News Disneyland Paris Updates & Features

Quietly announced by Operations, talked about by Cast Members and introduced to the sales teams, the opening of a new Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage show alongside Stitch Live! inside the Walt Disney Television Studios building has so far not been allowed as anything more than a strong rumour amongst fans.

Will a Marne-la-Vallée authorities construction notification change that?

The sign is now posted along the road at the backstage of Walt Disney Studios Park, near the town of Val d’Europe, and reads:

“DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS
Modification to studios 2, 3 and 4 of “Walt Disney International” building for use by the “Playhouse Disney” attraction”

Yes, curiously three studios will be affected by the Playhouse Disney attraction. Since Stitch Live! already uses one room, that leaves the former space of Disney Channel CyberSpace post-show arcade, a huge, long studio and a smaller room toward the back which may not be classed as a “studio”.

The important thing to note here is that the area occupied by Disney Channel CyberSpace was actually built as two separate studios before being joined together for use by park guests as the channel began to disown the building. However, the listing of three studios must at least mean that the long, thin studio well within the building will be involved — almost certainly as the show theatre itself, being the ideal shape and size.

Our plan of the building has been updated to reflect the new information:

The show-based attraction, which uses puppets along with a live host, is still officially pencilled in for March 2009, after the 15th Anniversary has ended. Nothing is yet known about languages or the design of the exterior entrance, where construction activity has now increased to include a small digger.

Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage will be the park’s fifth new attraction in just under two years.

[Photos: WDSfans.com]

You might be rubbing your eyes in disbelief (or at least hayfever) as you stroll toward Disney Village this Summer. Because, this once famously dank and industrial entertainment district has turned a new leaf. We saw the work begin and progress start to be made, and now we can see it in bloom for the first time…

At least 8 new planters and over 30 large new trees have suddenly transformed the space into a welcoming, green, human environment. Each planter automatically serves as a new place to sit and watch the bustle of the Village pass by, whilst breaking up the expanse of buildings and that unforgiving, minimal industrial architecture of the original build.

Most thankful for the changes is sure to be Billy Bob’s Country Western Saloon, now surrounded by customised planters with stylised, pruned trees and a fully-covered terrace complete with heavy wooden furniture. Suddenly, the bar is modern and appealing — but not without a little Western charm.

Equally transformed by a new terrace is the other side of the street, outside Sports Bar and New York Style Sandwiches. Here, a fantastic thin, curved planter encloses a wooden-decked terrace complete with trees and shrubs. The red Coca-Cola chairs add a splash of colour outside the Sports Bar, whilst trendy wooden parasols on the customised New York Style Sandwiches-branded tables make the space ever more modern and human.

At the far end of Disney Village, Café Mickey now has an increased capacity for the Summer thanks to its fully-enclosed terrace, functioning as a full extension to this, the most popular restaurant. The curved glazing wraps around the front of the building with several regular doors and several patio-style doors which slide open, all decorated with white and silver branding with red Café Mickey logos.

The blue, white and red decoration around the roof still appears to be as flimsy and creased as when we thought it was a temporary decoration during construction. Against the yellow of the actual building, it all adds up to looking like a circus tent or a poor ‘Dizneeland’ imitation of the original Café. Not great when you see the prices on the menu that apply equally here.

Inside, you might think the primary colours and modern furnishing look like something straight from IKEA, but don’t judge just yet. Look a little closer and you’ll see there is actually a nice attention to detail here. Tables are decorated with dalmatian spots, Minnie Mouse polkadots and contrasting Café Mickey logos. Portraits of Mickey Mouse body parts on the walls are illuminated from behind.

Tiles surround the bottom of the old exterior wall, dotted with several red, yellow and blue colours. From here, you get a great view across the lakeside of Disney Village and PanoraMagique.

Admittedly, the terrace doesn’t quite have the same warm feel or spacious round tables as the original restaurant area. You might feel a little cheated if you were seated here and paid the same price for your meal. But, as a Summertime overflow area, it already seems to be serving its purpose well. And, once Chef Mickey arrives, no-one cares about anything else.

Similar expansion plans now also appear to be afoot over at King Ludwig’s Castle. Designed and built by EDLI (the Paris branch of Imagineering) for the German beer firm which owns and operates it, the restaurant appears to be building a more permanent terrace of its own. The space which used to simply host a few tables and chairs — plus the red carpet leading into the restaurant — has been surrounded by construction fences for several weeks now.

Behind, movement is slow and no visible progress has yet been seen, even in the latest photos from the past few days. Foundations and a new brick wall were certainly spotted by Photos Magiques on 22nd June, however.

The restaurant of course remains open throughout the works, with the entrance instead through the medieval boutique — as highlighted on the sign (above). Notice the background there? That’s Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, from which Le Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant took much inspiration.

Photos: Disneytheque.com

Finally, the erasing of the past. When Frank Gehry envisaged a giant “open air warehouse”, held up by giant steel pylons made out of scaffolding, did he know they’d be erased so brutally? The concrete bases of the old pylons have been lying around for several years now, serving no purpose other than to have their paint worn away within a few months, and so it’s a real pleasure to see the money finally spent on removing them for good:

Photo: Scrooge, Disney Magic Interactive forum.

