PHOTOS/VIDEO: Merida Royal Coronation Event at Magic Kingdom
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Hundreds of fans gathered early this morning at the Magic Kingdom theme park in Walt Disney World to celebrate the induction of Princess Merida from Disney/Pixar’s Brave into the Disney Princess Royal Court. An honor bestowed to just ten before her, Merida arrived at Cinderella Castle in style atop her faithful steed Angus before receiving the crown from none other than her own mother, Queen Elinor, who made an exceptionally rare appearance. The pair were joined by the other members of the Disney Princess Royal Court along with emcee U.S. Gymnastics 2-time Olympic champion, Gabby Douglas, who was joined on stage by her own mother, Natalie Hawkins.
Other VIPs spotted included ‘Jessie’ star Debby Ryan, who was filming a segment for Disney Channel’s Disney365 news segments. Child entertainers/reporters Sophia Grace and Rosie, of the Ellen Degeneres show, were also at the event, warming up the crowd with a special rap performance created especially for the event.
Below you will find some of our photos from the event as well as some video (with more coming). Be sure to click on any of the thumbnails to see a larger version.
Here’s a quick video we uploaded on site of the royal procession featuring Merida and Angus. Sorry that it was flipped.
Categories: Magic Kingdom, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Animation, Brave, Characters, Disney Princesses, Disney World, Events, Magic Kingdom, Merida, Merida Coronation, Pixar, Queen Elinor, Walt Disney World, WDW
First Look: Merida Meet and Greet Character at Disney Parks (Photos)
Several photos have begun to surface on the interwebs within the past few hours featuring what appears to be the official meet & greet character for Princess Merida from Disney/Pixar’s Brave. While we have found multiple sources of photos for Merida, none of them explain where the photos originated, but it’s likely they came out of the CinemaCon tradeshow currently taking place in Las Vegas, where movie theater exhibitors were treated to the first 30 minutes of Brave last night in addition to a teaser for the Monsters Inc. prequel, Monsters University, and the other news regarding The Good Dinosaur and Lee Unkrich’s project set around the Mexican Day of the Dead holiday.
The Princess Merida character, which also happens to be the first Disney/Pixar face meet & greet character, is expected to begin meeting with guests at the Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts in Mid-May. At Walt Disney World, Merida will be the focus point of a play’n'greet located in the Fairytale Garden at the Magic Kingdom, recently displacing Rapunzel. No official start dates for the meet & greets have been announced.
Brave debuts in theaters on June 22, 2012. Artwork for the film is currently on display in the Animation Building at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
source/source - h/t to @RogerRadcliffe
Categories: Disneyland, Disneyland Resort, Magic Kingdom, Movies, Pixar, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Brave, Characters, Meet and Greet
Walt Disney World Now Casting for Merida Meet and Greet Character
Walt Disney World has issued casting calls for Princess Merida, the heroine that will be featured in Disney/Pixar’s Brave which opens in theaters nationwide on June 22, 2012. Expected to begin appearing at Soundstage 4 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (where the Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian exhibit was formerly housed) in May, Merida will become the first face meet and greet character representing a Disney/Pixar property within the Disney Parks.
According to the casting notice, she will be 5’4″ – 5’6″ in height and is described as ‘impetuous, rough and tumble, strong-willed, determined and playful.’ She is also expected — at times — to be accompanied by a puppet version of the three cubs from the film.
For more information on auditioning for the role of Merida and other opportunities at Disney Parks, visit DisneyAuditions.com
The rugged and mysterious Highlands of Scotland serve as the backdrop for Brave, a new tale that joins the land’s ancient lore — stories of epic battles and mystical legends passed down for generations. Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, and produced by Katherine Sarafian, Braveis the grand adventure of Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald), a skilled archer who confronts tradition, destiny and the fiercest of beasts to discover the true meaning of courage. The film also features the voices of Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Julie Walters, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson and Robbie Coltrane.
Categories: Disney's Hollywood Studios, Movies, Pixar, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Brave, Characters, M&G, Meet and Greet
Photos: Jake from ‘Neverland Pirates’ to Meet and Greet at Disney Parks
It’s been a long time coming, but Jake from ‘Jake and the Neverland Pirates,’ the top rated animated program in the Disney Junior programming block on Disney Channel, will finally be landing at the Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts beginning this month.
