Fantasmic!

Fantasmic!
Disneyland Area Frontierland Status Operating Opening date May 13, 1992
Disney's Hollywood Studios Area Sunset Boulevard Status Operating Opening date October 15, 1998
Tokyo DisneySea Area Mediterranean Harbor Status Operating Opening date April 28, 2011 Replaced BraviSEAmo!
General statistics
Attraction type	Live show
Designer	Walt Disney Creative Entertainment
Music	Bruce Healey
Duration	22-27 minutes
Audio-animatronics	1
Wheelchair accessible
Assistive listening available

Fantasmic! is a Disney nighttime show at Disneyland in the Disneyland Resort, Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World and Tokyo DisneySea in Tokyo Disney Resort. The show features fireworks, live actors, water effects, pyrotechnics, music, several boats, decorated rafts and projections onto large mist screens featuring reworked Disney Animation. It originated at Disneyland in 1992 after Disneyland's entertainment department was asked to create a nighttime spectacular involving water and fireworks to invigorate the space in front of the Rivers of America. Disneyland Entertainment employed the resources of Walt Disney Feature Animation and Walt Disney Imagineering as collaborators. Much of the area around the Rivers of America needed to be reworked, including terracing the walkways to accommodate viewing and modifying part of Tom Sawyer Island so that it could act as a stage for much of the show's live action.

In 1996, Walt Disney Entertainment in Florida partnered with Imagineering and Feature Animation to bring a new version of the show to Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios), featuring new animated and live action scenes. The Rivers of America at the Magic Kingdom was not conducive to a replication of the layout at Disneyland, so a new purpose-built 6,900 seat amphitheater was built at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Intended to boost low attendance numbers at that park, the new Fantasmic! show was also seen as a needed replacement for Sorcery in the Sky, an aging nighttime fireworks show.

A third version of the show began playing on April 28, 2011 in Tokyo DisneySea's Mediterranean Harbor, replacing BraviSEAmo!.

On May 13, 2012, the Disneyland Park version celebrated the 20th anniversary of the show.

Disneyland version

Synopsis

The show is located on the waters of the Rivers of America at Disneyland and on a stage across the waterway. A tavern and tall trees act as a backdrop for the show. To begin, lights around the Rivers of America fade and a female narrator introduces the show with "Welcome to Fantasmic! Tonight, our friend and host Mickey Mouse uses his vivid imagination to create magical imagery for all to enjoy. Nothing is more wonderful than the imagination, for in a moment, you can experience a beautiful fantasy or an exciting adventure. But beware, nothing is more powerful than the imagination, for it can also expand your greatest fears into an overwhelming nightmare. Are the powers of Mickey's incredible imagination strong enough and bright enough to withstand the evil forces that invade Mickey's dream? You are about to find out. For we now invite you to join Mickey, and experience Fantasmic!… a journey beyond your wildest imagination."

The show begins with Mickey in formal attire directing a water show on the river. The show's signature water projection screens are activated, onto which animation from the Sorcerer's Apprentice sequence from the film Fantasia. Musical scores from "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" and the "Imagination" theme accompany the animation as Mickey conducts animated shooting stars pyrotechnics launched from the six pyrotechnic barges on the river.

The animation then blends with live performers interpreting different flowers.

The lighting and music change to a jungle beat, and a 100-foot-long (30 m) puppet of Kaa, the snake from The Jungle Book, makes its way across the island with beams of light firing from his eyes. Accompanying this scene are three floating barges carrying King Louie and black-lit monkeys across the river stage.

The music segues to a contemporary rendition of "Pink Elephants on Parade" from Dumbo, as animated pink elephants appear onscreen and in the form of performers on the island. The elephants then seem to be puppets dancing on strings, which serves to transition into a sequence based on Pinocchio. Three large puppets are manipulated by nine performers with fiber-optic "strings" stretching 30 feet above the puppets.

Onscreen animation shows Jiminy Cricket underwater searching for Pinocchio. An animated Monstro the Whale interacts with live splash effects on the river. The story line progresses as Mickey notices his dream becoming darker.

Peter Pan and Captain Hook sword fight aboard the Sailing Ship Columbia.

A concussion cannon is fired from Sailing Ship Columbia, which portrays Captain Hook's pirate ship. Hook, Smee, Peter Pan, Wendy, and pirates participate in a stunt sequence as the ship makes its pass. Following the ship is an articulated crocodile barge, with the sound of a ticking clock emanating from its tail.

Snow White and her Prince, Ariel and Prince Eric, and Belle and the Beast appear on three floating stages (transformed since the Jungle scene earlier) on the river, dancing to a medley of each princess' signature song, "Beauty and the Beast," "Part of Your World," and "Some Day My Prince Will Come", respectively. accompanied by lighting and water effects.

The show enters its villain segment, as the Evil Queen from Snow White appears on stage, calling for her magic mirror — which appears onscreen in animated form. The mirror informs the Queen that the three princesses are fairer than she, and that "in Mickey's imagination, beauty and love will always survive."

In anger, she moves to her cauldron, where the Queen transforms into the Hag from Snow White. The hag summons "forces of evil" to transform Mickey Mouse's dream into a "nightmare Fantasmic." Ursula, from The Little Mermaid sings and joins the plot against Mickey as her two pet eels, Flotsam and Jetsam, glide across the river.

Onscreen, Ursula Calls upon Chernabog from Fantasia. Animation from the "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence from Fantasia accompanies Mussorgsky's score.

