Fantasmic Reopening Watch

EeyoreFan#24

EeyoreFan#24

Well-Known Member
gerarar said:
Does F! and Harmonius even have many areas to conflict in? Many of the IPs and characters going to be represented in Harmonius are from the last decade or so. The only area I could think of is the bubble scene, but even that barely gets any updates except for a Frozen addition.
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I’m not completely sure yet lol, but the big thing I could think of were the Pocahontas scenes. I though somewhere it was mentioned Pocahontas would be in harmonious. Just a thought, but that would be a lot of rework for an established show for just that though.
 
C

celluloid

Well-Known Member
FantasiaMickey2000 said:
Has anyone heard anything about this lately? Any chance we see this back in 2021? I’d think if it was going to be back for the 50th we would have heard by now.
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Sasly I do not think lijely. Ifbthings get better fast after Delta Wave towards late October on perhaps. Huge cast and crew needed and they are often hours picked up from other large shows like Indy.
 
gerarar

gerarar

Premium Member
FantasiaMickey2000 said:
Has anyone heard anything about this lately? Any chance we see this back in 2021? I’d think if it was going to be back for the 50th we would have heard by now.
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Not sure how reliable this is, but this has been the most detailed explanation I’ve seen into why F! has remained closed.
MadTeacup said:
I honestly Don't know how to answer this because "phase 2" is an unintentional product of the pandemic. To the best of my knowledge, Fant! was not origfinally scheduled downtime before the pandemic. So it turned into the surprise 50th anniversary update that was not originally planned. Disney Parks Live Entertainment has been wanting to perform an update to the WDW show for years now after the mostly positive reception to the DL Fan! 2.0. (The 2 coasts actually abbreviate the show differently. It's weird.) The problem has largely been park leadership *cough*philholmes*cough* not wanting give Fant! The necessary downtime. Considering the current leadership is aware the show will be forced to remain Closed for an extended period, they allowed Entertainment to finally pull the trigger on the upgrade. While I know very little about the project, I do know that the entire lighting grid is being replaced, partially to eliminate obsolete technology. I would also expect articulated fountain heads to replace the static vertical jets (the technicians were already researching this before the pandemic) and I would be shocked if they didn't add the projection mapping. As far as scene updates go, I've heard nothing. I would not be surprised if pocahontas was replaced. It's always been the one scene that many have expressed as feeling slightly out of place or inferior. Also, the native Americans in that scene would probably be considered culturally insensitive today due to the fact that most of the actors who portray them are of European descent. I would not expect the flying carpet and would be shocked if they performed any major updates to the dragon. Remember that the WDW dragon has more constraints due to the mountain set it pops out from. Overall I'm expecting a tasteful refresh that will retain most of the status quo while plussing things up a little.
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As my best guess, if Disney is truly updating some of the story elements of F!, I would expect it to return next year 2022 so they can advertise the return as some big event for the 50th celebration. Reopening the show later this year would get overshadowed by the other offerings being offered. Also tech upgrades are indeed happening, like the lighting systems throughout the amphitheater.
 
ChristianG

ChristianG

Well-Known Member
I would love to see Fantasmic return with major technical upgrades. I think it could also use some story updates, but I don't think it needs to be on the same scale as Disneyland's 2.0, which, in my opinion, ruined the pacing in some really key moments of the show. Growing up geeking out over Fantasmic, specifically, I have a lot of love for this show on both coasts, especially WDW. It really needs some refreshing in some areas.
 
Movielover

Movielover

Well-Known Member
ChristianG said:
I would love to see Fantasmic return with major technical upgrades. I think it could also use some story updates, but I don't think it needs to be on the same scale as Disneyland's 2.0, which, in my opinion, ruined the pacing in some really key moments of the show. Growing up geeking out over Fantasmic, specifically, I have a lot of love for this show on both coasts, especially WDW. It really needs some refreshing in some areas.
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We know at least the lights are getting some refurbishment, so even if there are no lighting changes the show should look brand new. Hopefully the water and pyro effects also got a once over as well. I would love for a update but like you I prefer the original version for its pacing.
 
gerarar

gerarar

Premium Member
Posted a new update in the other F! thread. Tried to point out everything new and such I could find. :)

gerarar said:
Been a while since my last one, but here’s a new update on the current F! situation/amphitheater!!

