It’s been a busy week at Walt Disney World. In honor of Disneyland’s 50th anniversary, new and refurbished attractions are debuting all over the Florida resort. By the end of this year, every WDW park will have opened a major new attraction, a larger expansion than the original Anaheim park will receive. This week alone, new attractions opened or began “soft open” testing at Epcot, the Magic Kingdom, Disney/MGM Studios, and Typhoon Lagoon. Here’s a brief look at some of these new experiences – keep in mind that many are still in the preview stage, and may change by the time you visit (your mileage may vary, not valid in North Carolina).
Disney/MGM Studios: Lights, Motors, Action!
What’s your favorite movie car chase? Automobile stunts have been a staple since the earliest action movies, and at their best they can be a thrilling way to propel a film’s plot. Old-times may remember classic chases from “The French Connection” or the 60’s Bond films. Those with shorter memories might be partial to the CGI excess of “The Matrix Reloaded” or “Terminator 3”. For my money, you can’t beat the visceral simplicity of John Frankenheimer’s “Ronin”. Whatever your taste, who wouldn’t love to see their favorite car chase moments brought to life on stage? That’s the formula Disney has banked on in bringing the popular “Lights, Motors, Action” (LMA) show to WDW’s Disney/MGM Studios, but the final product might not completely live up to expectations.
A massive new venue for LMA has been built on the former site of the Backstage Tour’s “Residential Street”, not far from the shuttered “Hunchback” theatre (can we please bring that show back?). After navigating a queue line past glassed-in maintenance bays, where mechanics can been seen prepping cars for the show, the audience is led into a vast stadium. The wide set depicts a quaint Southern French village market, with a trough of water separating the stage from the audience bleachers. The setup is similar to that of the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular (the first of many similarities) with the addition of a large video billboard to reinforce the action, and (as Kimberly Duncan might say), “every seat provides excellent viewing”.
The show begins with a warm welcome from the “assistant director” host – in French. After briefly befuddling the non-Francophonic in the audience, she explains (in English) that the show has been imported from the Walt Disney Studios park in Paris. The show’s French connections are referenced repeatedly, an odd creative choice. Next, we’re treated to a montage of clips from famous movie car chases. Most are from Jerry Bruckheimer-produced monstrosities like “Gone in 60 Seconds” and “The Rock”, through there is a tribute to my favorite “Ronin”.
The show proper kicks off with “Ballet”, a masterful display of driving talent in which a red “hero” car tries to evade a team of “bad guys” in black sedans. This is an expertly choreographed few minutes of cars careening across the set at high speeds, driving bumper to bumper and skidding to stops with mere inches of clearance. The precision driving drew audible gasps from the audience, and the final trick where a car jumps backwards off a ramp brought cheers. This first stunt sequence is truly exciting, and nearly makes the show worth seeing all on its own.
Unfortunately, the rest of the show goes downhill from there. There are 3 more stunt sequences spaced out through the rest of the show, “Blockade”, “Motorcycle”, and the finale. Each is largely variations on what we have already seen, various combinations of obstacles and vehicles swerving around each other. Each segment has a signature effect – in “Blockade” a car leaps off a ramp into an airbag, and “Motorcycle” concludes with an excellent fire stunt. But overall, the stunt sequences become repetitive, even within their brief running time.
The bigger problem comes when the cars aren’t being put through their paces. Like the Indy stunt show, LMA requires lengthy changes to the set between each stunt. Though the show runs nearly 40 minutes, less than a quarter of that is taken up by stunts. With no story to tie the action together, the rest of the show is filled by faux movie-making banter that will be very familiar to anyone who has seen the Indy stunt show. We get a glimpse under the hood of the cars, and many “don’t try this at home” admonitions. There is the inevitable audience participation segment, where a child is selected to “drive” a remote controlled car. There is a shameless plug for the upcoming Herbie the Love Bug movie (do today’s kids have any idea who Herbie is?), and they even kill some time explaining what a movie “MacGuffin” is (another nod to “Ronin”).
All this filler serves to drain whatever momentum the show generates. It may be necessary to take the time to set up these obviously dangerous stunts, but the pace of the show suffers as a result. The Indy stunt show overcomes this through the emotional connection to Indiana Jones that an audience brings into the show, and with some genuine humor. Guests have no such connection to the non-existent movie that LMA is themed around. The filler doesn’t have enough meat to be educational, and the writing isn’t witty enough to be funny. As a result, the show limps to the end with an anticlimactic climax.
LMA is not a disaster; it’s got many entertaining and amazing moments, and it’s easy to see why it’s considered the top original attraction at the Paris park. But without some rewriting and tightening, it’s hard to see it having the repeat viewing potential that a major E-Ticket show should.