A pyrotechnic burst of flames announces Maleficent, from Sleeping Beauty, beginning the climactic showdown sequence. Maleficent rises 30 feet from the stage and transforms into a dragon onscreen. The animation gives way to a 45-foot animatronic dragon, who rises from the stage before breathing fire onto the river, which utilizes fire-on-water effects.

Mickey appears as the Brave Little Tailor and uses a sword to destroy Maleficent's dragon form. As the dragon screams, the villains who have appeared are also destroyed onscreen, and the sequence ends with a pyrotechnic burst from the river.

Following an appearance by Tinker Bell, the Mark Twain Riverboat crosses the stage, piloted by a black and white Mickey Mouse, dressed in attire from Steamboat Willie. Approximately 50 Disney characters dance on the ship in a ribbon routine. The sequence is accompanied by searchlights, fountains, and pyrotechnic effects.

Then in a flash of light, Mickey appears on top of the tavern as Sorcerer Mickey, and "conducts" laser beams, fireworks, and other lighting effects that span the length of the river stage. With a flash, he disappears from atop the Tavern and re-appears center stage, resuming his formal attire. Mickey says to the audience, "Some imagination, huh?" and disappears in a flash. A final burst of pyrotechnics is accompanied by searchlights placed around the tavern and stage.

Attraction facts

Fantasmic! climax

• Official debut: May 13, 1992
• Location: Rivers of America, Disneyland, Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, California
• Show length: 23 minutes
• Producers: Disneyland Entertainment, Walt Disney Feature Animation and Walt Disney Imagineering
• Executive producer: Ron Logan
• Audio: LCS matrix audio system with WildTracks audio playback software
• Control: Fully Automated by SMPTE timecode
• Score: Bruce Healey
• Director and original conception: Barnette Ricci
• New director: Carla Carlile
• Villains: The Evil Queen, Ursula, Flotsam, Jetsam, Chernabog, Maleficent, Murphy, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, Kaa, Monstro, and Pink Elephants on Parade
• The 20-foot-tall (6.1 m) Ursula is no longer a part of the show. It was too costly to maintain. A budget was given to replace Ursula when Fantasmic! received its new barges in 2007, but the replacement never happened when the barges went overbudget. Instead she is now shown in a short video projected on water spray and Flotsam and Jetsam jetskis now circle the island.
• Show cost: approx. $75,000 per showing.

Original Creative Team:

• Bob McTyre - Executive Producer
• Ron Logan - Executive Producer
• Mike Davis - Producer
• Gary Gascon - Associate Producer
• Barnette Ricci - Director/Writer
• Bruce Healey - Music Director/Computer Original Music
• Tom Butsch - Art Director
• Ken Billington - Lighting Designer
• Jason Kantrowitz - Associate Lighting Designer
• Marilyn Soto - Costume Designer
• Chris Robinson - Technical Director
• Butch Flannery - Special Effects Engineering
• Don Dorsey - Audio Special Effects and Engineering
• Nick Paul - Audio Engineering
• Jim House - Film Production
• Taylor Wymer - Pyrotechnic
• Roy Luthringer, Carla Carlie, Stephanie Stromer - Coreographers

Backstage developments:

• Spring 2008 – New lighting & new pyrotechnics
• November 2008 – New HD projections
• Spring 2009 – New characters
• Summer 2009 – New dragon
• Spring 2010 – Upgraded lasers
• Fall 2011 - Dataflash AF1000 strobe lights replaced with Martin Atomic 3000's.

Show times:

• Summer: Nightly at 9:00 pm and 10:30 pm along the Rivers of America in Frontierland. July 4 has an added showing at approximately 12:15am or directly after the special July 4 fireworks have concluded. On especially crowded days a third showing will sometimes be added at 11:30 pm, but it typically does not appear on the advance schedule. Following the 9 o'clock showing, the lights remain dim and the fireworks show can be watched from the Fantasmic viewing area. The first showing of Fantasmic was modified to start 5 minutes after 9 pm starting on June 11, 2010. This is due to Disney's World of Color at Disney California Adventure having its first showings at 9 pm. As a result, the fireworks now begin at 9:30 pm.
• Winter: As of the Holiday Season of 2012, the showtimes for Fireworks, World of Color and Fantasmic was changed around. World of Color now shows at 8pm and 9:00 with the fireworks beginning at 9:30. The first show of Fantasmic is now scheduled to begin before the fireworks show begins (as the holiday fireworks and Remember Dreams Come True have different show durations, the first Fantasmic is scheduled to begin generally 5 minutes after the shows concluded.)This was changed to help deal with the crowd issues Disneyland faces before, during and after a fireworks show. Show times and dates are posted online on the Disneyland calendar page.

Disneyland Cast Members quarantine New Orleans Square in preparation for Fantasmic about 60 minutes prior to the show. In order to sit in the designated viewing area, you will want to arrive at least 75 minutes before weekday shows, 90 minutes before weekend shows.

2007–2010 refresh

The Disneyland Resort Fantasmic! went through a full technical refresh, aimed at reducing escalating maintenance costs and keeping it looking fresh.

A new sound system debuted in the summer of 2007, along with the 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 new Clay Paky Alpha Spots and Washes and redesigned for the new Strong Gladiator IV followspots. The footlights, placed on the mainland side at water level were replaced with LED fixtures, as part of Disney's environmental initiative and improved flexibility.

