Some Hillish Details on the Idol Experience

[DivineMadness7]

Sounds like a karaoke bar without booze.

I personally will not be wasting my time on this attraction. However, I welcome others to waste their time so that my wait time at Tower of Terror may be shorter

 

[Omnimover]

I fail to see why someone would spend thousands to come to Disney and then waste an entire day of their vacation trying to win a fake American Idol show at a theme park.

This was actually the first thing that came to mind for me. With this kind of setup (two auditions, then rehearing a song and getting hair and makeup done), it's easily a three to four hour process. Not to mention that if someone makes it to the finals, they'll probably need to prepare at least one new song (possibly two) which is definitely another couple of hours. Essentially it's possible that an entire day at the park would pretty much be used up dealing with someone in your party being shuffled around for an overblown talent show. I can imagine some pretty unhappy families in that kind of situation; it's hard to have fun when you have to worry if a ride queue will make your teen late for his or her makeover. Vacations don't last forever.

Also; being worried about contestants throwing a fit after being rejected is nothing compared to enraged Stage Parents going off that you didn't like their child's performance. I shudder to think what Cast Members are going to be dealing with when little Cindy gets sent packing.

 

[Figment571]

HEHEHE Me thinks they are biting off more than they bargained for. this will be interesting to see.
If at all I hope it doesn't turn into a giant HSM/ HM/ Whatever Disney channel crap karaoke show.

 

[MousDad]

This was actually the first thing that came to mind for me. With this kind of setup (two auditions, then rehearing a song and getting hair and makeup done), it's easily a three to four hour process. Not to mention that if someone makes it to the finals, they'll probably need to prepare at least one new song (possibly two) which is definitely another couple of hours. Essentially it's possible that an entire day at the park would pretty much be used up dealing with someone in your party being shuffled around for an overblown talent show. I can imagine some pretty unhappy families in that kind of situation; it's hard to have fun when you have to worry if a ride queue will make your teen late for his or her makeover. Vacations don't last forever.

Also; being worried about contestants throwing a fit after being rejected is nothing compared to enraged Stage Parents going off that you didn't like their child's performance. I shudder to think what Cast Members are going to be dealing with when little Cindy gets sent packing.

My guess is that the people who will be auditioning for this show will be going to the Studios solely for that reason for that day or days. My impression is that the audition process is not geared toward the average vacationer looking for something to do. Those people will be filling up the seats in the audience.

The "attraction" part of this is watching the shows, which is what the crowds will be doing 6 or 7 times a day. Whether this will be good or bad remains to be seen. The audition process is, to me, a separate thing altogether from the attraction itself.

 

[brkgnews]

My guess is that the people who will be auditioning for this show will be going to the Studios solely for that reason for that day or days. My impression is that the audition process is not geared toward the average vacationer looking for something to do. Those people will be filling up the seats in the audience.

The "attraction" part of this is watching the shows, which is what the crowds will be doing 6 or 7 times a day. Whether this will be good or bad remains to be seen. The audition process is, to me, a separate thing altogether from the attraction itself.

Bingo. I see this as being more of a "destination attraction" for people who want to be a contestant...

"Today, I'm going to go audition for the American Idol Show," not "I'm going to the studios today and might try to audition while I'm there."

Having said that, look for a great wailing and gnashing of teeth when emo Suzy Everyteen gets to the Studios, finds out about the attraction while she's there "at the stoopid theme park," and wants to spend the whole day going through the audition process whilst Daddy Munchkinlover watches the money spent on her ticket for the "family" vacation that day fly away. :lol:

 

[Legacy]

What are you talking about? :veryconfu
He got nothing wrong as far as I know.
Like the concept or not, Jim's article is completely accurate.

:shrug:

That's good to know, Lee. Thanks.

How many of you have actually READ the article?

Guess what, people. The people who Disney let's through to compete are not going to be terrible. They are going to want good performances so that the "concert" feel of the actual performances is accurate. It's only three people a show. They don't have time for a bad performance.

The bad performer will be a Disney plant. No hard feelings.

The "harsh" Simon comments are coming from a Disney approved script. DISNEY-APPROVED people.

This attraction is for the people who will never see a taping of Idol live who want to.

This is for the people who would love to audition for Idol, but are ineligible or don't want to fight the lines.

This attraction is about making dreams come true, and it's far more Disney than "Millionaire: Play It" ever was.

Some Disney-philes need to pull the "Idolz Suxlol!!" blinders off and look at what this attraction is going to do to the Studios.

Personally (and I may be the only one on this board who feels like this), I can't wait for the attraction.

 

[Legacy]

This was actually the first thing that came to mind for me. With this kind of setup (two auditions, then rehearing a song and getting hair and makeup done), it's easily a three to four hour process. Not to mention that if someone makes it to the finals, they'll probably need to prepare at least one new song (possibly two) which is definitely another couple of hours. Essentially it's possible that an entire day at the park would pretty much be used up dealing with someone in your party being shuffled around for an overblown talent show. I can imagine some pretty unhappy families in that kind of situation; it's hard to have fun when you have to worry if a ride queue will make your teen late for his or her makeover. Vacations don't last forever.

Also; being worried about contestants throwing a fit after being rejected is nothing compared to enraged Stage Parents going off that you didn't like their child's performance. I shudder to think what Cast Members are going to be dealing with when little Cindy gets sent packing.

You know... I would think that a family would be super-supportive of the opportunity to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience like that. Plus, I'm sure Disney would allow the family to tag along the entire time... which is a bit more than what the actual Idol auditions do.