Magic Kingdom: It’s A Small World, Cinderellabration, Tomorrowland Noodle Station
After a lengthy rehab, the most beloved and hated of all classic Disney attractions returned this week. No attraction has inspired more derision and stand-up comedy, and for some it represents Disney at its saccharine, cloying worst. But “it’s a small world” (IASW) has endured since 1964 because of its charming art direction, catchy music (too catchy, for anyone who has had the refrain stuck in their head for days), and heartfelt message of peace and hope.
One might think that, given the public’s love/hate relationship with IASW, the attraction’s return might go unnoticed. But judging by the crowds queued up despite the 60 minute posted wait time, there is pent up demand for this classic ride. Disney purists can rejoice, IASM has returned exactly as you remember it, only better. No flume drops or 3D effects have been added, there are no chili-belching dolls, and Zazu and Iago don’t interrupt to sing the Conga. All we have is the classic ride, lovingly restored to look even better than on opening day.
The biggest change is to the loading area. On entering through the former exit, guests are treated to a lovely white and gold animated clock façade, similar to the design of the Anaheim version’s exterior. The loading dock has been redesigned to efficiently load 2 boats at a time, with easy access for wheelchairs. Once the ride begins, all the show scenes are essentially unchanged, as I didn’t recognize any major new set pieces. But every doll and object has been carefully cleaned, repainted, and restored to pristine condition. The sound track has also been digitally cleaned, and the speakers rehabbed, allowing every note to be clearly heard. I couldn’t say whether the audio is the original World’s Fair version or the Disneyland version, but it sounds great and isn’t as monotonous as I remember.
The biggest improvement is in the lighting. A new theatrical lighting system has been installed, and every fixture re-gelled and focused, showing off the sets and dolls to their best. Words can’t describe what a wonderful difference the subtle and beautiful new illumination makes. IASM may not have the thrills or elaborate effects of a modern ride, but judging by the delighted smiles I saw on exiting guests, this happy cruise looks set to delight crowds for years to come.
Also new at the Magic Kingdom is Cinderellabration, the new show performed on the castle forecourt stage. In honor of the Disneyland 50th anniversary, Cinderella’s Castle has been spiffed up with gold filigree and character figures (I especially like the golden Peter Pan and Wendy soaring around the tallest spire). There is also a large “magic mirror” suspended above the castle gate, displaying a stained glass-style image of Sleeping Beauty’s castle. It’s a beautiful treatment, far more palatable than the Pepto-Bismol birthday cake foisted on us for WDW’s 25th.
The newly decorated castle makes an attractive backdrop for the lightweight new show. This 10 minute pageant is themed around the coronation of Cinderella. The Fairy Godmother welcomes us, and the royal court enters and performs some faux-Renaissance dance steps. Next comes Cinderella, who is joined by a number of other Disney princesses (in the new world of Disney synergy, Snow White, Jasmine, and Belle are all best friends, logistics of distance and time travel be damned). More dancing, a saccharine song about “every girl is a princess inside”, a kiss, some fireworks, and the whole thing is neatly wrapped up. It’s an inoffensive diversion, perfect if your child is princess-crazy, but anyone over the age of 9 or with a Y chromosome need not apply.
Finally, while waiting for Cinderellabration, I tried the food at the new Tomorrowland Noodle Station (formerly the Tomorrowland Terrace). The Asian-themed menu features noodle bowls, Pad Thai, meat buns, mandarin orange salad, egg rolls, and potstickers. I tried the shrimp noodle bowl and the ginger crème Brule for desert. The noodle bowl was a large bowl of soup with clear rice noodles, vegetables, and a surprisingly generous portion of shrimp. The broth was well-seasoned with fresh cilantro, without being spicy or overpoweringly salty. The crème brule’s ginger flavor was so subtle as to be undetectable, and the caramelized top could have been crunchier, but the custard was sweet and had a nice firm texture. It certainly isn’t the best noodle bar in Orlando (try Little Saigon on Colonial Drive) or even in a WDW park (I’m partial to the quick-service at Epcot’s Japan pavilion). But it’s a solid addition to the Magic Kingdom’s dining option, and a great alternative when you’re tired of smoked “turkey” legs and clam chowder bread bowls.
This is only the beginning of the new additions to WDW. Soarin’, a clone of the hit attraction from California Adventure, has begun limiting testing at Epcot’s revamped Land pavilion. There are also rumors of a “Grand Reopening” rededication of the Living Seas, tied to the addition of Finding Nemo characters to that Epcot attraction. A new waterslide has been added to Typhoon Lagoon, and back at the Magic Kingdom, Stich’s Great Escape is getting some much needed tweaks. By the end of the year, guests should start experiencing the massive new Expedition Everest over at Animal Kingdom. Not every addition might be a creative home-run, but it’s definitely a good time be an Orlando local with an annual pass.