Refurbished pyrotechnic barges were given new technologies derived from Disneyland's Air-Launch Firework (ALF) system. Reworked pyrotechnics emit less smoke than the previous iteration, reducing pollution and improving visibility of the stage, most notable in the finale. This is possible due to there only being a burst charge, eliminating the lift charge.

For the holiday season 2008, the three original 70mm projectors were replaced with High Definition (HD) digital projectors. The animation also received a new digital transfer. New Syncrolite fixtures were added to the mainland and island towers and to the roof of the tavern for use during the finale.

Fantasmic! was to serve as the flagship entertainment offering during the summer 2009 promotion "Summer Nightastic!" Several show scenes were reworked with new or improved characters. The Peter Pan sequence was given a new mechanical crocodile, which, though smaller, is more animated than its predecessor and can now interact with the action during the scene. The Ursula sequence now features Flotsam and Jetsam, in the form of jet-ski based floats which snake through the water. These provide a replacement for the used to be Ursula float, which was taken out of the show years ago due to constant repairs. A new audio-animatronic dragon (code-named Snaps McGee & nicknamed Murphy by fans) was built to replace the previous dragon (codenamed Bucky) which was a mechanical dragon's head on JLG cherry picker. The new dragon was designed to be a full-bodied replica of Maleficent's final form in Sleeping Beauty, standing at 45 feet tall. The dragon had initial problems before a scheduled debut date and was unable to operate on said date. The new dragon was premiered on September 1, 2009.

The Mark Twain finale sequence featuring Disney characters doing a streamer dance was re-choreographed, and the timing of the fireworks in the finale was tweaked.

In early February 2010, the entire Rivers of America were drained. Both the Mark Twain and the sailing ship Columbia underwent refurbishment, 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. In early May, the refurbishment was completed, and the rivers were restored. Fantasmic! was slated to return for the summer season on May 28, 2010.

On August 28, 2010 the 2nd generation dragon (Snaps McGee) broke again. It partly collapsed during a performance. It was restored to the show on November 12, 2010.

Disney's Hollywood Studios version

Synopsis

As the lights fade, a female narrator gives a brief welcome and mentions of the powers of imagination. A very faint musical note is heard, swelling and growing into a dramatic chord in the complete darkness. Once the chord strikes, two tall columns rise on stage left and right, with roving spotlights, until finally Mickey appears centre stage. He conducts various water fountain effects, until bringing up the giant water-mist screens, which, in conjunction with a few flares, fade into the famous Sorcerer's Apprentice scene from Fantasia.

From there, the falling stars of the Sorcerer's Apprentice scene morph into flowers, and after a brief interlude, into a jungle scene. Elephants, giraffes, monkeys, birds, ostriches, rhinos, crocodiles, and cheetahs begin to herd in the mountain. Neon animals make noise and dance around on the island while Rafiki and monkeys do a dance on floats traveling across the water. Simba and Nala from The Lion King romp together. Next, a large Bubble Montage takes place, where scenes and characters from major classic animated Disney movies appear in floating bubbles. Scenes from The Lion King, The Jungle Book, Dumbo, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Alice in Wonderland, Hercules, Pinocchio, Aladdin, Mulan, Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, Fantasia, Bambi, Beauty and the Beast, and The Little Mermaid pop and float across the screen.

An animated Monstro next appears onscreen, accompanied by a heavy musical score as he crashes through the waters. The chaotic sea morphs into one of the opening scenes from Pocahontas, with the ship caught in a storm. The screens disappear, and the lights immediately darken.

A loud cannon blast erupts. Live characters re-enact battle scenes from the film, Pocahontas. Governor John Ratcliffe and his fellow Englishmen fight against the Native Americans, followed by John Smith. As John Smith climbs to the very top of the mountain, a Native American warrior moves to strike Smith when Pocahontas arrives; the water screens spring back up, and Grandmother Willow appears, with a quote from the movie; the lights dim on the battle, and the "Colors of the Wind" scene plays out on the screens. The show then moves into classic dancing scenes with Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip, Cinderella and Prince Charming, and Princess Jasmine and Aladdin.

Three small floats now arrive, with Belle and the Beast, Ariel and Prince Eric, and Snow White and her Prince each contained in their own float. As each float reaches the centre, the spotlight shines on it, with the accompanying signature melody from each movie — "Beauty and the Beast," "Part of Your World," and "Some Day My Prince Will Come", respectively.

The music takes on an ominous tone as Mickey's dream takes a turn for the worse. The Wicked Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs on stage, calling for her magic mirror — which appears onscreen in animated form. The mirror informs the Queen that the three princesses are fairer than she, and that "in Mickey's imagination, beauty and love will always survive." Angered by this, she concocts a spell amidst pyrotechnics and other special effects, and turns herself into a hag. Upon being told by the Magic Mirror that she now has the power to control Mickey's mind, she invokes some of the most infamous Disney villains:

• Ursula from The Little Mermaid
• Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians
• Scar from The Lion King
• Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame
• Jafar from Aladdin
• Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty

Jafar uses his magic to send Mickey to the Cave of Wonders. After escaping a wave of lava, Mickey encounters Jafar, who transforms into a giant black cobra appearing on both the stage and the mist screens. Seeing a magic lamp, Mickey rubs it, assuming it will help him. Unfortunately, Jafar is transformed into a genie and calls upon Hades (Hercules) and Chernabog (Fantasia) with the latter summoning the spirits from the dead.

