Frozen Musical and MATMM gone for good?

Disney Irish

Premium Member
Eh, yeah, kind of. That property seems like it would be a better fit for the Fantasyland Theatre, and back in 2016 when the movie came out. Disneyland used to do that routinely with the Fantasyland Theatre; do a new show based on that summer's big animation blockbuster. But then they stopped.

But now? Five years after Moana came out? I think that ship has sailed.
There is a new Moana series coming to Disney+ in 2023, and a rumored second movie has been in the works for awhile now. And Moana has been one of the most watched movies on Disney+ for all of last year and most of this year, constantly breaking into the Nielsen top 10 movies for streaming services.

I don't know if its getting a Parks show or not, but it does seem to have the staying power as any other classic Disney film so wouldn't be surprised.
 

Dear Prudence

Well-Known Member
There is a new Moana series coming to Disney+ in 2023, and a rumored second movie has been in the works for awhile now. And Moana has been one of the most watched movies on Disney+ for all of last year and most of this year, constantly breaking into the Nielsen top 10 movies for streaming services.

I don't know if its getting a Parks show or not, but it does seem to have the staying power as any other classic Disney film so wouldn't be surprised.
Yeah, kids are still obsessed with Moana. It still plays on HEAVY rotation around here, and I saw lots of Moana's on Halloween.
 

eddie104

Well-Known Member
There is a new Moana series coming to Disney+ in 2023, and a rumored second movie has been in the works for awhile now. And Moana has been one of the most watched movies on Disney+ for all of last year and most of this year, constantly breaking into the Nielsen top 10 movies for streaming services.

I don't know if its getting a Parks show or not, but it does seem to have the staying power as any other classic Disney film so wouldn't be surprised.
Moana has a show at Hong Kong Disneyland as part of that’s park expansion

https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Moana:_A_Homecoming_Celebration
 

MarvelCharacterNerd

Well-Known Member
First of all, fabulous insight @Mousertainment! Thank you for sharing what you know. It helps shed light on some things.

Secondly...


Eh, yeah, kind of. That property seems like it would be a better fit for the Fantasyland Theatre, and back in 2016 when the movie came out. Disneyland used to do that routinely with the Fantasyland Theatre; do a new show based on that summer's big animation blockbuster. But then they stopped.

But now? Five years after Moana came out? I think that ship has sailed.


That's another thing they used to do a lot at Disneyland. A Christmas show in the Fantasyland Theatre. Mickey's Nutcracker was a thing for many years there. @Mousertainment probably knows better details on that than I can provide from my rusty memory banks.



That's the Million Dollar Question. I've asked it repeatedly in the Covid thread here, but no one knows. Disneyland was supposed to have had a vaccine mandate for all Cast Members that kicked in back in October. But.... silence.

It appears to have been something quietly dropped by Disney's Burbank execs and TDA execs. No vaccine mandate in Anaheim, at least not yet. And it's November.
As @Disney Irish noted - Moana is doing incredibly well on streaming and still seems to be a popular merchandising property. Think there's a lot of life in it as a potential stage show, both as an inspiring, diverse story and having a killer soundtrack! (The SCAREolers incorporated "Shiny" into their repertoire as part of their villains tribute this Halloween season and it brought a HUGE response from the crowd every time in DTD.) Moana features a strong female lead with a fun male co-lead (I don't think Maui can be considered a sidekick?) that really appeal to everyone. It's a pure win choice IMO. But alternately I'd be happy for a Lion King show, too (Festival of the Lion King is my favorite thing at WDW and one of my fave park shows ever).

As I noted, I'm fond of Map and would only want it replaced if it was with something as good or better and featuring the breadth of songs and characters that Map does - I mean, can you beat Rapunzel & Flynn, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Stitch, King Louie, Sebastian... and of course the main Mouse himself? It's such a good group of characters and music.

I certainly loved it when we would get one-film shows more regularly in the park back in the day like The Spirit of Pocahontas and the Hunchback/Festival of Fools show. I seem to recall a fun Pirates of the Caribbean mini-show happening also at Big Thunder Ranch around the release of one of the films? But the holiday shows seemed to be confined to Big Thunder Ranch in the pre-Star Wars Land recent years. It was fun when it was Billy Hill and I think some Country Bears may have been around? One year they did a holiday western show right out of Knott's playbook - loved the performers but the show was really more Knott's than Disney. lol But I loved when that area was filled for the holidays with characters and even Santa and Mrs. Claus visiting with guests. Farley the Fiddler might pass by on his way to or from the BBQ along with Tex and Miss Chris. Miss it muchly. #RIPBigThunderRanch Okay, now I'm all nostalgic. *sniff*
 

TP2000

Well-Known Member
Yeah, kids are still obsessed with Moana. It still plays on HEAVY rotation around here, and I saw lots of Moana's on Halloween.

Really? I got none at my house this Halloween.

Wait a second... Were those guys who I thought were Fred Flinstone actually Maui from Moana???

RUB909872-2.jpg


Disney-Maui-001.jpg
 

TP2000

Well-Known Member
As @Disney Irish noted - Moana is doing incredibly well on streaming and still seems to be a popular merchandising property. Think there's a lot of life in it as a potential stage show, both as an inspiring, diverse story and having a killer soundtrack! (The SCAREolers incorporated "Shiny" into their repertoire as part of their villains tribute this Halloween season and it brought a HUGE response from the crowd every time in DTD.) Moana features a strong female lead with a fun male co-lead (I don't think Maui can be considered a sidekick?) that really appeal to everyone. It's a pure win choice IMO. But alternately I'd be happy for a Lion King show, too (Festival of the Lion King is my favorite thing at WDW and one of my fave park shows ever).