We first met Jake back in March during a private event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios which is where he will begin meeting guests on Monday, November 13. He will be found at the meet and greet area outside the Disney Junior stage show. While Handy Manny will continue to also meet and greet fans at the location, Annie, June, Leo and and Quincy from ‘Little Einsteins’ will no longer be there.
However, Jake will also be joining the ‘Play ‘n Dine’ character meal at Hollywood and Vine, where June will remain, along with Special Agent Oso and Handy Manny.
Beginning a week later, on November 20, Jake will be on hand to meet and greet fans at Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort.
We also hear he’ll be setting sail aboard the Disney Fantasy when it launches in March, 2012.
Photos: Inside Town Square Theater Meet & Greet with Mickey Mouse (Minor Spoilers)
Although it’s slated to open officially to the adoring public on Friday, April 1, the new meet and greet location for Mickey Mouse and the Disney Princesses experienced a soft opening today and a few lucky guests at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom had the opportunity to experience a little one on one time with Mickey, Minnie and the Disney Princesses in their new digs.
Fortunately for us, Josh Siegel (@Crushinat0r) was on hand to capture some of the newly installed magic (literally speaking) and share it with us.
A new grand foyer, featuring a spectacular Town Square floor mosaic leads the path to both the entry queues for Mickey Mouse and the Disney Princesses. Along the queues, hi-resolution LCDs easily pass off as Houdini-era posters on the Mickey Mouse side that occasionally show off a bit of animation a la the Enchanted Art developed for the Disney Dream, and offer up trivia questions on the Disney Princess side.
In this other enchanted poster, Mickey performs a very old and clever trick that’s guaranteed to make any card chosen by guests waiting in the queue to vanish before their very eyes. How does he do it? A magician never reveals his tricks! Although quite admittedly, sometimes Stitch Kingdom does.
As we first touched upon the other day when we first revealed photos of the new Mickey meet & greet room, the room is just full of inside Disney references and sight gags just waiting to explore. We found about 15 or so just by pouring through the photos (admittedly some aren’t readily visible in these images), but rather than simply point them out, here’s some clues to some of our favorites:
- Despite it not existing for decades to come, 1901 was a pivotal year in the history of the Walt Disney Company
- Mickey’s trunks are covered in port-of-call stickers that not only represent Disney Parks and Resorts around the world, but even some sub-sections of them.
- Speaking of his trunks, consider who manufactures them and you might have a pretty groan-inspiring Jungle Cruise joke.
- The animatronic rabbit that sometimes gets mad and likes to disappear from time to time is sitting atop a hatbox made by 10 Shillings and Sixpence Ltd (or 10/6 as we like to abbreviate it on occasion).
- The notes posted on the billboard reference a couple of Disney animated classics: one a feature-length animated film, the other a popular Mickey Mouse short. There’s also a note from a famous magician who’s a member of the Disney family, but he’s more like a cousin, one could say.
- The Sorcerer’s Hat sure looks like a miniature version of the Disney’s Hollywood Studios icon, but that crystal ball manufactured by Leota Crystals resembles more of a smooth golf ball, whether it’s silver or glowing purple.
- There’s all sorts of magician’s preferred animals represented, including birds… including a parrot (at least the head).
- Fantasia is heavily represented in the room
- And, of course, there’s at least one classic Hidden Mickey somewhere in the Mouse’s box of tricks.
All photos and video © Josh Siegel. Presented here with permission.
Categories: Magic Kingdom, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, Meet & Greet, Mickey Mouse, Town Square Theatre, TST
First Look Inside Mickey’s New Meet & Greet, Tiki Room Restored, Fairies’ Final Destination
Scheduled to open beginning April 1, we have your first look inside the room for the FASTPASS-enabled Magician Mickey Mouse meet and greet at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Tucked away inside Exposition Hall, Magician Mickey invites fans to meet him ‘backstage’ where he’ll have a few tricks of his own including interactive posters, more than likely in the same vein as the enchanted art found aboard the Disney Dream.