Steamboat Willie riverboat at Disney's Hollywood Studios

On stage, Mickey encounters Maleficent, who transforms into a 40-foot-tall fire-breathing dragon that sets the waters ablaze. Guests as far as halfway back in the theater can feel the heat from the fire. Mickey, now in his Brave Little Tailor outfit, manages to create a wall of water around the island, smothering the flames and defeating the dragon. He destroys the villains using the power of his imagination and his sword (similar to The Sword in the Stone). Maleficent also dies as the water splashes with a large firework bang. All is quiet, until Tinker Bell appears and flies to restore the mountain. Magical stars sparkle in the mountain as the Steamboat Willie riverboat approaches. Then a spark of pyrotechnics ignite from the riverboat, revealing Mickey controlling the boat.

As it glides past the audience, various Disney characters appear aboard the riverboat, dancing with golden streamers. A celebratory atmosphere prevails amid a flurry of fireworks. With another flash of pyrotechnics, Mickey appears atop the highest point of the mountain as the Sorcerers Apprentice as fireworks, fire, and water light up the stage. As the finale concludes, Mickey disappears from the top of the mountain with another spark of pyrotechnics, a small explosion in the main stage and simultaneously reappears in his shiny tuxedo suit. A small applause from the crowd and Mickey says, "Some imagination, huh? Ha ha!" Gold pyrotechnics shoot out of the main stage and barges on the moat, as he vanishes one last time to the final notes of the music while a cone of lights and searchlights bright up the stage for a few seconds. On the last note of the musical score, bright low-level mines go off. The lighting returns to normal and the show is concluded.

Hollywood Hills Amphitheater

Hollywood Hills Amphitheater stage for Fantasmic!

Hollywood Hills Amphitheater rear entrance

The Hollywood Hills Amphitheater is the purpose-built riverside amphitheatre at the Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, Florida, USA that showcases the nighttime spectacular Fantasmic! It is located off of Sunset Boulevard, between the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and the Beauty and the Beast stage show. The Fantasmic! stage in Florida is much larger than Disneyland's, featuring a man-made, 50-foot-tall (15 m) mountain on which Sorcerer Mickey stands. The amphitheater can seat slightly more than 8,200 guests.

Attraction facts

• Official debut: October 15, 1998
• Location: Hollywood Hills Amphitheater, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida
• Show length: 27 minutes
• Producers: Walt Disney Entertainment (in conjunction with Walt Disney Imagineering and Walt Disney Feature Animation
• Executive producer: Ron Logan
• Score: Bruce Healey
• Director: Barnette Ricci
• Villains: The Evil Queen, Maleficent, Monstro, Chernabog, Cruella de Vil, Ursula, Jafar, Scar, Governor John Ratcliffe, Judge Claude Frollo, Hades, Si, and Am.
• Show cost: Estimated at $45,000 per showing
• Show Times: 8:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

Original "Evil Destroyed" version

Florida's version of Mickey destroying the dragon was said to have originally involved Mickey walking on the surface of the river and rising up in a column of water to slay the dragon. As it turned out, the lift simply could not be controlled in a safe enough manner to protect Mickey. A simpler ending of Mickey using the sword in the stone was used instead. However, the "Fantasmic! Good Clashes with Evil in a Nighttime Spectacular" soundtrack had already been produced with the last track called "Mickey Walks On Water/Evil Destroyed."

2009 show cuts

In January 2009 the Florida show's schedule was reduced from 7 to 2 nights a week to selected nights each week. These schedule cuts coincided with the opening of The American Idol Experience. It was announced in 2010 that during peak park attendance periods it would be performed three nights a week with two shows per night.

2008–2010 show enhancements

The Florida version of the show, unlike the California version of the show, has not undergone a major refurbishment. However since 2008, the show has been upgrading and replacing some of the technology, without any changes to show elements.

• The Steamboat Willie riverboat originally had "spinning fireworks" that ignited on the side of the riverboat. In 2007, an incident occurred when one of the spinning fireworks flew off of its stand and into the trees. Due to this incident, waterfall fireworks replaced the spinning fireworks when the show entered its 2008 season.

• In summer 2009, the sound system was upgraded.

• In summer 2010, new (low smoke) pyrotechnics have been added to the entire show. At the last second of the show, mine blasts (used in the Disneyland finale) ignite after the stage goes dark.

2011

The Florida show's schedule briefly returned to seven days a week from July 3 to September 30, 2011.

Alternative show

The Florida version has a four minute-long substitute show, colloquially named Taste of Fantasmic!, that plays when inclement weather prohibits the presentation of the regular show. The alternative show does not showcase any of the performers, floats, puppets or the mechanical dragon, 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 Showers", 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.

Character Meet & Greets

Before many performances of Fantasmic! at Disney's Hollywood Studios the Random Afternoon Character Pop-Ups are offered. The special meet & greets feature many characters from the show on the Streets of America and around Echo Lake in front Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Show!. They feature many characters that are not so common at Walt Disney World. For some, this is the only place certain characters meet regularly. The first set is typically at 4:30 Pm around Echo Lake, and the second is typically on the Streets of America around 5:30 Pm. *NOTE: The sets can be affected by weather conditions. 
A list of characters that meet regularly at the Random Character Pop-Ups include
(NOTE: These characters are regular, but may not always be there):
Captain Hook
Chip & Dale
Gepetto
Goofy
Mary Poppins
Max
Meeko
Minnie
Mr. Smee
Penguins
Pinocchio
Pluto
Pocahontas
Snow Queen

Other characters include:
Aladdin
Belle
Bolt
Genie
Green Army Men
Jafar
Jasmine
Mulan
Queen of Hearts
Rafiki
Snow Queen
Stitch

Megara use to appear at these meet & greets, but hasn't in many years. Other characters such as Gov. Ratcliffe and Prince John use to make appearances at the Random Character Pop-Ups, but have since been retired.

