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20 April 2004: PhilharMagic Bus (Thanks to Sean R)
21 October 2003: Big Crowds (Thanks to OrlPassholder)
As these photos show, PhilharMagic is generating large crowds!
8 October 2003: Media Event
The media even preparations are now complete for the official opening of PhilharMagic.
25 September 2003: Guest Previews
Guest previews are now running for guests at the Magic Kingdom. However, as always with previews, there are no guarantees that the attraction will be running at any particular time.
22 September 2003: Photos from the weekend Annual PassHolder previews (Thanks OrlPassholder)
17 September 2003: Photos from the Philharmagic previews (Thanks OrlPassholder)
The queue and waiting area
The Theatre
The Gift Shop
15 September 2003: Attraction Report from previews (Thanks HMPPAN)
NOTE: SPOILERS AHEAD!
The theater is decorated with a beautiful gold
Proscenium Arch (that surround the stage), on the arch are different
instruments and musical notes in gold leaf. (I spy a hidden mickey)
The curtains are deep red and the walls a blue velvet giving the whole
room a grand style.
The show starts with an audio test done by Goofy. This test shows the
seamless audio system that is used. It starts off with Goofy looking
for Donald behind the curtain stage right. He cannot find him so Goofy
walks around the entire auditorium and chaos ensues. This is similar
to the effect in Fantasia 2000 when Mickey goes through the different
doors to find Donald. At this point Minnie announces that it is time
to start the show. Mickey freaks because Donald has yet to set up the
orchestra. In the mayhem, Goofy miss hears to raise the curtain. As
the curtain rises we see Donald asleep in a box. He then wakes up, see
the audience, freaks and then pulls all the instruments (even a grand
piano and the conductors baton) from inside the tiny box. Then he
places Mickey’s Sorcerer’s Hat on the podium. With a sly look, Donald
puts on the hat. He then taps the stand with the baton, and all at
once the instruments let out a loud noise. In disgust, Donald yells
for quiet but a very boisterous flute keeps playing. (I think this is
a tribute to “The Band Concert” sort) Donald then grabs the flute and
starts to jump on it to stop it from playing. Then in outrage the
instruments start to play a mincing theme, all at once they start to
swirl around Donald (who at this time is looking really worried) All
at once Donald is swept up in the whirlwind of instruments and the
sorcerer’s hat is blown off of his head. At this time we get a great
3-D effect. Donald gets hooked on a slide trombone and is flung by the
neck into the audience and pulled back. Then from the whirlwind Donald
pleads to the audience to help him by “reaching out.” All of a sudden
the theater goes black. We hear a match strike and we then see Lumere
from “Beauty and the Beast.” This starts the be our guest scene and at
this time we notice that the Proscenium Arch is completely gone.
During this scene we are treated with two in theater effects. We smell
the scent of apple pie when Lumere does his flambeau. ( Pie and
Puddings au flambeau). You also get air jet blasts when the champagne
corks burst. All the while Donald is trying to catch Mickey’s sorcerer
hat. Donald finally spots the hat and then proceeds to grab it and
ends up mucking up the celebration, and he gets showered with food.
Now begins the next scene. Donald is lying on the floor full of food
with the hat just a few feet away from him. As he gets up we hear the
opening theme to the Sorcerer’s Apprentice. A door in the background
opens and in walks the brooms with buckets of water in hand. One can
guess where this is headed to. Things start to get wet VERY WET as
Donald tries to find the hat the audience gets doused with a few
LIBERAL splashes of water. The a smaller broom walks up to Donald, he
starts to laugh, but as this happens a HUGE broom starts making his
way to him (once again he doesn’t look too brave). He dumps his bucket
onto Donald, the audience gets wet again, and this is the segway to
the next scene. We are now under the sea with Ariel. She starts to
sing “Part of Your World, as Donald swims around in the background
trying to catch the hat. (During this scene fog is pumped into the
theater and offers a great effect) Ariel then opens a treasure chest
during the song and we get treated with another 3-D effect. The
contents of the chest; some jewels, a pearl necklace, and even
Ursula’s Crown float just out of reach of the audience. She then takes
Donald by the hand and gives him a kiss. He starts to pine. (Very
cute) The scene ends with the camera panning to the sun above the
waves. The sun then changes to the hot sun of the savannah. We here
the first few refrains from “The Circle of Life” and then we jump
right on into “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King.” This scene is done in
stylized “cut outs” of animals swirling in circles on the screen. A
stylized version of the hat and Donald also gets put into the mix.
