EPCOT Entertainment cuts

Zummi Gummi

Zummi Gummi

Pioneering the Universe Within!
dreamfinder said:
While a lumberjack (or lumberjill) show can be fun to watch if they are good, I highly doubt Disney legal will be real happy with chainsaws and axes being used as fast as humanly possible in close confines to guests.
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Not to mention the noise. Ugh.

How much you wanna bet they'll incorporate that Lumberjack Donald they had out last year for Limited Time Magic?
 
MichWolv

MichWolv

Born Modest. Wore Off.
Premium Member
Ok, so according to @wdwmagic, it isn't just cuts -- there are some replacements. With all of that in place, some knee-jerk reactions:

World Showcase Players had gotten stale for me. I used to stop and watch now and then, but for the past decade, no. I won't miss them much.

I love Off Kilter. I cannot imagine that that Disney didn't want them back, but they probably wanted (understandably) more money.

Mo Rockin never felt right to me, so I won't miss them much. Replacement of "traditional berber music and dance" sounds more interesting. I'll count that one as likely to be a slight improvement.

Spirit of America -- Very sad to see this go. A little good ole American patriotism was nice. Maybe the Voices of Liberty will perform a few more times a day to make up for it? Doubt it.

@wdwmagic says new Celtic group in UK. I like this, as it acknowledges that Irish side of the UK. A positive (as long as it doesn't mean British Revolution is being cut).

Lumberjack show in Canada is coming. I hope this is correct. I've long thought that one of the things that could be improved about the street entertainment in WS is diversity. Music and comedy everywhere. The acrobats and Miyuki were wonderful breaks from that. Now we will another. It's a bit stereotypical -- @Monty might have something to say there, but I think it'll be fun. I hate losing Off Kilter, but this could be quite interesting.
And last, the new flag-waving performers in Italy. Uh...what?

Overall, it looks like about a wash in terms of number of acts, and I like the freshening up in general. I won't write this off, yet, to just another round of cost-cutting. But lets see if the new stuff is as good as the old.

And start a campaign to get Off Kilter back, because I can't imagine anything truly "replacing" them.
 
Gomer

Gomer

Well-Known Member
I hate to see anyone lose their job, but I'm excited to see the new acts. As talented as they were, Off Kilter and Mo'Rockin always felt out of place in WS to me. Some more traditional music will be nice. If the end result looks like Disney cheaped out, I'll be on board with the hate. But, I'm going in with an open mind.
 
sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
wdwmagic said:
I agree - there needs to be a change. But it is always hard for the fans of those groups to take.

Let's see what the replacements can do.
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I'm willing to give some of the replacements time. What I seem to like about it is that they seem a touch more "traditional" and historical to the countries.
Putting absolutely NO research into it ever, Off-Kilter always seemed a bit confusing (but very good) to me in the Canada pavilion. The lumberjack display makes sense to me, as I imagine it will be more like some of the competitions you can see on ESPN2 or something.
The Berber music and dance seems to hit a little more historical than the modern-influenced Mo-Rockin.
The Celtic Folk seems well placed in the UK.
And after a little looking around, it actually does seem like the Flag Troupe does have quite a traditional and historic tie in Italy. Just 5 minutes of googling has produced many groups like this:
http://www.gruppostorico.com/index.asp

I'll not stick my nose up on anything that actually might place a little more history into World Showcase until I see it. Call it the polar opposite of Frozen Maelstrom.
 
MichWolv

MichWolv

Born Modest. Wore Off.
Premium Member
71jason said:
Have you ever been in a club? Bagpipes? Really?

Meanwhile, British Revolution is literally a bar cover band. I know this because I've seen the guys playing bars around town. (They're talented ... but a bar band.)

This has nothing to do with thematic integrity, everything to do with cutting older Equity acts who cost too much money. TDO has crossed the Rubicon here.
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All of the music acts, by and large, started as cover bands, and some of them still do play around town/country.

I'm sure World Showcase Players, Off KIlter and Mo Rockin are more expensive than a Celtic folk group, but Spirit of America -- I doubt it. If previous moves (killing Wonders of Life, not finishing Spaceship Earth descent, turning Innoventions into advertising space for whoever would put up money) weren't crossing the Rubicon, this one sure doesn't feel like it.

I'll see if I enjoy the new stuff. If I do, great. If I don't, one more thing to be upset about. But I'm not going to get upset just because it costs Disney less. If they can find a way to provide the same level of entertainment at lower cost (without compromising safety, theming, etc.), they should.
 
sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
wdwmagic said:
British Revolution are also most likely ending.

Updated:
Epcot's most popular live entertainment groups to be retired in September
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Ok, I take back what I said earlier

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