As I noted, I'm fond of Map and would only want it replaced if it was with something as good or better and featuring the breadth of songs and characters that Map does - I mean, can you beat Rapunzel & Flynn, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Stitch, King Louie, Sebastian... and of course the main Mouse himself? It's such a good group of characters and music.

I certainly loved it when we would get one-film shows more regularly in the park back in the day like The Spirit of Pocahontas and the Hunchback/Festival of Fools show. I seem to recall a fun Pirates of the Caribbean mini-show happening also at Big Thunder Ranch around the release of one of the films? But the holiday shows seemed to be confined to Big Thunder Ranch in the pre-Star Wars Land recent years. It was fun when it was Billy Hill and I think some Country Bears may have been around? One year they did a holiday western show right out of Knott's playbook - loved the performers but the show was really more Knott's than Disney. lol But I loved when that area was filled for the holidays with characters and even Santa and Mrs. Claus visiting with guests. Farley the Fiddler might pass by on his way to or from the BBQ along with Tex and Miss Chris. Miss it muchly. #RIPBigThunderRanch Okay, now I'm all nostalgic. *sniff*

If you say Moana is still a big thing with the kids, I believe you. Your credentials on that industry and cultural pulse are impeccable, after all.

But it seems like it would have been a great thing to do in 2016, when the movie came out.

But if it would still be popular five years, er... six years later, to take over the Fantasyland Theater in 2022, then so be it.
 

MarvelCharacterNerd

Well-Known Member
If you say Moana is still a big thing with the kids, I believe you. Your credentials on that industry and cultural pulse are impeccable, after all.

But it seems like it would have been a great thing to do in 2016, when the movie came out.

But if it would still be popular five years, er... six years later, to take over the Fantasyland Theater in 2022, then so be it.
Plenty of folks here know plenty about all things Disney. Entertainment is just my particular passion so I've got a lot of opinions and a certain amount of knowledge. ;)

And I think Moana was a slow burn. Some folks liked it immediately (*raises hand* - Moana pretty instantly jumped into my top three fave "Disney princess" rankings along with Mulan and Pocahontas), but it took a while to grow into the beloved repeatedly-watched film it is now. It was never the phenomenon Frozen was, but it's definitely shown it's got legs.

That said - I'd still rather have Aladdin back in the Hyperion than anything else. :D
 

Dear Prudence

Well-Known Member
As @Disney Irish noted - Moana is doing incredibly well on streaming and still seems to be a popular merchandising property. Think there's a lot of life in it as a potential stage show, both as an inspiring, diverse story and having a killer soundtrack! (The SCAREolers incorporated "Shiny" into their repertoire as part of their villains tribute this Halloween season and it brought a HUGE response from the crowd every time in DTD.) Moana features a strong female lead with a fun male co-lead (I don't think Maui can be considered a sidekick?) that really appeal to everyone. It's a pure win choice IMO. But alternately I'd be happy for a Lion King show, too (Festival of the Lion King is my favorite thing at WDW and one of my fave park shows ever).

As I noted, I'm fond of Map and would only want it replaced if it was with something as good or better and featuring the breadth of songs and characters that Map does - I mean, can you beat Rapunzel & Flynn, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Stitch, King Louie, Sebastian... and of course the main Mouse himself? It's such a good group of characters and music.

I certainly loved it when we would get one-film shows more regularly in the park back in the day like The Spirit of Pocahontas and the Hunchback/Festival of Fools show. I seem to recall a fun Pirates of the Caribbean mini-show happening also at Big Thunder Ranch around the release of one of the films? But the holiday shows seemed to be confined to Big Thunder Ranch in the pre-Star Wars Land recent years. It was fun when it was Billy Hill and I think some Country Bears may have been around? One year they did a holiday western show right out of Knott's playbook - loved the performers but the show was really more Knott's than Disney. lol But I loved when that area was filled for the holidays with characters and even Santa and Mrs. Claus visiting with guests. Farley the Fiddler might pass by on his way to or from the BBQ along with Tex and Miss Chris. Miss it muchly. #RIPBigThunderRanch Okay, now I'm all nostalgic. *sniff*
1. I, too, miss Big Thunder Ranch 😭😭😭
2. Yeah, I have to say, I'm pretty sure Moana is still pretty big. Especially where I live, there's a huge Pacific Islander and Polynesian population, there's always been a herd of Moanas on Halloween every year. I still see her all over backpacks. I have no complaints, I think the movie and Moana herself are fantastic.
 

Old Mouseketeer

Well-Known Member
That's the Million Dollar Question. I've asked it repeatedly in the Covid thread here, but no one knows. Disneyland was supposed to have had a vaccine mandate for all Cast Members that kicked in back in October. But.... silence.

It appears to have been something quietly dropped by Disney's Burbank execs and TDA execs. No vaccine mandate in Anaheim, at least not yet. And it's November.

That’s not what I said. There is a mandate in place for all salaried and non-union employees and most of the unions have signed agreements. There is supposed to be a vote on a new contract for Master Services next week—I have a good friend who is attractions/Teamsters. My understanding is that the unions are recommending Disney’s new offer, but nobody knows the details. Last I heard Disney wanted Nov. 2 deadline, but obviously that is pushed back. Presumably they will also agree on a vaccination deadline.
 
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MarvelCharacterNerd

Well-Known Member
I didn't hear anything about Hans being out for Disney+ Day or the Christmas hard ticket party, though someone showed me a pic of the Duke of Weselton out at one of the Christmas parties, but uncertain whether DL or MK.

But I think Hans would be a fun character to have out. He's such a snake.
 

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