Disney Dreams! is a night-time show at Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris. The pyrotechnic show returns on 12 April 2023 after a 6-year absence to complete the 30th Anniversary and join the Disney 100 Years of Wonder celebrations. It originally debuted on 1 April 2012, running until 24 March 2017.
- Name: Disney Dreams!
- Location: Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris
- Launch date: 1 April 2012, revival 12 April 2023
- Performance dates: 1 April 2012 to 24 March 2017; 12 April 2023 onwards.
- During the 2013 holiday season, the show was replaced by the seasonal variation, Disney Dreams! of Christmas. An updated Disney Dreams! of Christmas show was introduced in 2014, and continued to take the place of Disney Dreams! Each holiday season until 8 January 2017. It returned between 12 November 2022 and 8 January 2023, pre-empting the return of Disney Dreams!
- When: Every evening at the close of Disneyland Park (variable timetable to be consulted on the Disneyland Paris website or on the official application)
- Duration: 21 minutes
- Designer: Disney Live Entertainment
- Director: Steve Davison
- Technologies used: Sound and light, video mapping, pyrotechnic effects, lasers, fountains and LEDs. For his early years, water screens were used to support several characters, including Peter and Wendy.
- Presence in another park: World Exclusive at Disneyland Paris. Disney Dreams! was formed by the creator of Disney California Adventure’s World of Color, using LED fountain technology patented for the Disneyland Resort.
Disney Dreams! – the show
Take flight with Disney Dreams! Disneyland Paris’s first leads guests on a flight through the world of Disney animation.
Let Peter Pan’s shadow lead you to the Second Star to the Right, make friends with Aladdin and the Genie, watch the lanterns soar with Rapunzel, or make some Friends on the Other Side. The show is presented in a blend of French and English, along with instrumental versions of certain tracks.
Disney Dreams! opens by continuing a Peter Pan connection from the days when Tinkerbell ignited the fireworks in person. Audiences to 2000’s Tinkerbell’s Fantasy in the Sky, for example, could see the fairy herself flying up to the turrets before a line-up of Peter Pan songs commenced.
The exact track listing has changed over the years. The only live-action inclusion, Mary Poppins song Step in Time, was replaced in 2014 along with The Jungle Book’s I Wanna Be Like You. Both segments were reintroduced for the final year of the show’s original run. A medley from The Lion King was added in 2014 and held on until 2017.
Meanwhile, Frozen and Brave’s features have been added and dropped in rotation over the years.
But in every incarnation, Peter Pan’s shadow guides us through each scene – and sometimes joins in on the action along the way.
The Experience Disney Dreams!
Introduction – to the music of Peter Pan
Lights representing Tinkerbell’s pixie dust sparkle across Sleeping Beauty Castle, until a star is illuminated at the highest tower. The first fireworks light up as lasers are beamed from the highest point, and Peter Pan and Wendy are projected in the mist to either side.
“A perfect night for dreaming, huh, Wendy?” “Peter, c’est un nuit des rêves!” “Look, the second star to the right! It can take you to Neverland, and anyplace else your dreams can take you.”
Peter speaks in English while Wendy speaks in French, as the duo prepare to take us on a magical journey. But while they search for Tinkerbell, Peter Pan’s shadow breaks free and flies upwards to the star, triggering the next sequence.
To the music of Beauty and the Beast
Peter Pan’s shadow looks on as Lumiere takes the stage in projection form. His friends from the Beast’s castle sing and dance, as the shadow joins the action on the sidelines. Bubbles rise up in the middle f the song, carrying favourite characters like Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Jiminy Cricket, before Lumiere’s grand finale arrives with fireworks and fountains aplently.
To the music of Ratatouille
Peter Pan’s shadow rises in its own bubble as the castle turns blue, and Remy the rat is revealed. After a quick visit to the world of Ratatouille, we meet a new friend.
To the music of Aladdin
What’s this? The mischievous shadow has discovered a lamp! Of course, he rubs the magic lamp and the Genie brings us all the chaotic job of Friend Like Me, complete with real pyrotechnics and projected ones. Then Peter Pan’s shadow exchanges his bubble for the magic carpet and off he flies.
To the music of The Hunchback of Notre Dame
We’re back in Paris, and this time we are paying a visit to the Hunchback of Notre Dame. The character was the focus of the park’s themed celebrations on the movie’s release in the 1990s. In the scene, Quasimodo climbs the turrets of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, now ‘painted’ in stained glass reminiscent of Notre Dame.
To the music of The Lion King
Be careful, shadow! Simba is working on his pouncing skills by sneaking up on him. We’re treaded to a colourful display from the jungle, with scenes from Just Can’t Wait to be King. Then the castle is transformed into a waterfall, and finally real jets of water cross the façade.
To the music of Brave
A mysterious cloaked figure? Ah, it’s Merida! The Scottish princess takes the stage in projected form, riding to the top of the cliffs projected on the castle before we meet her family. As bagpipes play, Peter Pan’s shadow attempts Highland Dancing in the entrance, before the woodcarving witch makes as appearance.
To the music of Rapunzel
A tower wrapped in vines rises up to take over the castle, and we see that it’s Rapunzel’s tower. The iconic flower from the movie Tangled appears, before lanterns take over the castle as Flynn and Rapunzel are seen in the doorway, launching a montage sequence of famous animated couples such as Beauty and the Beast, Ariel and Eric, and Cinderella and her prince.
To the music of The Princess and the Frog
Peter Pan’s shadow holds onto a lantern, floating to the ground where he meets Mickey’s shadow -and then shadows take over. To the soundtrack of Dr Facilier’s signature song, the Shadow Man takes over as the mood turns to the dramatic.
To the music of Peter Pan – the Finale
It’s Captain Hook! And the crocodile, and… Ursula, the Sea Witch? The villains have taken over, but not for long. Peter Pan arrives to reunite with his shadow, resulting in a showdown with Captain Hook. Of course, good always triumphs.
Disney heroes from across the decades are projected across the castle in turn:
- Sparkling stars across the castle
- Peter Pan joins hands with Wendy
- Lumiere
- Merida
- Remy
- Quasimodo
- Genie
- Magic carpet with Aladdin and Jasmine
- Dumbo
- Woody and Buzz
- Alice in Wonderland
- Snow White and her prince
- Belle and her pince
- Cinderella’s transformation
- The castle’s turrets appear to bounce and flip
Between spectacular rounds of fireworks, Peter Pan’s shadow comes back, waving goodbye to complete the finale.
Disney Dreams! – the different music
- Peter Pan/Return to Neverland
- You Can Fly!
- Never Smile at a Crocodile
- A Pirate’s Life
- The Second Star to the Right
- Beauty and the Beast
- Be Our Guest
- Can-can
- Ratatouille
- Le Festin
- Aladdin
- Friend Like Me
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Out There
- Mary Poppins
- Step in Time
- The Jungle Book
- I Wanna Be Like You
- The Lion King
- The Circle of Life
- I Just Can’t Wait to be King
- Hakuna Matata
- Brave
- Fate and Destiny
- Touch the Sky
- Remember to Smile
- Frozen
- Let It Go
- Tangled
- I See the Light
- The Princess and the Frog
- Friends on the Other Side
Finale
- Peter Pan
- You Can Fly!
- The Second Star to the Right
- Come Dream a Dream