Simba also produces a jump factor when he leaps towards the audience.
At the end Donald is put on top of the pyramid of animals and he falls
as the screen goes to a star-field. The camera pans down to Big Ben as
Peter Pan and Tinkerbell land on the minute hand. We then hear Donald
screaming as he falls from the sky and land with a thud onto the edge
of the hand. Pete gives him a strange look, sprinkles him with Pixie
Dust and a chorus begins “We Can Fly.” Donald again sees the hat and
gives chase. At the last minute, he and the hat fall out the sky. He
falls behind a cloud and instead of falling all the way through he
pops out of the top on a magic carpet. We then see Aladdin and Jasmine
on carpet with the hat riding in the back as they sing “A Whole New
World” (During this scene the scent of jasmine is being pumped in)
Donald gives chase through the streets of Agrabah and finally at the
end of the song Jasmine gives the hat to Donald. Then the whirlwind
reappears and sucks Donald back to the Philharmagic Theater. When this
happens the Arch suddenly appears out of nowhere. Mickey runs on stage
grabs the hat and baton and puts a stop to the madness by conducting
the instruments in a very grand and noble version of “The Mickey Mouse
Club March.” Donald falls into a tuba and at then end of the song is
blasted toward the audience and is IMPALED into the back wall of the
theater. As the curtain lowers we see Donald’s rear end sticking out
of the wall as he kicks and screams.
When I saw it I was simply amazed. The show/theater/music/everything
was far beyond all my expectations. The only way I could describe it
was WOW.
Scenes:
Philharmagic Stage
Be Our Guest
Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Part of Your World
I Just Can’t Wait To Be King
You Can Fly
A Whole New World
Philharmagic Finale
In theater effects:
Water
Air Jets
Fog
Scent of Apple Pies
Scent of Jasmines
Lots of Light Effects (to me the light effects are what makes the show
so immersing)
Technical effects:
The Proscenium Arch
Donald's Rear End
The screen is made with the 3-D film right in the middle and two 2-D
screens on each side. The films are seamless and the the total screen
is massive.
Out of all the 3-D shows this one is far more immersing. I absolutely
loved the attraction and cannot wait to see it again."
8 September 2003: Update on preview dates
Cast Previews are currently set for September 18-19 2003 and Annual Passholder Previews will be September 20-21 2003.
8 September 2003: Photo update of the exterior and Fastpass machines (thanks Orlpassholder)
5 September 2003: Update (Thanks Sean R)
Mickey can now be seen on top of the signage for the attraction.
1 September 2003: Unannounced Guest previews
The show has opened several times over the past couple of day for unannounced guest previews. It seems that passing by guests have been asked if they would like to see a preview of a new show, and then directed into the theatre. At this time there are no patterns to the openings, or set times for performances.
16 June 2003: Latest photos (thanks OrlPassholder)
The wall is moving further back as the opening of the 9Fantasy Faire) gift shop approaches.
9 June 2003: Passholder previews
The annual passholder preview is scheduled for September 20-21 2003.
30 May 2003: Photo Update (Thanks Erik)
The PhilharMagic signage is now up!
12 May 2003
The latest information on opening dates for PhilharMagic is as follows:
- Cast Previews mid September 2003
- Public Soft Opening late September 2003
- Official Grand Opening October 8 2003
Remember, until officially confirmed, these dates should be treated as speculation only.
Latest construction photos below, the photo on the left shows the FASTPASS Return queue.
3 March 2003
Michael Eisner was visiting the parks over the last couple of days and reports are that he was very happy with how PhilharMagic is coming along!
12 November 2002
Mickey's PhilharMagic is progressing nicely. The seats are going in right now with all the "special effects" being added. Groundwork for all the animatronics is also going in right now.
