| Finding Nemo The Big Blue... and Beyond! | |
|---|---|
 The Theater in the Wild, home toFinding Nemo: The Big Blue... and Beyond! | |
| Disney's Animal Kingdom | |
| Name | Finding Nemo – The Musical(2006–2020) |
| Area | DinoLand U.S.A. |
| Coordinates | 28°21′26″N81°35′14″W / 28.3571592°N 81.587295°W /28.3571592; -81.587295 |
| Status | Operating |
| Soft opening date | November 5, 2006(The Musical) June 11, 2022(The Big Blue and Beyond) |
| Opening date | January 24, 2007(The Musical) June 13, 2022(The Big Blue and Beyond) |
| Closing date | March 15, 2020(The Musical) |
| Replaced | Tarzan Rocks![1] |
| Ride statistics | |
| Attraction type | Musical show |
| Model | Theater |
| Theme | Finding Nemo |
| Music | Kristen Anderson-Lopez Robert Lopez[2] |
| Audience capacity | 1,500[2] per show |
| Duration | 40 minutes(original)[3] 25 minutes(revamped) |
| Director | Peter Brosius[2] |
| Production Designer | Michael Curry[2] |
 Lightning Lane available | |
 Wheelchair accessible | |
 Assistive listening available | |
 Closed captioning available | |
Finding Nemo: The Big Blue... and Beyond! is alivepuppet andmusical stage show based onDisney/Pixar's 2003 filmFinding Nemo, located at the Theater in the Wild inDinoLand U.S.A atDisney's Animal Kingdom inWalt Disney World inOrlando,Florida. The original 40-minute show titledFinding Nemo – The Musical started holding previews on November 5, 2006, officially opening on January 24, 2007. The music is composed byKristen Anderson-Lopez andRobert Lopez, who also composed the music forFrozen, using direct lines from the film.
On March 15, 2020, the original show had its final performance before the Walt Disney World Resort closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak's impact on Florida. A new reimagined and revamped version of the show entitledFinding Nemo: The Big Blue... and Beyond! premiered on June 13, 2022, as part of Walt Disney World Resort's 50th Anniversary celebration.[4]
The stage musicalsJourney into the Jungle Book andTarzan Rocks! occupied the Theater in the Wild at DinoLand USA in Disney's Animal Kingdom in Orlando, Florida from 1998 to 2006. These were themed to theanimated filmsThe Jungle Book andTarzan. After the closure ofTarzan Rocks! in January 2006, rumors began spreading that it would be replaced by a musical adaptation ofFinding Nemo.[5] This was confirmed on April 7, 2006, when Disney announced that the musical adaptation ofFinding Nemo, with new songs written byTony Award-winningAvenue Q composerRobert Lopez and his wife,Kristen Anderson-Lopez, would "combine puppets, dancers, acrobats and animated backdrops" and open in late 2006.[6] Years later, Anderson-Lopez explained that she had written a compact 15-minutea cappella version of the story ofOedipus; someone at Disney read it and recognized her talent for condensing material, and offered her the opportunity to make a pitch for theFinding Nemo project.[7]
Tony Award-winning director Peter Brosius signed on to direct the show, withMichael Curry, who designed puppets for Disney's successful stage version ofThe Lion King, serving as leading puppet and production designer.[8]
Anderson-Lopez said that the couple agreed to write the adaptation of "one of their favorite movies of all time" after considering "the idea of people coming in [to see the musical] at 4, 5 or 6 and saying, 'I want to do that'....So we want to take it as seriously as we would a Broadway show".[9] To condense the feature-length film to 30 minutes, she and Lopez focused on a single theme from the movie, the idea that "the world's dangerous and beautiful".[9]
The show started holding previews on November 5, 2006, officially opening on January 24, 2007.[2] That same month, a New York studio recording of the show was released oniTunes, with Lopez and Anderson-Lopez providing the voices for Marlin and Dory, respectively.[8]Avenue Q starStephanie D'Abruzzo also appeared on the recording, as Sheldon/Deb.[8]Finding Nemo was the first non-musical animated film to which Disney added songs to produce a stage musical.[8] In 2009,Finding Nemo – The Musical was honored with aThea Award for Best Live Show from theThemed Entertainment Association.[10]
When Walt Disney World reopened in July 2020 following theCOVID-19pandemic, all stage shows remained closed due to a dispute between theActors' Equity Association and Walt Disney World over allowing performers to wear face masks and providing regular testing.[11]
On September 14, 2021, it was announced that a "reimagined" version of the show would open in 2022.[12] However, on November 19, 2021, it was announced that the show would be replaced by a new show entitledFinding Nemo: The Big Blue... and Beyond!.[13]
The musical is based on the plot of the filmFinding Nemo, with characters performed in largepuppetry by live actors and dancers on stage. It revolves around Marlin, a widowedclownfish who is desperate to find his son Nemo, who was snatched away by a diver in the ocean. Along the way, Marlin meets Dory, aregal blue tang with short-term memory loss, who ends up accompanying him on his journey. Meanwhile, Nemo ends up in a fish aquarium at a dentist office inSydney,Australia and meets Gill, amoorish idol living in the dentist's aquarium, and the leader of the Tank Gang, who also live in the aquarium.
