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29 January 2001
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Walt Disney World proudly presents our spectacular festival pageant of nighttime magic and imagination in thousands of sparkling lights and electrosynthomagnetic musical sounds . . . the ‘Main Street Electrical Parade!’”
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- It’s time to say “good bye” to a cherished favorite.
The “Main Street Electrical Parade,” one of the most beloved attractions in Disney history, will close its run at the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom April 1, 2001. After more than 500 performances before hundreds of thousands of guests, the parade’s lights and music will dim, making way for another spectacle of nighttime entertainment and music, “SpectroMagic.”
The “Main Street Electrical Parade” is a beloved procession of Disney stories brought to life in shimmering colored lights and bouncy, bubbly music. “Alice in Wonderland,” “Cinderella,” “Peter Pan,” “Dumbo,” “Snow White” and “Pete’s Dragon” are featured during the 20-minute spectacle.
“The ‘Main Street Electrical Parade’ has had an enormously successful return to the Magic Kingdom,” said Erin Wallace, vice president for Magic Kingdom. “We wanted to let its fans know the parade is going away so they can catch one of the final performances.”
Magic Kingdom guests can share in the delight of the “Main Street Electrical Parade” every night of the week beginning Feb. 16. Show times will vary.
“Historically, the ‘Main Street Electrical Parade’ has been a Disney favorite,” said R.K. Kelley, Walt Disney Entertainment senior show producer for Magic Kingdom. “Our six-week finale will give many fans an opportunity to enjoy it one last time.”
Sweet Dreams on Main Street
After leaving Disneyland in 1996, the “crown jewel of summer”
underwent a dazzling makeover of 575,000 glittering new lights and a
2,400-mile transcontinental journey before its return to the Walt Disney
World Resort in June 1999.
Longtime fans may recall a version of the “Main Street Electrical Parade” that was crafted for the Walt Disney World Resort in 1977. It bid farewell after 15 seasons to begin an engagement at Disneyland Paris. Fans of that parade will recognize some units from the original Disneyland “Main Street Electrical Parade,” including the Blue Fairy from “Pinocchio” as the “grand marshal” aglitter in a winged gown of more than 10,000 blue, amber and crystal lights.
The “signature” unit for the parade, the Casey Junior Circus Train (from “Dumbo”), has Goofy at the controls of the engine, pulling a huge bass drum that announces in lights, “The Magic Kingdom Presents Main Street Electrical Parade.” The memorable float finale honors America with a flowing red and white field of lights, “fireworks” and a golden eagle.
The Homecoming of “SpectroMagic”
Combining the energy of seven lightning bolts, the electrical power of a
fleet of 2,000 highway trucks and a sprinkling of pixie dust,
“SpectroMagic” returns to the Magic Kingdom on April 2. Like the
“Main Street Electrical Parade,” “SpectroMagic” takes beloved
Disney characters and decks them out in sparkling detail. The parade
features a glittering array of flowing fiber optics; holographic images;
clouds of underlit, liquid-nitrogen smoke; and old-fashioned twinkle
lights, precisely choreographed to an emotionally charged, original
soundtrack which uses dashes of classic Disney tunes.
Some “SpectroMagic” highlights:
- Mickey Mouse in glistening lights with “a confetti of light”
sparkling in the air around him heralds the 20-minute production.
Dressed in an amber and purple grand magician’s cape, he plays the
role of a light-controller capable of altering colors, brilliance
and types of lighting effects.
- The title float, proclaiming “SpectroMagic” in flowing fiber
optics, is surrounded by SpectroMen atop spinning, darting
whirlyballs.
- Practical Pig, poised before the magical world of Disney’s
characters (more than 100 feet in length and featuring castle
towers, a carousel, a bejeweled coach and other dreamlands), flicks
a paint brush to change the colors of the characters’ world into
silvery white.
- Chernabog, memorable for his role as the monstrous demon figure in
“Fantasia,” is portrayed in dark, eerie colors as he
dramatically spreads his wings to a 38-foot span.
- The Three Good Fairies in Sleeping Beauty’s garden create the sparkle of day among the flowers and insects...and magically transform the scene to the mystery of night.
22 October 2000: SpectroMagic Returning!
Please note - this information is not yet official.
MSEP's last day is March 14th 2001.
Starting February 1st 2001, they'll start a large media campaign, running the parade every night until it ends.
March 21 2001, SpectroMagic returns, with another media blitz, with the parade running every night.
