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

marni1971

marni1971

Park History nut
Premium Member
Vinnie Mac said:
In a way yeah. It feels like an updated classic Disney production.

One moment that feels this way and personally one of my favorite moments of the show was the transition into the colorful animation section (the part where the Main Street projections come on). It is so well done and the music makes it feel grand almost.

I hope with the new version of HEA the introduction of the main street projections is as well done.
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It surprised me how long into the show it was before the projectors were used. In a good way (like I said earlier, they didn’t use all the tricks at once)
 
UNCgolf

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
I wasn't a huge fan of HEA because I thought the projections and fireworks worked against one another instead of in harmony, and that detracted from the show, but DE doesn't seem to be much better in that regard. The projections in HEA were at least high quality compared to the ones in DE, though.

I'm also not really a fan of the DE soundtrack in that I think it relies too heavily on music from the last 10 years, but kids probably prefer that so it's understandable.

That said, I don't care that much about the MK fireworks shows in general.
 
V

Vinnie Mac

Well-Known Member
Epcot82Guy said:
Showcasing individual countries felt very exclusionary
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I've seen this being said about Harmonious before and I see what you mean but I don't think it really applies to Harmonious.

The whole point of the "Unite" segment is to bring the music together. During the Someday song you can literally hear all of the different voices coming together to sing it. So yeah the show is like an international tour of music but in the end it's all brought together anyway. This concept is better portrayed in the Disney+ special where they come together to sing Someday in the end.

Now I don't wanna make this a social commentary piece but I will say this: whether you want to believe it or not, individuality and unity absolutely can coexist in society.
 
RSoxNo1

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
So what Reflections of Earth infrastructure would need to be recreated or replaced? I can't imagine the Inferno Barge would be tough to recreate, same with the fountain barges. I would think the only difficult thing to reproduce / improve upon would be the Earth Globe. I've long been in the camp of a Reflections of Earth update with drones and/or the Tokyo DisneySea Fantasmic inflatable globes. The pyro could remain largely unchanged and the tech advancements / changes would be for the non-pyro sections.
 
RSoxNo1

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
Epcot82Guy said:
I think it depends on your understanding of Epcot. I would argue I:ROE was by far the most "EPCOT" of everything at the park in its history. That assumes the "theme" of Epcot is showcasing the history and possibility of human achievement and culture. You had a show that showed the collective history of our planet that then highlighted some of the most important achievements on this rock. The addition of water. The evolution of plants then animals. And finally the birth of mankind, starting with one of our most important discoveries - fire and recorded history. We then got into how we invented transportation types - on land, sea and sky. And then switch into celebrations of culture and art around the world. We then celebrate that (i.e. fireworks) and move to reflect on some of the greatest achievers on earth - ending with a profound yet simple view of our planet spinning round with its mountains and oceans on display. From there, we have the false ending, as we move to a message of hope of tomorrow. In short, it follows the general flow of many of the great EPCOT Center attractions like Horizons, WoM, SSE, etc. - of looking to the past, then present, then future. And it does it in the most masterful way I think I've ever seen personally. With a score that has never been rivaled for inspiration at any Disney Park.

This isn't me trying to patronize you or anyone with what you likely know. Rather, it's me writing that out is so incredibly inspiring and uniting. THAT's what Epcot has always stood for to me. Showcasing individual countries felt very exclusionary - as does Disney with specific films. I:ROE was inclusionary about our collective history and our collective future. The park showcases differences in that path. To end with one, unified message at night about how our collective stories come together as one. That's why I think I:ROE was the most "EPCOT" of any attraction at the park in its history.
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Vinnie Mac said:
I've seen this being said about Harmonious before and I see what you mean but I don't think it really applies to Harmonious.

The whole point of the "Unite" segment is to bring the music together. During the Someday song you can literally hear all of the different voices coming together to sing it. So yeah the show is like an international tour of music but in the end it's all brought together anyway. This concept is better portrayed in the Disney+ special where they come together to sing Someday in the end.

Now I don't wanna make this a social commentary piece but I will say this: whether you want to believe it or not, individuality and unity absolutely can coexist in society.
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Perhaps a show that celebrates "our individual stories" but culminates with those stories are all "brought together as one".
 
C

CVF

New Member
So might the direction of the replacement show for Harmonious change now that Iger is back? Might the replacement show not be forced to have IP?
 
J

jrhwdw

Well-Known Member
CVF said:
So might the direction of the replacement show for Harmonious change now that Iger is back? Might the replacement show not be forced to have IP?
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I'm wondering since Steve sounded excited for this after D23, was Iger going to over see this all along??????
 
Rteetz

Rteetz

Well-Known Member
jrhwdw said:
Interesting, wonder if Chappie changed it at all......

EF opened under Iger........but so did HEA!

Eisner opened ROE........
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Chapek was parks head at the time obviously so he definitely had a hand. It was reportedly his idea in the first place. A parks head is always going to have a much bigger hand in parks decisions than the CEO. Disney is not just theme parks after all. The CEO has a lot more to do than just parks.
 
mattpeto

mattpeto

Well-Known Member
helenabear said:
I have always read that Harmonious was Chapek's baby. That falls on him.
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blogmickey.com

Disney CEO Bob Chapek Came Up With Concept for EPCOT's "Harmonious" Nighttime Show

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond
blogmickey.com blogmickey.com

According to Imagineer Steve Davison, who was the creative director for Harmonious, the concept of using Disney music as the focal point for the new show came from none other than Disney CEO Bob Chapek. When talking about the concept of Harmonious and how it came to be, Davison said that Chapek said “why don’t we do a Disney concert? Everyone loves Disney music”.
 
correcaminos

correcaminos

Well-Known Member
mattpeto said:
blogmickey.com

Disney CEO Bob Chapek Came Up With Concept for EPCOT's "Harmonious" Nighttime Show

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond
blogmickey.com blogmickey.com

According to Imagineer Steve Davison, who was the creative director for Harmonious, the concept of using Disney music as the focal point for the new show came from none other than Disney CEO Bob Chapek. When talking about the concept of Harmonious and how it came to be, Davison said that Chapek said “why don’t we do a Disney concert? Everyone loves Disney music”.
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Yeah I've seen that many times. Not dropping it on Iger in this case.
 
Rteetz

Rteetz

Well-Known Member
helenabear said:
Yeah I've seen that many times. Not dropping it on Iger in this case.
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Iger and the board still have to approve major expenditures.

Here is Iger previewing music for the show.

disneyparks.disney.go.com

Sharing an Update on ‘Harmonious’ Coming to EPCOT Later This Year

Recently, Walt Disney Imagineering and Disney Live Entertainment team members had an opportunity to update some of our leaders on the historic, multi-year transformation taking place at EPCOT.
disneyparks.disney.go.com
 

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