 

[brkgnews]

For the record, while saying this attraction ain't my cup of tea is an understatement... I don't think it's going to be a bad thing, and I DO believe it will be insanely popular. It may or may-not be short-lived, but it'll bring some more life into the studios... and for those who ARE into Idol, it'll be a great experience.

 

[EPCOT Explorer]

Disneyland already banned him once...

AEfx

Is that right?

Do tell.

Sounds like a karaoke bar without booze.

I personally will not be wasting my time on this attraction. However, I welcome others to waste their time so that my wait time at Tower of Terror may be shorter

Thank goodness we are not in MK then.
:lol:

 

[imagineer boy]

Guess what, people. The people who Disney let's through to compete are not going to be terrible. They are going to want good performances so that the "concert" feel of the actual performances is accurate. It's only three people a show. They don't have time for a bad performance.

You never know though. A person can do good in the auditions, but crash and burn once they have to perform in front of a large group of people. Heck, it happens all the time on the real show. *cough*Sanjaya*cough*

 

[brkgnews]

Is that right?

Do tell.


Thank goodness we are not in MK then.
:lol:

Long story short... Jim Hill was doing a "history and secrets" tour of Disneyland inside the park. The mouse frowned upon an "outsider" doing a tour inside their parks, especially a tour that may or may not have been quite so favorable. So they threw him out of the park. I don't think he was "banned"... just not allowed to do that tour anymore. He posted the story on his site... dig and I'm sure you can find it.

 

[krankenstein]

For the record, while saying this attraction ain't my cup of tea is an understatement... I don't think it's going to be a bad thing, and I DO believe it will be insanely popular. It may or may-not be short-lived, but it'll bring some more life into the studios... and for those who ARE into Idol, it'll be a great experience.

Agreed, I've never been on board with the whole American Idol phenomena. However, I know a lot of people who are and will probably get a kick out of seeing a similar production to what they have come to love on the show. The attraction will be successful, the question is how long will the popularity last?

 

[Legacy]

You never know though. A person can do good in the auditions, but crash and burn once they have to perform in front of a large group of people. Heck, it happens all the time on the real show. *cough*Sanjaya*cough*

I liked Sanjaya...

The thing is that if something like that happens (and with 20+ going a day it most likely will), it wouldn't be difficult for "Simon" to say;

"Well, that wasn't very good. I understand that it's nerve-wracking up on that stage, but you have to be able to relax and just sing."

The real Simon has said things similar to this in the past. It's not, "You shouldn't be alive I hate you so much." It's the blunt criticism that Simon Cowell is known for giving. The audience can boo for saying it wasn't very good, but "Simon" would still be able to give real advice. Heck, it happens all the time on the real show.

 

[Omnimover]

You know... I would think that a family would be super-supportive of the opportunity to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience like that.

That's fair. I might have been a tad cynical.

Obviously the attraction isn't meant to last forever, I'm sure Disney is fully aware of the potential shelf-life of something like Idol. As the show's popularity wanes, the value of the grand prize free pass at the national auditions is going to diminish as well. That's why they're building the attraction inside an existing building. When the time comes to say goodbye to the Idol Experience, it won't be a major change. Just an empty theatre again.

 

[DznyRktekt]

I remember when Millionaire was popular too. Personally I hope American Idol and LMA go the way of Millionaire and we see something with staying power. Oh and the same goes for Sounds Dangerous in my opinion. By the way, not trying to be negative, I love TSM. Different strokes for different folks.

 

[Giraffe Lounge]

Obviously the attraction isn't meant to last forever.

From the renderings the entire thing appears to be much like the stage for the actual show, with projection screens, truss, and lighting.

That stuff can be erected and torn down in a weekend.

 

[AEfx]

Is that right?

Do tell.

Oh, it's public knowledge. I refuse to give his site a hit by going there, but I'm sure his version of events is still there somewhere.

In a nutshell (how apropos a term LOL), Hilly thought it was okay to charge people to let him lead them around Disneyland. Understandably, Disney did not approve of a blow-hard like him spouting his negativity while standing in their park and having the audacity to charge people for it.

They threw him out. Not sure if he has been allowed to return, I don't follow his drama.

Interesting side note, though, this also led to his supposed Park Tour CDs that he was trying to bilk people into sending him money for pre-orders. From my understanding, like every single project the man has ever attempted, it was left unfinished and his promises and "updates" ended up as lies.

AEfx

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

From the renderings the entire thing appears to be much like the stage for the actual show, with projection screens, truss, and lighting.

That stuff can be erected and torn down in a weekend.

If that were true, then why have those refurb walls been there since February?

I know what you're trying to say, that the attraction's construction and rendering pics show that this is meant to be a fairly temporary set; its just that the contradiction was there for the taking.

 

[AEfx]

If that were true, then why have those refurb walls been there since February?

I know what you're trying to say, that the attraction's construction and rendering pics show that this is meant to be a fairly temporary set; its just that the contradiction was there for the taking.

Honestly? My guess is there was a lot of work in general that needed to be done to the building to house all the new tech/update electrical/etc., but if they ever did decide to change the theme it would be a much less involved process once all the back-end work was done to bring the building up to the challenge. There is likely a lot more going on in there than just adding taking the Idol crap up on the walls.

AEfx

 

[Thiger]

I think the attraction will do well.
Personally I think they should have 'Mickey's Karaoke Jam' with AA's of the fav characters and get people to karaoke...but I think this is more suited to PI and not within a park.

I'll try out for AI, but like the Stunt show, I've seen it once, I havent gone back to see it again.