Tokyo DisneySea Version

Synopsis

The show begins with the tune of the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" as out of the stars, Sorcerer Mickey emerges on a tower of stars in a comet. The new theme song, "Imagination" plays as Mickey conducts the water fountains and images of different characters appear on the tower. The music shifts into the traditional Fantasmic! theme and weaves into "Sorcerer's Apprentice" as Mickey conducts the stars and sea and calls on the Magic Brooms. The waters rise and Ariel enters vocalizing "Part of Your World", as Crush and his seaturtle pack from Finding Nemo swim in the background. The dancing fish from Fantasia's "Nutcracker Suite" also appear as does Jiminy Cricket in his bubble, which pops and fills the scene with bubbles.

Mickey's eyes appear confused in the dark and the show enters as the show progresses into a jungle environment. While Tarzan and Jane Porter appear swinging on the projection tower, floats featuring giant inflatable versions of Baloo, King Louie, Pumbaa and a young Simba appear along with a floating Kaa. A medley of music from Tarzan, The Jungle Book, and The Lion King plays, eventually building up into the "Circle of Life" scene.

However, when Rafiki is about to hold up Simba, Stitch appears instead (similar to the "Inter-Stitch-als") and the music transitions into an electric guitar version of "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" with Stitch conducting the water while Angel pilots Stitch's red speeder shooting plasma blasts. Mickey appears again, accompanied by the show's theme song and "When You Wish Upon A Star" and sets the stage for an appearance by the Genie singing "Friend Like Me" as well as the scene of "A Whole New World". As Aladdin and Jasmine fly off, the music segues into Cinderella and a sequence based on the Disney Princesses.

After the Princess medley, Mickey encounters the Magic Mirror. Mickey asks the Magic Mirror if he's the greatest sorcerer of all and the Mirror tells him to look closer and deeper into the mirror. The Mirror and the Evil Queen then cast a spell trapping Mickey inside, allowing the villains to take control, each one appearing within the mirror. The Queen (now as the Old Hag) calls on the assistance of Ursula (singing "Poor Unfortunate Souls") and Chernabog (whose appearance is accompanied with a composition of "Night on Bald Mountain" and "Hellfire" with clips of the villains of the show, and Jafar (Aladdin)). The Queen laughs at the power of Mickey's imagination and the last villain emerges from the mirror: Maleficent who shows the power of her imagination by turning into her dragon form. Mickey defeats Maleficent and the other villains with his magic wand and the power of his imagination. He falls back into his sleeping body and with a wave of Tinker Bell's wand, the show moves into the finale, with a reprise of the song and many of the show's other characters appearing on the barges, including classic Mickey and company. The barges stop and Sorcerer Mickey reappears on the tower, clad in a glowing, white, fiber-optic reflecting robe to conduct the final pyrotechincs and fountains as the music builds. Mickey then remarks "Some Imagination, huh?" and disappears, with a few notes of the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" theme and the final fanfare. The tower takes on the appearance of the Sorcerer's Hat and the exit music plays.

Attraction facts

• Official debut: April 28, 2011
• Location: Mediterranean Harbor, Tokyo DisneySea, Tokyo Disney Resort
• Show length: approx. 23 minutes
• Sponsorship: NTT DoCoMo
• Producers: Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Entertainment
• Creative Director: Steve Davison
• Executive Producer: Roger Heartsner
• Technical Director: Darren J. Wilkie
• Production Manager: Michelle A. Tritt
• Score: Don L. Harper
• Original Fantasmic! Theme & Exit Theme: Composed by Bruce Healey
• Villains: Kaa, Magic Mirror, The Wicked Queen, Ursula, Flotsam, Jetsam, Chernabog, Maleficent

Pre-production and concept

On February 5, 2010, it was announced the show was to debut on April 23, 2011 at Tokyo DisneySea as a replacement for the current show, BraviSeamo! The show would be a newer and larger version and would feature new scenes from Aladdin, Finding Nemo, and Cinderella, and will take place in Mediterranean Harbor. This was to become the nighttime spectacular for the Tokyo DisneySea 10th Anniversary Celebration "Be Magical!" However, the earthquake and tsunami of March 2011 delayed the opening of the celebration for six weeks. The presentation premiered instead on April 28, 2011.

Steve Davison has called this new version of Fantasmic as "Fantasmic 2.0," hinting that the show would be redesigned. The show's score was completely recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios, composed by Don L. Harper, as is, Bruce Healey's theme to the original Fantasmic! The new version has new scenes and plot, accompanied with a new song titled "Imagination". This is the only version of Fantasmic! to not have a stationary stage, since Mediterranean Harbor is located in the center of the park. Instead most of the show takes place on barges and boats. All of the character dialogue was recorded in Japanese by the characters' respective Japanese voice artists, excluding the "Imagination" and Fantasmic! songs. In conclusion, the performance is very much so much different.

