The United States aren’t the only ones celebrating 250 – welcome to our 250th edition! This week we welcomed back a show on Castle Stage, attended the Summer Event with updates on upcoming offerings and more. Let’s take a look!
Sleeping Beauty’s Royal Waltz
After a very long refurbishment that saw most of the structure, backstage and tech modernized, we had been waiting for a new new to finally debut on Castle Stage. That’s now done with – yes yet another version of the Waltz concept – but beggars can’t be choosers.
The show features a group of four princesses that rotates from one performance to the next depending on the day: Aurora, Ariel, Merida, Tiana, Snow White and Belle. Plus a few Castle.. helpers.
You’ll also see appearances by the Three Fairies, so a very complete “Royal” show that is not reinventing the wheel but, in line with the type of shows Emmanuel Lenormand produces, feels very classic Disney. And that’s probably exactly what we need for this stage, with Sleeping Beauty Castle in the background.
While the poster board has been updated, no showtimes have ever been published on the official channels – apparently an issue with Guest Flow management. Very odd and a little frustrating for Guests who might hear it from afar and not know when the next one is. Hopefully this gets figured out.
You can watch the full show in our video just above. Welcome back, Castle Stage!
Summer Event
This week we were invited by Disneyland Paris to attend the “Summer Event” for a short update on upcoming projects. With D23 looming, nothing groundbreaking was revealed but we got to hear more about a few fun productions.
This year we’re getting a new show on Bastille Day, July 14. It will be anchored by Tinker Bell and will start with a French scene then takes us around the world – an interesting choice for a French National Holiday celebration but okay! It’ll also bring new pyro, 1600 drones, a little bit of projection mapping (but not on the Main Street Buildings) and a surprise at the end – inc were you planning on leaving early.
The merchandise department presented their latest collab, with Donald! It’s the same concept as Chip and Dale last year with a new character outfit and a matching collection inspired by the look. A cute idea ! Donald is wearing a version of the sailor theme, inspired by the summer holidays.
And in the shops starting tomorrow – July 6, you’ll find an array of merchandise from tshirts and jerseys to a headband, mug, pin and bag.
Next up we got a sneak peek at the floats for the “Disney Princesses Cavalcade” in Disney Adventure World which premieres on July 24.
After the modern era of DLP30 and whatever mess “A Million Splashes of Colour” is meant to be, it looks like we’re going back to basics with some very lovely traditional Disney Parks floats: wood patterns, rock work, iconic story props. Can’t wait to see them!
To round things up, we were invited backstage to see what the fantastic Landscaping teams have been up to, the new topiaries. With Cheshire Cat installed in Central Plaza, they’re now working on Tick Tock.
And here’s a look at the model, the concept and how it will be stages in the park.
Our thanks to the Disneyland Paris communications team and everyone involved in the presentation for having us.
Goodbye, Natacha
Natacha Rafalski stopped by Disney Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel during the Summer Event for one of her last appearances as Disneyland Paris President.
Natacha took office on December 12, 2018, making her the longest serving Disneyland Paris President with a 7.5 years tenure, overtaking Philippe Gas who served for about 6 years.
Natacha presided over a number of Disneyland Paris events and milestones:
- the COVID-19 closures and recovery,
- the acclaimed Lion King and Jungle Festival,
- the 30th Anniversary celebration,
- the opening of Avengers Campus,
- the reopening of the renovated Disneyland Hotel,
- and the major transformation of the Walt Disney Studios Park into Disney Adventure World (although the development was already well under way when she took office)
With a strong background in finance and accounting, rather than in theme park operations or creative design, Natacha is often credited with strong results for a Resort with finances that were historically in shambles.
It wasn’t always smooth sailing with the workforce: she was in the driver seat of HR battles with Cast Members and third party contractors, including several strike actions.
The Resort did well in the Diversity and Inclusion department under her tenure with the Disneyland Paris Pride hard ticket events, Women’s Day, accessibility upgrades and internal initiatives.
Our team has met Natacha on many occasions, and it’s always been a pleasure to exchange with her. She is leaving Paris, but not The Walt Disney Company, becoming the head of President of Disney Signature Experiences (which runs amongst other things the Disney Cruise Line and Disney Vacation Club).
Starting tomorrow, July 6, she will be succeeded by Christophe Murphy, who comes from a much more operational background and will likely bring a new flavor to the position.
Thank you, Natacha!
Construction and Refurbishments
Casa de Coco bas reopened this week, with new ordering kiosks, expanded seating (taking over some of the old serving areas) and a general refresh.
Faster ordering and additional seating is very much welcome in this lovely location that always felt a bit cramped.
In Central Plaza, the show control booth refurbishment is complete and the temporary one is being removed.
A “refreshment zone” in the Adventureland Caves – they mean Cool Zone
And talking about, Guests can now see the Cool Zones (areas with water misters or cool-down sections).
In Fantasyland, Alice’s Curious Labyrinth is looking great, with returned props and effects ahead of its reopening.
And some progress at Disney Adventure World for the Up Sky Swings attraction as more roofing details get installed.
At Disney Village, the Disney Wonders facade is coming to where nicely as the new shop races towards a tentative opening date of September 15.
And we love all these brass details and facade texture at the new Italian restaurant Casa Giulia.
This and That..
A cute new Disneyland Hotel merchandise series, more “Disney”!
Tomorrow we’re bringing back a daily feature we used to produce years ago – in a new format. Today at Disneyland Paris presents in an easy to read everything you need to know for the day: opening times, closures, showtimes, weather and more. Look for it each morning across our socials. Great work team!
