Disneyland Paris is Europe’s leading tourist destination. Throughout the year, the Parisian resort offers shows, parades, performances, and meet & greets. Some are permanent, others temporary. Since 2014, the Parisian destination has undergone a revival. But after a few years of innovations, it seems that the latest proposals are not unanimous. So, is entertainment at Disneyland Paris on the decline?
Two opinions, two answers. And to paraphrase a famous season: Make your choice!
Absolutely not! by Rose
I find that the entertainment is varied and meets many expectations. To begin with, since 2017, the Disney Stars on Parade offers us a dazzling parade, and even warm if you are close to the Maleficent dragon. The floats are colorful and are sure to transport us to the respective worlds of the characters. The royal carriages allow us to admire the royal couples and perhaps to receive a look, a gesture from our favorite prince (sse).
But the real star is Maleficent in dragon form, spitting fire and articulated with an aesthetic that reminds us of the machines on the island of Nantes.
Then, since 2002, the Walt Disney Studios Park offers us a car stunt show all year long: Motors, Action! With this show, dive into the backstage of action movies and discover all the secrets behind an explosive movie scene. A live animator explains, in French and in English, all the modifications and precautions taken during the shooting, and how the action scene is broken down on the set to obtain the final result. Thrill-seekers and movie fans alike will be delighted. If the show is not very young, it remains nevertheless as fascinating as ever (even on a stormy day!)
Let’s continue our tour of the shows with Mickey and the Magician. It was a big hit with the audience, including me. The energetic and talented dancers, the costumes, the story line, and the presence of Beauty and the Beast amazed me. But most of all, the Lion King scene made me shiver with happiness, with its aesthetics and poetry. It is a very beautiful medley with beautiful performances that the Walt Disney Studios Park offers us.
One of my favorite shows is Mickey’s Christmas Big Band which has been presented for the past 2 years during the magical Christmas season. The show gives us the feeling of being on Broadway in the heart of the golden age of Hollywood. The singers are excellent and elegant in their costumes, accompanied by an orchestra presented in a decor with iconic Art Deco motifs of this great era. As the show progresses, Minnie, Donald and Goofy accompany the singers and dancers on stage. To finish with a frenetic Mickey on the drums playing the famous “Sing Sing Sing” by Benny Goodman. This show will delight all the retro vintage fans, of which I am part.
And finally the Lion King season also dazzled and brought a few tears to the audience. And even if it’s not my case, I enjoyed the season overall, while preferring the Lion King show to Jungle Book Jive anyway. Objectively, I recognize the quality of this season, which gave us a bit of freshness after the endless Star Wars and Superheroes seasons.
Yes, without a doubt! by Jeff
Six months ago, we could still have talked about a decline. But at this time, we are rather in an abyssal plunge! Creative Entertainment’s teams should not take long to find oil at this rate after several years of pleasantly surprising us with Mickey and the Magician, Pirates & Princesses, or Mickey’s Halloween Celebration, to name a few.
Let’s start with the highly overrated Lion King and the Jungle Season.
A main show in a brand new theatre that was not well done (thematic work not finished and no protected waiting area), offering an experience far below what The Legend of the Lion King was 15 years earlier. Indeed, the show, besides having a real narrative, proposed new choreographies and special effects far from the Cirque-du-Soleil-of-the-poor that is the Rhythms of the Pride Lands show. When you lack ideas to the point of redoing what has already been done, the least you can do is to propose something better!
Let’s continue with the so-called Zumba class, also known as Matadance, squeezed into the smallest possible space with a team that favored its friends over children far too often to participate in this animation. I’ll pass on Jungle Book Jive, the impression of a medley of shows from the Animal Kingdom Park in budget version was so flagrant.
Here comes Halloween, which continues to be unwilling to settle on a clear identity by mixing without coherence Pumpkin Men from 2003, Main Street Ghosts from 2016 and Coco decorations from 2017. Fortunately, Mickey’s Halloween Celebration raises the level a bit, because Brave Enough, the only novelty of the season, was not to be counted on, with its decor worthy of a bad carnival and an Ursula inexplicably transformed into a poor purple starfish.
Then comes the turn of Christmas. So obviously the Christmas Big Band is always there to surprise us (thanks Tokyo) and last year’s novelty, A Ding, Dang, Dong Christmas had the excellent idea not to come back. But that was without counting the desire to change the Tree Lighting Ceremony by adding princesses to it. If you were hoping for a pure moment of Christmas magic, you missed it. The show succeeds in the feat of not having a single Christmas song. A shame!
Finally comes the year 2020. Which will only be a vague repetition of 2019 with the same seasons to offer: Star Wars, Marvel, Lion King, Halloween, Christmas. We shouldn’t try to innovate too much, should we? Well, there is Pirates and Princesses, which has definitely bowed out in favor of an interminable season Frozen Celebration. With only one show proposed, limited to 1 float, with 3 characters and 24 dancers to occupy all of Central Plaza. I’ll let you imagine the picture if you haven’t already experienced it for yourself.
And if that’s all it was. Can we talk for a moment about the empty theaters? Disneyland Paris is already lacking in attractions, street entertainment and character encounters, but to see the halls renovated at great expense remain empty for the vast majority of the year, with only one show 2 or 3 months a year… It’s a red card!
Ladies and gentlemen of Disneyland Paris Creative Entertainment, wake up!