Development and advertising

The original Disneyland soft opening and press premiere were scheduled to begin 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 the Rodney King beating. Promotional materials with the catchphrase "Be Here When the Night Ignites" were quickly pulled from public circulation. Fantasmic! was not the first Disneyland attraction to share its premiere with an infamous Los Angeles tragedy. On August 9, 1969, the Haunted Mansion was officially opened while later that evening actress Sharon Tate and others were murdered by Charles Manson and his followers.

Fantasmic! was originally going to be called "Imagination", but Disney could not register that title as a trademark, so they changed it to Fantasmic! The attraction was designed to run for 5 years only, but due to continuing positive crowd response in both parks, it still runs today.

Differences between the versions

Although the shows in Disneyland, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Tokyo DisneySea are similar in many respects, there are some differences between the three versions.

• In the old Disneyland version of the finale, as soon as Mickey says "Some imagination, huh? Ha ha!", the cone of lights immediately turns on and fireworks from the barges surrounding the stage ignite. This caused the audience to view how Mickey "vanishes". Now, like the Disney World version, there is a spark of bright pyrotechnics as soon as the line is said. In the Tokyo DisneySea version, this illusion is created by pyrotechnics at Mickey's platform, followed by a quick release trap set within the platform.
• The choreography of the Opening Mickey and Sorcerer Mickey in both Disneyland and Disney's Hollywood Studios are different in their own ways. At Tokyo DisneySea, this choreography is completely removed, as this show has a different opening.
• Whereas the show is performed on the Rivers of America at Disneyland, Disney needed a new nighttime draw for Disney's Hollywood Studios. The Hollywood Hills Amphitheater built at Disney's Hollywood Studios was made specifically for Fantasmic!
• At Disney's Hollywood Studios, the show runs for almost 27 minutes (due to the montage of Disney clips inside bubbles, the additional villains, and the wall of water at the climax), compared to Disneyland's which is only 22 minutes. The Tokyo DisneySea version runs at approximately 23 minutes.
• The Jungle Scene with Kaa, King Louie, and the monkeys from The Jungle Book at Disneyland is replaced with a tribute to The Lion King at Disney's Hollywood Studios. However, King Louie and the monkeys do appear briefly in the bubble scene. Tokyo DisneySea uses characters from both films series, as well as video from Tarzan to accent the "Circle of Life" scene from the Lion King.
• The Peter Pan re-enactment from Disneyland was replaced with scenes from Pocahontas at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the request of Michael Eisner, who wanted more recent films in the show.
• The "Pink Elephants on Parade" clips and Pinocchio puppets are replaced with a montage of many clips from Disney features inside bubbles at Disney's Hollywood Studios. However, they do appear briefly in the bubble scene. Clips of the bubble montage are found in "The Little Mermaid" / "Finding Nemo" section, while clips of "Pink Elephants" are projected on the screens during the "Friend Like Me" segment from Disney's Aladdin found in the Tokyo DisneySea version.
• Ursula's reprisal of "Poor Unfortunate Souls" is taken out at Disney's Hollywood Studios to introduce the other Disney villains. She plays a smaller role in the Florida show than in the California one. In Tokyo DisneySea's version, her role is identical to California's version, with the exception that the song is in Japanese.
• More villains are featured in the Florida version. Many of the additions are villains from Disney animated features released after the Disneyland version was first introduced.
• In California, Mickey destroys the villains by pointing a sword at the Dragon and saying, "You may think you're so powerful, well, this is my dream!" before light shoots from his sword toward the villains. In Florida, he still says this, but before he destroys the villains, he causes a wall of water to block out the island and douse the flames; he then marches over to the sword in the stone and pulls it out.
• Instead of the Mark Twain riverboat, the characters in the Florida show dance on a smaller boat based on the steamboat from Steamboat Willie. Tokyo DisneySea uses four barges refurbished from previous shows performed in the Mediterranean Harbor.
• In the California version, the giant snake that comes out on the stage is Kaa from The Jungle Book; in the Florida version, the snake is Jafar from Aladdin. Also, Jafar has a much bigger role in the show than any other villain except for Maleficent. Tokyo DisneySea uses a redesigned Kaa as a moving float during the "Circle of Life" segment.
• Having been updated, the California version's Maleficent dragon is considerably more advanced than its Florida counterpart and has a wider range of movement.
• The final battle scene in Tokyo DisneySea's show differs from both its American counterparts. While both California and Florida versions pit Brave Little Tailor Mickey against the dragon Maleficent, Sorcerer Mickey is the one who battles Maleficent at Tokyo DisneySea. Instead of using a sword, Mickey shoots fireworks from a magic wand topped with a Hidden Mickey emblem.
• Unlike the US versions, Tokyo DisneySea's show does not open with the "Welcome to Fantasmic!..." phrase as part of the opening act; instead it starts off with Dukas' Sorcerer's Apprentice. The narration is recited as part of the pre-show announcements in both Japanese and English, by two male voices, instead of a female voice.
• The Finale music at Tokyo DisneySea is almost identical to the US versions except when the chorus sings the "Imagination" theme song instead of Bruce Healey's lyrics for the US versions. The choreography is different as well, with no dancing ribbons.
  • The music of the Villain segment of the show is almost identical to Disneyland's version, with two notable exceptions: in the Chernabog scene, the music is instead a mixture of "Night on Bald Mountain" and "Hellfire"; and instead of the Evil Queen's Transformation to the Old Hag, Mickey is the one who summons the Magic Mirror and the power of evil.
• The dialog in Tokyo DisneySea's version is in Japanese. When translated from Japanese to English, Mickey's dialog in Tokyo DisneySea's version is literally the same as the US versions (except when Mickey calls the Magic Mirror and the magic of romance).
• In all three versions Bruce Healey's Exit Music can be heard after each performance.
• Tokyo's Princess Sequence does not include vocals, but a more orchestral soundtrack than its US counterparts. It also features Cinderella, Snow White, and Aurora. The US versions feature Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, and Snow White and her Prince.
  • Tokyo's version features Ariel (as both human and mermaid), Beauty and the Beast, The Princess and the Frog (as animation), and Snow White (Theme and Finale). Cinderella is the only Princess featured who does not appear in all three versions. Belle and the Beast are featured as animation only; they do not appear in the Finale.