5 September 2002: Update
Mickey's Philharmagic is progressing very well, with some interesting details being uncovered.
- There are a large number of inhouse effects, songs, and inside jokes
- The lobby is being completely refurbished into an ornate concert venue, with lush carpeting and dark blue walls
- Inside the theatre seats are shaped like the body of a violin
- The screen changes size during the show
- Opening set for Sep/Oct 2003
27 August 2002: Latest Photo (thanks BH)
10 May 2002: Construction Walls (thanks Sean R)
11 March 2002: New Sign outside the former Legend of the Lion King location (Thanks SeanR)
31 January 2002: Official!!
We have been talking about it for almost a year, and now it's official!
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Disney magic meets Disney
music in a new 3-D film spectacular debuting in 2003 at the Magic
Kingdom Park in Walt Disney World®Resort.
"Mickey's PhilharMagic" will star Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and other
favorite Disney characters animated in a way they've never before been
seen: grand, glorious, in-your-face three dimensions.
"We're really excited about this new attraction,"
said Al Weiss, president of Walt Disney World Resort. "Guests love the
Disney characters and films, and this gives them the chance to take a
magical ride right into the world of Disney animation."
The "Mickey's PhilharMagic" cast will include Mickey and Donald, as
well as Ariel from "The Little Mermaid," Aladdin and Jasmine from
"Aladdin" and Simba from "The Lion King."
Set in the PhilharMagic Concert Hall, which replaces "Legend of the
Lion King" in Fantasyland, the eye-popping 3-D experience will unfold
on one of the largest screens ever created for a 3-D film, a
150-foot-wide canvas.
Complete with in-theater effects, the attraction
will immerse guests in the richly animated world of the Disney
characters. The Walt Disney Company has experimented with animating
the Disney characters in 3-D before, most notably in "Working for
Peanuts," a 1953 Donald Duck/Chip 'n' Dale cartoon short, but never on
a scale as grand as "Mickey's PhilharMagic." The attraction is being
produced through the combined efforts of Walt Disney Imagineering and
Walt Disney Feature Animation.
"We're always exploring ways to take 3-D to the next level," said Tom
Fitzgerald, executive vice president and senior creative executive at
Walt Disney Imagineering. "From 'Jim Henson's Muppet*Vision 3D' to
'Honey, I Shrunk the Audience' to 'It's Tough to be a Bug!', we keep
looking for new ways to allow guests to become a part of the action
and story.
" 'Mickey's PhilharMagic' will be the most animated, energetic and
magical 3-D show we've ever created!"
20 January 2002: Update!
Legend of the Lion King is to close on February 23 2002, to make way for installation of the new Mickey's PhilharMagic show. As always until officially confirmed, dates are subject to change.
24 October 2001: Project Still On
Good news here. Despite the closures and cut-backs that are occurring elsewhere, this project is still on target and is very much alive.
24 September 2001: Mickey's PhilharMagic
An update to the May 2001 news item.
This project is still very much alive, with some very healthy budgets
being assigned. Currently, Lion King will close in April 2002,
with the new attraction opening late September 2003.
Further good news for this attraction, is that Michael Eisner is very much behind the project, meaning it will get full attention and funding. The attraction is also being developed to role out into the new Hong Kong park.
12 June 2001: Mickeys PhilharMAGIC
An update on the rumor I posted a few weeks back. The attraction is still looking good to happen, opening in Late Summer/Early Fall 2003 with Legend of the Lion King closing in Spring 2002.
18 May 2001: New MK Attraction to replace Legend of the Lion King
I have just been informed that within 12 months, Legend of the Lion King will close, to be replaced with an all new 3D show, currently title "Mickey's PhilharMAGIC".
The story of the show will be based around Mickey Mouse taking us through a journey of the greatest Disney Music and Movies of all time.
The show will have extensive in-theater effects - in-theater props, fog and fibre-optics. FASTPASS will also be added to the show.
The show has apparently just received capital funding, so barring any late changes, it appears to be a definite go. Opening date is set for 2003.