Festival of the Lion King moving to Africa

jt04

jt04

Well-Known Member
GrumpyFan said:
Right, and sadly, the picture above pretty much proves this. It's a shame really, and hopefully we're wrong, but it doesn't seem like they're doing anything special/new with it. Also, it seems odd to me that, but if I'm looking at correctly, the entrance to it will be along the river, before crossing the bridge, and BEFORE you even get to Africa.
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It is a only a schematic without elevations. Impossible to tell how it will be themed but if the paths depicted are accurate it is very elaborate. Some here are blinded by cynicism.
 
danlb_2000

danlb_2000

Premium Member
GrumpyFan said:
Right, and sadly, the picture above pretty much proves this. It's a shame really, and hopefully we're wrong, but it doesn't seem like they're doing anything special/new with it. Also, it seems odd to me that, but if I'm looking at correctly, the entrance to it will be along the river, before crossing the bridge, and BEFORE you even get to Africa.
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Yes, it appears that one side will be the entrance and the other the exit which will be good for crowd control.
 
Genie of the Lamp

Genie of the Lamp

Well-Known Member
danlb_2000 said:
Not sure why people are getting excited about this, it's very possible that it's going to be exactly what we have now just in another location.
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For me, I'm just happy that it's moving to a more thematically sense location such as Africa as opposed to the show being currently in CMM. Once the new theater opens in Africa, the park now has land room to work with be it with Avatar or any other idea/concept management comes up with that fits with the mission statement/theme of the AK. But yeah, the show itself will probably recieve little to no show changes.
 
BrianLo

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
dcibrando said:
I don't know... but I think they are REALLY missing out of something not creating a Lion King/Pride Rock LAND instead of just having the FOTLK show and then building crapatar
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Well, based on the water management plans, there is still quite the obvious plot of land incorporating the small parking lot behind it. It could easily accommodate a sizeable show building. I wonder if that was a consideration?

I really can't believe Lion King doesn't have a bigger presence at WDW (and basically any presence at Disneyland).
 
danlb_2000

danlb_2000

Premium Member
BrianLo said:
Well, based on the water management plans, there is still quite the obvious plot of land incorporating the small parking lot behind it. It could easily accommodate a sizeable show building. I wonder if that was a consideration?

I really can't believe Lion King doesn't have a bigger presence at WDW (and basically any presence at Disneyland).
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They obviously could build something bigger if they wanted to, but I would bet that they don't feel a need to improve it. The show is already very popular so they are probably looking to spend as little as possible to move it so they can put the money towards whatever will be built in it's place.
 
T

twebber55

Well-Known Member
danlb_2000 said:
They obviously could build something bigger if they wanted to, but I would bet that they don't feel a need to improve it. The show is already very popular so that are probably looking to spend as little as possible to move it so they can put the money towards whatever will be built in it's place.
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this
 
Rob562

Rob562

Well-Known Member
GrumpyFan said:
Right, and sadly, the picture above pretty much proves this. It's a shame really, and hopefully we're wrong, but it doesn't seem like they're doing anything special/new with it. Also, it seems odd to me that, but if I'm looking at correctly, the entrance to it will be along the river, before crossing the bridge, and BEFORE you even get to Africa.
Click to expand...

From the plans it looks like they're redoing the currently-backstage bridge behind Pizzafari to be on-stage.
If I were the crowd-control planner, I'd have the entrance in Africa and the exit out across the bridge. With proper timing of FOTLK shows they can still have the parade use that route for entrance/exit, while having Guests exit from the show across the bridge. They just have to make sure they won't be happening at the same time.

And crowds exiting into a generally central and "neutral" area in the park, without any attractions to swamp with the crowds, would mean that they would self-distribute, some going back into Africa to their left, some going to the right to ITTBAB, Dinoland and Asia. The only things that would get swamped would be Pizzafari and the new character location at Creature Comforts.

If they reversed it to enter from Pizzafari and exit into Africa, that'd be quite a crowd nightmare.

-Rob
 
D

doctornick

Well-Known Member
BrianLo said:
I meant in addition to the FOTLK show. A dark ride themed to Lion King would make a nice little sub-land in Africa and wouldn't actually cut into the Camp-Minnie Mickey plot for whatever ends up going there in 2025.
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Conceptually, I'd love a LK dark ride. Realistically, what would it be about? If it's basically a "telling the story of the movie" concept, well, that's what FOTLK already does. It would be silly to have such attractions side by side.

That said, I would think they could at least fit some sort of a flat ride themed to LK into the area. Something in the vein of Scuttle's Scooters. Just to increase capacity and the (paltry) ride count and to increase the Lion King presence.
 
AndyMagic

AndyMagic

Well-Known Member
prfctlyximprct said:
It's gonna be amazing!!!!!!!!!
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Did I miss something? What's going to be amazing? A 15 year-old stage show is being demolished and we're getting an identical 15 year-old stage show a few hundred feet away. Are we all so starved for new attractions that the ground breaking of something we already have is cause for celebration and excitement? Also, maybe I'm just spoiled from Broadway but I never found FOTLK all that impressive in the first place. It was meant as a temporary attraction and it stuck around because Animal Kingdom's "phase 2" plans never materialized and the park was (and is) woefully short on attractions.
 
jt04

jt04

Well-Known Member
themonkeyisthesultan said:
Construction should begin in earnest tomorrow. They're closing the bike path that cast members use that runs by the construction site.
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And that is no April fools joke.

Thanks again TDO for keeping this show. I know there is something in the Disney canon that advises against relocating attractions but this will prove there can be exceptions. Brilliant.
 
Genie of the Lamp

Genie of the Lamp

Well-Known Member
Saw this on Mouseplanet and there's now construction walls/fencing along the back side of Tusker House.

Also on there, it showed new FastPass+ entrances being added outside the exit of the Festival of the Lion King's current theater in Camp Minnie-Mickey which they say it indicates it may be some time before the show moves.

Pics were taken between April 2nd-8th but not sure which specific date these pics were uploaded to Mouseplanet.

Edit: To me though, I still feel the show relocation process is still on schedule and have the new theater in operation by Thanksgiving time.
 

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