Disneyland Summer Nightastic

04.24.09 - Disneyland Resort will glow like never before this summer as it debuts an all-new fireworks show, Magical, along with beloved characters and sensational new effects that will brighten the Summer Nightastic!

New thrills galore will arrive at the popular Fantasmic! on the Rivers of America in Frontierland.

Guests can see Disneyland Resort in a whole new light as Summer Nightastic! brings nighttime shows and parades to life — bigger, better and brighter. A huge new dragon and other special effects enhance the magestic Fantasmic!. Explosive surprises will illuminate the night sky in the all-new fireworks spectacular, Magical. Guests can rock the night away at a new dance club in Tomorrowland. And sparkling new magic comes to Disney's Electrical Parade, as well as to Pixie Hollow, the enchanting home Tinker Bell inhabits with her fairy friends.

"When the sun goes down, things are going to light up!" says Jill Estorino, senior vice president, Domestic Parks Marketing. "This summer, we're piling up the magic even more."



A BOLDER FANTASMIC!: New thrills galore will arrive at the popular Fantasmic! on the Rivers of America in Frontierland. The evil Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty transforms into a brand-new, 40-foot tall, fully animated, fire-breathing dragon. She'll have flapping wings, a moving head and mouth and, at 10,000 pounds, she had to be helicoptered in to the Park! Ursula the Sea Witch from The Little Mermaid will introduce her pet eels, Flotsam and Jetsam, who slither into the show with new power. "They come right up to the sea wall and look you right in the eye!" says Show Director Carla Carlile. And with the help of HD technology — high definition, not Huge Dragon! — the Fantasmic! video projections practically leap off the giant mist screens. During the Captain Hook pirate ship scene, look for a newly animated crocodile, who now even snaps at Captain Hook!

AN EXPLODING CELEBRATION IN THE SKY: Magical is a new Disney fireworks spectacular created especially to celebrate Summer Nightastic! at Disneyland. Tinker Bell is once again your host, waving her wand to ignite the brilliant color, stunning special effects and charming music. But she won't be alone in the sky this summer. Dumbo will make his surprise airborne debut in the new show. Tink's sparkling touch awakens a fantastic array of Disney's most magical characters, from Pinocchio to Mary Poppins to Cinderella's Fairy Godmother and the Three Good Fairies from Sleeping Beauty (wait 'til you see Flora and Merryweather engaged in colorful overhead battle between their signature colors, pink and blue!). Powerhouse vocalist Eden Espinosa, a longtime singer at Disneyland who starred in the Broadway production of BKLYN and also played Elphaba in Wicked, sings Magical's theme song as well as classic Disney tunes like "Baby Mine." Other songs included in this extravaganza include "Second Star to the Right" from Peter Pan, "Hi-diddle-dee (An Actor's Life for Me)" from Pinocchio, "Jolly Holiday" from Mary Poppins and "So This is Love" from Cinderella. Longtime Disneyland composer Greg Smith supplies the score.

NEW FLOATS BRING FRESH MAGIC TO DISNEY'S ELECTRICAL PARADE: Everything about Disney's Electrical Parade will have a new glow as Tinker Bell leads the way, waving from the basket of a magical balloon aboard a new opening parade float. "A fairy's magic lights the way," reveals Denny Newell, senior show director. The parade's beloved music and floats will feature electrifying audio and lighting technologies, with sparkling pixie dust added to all the parade floats. Returning to the parade this summer as well, after several years' absence, are Snow White's Diamond Mine float and two Pleasure Island floats from Pinocchio. "Because of LED technology," explains Denny, "we can do a lot more fun programming." In fact, thanks to LEDs, the Cheshire cat will disappear just like in the movie. Though the Blue Fairy float that used to open the parade has gone on hiatus, Guests with a keen eye will notice that the center mast of Captain Hook's pirate ship is now a foot-and-a-half taller.

AN EXCITING NEW DANCE CLUB 'IGNITES THE NIGHT' IN TOMORROWLAND: Tweens, teens and families will be drawn to the TLT Dance Club at Tomorrowland Terrace in Disneyland. Dazzling décor will include an illuminated DJ console where the TLT Dance Club DJ will spin the hottest dance tunes, guaranteed to keep Tomorrowland rockin' all night. Live bands and the hottest Southern California radio stations will appear on select nights throughout the summer.

PIXIE HOLLOW ENCHANTMENT: Tinker Bell and her friends have been welcoming guests into their Pixie Hollow home, tucked into the glen near the entrance to Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland, since fall of 2008. This summer, for the first time, nighttime visitors will find magical surprises as Pixie Hollow and the nearby pond come to life in iridescent light shows. Pixie dust cascades across the landscape and radiates down into the pond. Even the water becomes enchanted as playful fountains spring to life, water jets perform with whimsical precision, and sparkling strobes shine throughout Pixie Hollow. For those who haven't visited the Hollow before, as guests enter Tink's domain, they will notice the flora around them growing bigger and bigger — as they shrink to the size of a fairy. "We call the effect, 'the Monsanto tunnel,' laughs Denny, referencing the now-defunct Disneyland Adventure Thru Inner Space attraction.