Monday, 10th July 2006
This brand new parade will feature totally new floats with one of the biggest ever collections of characters – indeed, it has been rumoured for a long time now that the number of characters will actually outweigh the number of dancers! Rumours of bungee stilts and trampoline effects (similar to those seen in Walt Disney’s Parade of Dreams in California) have also been bouncing around for quite some time.
Today, take a look at this exciting concept visual on the right – this is our first look at the new parade, and appears to be showing the opening float featuring the “Disney VIPs”. As Mickey and Minnie gently float by the smiling purple moon in a sun-shaped hot air balloon, Donald and Goofy float on the clouds, fishing for dreams in the world of adventure and fantasy below them. Pluto and Chip & Dale meet and greet the fans in front of the float.
The parade’s opening float seems to take the theme of “dreams” and wrap it up in more whimsy than we’ve ever seen before in a Disneyland Resort Paris parade. This looks set to be a stunning and truly original spectacle.
Sunday, 9th July 2006
After the April testing of Walt Disney World’s “Extra Magic Hours” concept (extra hours in the park only for Disney Hotel guests) and May’s more unpopular “Demand based Opening Hours” (shorter park hours on quiet weekdays), June’s trial of extended weekend openings with a specially created fireworks show came as something of a surprise.
Fans of the old Tinkerbell’s Fantasy In The Sky Fireworks show, which enjoyed its final season during the Summer of 2004, were given the gift of a brief return of its classic soundtrack along with new (albeit smaller) pyrotechnic effects. Despite featuring fewer fireworks than its 2004 cousin, this new 2006 Summer Fantasy In The Sky could be said to rival 2005’s Wishes Nighttime Spectacular in the same department!
Tinkerbell’s 2006 Fantasy finished its impromptu season last night, however you can still experience the magic for yourself at home. Photos Magiques has a gallery full of spectacular photos of the show, whilst DLRP.fr presents a video of the show (right click to download) to give the full in-park experience: complete with obligatory “oooo!” as the lights dim and over-excited children standing too close for comfort.
Wishes is set to make a welcome return next Saturday, with promises of more brand new special effects from the resort’s vice-president of shows, François Leroux.
Saturday, 8th July 2006
An epic refurbishment has been pencilled in for many months now, with the attraction confirmed to be closed from 21st August to 13th October 2006, a move that has already upset many guests planning to visit in the later days of this year’s Summer Magic season.
It should be noted, however, that Disneyland Resort Paris do not make decisions like this lightly – a two month closure for the park’s most popular attraction is a brave step to take. But, with the 15th Anniversary looming on the horizon, it seems the new park management is willing to take more drastic steps to make sure the park looks better than ever for its biggest ever celebration. You’d like proof? Just take a look at this latest photo from Joel’s Photo Hunt, and compare the colouring of the main body of the mountain to that of its peaks. Notice the difference? It seems the park maintenance crews have started work already, painstakingly cleaning sections of the mountain after park closure each night.
Whilst we wait for the start of the full-on refurbishment project and even more improvements to the Frontierland landscape, why not check out the attraction’s main fansite – ThunderRide.com – which features a huge range of material about the ride’s design, construction, story and much more.
Wednesday, 5th July 2006
The characters featured in the visual are, from the base upwards: Mickey & Minnie, the Cheshire Cat, Daisy Duck, Donald Duck, Hewy Dewy & Lewy, Lumiere, Goofy, Jiminy Cricket, Chip & Dale, the Seven Dwarves, Pluto, Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo and Tinkerbell. This creates 14 character groups – we can only presume that Mickey & Minnie will be counted seperately, to give 15 characters and candles!You can join the discussion about this image and the entire 15th Anniversary Celebration right now at the Photos Magiques forum »
Wednesday, 5th July 2006
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Imagine a dream that lasts the whole year…
Imagine seeing some of your favourite dreams on parade. Adventure. Friendship. Romance. All of them come to life before your very eyes.
Imagine joining Mickey and friends in a once-in-a-lifetime chance to relive some of your favourite Disney moments and stories, with some of the most recent and timeless Disney Characters. Imagine being able to laugh, dance and skip-a-di-doo-da along with the likes of Baloo, Cinderella, Timon, Woody and Pinocchio … up close.
Imagine you are here… for the all-new Disney’s Once Upon A Dream Parade, a yearlong new parade created just for the 15th anniversary of Disneyland® Resort Paris. It’s everything you’ve ever imagined. Find it all … along with surprises beyond your wildest dreams. From April 2007.
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Whilst this creative text hints that the parade will run exclusively during the 15th Anniversary Celebration and will only last one year, it is highly likely it will continue to run for many years after. Raptor1982 also shares the news that the EPC (Entertainment, Parades and Characters) department have been looking into utilising trampolines and other acrobatic effects in the parade.
Tuesday, 4th July 2006
The character’s costume appears to be an impressively accurate replica of that seen in the films, whilst the actor used for these preview shots at least seems to bear more likeness to Johnny Depp than Walt Disney World’s current attempt.
Tuesday, 4th July 2006
The image shows the castle covered in Disney characters, each holding candles, with a giant “15” replacing the centrepiece stained glass window. A makeover for the castle is currently unconfirmed, but this new key visual certainly suggests the castle will receive new decorations for the year of celebrations.
A discussion about this image is currently taking place on the Photos Magiques forum »