A quick rundown:
  • (old) Front row bleachers still removed
  • (old) Entire lighting system still gone. This is rumored for a (welcomed) upgrade.
  • The third barge has finally returned!
  • Couple of green boom lifts backstage and in moat.
  • Track has been removed to where excavation nearby is being done.
  • The steamboat is being taken apart!
Detailed commentary:

From this aerial view, we can see (blue circle) that the third barge has finally returned from refurbishment. It has been missing since December-ish 2020.
View attachment 581596

Track (red arrow above) has been removed on the first turn of the steamboat’s track. This is probably connected to the excavation and construction happening on the perimeter of the amphitheater:
View attachment 581597
This is what this area looked like before, nothing but trees and grass:
View attachment 581598

It’s hard to tell what exactly is happening here. I believe recent permits indicated something like this would be happening. On closer inspection, seems like there are pipes underground — could be related to the gas for the moat fire and/or water to fill the moat.

Moving on, steamboat Willy is being taken apart! From this aerial, we can see the floor and walking completely stripped to its barebones. The pyro equipment and lighting on the steamboat has also been removed.
View attachment 581606

Now with even more work being done on the amphitheater then ever before, Fantasmic! won’t be coming back anytime soon, at least for this year. Hopefully all these tech upgrades will be well worth it in the end!

Sources/full aerials:



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trainplane3

trainplane3

Well-Known Member
Anyone mention scaffolding on the mountain?

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gerarar

gerarar

Premium Member
Posted another update here in the other F! thread if y'all want to read about my observations. :)

gerarar said:
Another update on the current F! situation/amphitheater!!

A quick rundown:
  • (old) Front row bleachers still removed for access
  • (old) Entire lighting system on overhead rigs still gone. This is rumored for an upgrade.
  • Scaffolding now present around the mountain/stage.
  • Track also has been removed underneath to where the steamboat is.
  • Steamboat continually being take apart and lifted above ground.
  • More pipes for water features removed.
Detailed commentary:

From this aerial, we can see that scaffolding (blue arrow) has been placed around the mountain. This could mean that the mountain is getting a repaint and repair work done to it. Could also mean new elements could be placed on it. For example, the climbing mounts for John Smith could be removed/replaced if F! is indeed revamping its story.
View attachment 586287
Also, considering all 3 lasers were not working during F!’s last few shows in March 2020, hopefully work is being done on said lasers.

More track (red arrow) has been removed near and underneath the steamboat. The steamboat is also lifted off the ground by pillars of some sort (orange arrows). Work is most likely being done underneath the boat which guides itself along the moat track. New track also seems to be staged nearby. The steamboat still has its floors and walls removed, leaving the barebones of the ship in full view.
View attachment 586288

Now looking at the excavations/work backstage, more water pipes have been removed.
For reference, I’ll be referring to them as #1-6. The 3 big ones are #1-3 and 3 smaller ones are #4-6. @kthomas105 alluded that the bigger ones are for the 3 water screens and smaller ones for the 3 set of fountains.
View attachment 586293

Couple weeks ago, we saw pipes #4-6 removed which lend to the rumor that the fountains are being upgraded.
View attachment 586295

Now today, we now see main pipes #1-3 removed. Whether these pipes really feed into the water screens remains a question, it’s not question that all 6 pipes are being replaced.
View attachment 586298
We can also see the excavation nearby, which shows the dug up pipes.

It’s really exciting to see all this work being done on the amphitheater. This is unprecedented work being done here since it opened many decades ago (I think). Whatever the outcome is, I’m really hyped for it. Hopefully Mickey can hang in there just a little bit more!!

Sources/full aerials:
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cookiee_munster

cookiee_munster

Well-Known Member
It always surprises me what with engineering being what it is how they couldn't develop a lighting rig that didn't cause for those horrible large supports to be needed in the spectator areas making rubbish obstructions for some of the audience...

I read somewhere that the mountain was meant to be shaped like a sorcerers hat. I'd LOVE for them to play more with this idea, come up with a more improved show, and maybe possibly, create a new park icon at the same time! As much as I hated that giant hat right in front of the Chinese theatre, it certainly served as a pretty good park icon :)
 
cookiee_munster

cookiee_munster

Well-Known Member
I know it's an outdoor show exposed to the elements rather than an indoor/protected show like in the video below, But i'd really love it if they made a maleficent dragon that was as impressive enough as the massive dragon in this video.


The great thing about the show being shown in the evening means they wouldn't have to go all out with details like skin texture etc. just as long as it had a basic skin/wrap. Just imagine something coming up from behind the mountain with is claws clenched over the rockwork as it looks down onto mickey.
 

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