July Events

‘Summer Nightastic!’ Dazzles with After-Dark Excitement at Walt Disney World Resort June 6 - August 14, 2010.  Click here for more info.

Sounds Like Summer Concert Series Makes July Evenings Nightastic! at Epcot with Music of Rock and Roll Icons

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – The musical sounds of decades of summers gone by will fill July evenings at Epcot during Sounds Like Summer concert series performances featuring tribute bands that celebrate the music of Bon Jovi, The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, U2 and Chicago.

“The key thing about tribute bands is that their intention is to reproduce, as closely as possible, the music of the artist whose work they are celebrating,” explains Senior Show Director Alan Bruun of Walt Disney World Entertainment. “It’s not an impersonation, which mimics the personality and visual aspect of a star, or a cover band that puts their own spin on a song. A tribute band goes for authenticity. Each band that performs as part of the Sounds Like Summer concert series has received written authorization from the band whose music they play.”

Performances at America Gardens Theatre are scheduled for 5:45, 7 and 8:15 p.m. – except on July 4, when shows are scheduled for 5:15, 6:30, 7:45 and 9 p.m. They are included with Epcot admission. Here’s the schedule (entertainment is subject to change without notice):

  June 27-July 3: Karin Lawson - A Tribute to Janet Jackson
  July 4-10: Satisfaction - A Tribute to The Rolling Stones
  July 11-17: Slippery When Wet - The Ultimate Bon Jovi Tribute
  July 18-24: 2U - A Tribute to U2
  July 25-31: Beginnings - A Tribute to Chicago

Sounds Like Summer is part of Walt Disney World “Summer Nightastic!,” which also features extra fun after the sun goes down at Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios:

Through Aug. 14 at Magic Kingdom, thousands of tiny lights illuminate the return of the beloved “Main Street Electrical Parade,” and the elaborate new “Summer Nightastic! Fireworks Spectacular”paints the night sky more brightly than ever.

At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, The Twilight Zone™ Tower of Terror adds new effects – and a summer-only drop sequence – to the mix for guests daring to step into the attraction’s infamous service elevator for a ride into the “fifth dimension.” And on Hollywood Boulevard, in the shadow of the 122-foot-tall Mickey’s Sorcerer’s Hat icon, guests are invited to the Rock n’ Glow Dance Party, where a DJ and live rock band keep popular tunes coming five nights a week.

Epicures, Set Your Alarms: Epcot Food & Wine Festival Special Event Reservations Open July 20

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Don’t want to miss the celebrated Party for the Senses grand-food-and-wine-tasting event? Can’t wait to attend the debut of the First Bites Opening Reception? Ladies and gentlemen, set your alarms for 7 a.m. July 20! That’s when the phone lines open to call Disney reservation specialists and book these and other events scheduled for the 15th annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, which presents Delicious Discoveries Oct. 1-Nov. 14 at Walt Disney World Resort.

Fans of the festival’s special programs and events can choose from among one dozen categories of special wine and culinary events scheduled during the festival’s six weeks. New programming this year includes the Sept. 30 First Bites Opening Reception festival preview, 3-D Disney’s Dessert Discovery and the Taste, Shake and Indulge Like the French Grand Marnier tasting experience. Returning events include favorites like Celebrating Family and Friends in the Kitchen, Epcot Wine Schools, Mexico Tequila Tastings and Food and Wine Pairings.
Throughout the festival, the park will present more than 25 international marketplaces where food, wine, beer and spirits lovers can sample cuisine, culture and entertainment from six continents. The new Belgium marketplace will serve Steamed Mussels with Roasted Garlic Cream, and the new South Korea marketplace packs plenty of taste into its BBQ Short Ribs with Steamed Rice and Cucumber Kimchi.

At least 250 Disney and celebrity chefs will conduct culinary demonstrations and host tasting events. In addition, the Festival Welcome Center will feature Authentic Taste Seminars and Authors without Borders weekend conversations that are included with Epcot admission.
Guests can call 407/WDW-FEST (939-3378) for information and to make reservations for special events and programs. Festival details will be available at www.disneyworld.com/foodandwine before reservations open July 20.