In the revamped version, a framing device is added in which the Tank Gang narrate the story before being released from the Marine Life Institute (depicted inFinding Dory).
Musicals numbers for Finding Nemo Jr.
All songs featured in the show were written byKristen Anderson-Lopez andRobert Lopez. A soundtrack album was released a day prior to the original show's opening date in 2007, with Anderson-Lopez and Lopez providing the voices of Dory and Marlin, respectively. Other cast members include Victor E. Chan as Crush, Alison Cimmet as Coral/Peach,Stephanie D'Abruzzo as Sheldon/Deb,Jordan Gelber as Chum/Nigel, Victor Hawks as Mr. Ray/Gill, Karla Mosley as Tad/Squirt, Graham Stevens as Bruce,Kate Wetherhead as Nemo, andMichael-Leon Wooley as Bloat.
| Finding Nemo – The Musical | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Soundtrack album | |
| Released | January 23, 2007 (2007-01-23) |
| Genre | Show tunes |
| Length | 31:48 |
| Label | Walt Disney Records |
| No. | Title | Characters | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Prologue" | Marlin and Coral | 1:30 |
| 2. | "In the Big Blue World" | Marlin, Nemo, Mr. Ray, Tad, Pearl, Sheldon, Reef Dads andFinding Nemo Ensemble | 4:26 |
| 3. | "The Drop-off" | Marlin, Nemo, Tad, Pearl and Sheldon | 1:01 |
| 4. | "Dory's Ditty" | Marlin and Dory | 0:56 |
| 5. | "Sharks" | Marlin, Dory, Bruce, Anchor and Chum | 0:45 |
| 6. | "Fish Are Friends, Not Food" | Marlin, Dory, Bruce, Anchor and Chum | 2:49 |
| 7. | "Where's My Dad?" | Dentist and Nemo | 0:45 |
| 8. | "The Tank Gang" | Nemo, Deb, Bloat, Bubbles, Peach, Gill, Nigel and Dentist | 1:07 |
| 9. | "We Swim Together" | Nemo, Deb, Bloat, Bubbles, Peach, Gill and Nigel | 1:58 |
| 10. | "Dory and Marlin" | Marlin and Dory | 0:26 |
| 11. | "Just Keep Swimming" | Dory, Marlin and Moonfish | 5:16 |
| 12. | "Not My Dad" (Reprise) | Nemo and Gill | 0:52 |
| 13. | "Go With the Flow" | Marlin, Dory, Crush, Squirt andFinding Nemo Ensemble | 3:38 |
| 14. | "Gossip" | Octopus Mom, Octopus Baby, Lobsters, Swordfish, Penguins and Nigel | 0:54 |
| 15. | "That's My Dad" (Reprise) | Nemo and Nigel | 0:39 |
| 16. | "Darla!" | Nemo, Deb, Bloat, Bubbles, Peach, Gill, Nigel, Dentist, Darla and Marlin | 0:38 |
| 17. | "Sewage Treatment Plant" | Marlin, Dory and Nemo | 0:42 |
| 18. | "We Swim Together" (Reprise) | Marlin, Nemo, Dory and theFinding Nemo Ensemble | 1:11 |
| 19. | "Finale - In the Big Blue World" (Reprise) | Marlin, Nemo, Dory, Mr. Ray andFinding Nemo Ensemble | 2:15 |
| Total length: | 31:48 | ||
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