First look: Disney’s new drone show takes flight
Walt Disney World has cranked up 800 drones for a new colorful and creative production. “Disney Dreams That Soar” is now a nightly event at Disney Springs.
Like many nighttime spectaculars at WDW, there’s an inspirational theme (“unleash your heart, let your imagination fly,” the narrator says at the top) and a slew of movie characters to illustrate flight and, well, soaring.
“We really wanted to present Disney characters who have taken to the skies in pursuit of their dreams,” Tom Vazzana, creative director with Disney Live Entertainment, said before Friday night’s debut. “And what we’ve always said is, from day one of conceiving, that we wanted to be a short film in the sky.”
What you’ll see
The fleet of drones moves in from the west in sort of a scatter-drill formation. From there, the sequences are unpredictable as the units change colors, go dark and rearrange themselves to make pictures in the sky.
Sometimes the images are very 3-D, perhaps just Dumbo floating through clouds, But they can also present themselves as quite flat, such as “Guardians of the Galaxy” characters against a disco wall. (Boomers might think of this presentation as an enormous 21st century Lite Brite.)
Impressive images early in the 10-minute show include the house from “Up,” wobbling skyward, lifted by balloons and Wall-E and Eve in a dance that spins and gives a “Beauty and the Beast” ballroom vibe.
“This is where art, technical design and people who understand computers, people who understand lighting and people who understand animation all come together,” Vazzana said.
Crowd favorites
There are multiple bits of “Star Wars” references. A 213-foot-tall Death Star (accompanied by Darth Vader breathing patterns) looms for a while, and Mandolorian and Grogu earned cheers from the crowd.
But it’s a theme park crowd, so Orange Bird and Figment gathered “aaaaahs” from the spectators on opening night.
There are also rarely seen figures such as the Rocketeer.
What you’ll hear
The show is accented with music and dialogue clips from multiple Disney movies, and there’s an original “Dreams That Soar” song. original song, movie clips. Plus, there’s the reinforcing tagline: “Imagine where you’ll go … with dreams that soar.”
Where to watch
Disney suggests landing along the waterway on Disney Springs’ West Side. There are other spots, too, but too far from center can mess up the angles of some of the skyward designs.
One must not necessarily be right on the water. For Friday’s second showing, folks in front of the M&M Store snapped pics of the “Up” house seemingly floating between the Jaleo and House of Blues restaurants. And going up the Orange Garage escalators, the big Baymax formation appeared.
Exit strategies
The end of the show is a natural break in the evening, a time when many people are ready to go home or to their hotels. So the parking garages were slammed Friday night, and there were reports of motorists waiting an hour or more to exit.
Granted, it was opening night and a holiday weekend, so your results could vary. But it seems fair to say that going to see “Disney Dreams That Soar” is not an outing for people in a rush to get home.
There are options, of course, with drinking and dining at the complex. Pace yourself.
“Disney Dreams That Soar” will be presented nightly at Disney Springs through Sept. 2. The show (and the parking) are free of charge. Disney says show times will vary, but the online schedule through July 24 says 9 p.m. and 10:45 nights. To doublecheck, go to disneyworld.com.
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