At least three have now been replaced by appropriately-coloured concrete flooring, whilst a couple which fall inside one of the new planters have actually been kept for use as small performance stages during special events.

In fact, it transpires that these trees and planters were intended to be implemented as early as 2005, when Karl Holz joined the resort and was apparently quite horrified by what he saw here. Alas, money did not allow it — until now. Thanks Karl & co, we no longer have to pretend Disney Village doesn’t exist when we dream of the magic. In fact, on a warm Summer’s day, those cafés and terraces suddenly seem quite tempting.

Now, about replacing the rest of that concrete floor…

[Photos: Photos Magiques (more), Disneytheque.com, Scrooge]

We’ve moaned, we’ve groaned, we’ve complained. We even wrote a sarcastic birthday message when it turned one year old and a hugely popular (count: over 3,000 hits) Wish List article pleading for it to be removed.

Now, the advertisement billboard that has plagued Disney Studio 1 for almost three — count them, THREE — years is finally in the process of being removed as you read this.

The proof came out of the blue, from Disney Central Plaza forum member mouetto last night:

The cameraphone image, taken close to 11pm last night, shows that the giant poster advertising Pixar’s 2006 release Cars had already, finally been removed for good. The poster was a giant matte PVC-type construction, wrapped around a tower of temporary scaffolding behind.

This morning, the sight is even more beautiful — helped by the bright blue skies over Marne-la-Vallée today. Grandmath continues the coverage with these two photos:

There, isn’t that better? Like the wand being removed from Epcot’s Spaceship Earth, this Disney park landmark can now be seen in a whole new light. Actually, it can now simply be seen.

From the photos above, the billboard also appears to have had minimal damage to the building itself. Though much of it still requires extensive refurbishment and repainting — particularly on the park-side facing Hollywood Boulevard, where the sun hits it spot-on, from a distance the area covered by the billboard does not appear as dirty or as dark (compared to the rest of the façade) as was expected.

Is this the end of the story? Unfortunately, as much as DLRP Today hates to be the bearer of bad news, probably not. The strong rumours of a 15th Anniversary follow-up year based around Mickey Mouse continue — key amongst them, decorations which include a brand new proposal for this space. IE: Another tacky billboard.

We can, however, reveal that only one of three main proposals calls for an obstruction as overpowering as the previous Cars billboard. Two others would slot neatly into the building’s glass area, more alike the Ratatouille, Enchanted and Prince Caspian posters that have been featured on the other end of the soundstage.

For more about the history of the billboard and why protecting the image of Disney Studio 1 matters more than you might think, click here.

Saturday 12th July 2008

Bastille Day 2008 (Rémy in Paris)
Limited Edition x900
Price 11.90 Euros

Stitch Europe Invasion No.5: Spain
Reference number 209501008037
Limited Edition x900
Price 10.90 Euros

Walt Disney Series No.3: The Band Concert (Mickey in Technicolor)
Reference number 209501008024
Limited Edition x900
Price 11.90 Euros

Wall-E (Pack of 4 pins)
Reference number 209501008066
Price 18.00 Euros

Mickey Summer of Champions 2008 Flags
Reference number 209401008068
Price 6.00 Euros

Mickey Summer of Champions 2008 Logo
Reference number 209401008069
Price 6.00 Euros

The official 15th Anniversary blog has shared this collection of clips and soundbites from the events last Friday, providing a look at the unique medieval ceremony in front of Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant and the arrival of the stars outside Gaumont Disney Village:

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian Launch

The entire event was undoubtedly a huge success, bringing the magic of a brand new Disney film direct to Disneyland Resort Paris, raising the resort’s profile and providing a unique “I was there!” moment to guests on the day. We can only hope this is the start of more fruitful relationship with Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (formerly Buena Vista Distribution), that leads to more events like this and less giant billboards…

« Part 4 of our Prince Caspian series ‘¢

[Video © Disney]

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is released in the UK today! Have you seen the film yet? Share your thoughts and reviews on the magicforum topic!

Since the White Witch’s appearances in the first half of 2006, following the release of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Backlot has been the unlikely home of a little slice of Narnia magic — the frosty throne from her spectacular ice palace, housed within a covered black box as if a piece of the film set had been cut away and lifted here. To the side of the scene stands a figure of the Witch’s old assistant, Ginarrbrik.

We recently asked in our Question of the Week, “Which of the 2008 Disney Character would you most like to meet at Disneyland Resort Paris?”. Whilst an overwhelming majority of 79 votes to 21 voted for Pixar’s cute little waste-cleaning robot WALL-E to debut, the incredibly low likelihood of this means that, in reality, Prince Caspian has probably just won the competition.

Why? Because, he has arrived! The CharactersPhotos blog snapped the first pictures…

The new Prince Caspian is certainly a rather dashing figure of royalty, and surprisingly close to the Ben Barnes original as seen in the film. Whilst using the same costume of a green armour, black cape, brown boots and gloves and green sword sheild as the character, the Paris equivalent is rather more fresh-faced than the prince recently debuted over at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida.

