Reflections", but were reimagined. The Christmas tree barge was used for Mickey's sorcerer hat. This barge would also be used for Tokyo DisneySea's former nighttime Christmas show "Colors of Christmas" (2012–2019).
The show's score was recorded by theRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra atAbbey Road Studios, composed by Don L. Harper, featuring Bruce Healey's theme from the originalFantasmic! at the U.S. parks. The DisneySea version has new scenes and narrative elements, including scenes based onAladdin,Finding Nemo andCinderella, and the original new song “Imagination”. This is the only version ofFantasmic! to not have a stationary stage, with the show taking place entirely on barges. All of the characters' dialogue and sung parts were recorded in Japanese by the characters' respective Japanese voice artists.
This version of Fantasmic! was directed by Steven Davidson and because of this, he implemented technologies used in Disney California Adventure's World of Color nighttime spectacular. 5 of the 6 barges were equipped with World of Color-style water fountains. One central, underwater water screen nozzle was installed under the harbor, as well as the 4 moving barges were equipped with water screens as well. This created the large-style water screen used in World of Color. The show itself is a hybrid version of Fantasmic! and World of Color. This concept would later be used in some form for Disneyland's renewal version in 2017 as it drew inspiration from Tokyo DisneySea's version.
This version ofFantasmic! closed on February 29, 2020. It was originally scheduled to conclude its run on March 25 and then close on March 26,[27] but was moved up due to the extended closure of Tokyo Disney Resort in response to theCOVID-19 pandemic in Japan.
Fantasmic! was replaced by an all-new nighttime spectacular calledBelieve! Sea of Dreams, debuting on November 11, 2022.
A few months after the end of “Fantasmic!”, the former hat barge was lifted out of the water and placed on a small area of the original dry dock (behind “Soaring, A Fantastic Flight” show building). The hat itself was dismantled, along with old equipment. The base was then refurbished for its new role in “Believe! Sea of Dreams”.
In late September 2020, theFantasmic! barges were spotted backstage in dry dock at Tokyo DisneySea. While it was thought that they would all be dismantled, in February 2021, it was discovered that Disneyland Paris had purchased a few of the barges for a future version of Fantasmic! or other nighttime show on the future Adventure Bay over at Disney Adventure World. Sometime in late 2020, early 2021, the barges were shipped to Paris. It was confirmed that the 4 main barges that circle the harbor were shipped to Paris and have since then been housed in a backstage parade warehouse until they can be lowered into the backstage marina of Adventure Bay. It has also been confirmed that Tokyo did not sell the magic mirror/dragon barge. Tokyo also did not sell Paris the “Sorcerer Apprentice’s Hat” barge to Paris as they wanted to repurpose the barge base itself for the “Second Star to the Right” barge that is used in Believe! Sea of Dreams.[28][failed verification]
The soundtrack for the original Disneyland show was included in the 2015 release ofWalt Disney Records The Legacy Collection: Disneyland.[29]
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Disneyland
Disney's Hollywood Studios
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