News EPCOT's Harmonious to be replaced with new nighttime spectacular Luminous

[TheEPCOTHistorian]

The energy during the crescendo of 'Beating of our Hearts' is incredible in person.

When the heart shaped fireworks start shooting towards the audience, it produces a feeling akin to the confetti cannons going off during the final song of a concert.

Pure wonder.

 

[trainplane3]

In case anyone wants some shaky cam footage from the Germany perimeter launcher on debut night, here you go:





Really not good footage but could be useful for reference since it's from a slightly different angle.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

Current poll check-in:

 

[waltography]

There's just so much to love about this show. I love both original songs (and am eagerly awaiting their release on streaming), love the concept, love the heart effect at the very end, and it flows much better than Harmonious. Middle section drags a bit; I like what the narration was saying, but would rather see it for myself than be told what each segment is, as it's very show notes-y. Also would've liked for them to keep the multi-language singing throughout all stages of life. I wish they kept the perimeter until the end and used the torches instead to acknowledge each country. The tie-in to SSE points of light is genuinely stunning; the whole park feels like it comes alive for the show because of it.

It's not perfect but it leaves me with the kind of grand optimistic feeling I leave EPCOT with, and for that I think it's a success. (Now if they can do this again but with even more original orchestration!) Already considering a trip next summer just to see this show in person.

 

[TheEPCOTHistorian]

Night 3's crowd reactions were probably the best. They were truly engaged.

Also, the second post-show song, One Heart, sounds like a mix between a Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo song. It's... yeah. A song.

 

[Squishy]

Night 3's crowd reactions were probably the best. They were truly engaged.

Also, the second post-show song, One Heart, sounds like a mix between a Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo song. It's... yeah. A song.

I was literally about to say this, sounds like taylor swift

 

[gerarar]

Lots of missing shells/misfires tonight.

eg. in the finale, some of the heart-shaped fireworks that fly in the air were missing.

 

[TheEPCOTHistorian]

I do have to say, I think there's a lot more meaning to One Little Spark than most suspect.

The torches turn off at 9:57, and One Little Spark starts. It plays in complete darkness. I don't think the song is meant to be interpreted as a post show song, rather, EPCOT's 'kiss goodnight' (remember that?) It serves as a beautiful reminder of the values EPCOT hopes to instill upon it's guests, a beautiful final note of the day.

 

[THEMEPARKPIONEER]

If we're lucky, we'll get Luminous B then. The current version good enough but if they could drop the forced IP songs then we would have an amazing show. This hardware is truly perfect for Epcot. We're so close to the perfect show, it just needs management to know we don't need IP.

And just think, this is the show we got with budget cuts and a rushed timeline. I really do wonder what the original trick this show was going to have that was cut nearly a year ago because that middle barge is so good. I still miss the globe and think every Epcot show should have one but surprise of "sphere of pyro" out of nowhere was so great.


Fun fact: They ran the Epcot anniversary tag for Moonlight magic a few months after the 40th. Quite funny but extremely disappointing.

I have a feeling Epcot Forever is going to be the new DVC/ anniversary tag now.

 

[THEMEPARKPIONEER]

I truly think SSE becoming the globe is the only homage they added last minute.

Everything else, like the hello from each country, seem to be remnants from previous unfinished or short lived IllumiNations shows pre-Harmonious.

Nobody has mentioned the absolute chills inducing moment when the narration says "voices echo back, in chorus" and the pavilions light up in call/response with the music.

Have you seen it in person? think the single voice is coming from audio in the barges

 

[Nunu]

Lots of missing shells/misfires tonight.

eg. in the finale, some of the heart-shaped fireworks that fly in the air were missing.

Yup. Also the audio wasn't very good where we were standing (between France and Morocco).

 

[PizzaPlanet]

Did anyone else enjoy Epcot Forever more than HarmoniUS?

 

[WorldExplorer]

Did anyone else enjoy Epcot Forever more than HarmoniUS?