Characters appearing in the Finale

Disneyland's version of the Finale includes Mickey, Minnie Mouse, Chip, Dale, Goofy, Pluto, Donald, Cinderella, Perla and Suzy, Snow White and her Prince, Dopey, Genie, Princess Aurora, Prince Phillip, Aladdin, Princess Jasmine, Princess Tiana, Ariel, Prince Eric, Belle, Beast, Mary Poppins, Chimney Sweeps, Alice, The White Rabbit, The Mad Hatter, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie and Two Green Army Men from Toy Story. However this can sometimes vary between shows as other, random characters are occasionally featured instead. For instance, during the 20th anniversary of Disneyland's show, Br'er Fox, Br'er Bear, Br'er Rabbit, The Three Little Pigs, the Big Bad Wolf, and Roger Rabbit made appearances. Esmeralda is very occasionally featured o the boat, usually in place of Tiana.

Walt Disney World's version includes Mickey, Minnie, Chip, Dale, Goofy, Pluto, Donald, Pinocchio, Geppetto, Megara, Baloo, Snow White and her Prince, The Seven Dwarfs, Aladdin, Princess Jasmine, Fa Mulan, Belle, Beast, Ariel, Prince Eric, Rafiki, Br'er Bear, Lilo, Stitch, Pocahontas, John Smith, Meeko, Mary Poppins, and Bert. Sometimes, Robin Hood, Mushu, and Timon appear. As in Disneyland, characters vary in this version as well, though not quite as often. In mid to late May of 2013 Megara will be removed from the boat, and replaced by Princess Tiana. This is the last place Megara appears in Walt Disney World, and in American Disney Parks. She occasionally did meet & greets at Epcot's International Gateway to train new character look a likes to play her.

Tokyo DisneySea's version includes Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald, Daisy, Pluto, Chip, Dale, Clarice, Marie, Snow White and her Prince, Dopey, Aurora, Prince Phillip, Aladdin, Princess Jasmine, Abu, Geppetto, Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket, Prince Eric, Princess Ariel, Max the Dog, and the Fantasmic dancers.

Disneyland technology

The water projection screens were initially designed with a single screen centered in front of the island. During development, show producers determined that the venue would need three screens to enable viewing along the entire waterfront. In addition to providing story development, the screens hide set changes that happen on stage while video playback is occurring. The pump house for the water screens and other fountain effects is located in the small structure along the river, just north of the Mark Twain dock. Water for the fountains is supplied via massive intake pipes directly under this structure. The fog system located around the banks of the river uses fresh water to create the fog effects along the river. The river's water itself is not suitable to be pumped through the mist nozzles, as aquashadow dye is added to the river to mask the bottom from guests. In the winter of 2008, Disneyland's Fantasmic! returned from another refurbishment with new high-definition digital projectors, most noticeable in the "Pink Elephants" and "Tinker Bell" segments, where the images look clearer and deeper colors compared to the 70 mm film projections that were used for 16 years.

There are six pyrotechnics barges that can hold up to three shows worth of pyrotechnics each. Two barges go on each side of the stage, and two are at center stage. The pyrotechnics were redesigned during the winter 2008 refurbishment. The show's final blast does not come from any of the 6 pyro barges, but rather 5 mines located along the island banks of the river.

The fire on water effect is created by natural gas lines running beneath the river. The gas simply bubbles up to the surface and 6 flame throwers along the banks of the river ignite the gas. With the original dragon, it initially would be the source of ignition for the water. This would cause the face of the dragon to burn and so 3 flame throwers were added. The new dragon's style of flame thrower sprays the stream of fuel, and then ignites it after it is all airborne, opposed to igniting the fuel as it sprays out. This allows the flame to throw further, aerosolize, and overall be more impressive.

The lighting system consists of three mainland towers along the shore of the Rivers of America, in the audience seating area, along with two island towers, and several auxiliary lighting systems (i.e. the river boxes with the new ColorKinetics ColorBlast 12s that replaced the Stonco Pars). In early 2008 the lighting system was completely replaced, the first major rework since the show opened in 1992. After a 3-month period, the show reopened on March 7, 2008 with new Clay Paky fixtures mounted on the completely redesigned towers, including Alpha Wash 1200s and Alpha Profile 1200s, replacing the old Morpheus PC Spot fixtures. Additionally 2 Syncrolite MX3000's on Tower B and one each on Towers A and C, 2 on each island tower and 2 behind the tavern. These Syncrolite fixtures add much brightness to the show and give a high intensity source of "black-light" effect used throughout the show. The two located behind the tavern are at roof level and act as intense backlighting while Mickey is directing the finale. The followspots were replaced with Strong Gladiator IV. Unlike the previous followspots, these do not accept gobos — most noticeable in the opening sequence where Mickey was formerly lit with a star.