Now for a great bit of news - Tokyo DisneyLand's Fantillusion will
close over there, and all the sections except for the villains will be used to
almost double the length of SpectroMagic when it comes back. (This
is not confirmed - but is being strongly rumored)
On another note: Cynthia Harris, President of Disneyland, was recently spotted in a VIP Section in WDW's
Magic Kingdom watching the current MSEP.
(3 November 1998) The last showing of
SpectroMagic is on May 21 1999, and MSEP starts nightly on May 28 1999.
A captivating display of more than 700,000 twinkling bulbs returns to the streets of the Magic Kingdom -- and to the hearts of millions -- when the original "Main Street Electrical Parade" lights up the night beginning summer 1999.
Direct from Disneyland, 26 floats depicting Disney fantasy themes, including Peter Pan, Dumbo, Alice in Wonderland, Pete's Dragon and Cinderella's Pumpkin Coach, will give guests an opportunity to relive Disney experiences and share fond memories with friends and family who may not have seen the nighttime parade.
It is still not clear whether SpectroMagic will be down for the whole year, move to another park (MGM), or only appear on busy nights.
Disney Press Release
Street lights faded along Main Street, U.S.A., at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, leaving the curbside audience in dark anticipation. Then an electronically created voice magically cut the night in a sing-song chant: "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Disneyland proudly presents our spectacular festival pageant of nighttime magic and imagination in thousands of sparkling lights and electrosynthomagnetic musical sounds…the ‘Main Street Electrical Parade!’"
The original Main Street Electrical Parade from Disneyland now is getting stage-ready for a different Main Street U.S.A. – at Walt Disney World Resort.
After almost 3,6000 West Coast performances before 75 million guests, a makeover of 575,000 glittering new lights and a 2,400-mile transcontinental journey, this sparkling "crown jewel of summer" in Southern California from 1972 to 1996 will be presented in the Magic Kingdom beginning May 28.
It’s part of the most explosive year of entertainment growth in Walt Disney World history, with 12 new attractions, spectaculars, shows and adventures plus a brand new family resort all part of the Disney "funscape" in summer 1999.
The original Main Street Electrical Parade, a beloved procession of Disney stories brought to life in shimmering colored lights and bouncy, bubbly music, ends a three-year hiatus with its engagement at Walt Disney World Resort. A May 5 ceremonial arrival on highways near the Magic Kingdom will give a glimpse of the spectacle in store.
Longtime fans may recall a version of the Main Street Electrical parade that was
crafted for the Magic Kingdom in 1977…and which bid farewell after 15 seasons to
begin an engagement at Disneyland Paris. Fans of that parade will recognize some of the
units of the original Disneyland Main Street Electrical parade, including the Blue Fairy
from Pinocchio as the "grand marshal" aglitter in a winged gown of more than
10,000 blue, amber and crystal lights.
There’s also plenty among the 39-unit procession that’s never been seen before
on the ¾-mile Magic Kingdom parade route:
Dopey heralds a segment celebrating Snow White, driving a train-load of shimmering gems;
Peter Pan and Captain Hook duel on the deck of a pirate ship while Tinker Bell flits above around the mast, and Mr. Smee rows about in a dinghy off the stern;
The circus is bigger than ever as the story of Dumbo is recalled in thousands of lights;
A cadre of Disney characters in costumes lined with lights joins the procession following the huge, 122-foot-long, 80,000-light patriotic finale.
In preparation for the Walt Disney World debut, units have all been dressed up in more shimmering fabrics to add new sparkle to the multi-color light show. An enhanced sound system will provide 30% more audio presence for the bouncy musical score performed on synthesizer.
The main musical theme used throughout the parade was adapted from a synthesizer piece known as "Baroque Hoedown," written in 1967 by Gershon Kingsley and Jean-Jaques Perrey. It was discovered by Disney entertainment creators, who produced a recording of the main tune interwoven with Disney themes suitable for the various parade segments.
A troupe of more than 100 parade entertainers, technicians and other support personnel – plus batteries capable of enough amperage to light up a street of 32 homes – brings the parade to life for each performance.
The fanfare music and Blue Fairy herald a 20-minute spectacle of parade segments based on Disney themes – Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Peter Pan, Dumbo, Snow White and Pete’s Dragon.
The "signature" unit for the parade, the Casey Junior Circus Train (from Dumbo), has Goofy at the controls of the engine, pulling a huge bass drum that announces in lights, "Magic Kingdom Presents The ‘Main Street Electrical Parade.’" The memorable float finale honors America with a flowing red and white field of lights, "fireworks" and a golden eagle.
With the arrival of the Main Street Electrical Parade, at Walt Disney World Resort, another spectacle of nighttime lights and music, SpectroMagic, will go on hiatus. It has been enchanting Magic Kingdom guests since 1992.