Absolutely. If nothing else, Epcot Forever actually delivered what it promised in that it celebrated Epcot, whereas Harmonious had a lot of nice words to say about what it was supposedly about but very little to actually back it up.

My favorite part was the blend of One Little Spark and Veggie Veggie Fruit Fruit. It seemed nuts, which made it fun.

 

[doctornick]

Would never happen but I’d happily support an early show of Epcot Forever, even with the fireworks cut back, as a sort of warm up to Luminous. Why not two different shows each night in the WSL? Might even help with earlier dinner bookings.

 

[MisterPenguin]

The whole IP v. non-IP debate is mired in bad nomenclature -- it's all IP.

The two sides are better called:

• *pre-existing* IP (that has appeared in a movie, TV show, or some other context), and,
• *newly-created* IP.

Both have their pros and cons.

The *pre-existing* IP is being recontextualized for a new attraction. The recontextualization could be "shoe horned in" or "rammed down our throats." In this case, it's used simply because it's popular. It's a tangent to a story that doesn't fit. This can happen when your new show needs a certain theme, e.g., you want two people singing about how their friendship brings them joy and makes them a family.... and all you got is Friend In Me, which is oversued, or, Friend Like Me, which really isn't the message you want (since it's not about two people singing about the joy of their friendship).

On the other hand, it could be done quite well when the original context fits the new context. "I See the Light" fits very well for any context of a new, budding romance.

And so, it is the newly-created music that has a much better chance of getting across the theme and message one wants to convey. It can be tailored specifically for the context. BUT... it's brand new. And is the song itself... *good*? A new song hasn't had the chance to be tested with crowds. It could be wildly popular. It could be a dud.

And that's the advantage of the pre-existing IP... you already know it's popular. Put a bunch of popular songs in a show and you're much more likely to get a popular show.

As time has passed, Disney has amassed a pretty hefty 'Disney songbook' of hits that it didn't have 20, 30, or 40 years ago. People want the band on the stage to play their famous hits, not their new songs... that's why the came to their concert. And so it's what many people expect. And it's what management encourages for that sweet synergistic merchandising franchise.

Luminous was made with pre-existing and new music. And did some clever things like using only the lick from Into the Unknown, without any of its lyrics. It unfortunately overused the two 'friends songs.'

Anyhoo, I'll leave you all with a mind-blowing thought: Epcot Forever recontextualized the music from previous attractions, so, it rammed IP down our throats!!

 

[TTA94]

Unpopular idea I’m sure but what if for a special event perhaps they brought back Harmonious? But obviously just the soundtrack with the new infrastructure. I don’t see why they couldn’t. Yes it would need to be re programmed, but not impossible.

 

[Brian]

Would never happen but I’d happily support an early show of Epcot Forever, even with the fireworks cut back, as a sort of warm up to Luminous. Why not two different shows each night in the WSL?

Money.

 

[Notes from Neverland]

Did anyone else enjoy Epcot Forever more than HarmoniUS?

Definitely. The first version of EPCOT Forever, while not perfect by any means, did have some big 'wow' moments with the pyro kites. They didn't work often, but when they did they got the crowd buzzing. Harmonious just didn't do it for us, though we understand why some liked it.

 

[Disney Analyst]

The friend (play) segment is so quick and energetic, I don’t find it to be an issue, especially as the songs are re-orchestrated in a fun and mostly musical way.

 

[GhostHost1000]

I’m not convinced this will be a long running show like illuminations was

The barges seem too close where the lighting effects look jumbled at times. The music and flow feels like something is missing to me but that may change over time. Too much narration as well. They really needed to have fire effects somewhere. I ended up liking harmonious more than I thought I would after many views and not liking it at all at first so who knows where this will end up. Time will tell.

Regardless I still think an amazing Epcot fireworks show would use some music from illuminations and have new fireworks and effects tech as we see today…but they want to make Epcot like magic kingdom where they can