Provided by a friend of Stitch Kingdom, the photos show some of the heavy detail that has gone into the space which includes representation of the parks (the books are stacked to form the shape of Cinderella Castle, the Sorcerer’s Hat, Madame Leota’s crystal ball, etc., as well as port of call stickers from Hong Kong and Tokyo on Mickey’s trunk).
The new space in Exposition Hall will also be co-inhabited by the Disney Princesses who are currently meeting inside the Adventureland Veranda until the new space opens later this week. We are also told that following the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, Tinker Bell and her fairy friends will be flying back to the Magic Kingdom and also be offering meet & greets in the new space. Initial plans called for Tink to be at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but we hear John Lasseter was adamant about Tink remaining inside the Magic Kingdom, so there she will return. Tink was even scheduled to appear at Disney’s Hollywood Studios between the closure of Mickey’s Toontown Fair and the start of the Flower and Garden Festival, but she was immediately moved to Epcot early, skipping the Studios altogether.
Lastly, and music to your ears, we are certain, we have been sitting on reports that when it re-opens, the Enchanted Tiki Room will no longer be under new management and will instead be returned to its original glory. Perhaps even more gratifying to many, sources have told us that Iago will find himself relocated to an Audio Animatronics graveyard located at Disney’s Animal Kingdom where he will become fodder for Imagineers looking to hone their skills. The attraction currently has no known re-opening date, although it’s assumed to be July 1, 2011 at this time as the official site has it listed as closed through June 30.
UPDATE #1 – 3/29/11 – In regards to the fairies return to Magic Kingdom, it may have been stated in haste that they will join the others in Exposition Hall. Although it was reported to us that they will be returning to the Magic Kingdom, the details were a bit hazy. The likely new (and also likely temporary) home (which comes with some accredited validation) of Pixie Hollow is the Adventureland Veranda whose interior has remained dormant for the better part of several years save for hosting the Disney Princesses following the closure of Mickey’s Toontown Country Fair. This also places the fairies within spitting distance of their sworn nemeses: pirates.
Categories: Magic Kingdom, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, Enchanted Tiki Room, Meet & Greet, Mickey Mouse, Pixie Hollow, Tink, Tinker Bell, Tinkerbell
EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: ‘Jake and the Neverland Pirates’ Meet & Greet Character
Last night, attendees of the second annual Disney Social Media Moms Conference were treated to a fantastic experience in way of a dinner/dance party presented by Disney Junior on the set of ‘Lights, Motor, Action’ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
We’ll have more on the event and its many surprises soon, but for now we thought we’d share these photos of Jake from ‘Jake and the Neverland Pirates’ who made his onstage debut at the event. After spending some time on the dance floor, jamming to a live performance of ‘Roll Up The Map’ by Sharky and Bones, Jake treated us to an exclusive photo shoot.
At this time, there are no known plans for Jake to be greeting park guests on a regular basis, but it’s always a possibility that he may become available for meet & greets as early as April/May when there is traditionally a significant change in Disney character appearances.
Jake does currently appear in puppet form, however, along with Izzy, Cubby and Skully in an all new segment of the popular ‘Disney Junior: Live on Stage!’ show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Categories: Television, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, Disney Junior, DJR, Jake, Jake and the Neverland Pirates
Magic Kingdom to Offer FASTPASS to Meet Mickey Mouse Beginning Spring 2011
Magic Kingdom officials have a hunch a really “hot ticket” in their realm this summer is going to be something other than a ride, a snack or a show. Rather, it’s a first-ever opportunity to nail down a time to meet with Mickey Mouse.
When meet-and-greets with Mickey move into a permanent new location in Town Square later this spring, Magic Kingdom guests will be able obtain a Disney’s FASTPASS ticket specifying a one-hour window when they can return to see the popular character for hugs, photos and autographs — without waiting in the standby queue. It will mark the first time the complimentary, computerized service has been available for a character meet-and-greet at any Disney Park.