Video and audio playback were originally mastered to laserdisc. Originally Triad provided the show control for the complex audio source and mixing systems, as well as programming services for Fantasmic! After the May to June 2007 remodel, there are four J arrays (d&b audio) consisting of two J8s and two J-SUBs per stack and there are three arrays mimicking the placement of the water screens as the primary music source. Along the edge of the mainland (land side of the river) there are Meyer UPA-1Cs that are manually hydraulically raised specifically for Fantasmic! for delay and 2 MSL-2As per mainland lighting tower. The centermost UPA's are also used in Tiana's Showboat Jubilee, running from November 18, 2009 to January 3, 2010. The sound system that is used daily for background music- Meyer UPM's mounted in the lamp posts- also remains active during the show. There is a surround system of d&b Ci90s and Ci60s and various EAW cabinets that are hidden above the River Belle Terrace in a wicker chest, above Club 33, The Dream Suite and the Haunted Mansion roof, as well as various other locations, are mounted on the roof on hydraulic lifts that operate the same way as the lighting mounts located on the Main Street Roofs. These speakers are cued to lift to show position at 2+ hours before showtime. Additional Meyer UPA-1C's are added to the Columbia because as it sails by during the Peter Pan segment, it physically blocks the sound from the island J arrays. All the audio runs off a Meyer/LCS Matrix3 system, with eight tracks of playback and close to forty outputs. There is something in the region of six different areas of sound that are duplicated on three sides of the stage. All loudspeakers, d&b and Meyer are run off d&b D12 or E-PAC amplifiers. The amplifiers are split into two locations, one on the island and one at the control booth. By using the d&b ROPE C control software, engineers can look at both parts of the system from the control area.

The Mark Twain Riverboat is actually powered by the rear-mounted paddle, but is guided by the same replacement track installed at the install time of Fantasmic! It is a real steam-powered sternwheeler, but the steam is regulated by the engineer in the rear of the boat and steam is powered by a biodiesel-fueled boiler. The boiler is regulated at the center of the boat with many gauges and a three-way toggle switch labeled "Slow," "Fast," and "FANTASMIC." The last setting provides the most speed.

The Columbia is CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) powered, unlike the bio-diesel powered Mark Twain. It sports a real cannon that gets shot during the Peter Pan segment of Fantasmic!

Lasers were part of the show from the beginning to the tree above the main building on the island, to the tavern roof itself, and later more were added directly above the stage deck facing upstage, used during the death of the dragon.

Soundtrack

Disneyland production

• Conceived and directed by Barnette Ricci
• Produced by Bruce Healey
• Score composed/arranged by Bruce Healey
• Engineer: Don Dorsey

Disney's Hollywood Studios production

• Conceived and directed by Barnette Ricci
• Score composed/arranged by Bruce Healey
• Soundtrack produced by Bruce Healey
• Executive vice president of entertainment: Ron Logan
• Album executive producer: Doug Strawn
• Album produced by Bruce Healey
• Recorded and mixed by Paul Freeman
• Soundtrack editing, sound effects, and surround sound design by Paul Freeman
• Music production manager: Daren Ulmer
• Album coordinator: Ted Rickeets

Tokyo DisneySea production

• Conceived and directed by Steve Davison
• Original score composed by Don L. Harper
• Original Fantasmic! theme composed by Bruce Healey
• Performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
• Soundtrack recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London, England, UK

Voices

• Wayne Allwine – Mickey Mouse
• Jane E. Correa – Female Vocalist (Princess Medley), Wendy (DL)
• Louise Chamis – Evil Queen/Old Hag
• Tony Jay – Magic Mirror, Judge Claude Frollo (DHS)
• Eddie Carroll – Jiminy Cricket
• Corey Burton – Chernabog, Captain Hook (DL), Pirates (DL)
• Linda Gary – Maleficent
• Pat Carroll – Ursula
• Susan Blakeslee – Cruella de Vil- DHS
• Jonathan Freeman – Jafar- DHS
• Jeremy Irons – Scar- DHS
• Linda Hunt – Grandmother Willow- DHS
• David Ogden Stiers – Governor Ratcliffe- DHS
• James Woods – Hades- DHS
• Takashi Aoyagi – Mickey Mouse – TDS
• Kyoko Satomi – Evil Queen/Old Hag – TDS
• Tamio Ōki – Magic Mirror – TDS
• Toshiko Sawada – Maleficent – TDS
• Kujira – Ursula – TDS
• Koichi Yamadera – Genie, Stitch – TDS

DL: Disneyland Park; Anaheim, California
DHS: Disney's Hollywood Studios; Lake Buena Vista, Florida
No abbreviation: American versions
TDS: Tokyo DisneySea; Urayasu, Chiba, Japan

See also

• List of current Disneyland attractions
• Disney's Hollywood Studios attraction and entertainment history
• 2011 in amusement parks

External links

• "Fantasmic!". D23 - Disney.com. Retrieved May 13, 2009. 
• "Method and apparatus for forming a fluid projection screen – Patent #5,368,228". US Patent & Trademark Office. Retrieved April 21, 2006.  – Patent for water screens used in Fantasmic.
• Fantasmic! at Disneyland
• Fantasmic! at Disney's Hollywood Studios
• Construction of Disneyland's Fantasmic! at Bear-ytales.blogspot.com
• The Official Disney Parks and Resort Blog
• Dldhistory.com
• Fantasmic! Tokyo DisneySEA