As Prince Caspian signed autographs for the first time this weekend, soon the reasoning behind keeping the ice palace scene in place — rather than replacing it with, for example, something like the overgrown ruins set used in Hong Kong — became clear.

Not only has Prince Caspian debuted at Walt Disney Studios Park, the infamous — and very popular — White Witch has returned!

Her icy glare is just as startling as ever, returning the exceptional costume introduced in 2006 to the park, complete with brilliant white (fake) fur coat, crystal-blonde locks, frosted crown and an icy staff. Note also the speckles of frost running down her cheeks, and the tiny white icicles on her eyelids.

The new guy Prince Caspian is going to have some competition for those autographs this Summer.

Exact times of the character appearances are not included in the regular park Programme leaflet, likely due to the small availability of these cast members that also affected the early appearances of Jack Sparrow. Keep an eye out next time you’re in Backlot, though — you never know when the door to Narnia might open.

Sooner than we thought, anyway — even if this isn’t yet the full attraction as rumoured recently.

« Part 3 of our Prince Caspian series ‘¢ Part 5 of our Prince Caspian series »

[Photos: © Characters Photos blog (more here) ]

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is released in the UK tomorrow, 26th June 2008.

Dramatic, colourful lighting, projections on Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant, fire-eaters, stilt walkers and many strange Narnian-esque creatures roamed the courtyard to provide an extra after-party of entertainment for the assembled guests and celebrities from across Europe.

Such a party in this area of the park is quite unusual and certainly hasn’t been seen for many years. With plans for Paris versions of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party to be held in Fantasyland this October, this could even give an idea of the special mood lighting of those upcoming events.

Effects included smoke from inside the castle and lights up inside La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant, changing colour to illuminate the stained-glass windows in spectacularl fashion throughout the show.

Fire artists and mythological stilt-walkers take over the courtyard, lit in rays of rich red light.

The film’s logo is projected on the gallery balcony behind, with the stained-glass windows illuminated in red as the creatures and stunt performers roamed around, interacting with guests.

Dramatic lighting changes from fiery reds and pinks…

…to cool blues and greens, with the stained-glass behind joining in.

Guests stepped through a wall of smoke inside the Castle to enter this live version of a Narnia-like world.

Whilst Fantasyland appears to have been seized as the perfect place to host Narnian events for the launch of Prince Caspian, the royal figure himself had already made plans to make his daily appearance elsewhere…

« Part 2 of our Prince Caspian series ‘¢ Part 4 of our Prince Caspian series »

[Photos: © Disney]

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is released in the UK tomorrow, 26th June 2008.

The wide resort esplanade in Paris is usually a place of guests rushing hurriedly from hotel-to-park or park-to-park, eager to begin their Disney experience. Last Friday at around 7.00pm, however, they were in for a shock — the gateway to Narnia had sprung open right there, bringing the stars of the film and their medieval extras on a long route all the way from Disneyland Hotel to Disney Village…

In the first car, William Moseley (Peter) and Georgie Henley (Lucy).

Following, Anna Popplewell (Susan) and Skandar Keynes (Edmund) made their way through the gardens, past the train station, to the newly-green (is “Narnia-like” pushing it?) Disney Village.

A large crowd was gathered well in advance of the arrival of the lead actors, thanks to plentiful publicity by the resort and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures — not to mention the many camera crews setting up outside the cinema doors. Each car, in fresh Narnia-like colours, was decorated with themed flags bearing the film’s logo.

The biggest star of the film arrives — Prince Caspian himself, Ben Barnes, joined by director Andrew Adamson.

Prince Caspian will likely be Adamson’s final time directing a Narnia film. For the third, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, due in 2010, British director Michael Apted has already been signed on. Adamson will remain as a producer.

Many fans like those hoping for an autograph and photo here, will be glad to hear that all the principle cast have already been signed onto the third film.

For William Moseley, that means another long line of adoring (and mostly female) fans.

But now, he has competition — Ben Barnes has been thrust head-first into the big time as lead character Prince Caspian, with Disney trumpeting its choice to begin promotion of the film with a single one-sheet poster featuring just this star. / Andrew Adamson asks if the throne (behind) is intended for him

Georgie Henley, William Moseley, Ben Barnes, Anna Popplewell

The young cast with producer Mark Johnson (left) and Vincent Grass (right), who plays Doctor Cornelius

The entire company pose for the bank of photographers and journalists in front of the entrance doors to Gaumont Cinemas in Disney Village, surrounded by actors from the earlier medieval ceremony.

Numerous French celebrities and personalities, such as Emilie Dequenne, Geraldine Pailhas, Jovanka Sopalovic, Clovis Cornillac, Antoine de Maximy, David Halliday, Richard Dacoury, Laura Flessel and Julie Gayet also attended the premiere, posing for photographs and interviews on the throne positioned in front of the giant ‘Prince Caspian’ backdrop.

« Part 1 of our Prince Caspian series ‘¢ Part 3 of our Prince Caspian series »

[Photos: © Disney]

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is released in the UK this Thursday, 26th June 2008.