Disneyana 2002
Page 4 of 4
The next morning I had several seminars. One highlight was a seminar by Yogi Mueller, a manager in Epcot. It was on Disney Cast Members and was entitled, "Why We Do What We Do?" As a former and hopefully future Cast Member I was moved by the stories of guests being attached to what Disney does and their expectations going in to a Disney vacation. Guests have a powerful connection to the Disney brand, and Cast Members are the ones that must match those expectations. When they do, it's magic. The stories of special experiences made me cry.
That night was the theme park party at Future World West. The party began at Tower Plaza with a dessert reception. We had a reserved area to view Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. I had not seen the show and was very impressed. Fellow guests mentioned that it was a good location. Following Illuminations, we were given a flyer with Belle's Mirror on it. Inside was the number 18. But since it is a mirror we had to realize that the answer was 81. After the area was clear of day guests we entered Future World West. All the attractions were open. In the Imagination! Pavilion there was a food buffet and Ethno Tek- a new age band performed. In the Land Pavilion there was a Jazz Trio and vocalist, food buffet, and the Sunshine Season Food Fair was open. At the Living Seas pavilion there was a Steal Drum Band and even more food.
I started my evening by experiencing the new Journey into Imagination attraction for the first time. I never experienced the short-lived version, I did enjoy this new version, and there was plenty of Figment. After that, we were treated to a special performance of Tapestry of Dreams. The parade was performed right in front of the Imagination! Pavilion and was a unique experience.
Following the parade, we went to the Living Seas Pavilion for a special appearance by Robert Sherman who performed some of his best Disney songs. He also showcased some of his artwork. Robert is a very good artist and now some reproductions of his art is being sold, including one that was inspired by Mary Poppins. For more information visit www.shermanart.com. It is always neat to be in the presence of a Disney legend and this night was no exception.
As we waited for the grand finale we received a packet of cards regarding the missing Tinker Bell Pixie Dust. Each card had a picture of Pinocchio and a clue. Only one card had Pinocchio with a small nose. Since Pinocchio's nose grows when he lies, only the card with the short nose is true. That card asked what the dancing hippos in Fantasia wore. The answer is Tu-Tu or "22."
The highlight of the evening was the Disneyana Pyrotechnic Spectacular. The fireworks appeared in the skies right behind The Land Pavilion, were set to music from Illuminations and were huge and plentiful. It was a magical end to a magical night. But we all had to hurry back to our rooms because we had to all be at the World ShowPlace for breakfast the next morning.
At the World ShowPlace there was a great breakfast selection. But most importantly it was time for the mystery to be solved. We had the numbers 57, 6, 1, 88, 81, and 22. We were first told that the dwarfs started with the highest number clue and worked down to the lowest clue. We therefore needed to order the clues from highest to lowest. Then we were told that Dopey was trailing the pack and that each dwarf recited one word of the clue at a time. We were then told that only the words Dopey was trying to say were important. The following are the clues with each 7th word heighlighted.
- 88: Every creature in Mickey's Christmas Carol who woke up Christmas morning wanted big presents to play with all day until the 26th arrived.
- 81: The Electrical Water Pageant began sailing nightly in 1971, long before parks like Epcot were around with the Laserphonic Fantasy show that preceded what we know enjoy.
- 57: End your 1989 Disney trip with Illuminations? Yep! It premiered in 1988, A general version of Reflections, voiced by Mel Blanc.... (Just kidding about the voice.)
- 22: Every Disneyana fan knows that one goat in Contemporary's mosaic has five legs! EEEWWWW! Maybe Wolfgang Puck's restaurant could use that for extra goat cheese!
- 6: Disney produced educational films such as "Room For Heroes," which was first released in 1971, describing great American heroes to world audiences.
- 1: Top of the World featured a show twice per night, in the very place California Grill now sits. It is right at the top of the Contemporary, now overlooking a massive vacation kingdom!
If you put those words together you get: Who presents the nightly Epcot show Illuminations? General Blanc.... Goat EEEWWWW that room in World ShowPlace right now.
A guest went to the Electric Room in the World ShowPlace. The lights flickered and out came Disneyana, a performer that has been a fixture at many Disneyana conventions, and a cavalcade of Disney characters. Disneyana had all of the missing objects. The winning guests received tickets to next years Disneyana event.
But now it was time for me to go to some additional seminars. Dave Smith hosted a seminar called Epcot: Birth of a Dream in the Wonder of Life VIP Lounge. He told the story of Epcot and its strange history. He showed many video clips including, Walt's Epcot film, the ground breaking of Epcot, the opening ceremonies, and the television special hosted by Danny Kaye. He also brought some neat items from the archives. It was a great seminar to learn about Epcot prior to its 20th anniversary.
Another good seminar was Dateline 1971. It started with a montage of NBC's Walt Disney World grand opening television special hosted by Julie Andrews. Following the video we got to meet a panel of five opening team cast members. Their stories reminded me of how I felt as a Cast Member during Disney's California Adventure's soft opening. I could never recount their stories with their emotion, but if you ever get to meet an opening team Cast Member, ask them to tell you some stories.
I enjoyed the Official Disneyana Mystery very much. Some of the seminar and activities were priceless. The convention was less spectacular than last year, but it did cost a lot less. Many of the prior attendees were upset with the smaller scale and some said they will not return next year. The first time participants seemed to have a ball and most indicated they will return. Several were so eager to sign-up for a similar experience that I convinced them to sign up for the Walt Disney Art Classic Cruise. I hope they sign up because the best part of all of the Disney special events is being able to spend time with my Disney family.
Discuss It
-- Posted November 4, 2002
-- Story by Benji Breitbart
-- Pictures by Greg Laub
Advertisement
MouseEarVacations.com
Where Magic Begins!
Concierge Style Service
at No Extra Charge!
Visit our website for more info!
LP Live Recent Picture
Posted: 8/21/08
Disney Fine Art at
The LaughingPlace Store
The LaughingPlace Store now carries a selection of Disney Fine Art from ACME Archives and Sanders CC Gallery
Now Playing
Little April Shower
Chorus / Bambi Movie Soundtrack (Bambi)