Three Disney Parks Plan Special Fireworks on July 4

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Guests celebrating the Fourth of July at Walt Disney World Resort will have a choice of fireworks shows as Magic Kingdom and Disney's Hollywood Studios present special pyrotechnics, and Epcot adds a patriotic "tag" to its famous “IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth” spectacular. Here's what's in store (entertainment and park hours are subject to change without notice):

  Magic Kingdom – “Celebrate America Fireworks” will fill the sky at 9 p.m. July 4 (guests who'd like to begin the celebratory weekend a day early can enjoy the special fireworks on July 3 at 9 p.m.). After the fireworks, guests can enjoy Disney's “Main Street Electrical Parade” of lights, music and magic at 10 p.m. and midnight on July 4 (on July 3, the parade will be at 10:30 p.m.). Park hours on July 4 are 8 a.m.-1 a.m.

  Disney's Hollywood Studios – Special fireworks set to a rock ‘n’ roll soundtrack will be presented at 9:50 p.m. on July 4, providing guests with a bonus nighttime entertainment extravaganza to complement “Fantasmic!” (which will be at 9 and 10:30 p.m.). Park hours on July 4 are 9 a.m.-10 p.m.

  Epcot – “IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth,” which features dazzling special effects, colorful lasers, brilliant fireworks, and fiery torches all choreographed to a musical score, becomes even more dynamic on July 4 as the normal show is supplemented with a patriotic finale. The performance begins at 10 p.m. Earlier in the day, guests will be treated to the Voices of Liberty 4th of July Concert – featuring an expanded cast of singers plus the Spirit of America Fife and Drum Corps and Disney characters – at 12:30, 1:45 and 3 p.m. on the America Gardens Theatre stage. Park hours on July 4 are 9 a.m.-10 p.m.

  Disney's Animal Kingdom – Guests can enjoy all the regular attractions and shows on July 4 from 8 a.m.-8 p.m.

'Captain EO' Returns to Walt Disney World Resort

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (April 28, 2010) – “Captain EO,” the classic musical spectacular that thrilled Epcot guests from 1986-1994, is returning to Epcot July 2, 2010, Walt Disney World Resort announced today. The attraction’s return provides new audiences the opportunity to experience the original 3-D production for the very first time, as well as a nostalgic look back for longtime fans wanting to see Michael Jackson in a rare performance created for the big screen.

Twenty-four years ago, Jackson joined forces with Disney, producer George Lucas and director Francis Ford Coppola to create a groundbreaking 17-minute 3-D film experience starring Jackson as Captain EO performing two original songs, and featuring Academy Award®-winning actress Anjelica Huston, and a cast of merry, mythical space characters with dual personalities who undergo magical transformations to become Jackson's electronic band in conquering the forces of darkness.

The colorful Disney-created characters include: Hooter, the little green elephant-like creature who sneezes wild musical notes through his flute-like trunk; Fuzzball, the orange-haired space monkey with butterfly wings; the Geex, a golden-haired, two-faced personality with two left feet, one right foot and two shaggy heads named Idy and Ody; Major Domo, whose mirrored silver costume becomes a complete set of drums; and Minor Domo with his sparkling purple torso that turns into an electronic synthesizer played by Hooter.

For all its technology, “Captain EO” is first and foremost a musical spectacular and a thrilling space-fantasy adventure. The realism of the 3-D process will once again make it seem that Jackson dances right out of the screen into the theater. While it’s not possible to replicate some of the special effects elements originally in the theater, it will boast a new 70mm print of the film and sound better than ever thanks to acoustical enhancements made to the theater since the film last played there. The total effect is one of motion, color and high energy filled with Jackson’s musical brilliance and various illusions to create an exciting and realistic journey in space for the audience.

During the journey, Captain EO and his merry crew discover a colorless planet where they are confronted by the Supreme Leader (Huston) and her forces of darkness. Using the power of music, dance and light to fill the planet and the theater with all the shades of the rainbow, the EO crew turns the black and white land into a magical world of color and happiness.

The production of “Captain EO” called on Hollywood’s finest choreographers, set designers, costume creators and special effects artists – all of them excited by the challenge of shooting this kind of imaginative film in three dimensions.

“Captain EO” will be presented multiple times daily at the Imagination pavilion at Epcot. It will replace “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience” which is planned to return at an undetermined date.

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