Since spending time with Disney characters is at the top of the “must-do list” of many guests, the FASTPASS ticket will allow them to experience their Mickey Mouse meet-and-greets more conveniently. As a result, guests will be able to devote more time enjoying other Magic Kingdom experiences with family and friends.
The new meet-and-greet location, Town Square Theater, will be located inside the current Exposition Hall area just inside the park entrance. Imagineers already are working to completely transform the space for the new experience. “This isn’t just remodeling Expo Hall; it is completely re-imagining this entire venue as a beautiful Victorian-era theater and the new home for Mickey Mouse,” Jon Georges, WDI Director, Senior Show Producer, said.
“Mickey and Main Street, U.S.A. are great examples of pure Americana that complement each other very well,” Concept Designer Jason Grandt said. “We drew a lot of inspiration from classic Mickey animated shorts such as The Nifty Nineties and Mickey’s Grand Opera. Many of the scenes in these shorts look like they take place right on Main Street.”
Guests arrive at a building befitting Mickey Mouse’s stardom — with a grand-Victorian-theater elevation, including a marquee that glistens with gold-leaf trim and sparkles with lights. Inside, there’s a mosaic floor, lush curtains with gold rope tie-backs and polished-brass chandeliers. Imagineers are creating new elements and surprises for Magic Kingdom guests, including an interactive queue — with an extra touch of Disney magic — and highly themed retail shops.
The queue takes guests “backstage,” where Mickey is waiting to greet them in a rehearsal-room environment amid posters, steamer trunks and stage props.
In addition, during the New Fantasyland construction, royalty will be visiting as the Disney Princesses will be in Town Square Theater to meet and greet their loyal subjects.
Currently, guests can visit with Mickey Mouse in Tomorrowland, in a location to the right of Space Mountain. Meet-and-greet experiences with the Disney Princesses are currently at Adventureland Verandah.
Categories: Magic Kingdom, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, FASTPASS, M&G, Meet and Greet, Mickey Mouse
Phineas and Ferb ‘Meet & Play’ Coming to Walt Disney World in May
Walt Disney World has confirmed plans to introduce meet & greet characters Phineas and Ferb, from the popular Disney XD animated series, to Disney’s Hollywood Studios beginning on to be determined date in May.
Answering the age-old question as to what they’re going to do today, Phineas and Ferb will appropriately be producing a movie all about their crazy adventures. With the help of guests and movie director Cletus Filmore, they will re-create some of their favorite memories — if they’re not busy ‘taking five’ to meet and greet with guests that is.
The Phineas and Ferb meet & play will take place near the exit of Muppet*Vision 3-D, which is approximately where Luigi’s Garage featuring the Disney/Pixar Cars Lightning McQueen and Mater meet & greet is conducted.
Categories: Disney's Hollywood Studios, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, Meet & Greet, PAF, Phineas and Ferb
First Look: Rapunzel and Flynn Rider Meet & Greet Characters at Walt Disney World
Although their permanent ‘play and greet’ environment isn’t yet completed at Magic Kingdom’s Fairytale Garden, as we previously reported, Rapunzel and Flynn Rider from Disney’s Tangled began making appearances today at Epcot.
Although we initially reported that they would be appearing at the International Gateway, we learned the hard way that the location may vary and in fact found the couple outside of the World Showplace, situated between the Canada and UK Pavilions. This is one of three locations used in Epcot to test out new characters and their friends, the others being the International Gateway and the area to the left of the American Adventure.
It was a good experience meeting the pair and — when it opens — the play and meet should prove to be a very entertaining experience. Noting my camera, Rapunzel commented that I must be a great artist and hang my paintings up everywhere. Noting the use of technology, Flynn suggested that I have a little man inside the device that does all the dirty work for me.
Depending on who you ask, the new meet and greet area should be operational as of either October 22 or 25. Until then, you can spot Tangled‘s Rapunzel and Flynn Rider at random intervals at any of the locations mentioned in Epcot’s World Showcase.
All photos © Stitch Kingdom. All Rights Reserved. Please be kind enough to attribute the article and site when posting the photos elsewhere.
Categories: Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Theme Parks, Walt Disney World Tags: Characters, Flynn Rider, Meet & Greet, Rapunzel, Tangled
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