News: Captain EO returns to some Disney Parks in 2010

[Jojo19799]

You ever see The Wiz?

 

Sadly I haven't. I don't have any desire to see it....ever. Although, I did see Return to Oz, and that freaked me out when I was a kid.

 

I've never seen MILF or HISTA either. From the sounds of it, I wasn't missing much.

[The Disneylander]

I'm one of the few people who doesn't absolutely HATE HISTA. Can it be better? Absolutely, and it should have been. All it was was a show that had overstayed its welcome by a considerable margin. When it first debuted in the 90's it drew big crowds simply because of its novelty. Now, though, it looks and feels like a dud.

 

I still visit HISTA from time to time when I need some A/C, and still manage to get a couple of chuckles out of it. Yeah, it's stale, and the acting's corny, but there's still a few bits here and there that are watchable.

 

As to EO, I'm a little ambivalent. I'm worried as to how the old, old technology will sit with today's viewers (although they will refresh the quality and whatnot, probably) and also about the PR fallout from those who consider MJ to be little more than a glorified rapist. I guess time will tell.

[spacemtfan]

^OT, but with your sig, are you celebrating Christmas or celebrating being Mexican?

 

 

I don't know myself...

[nay]

I'm actually kind of excited about this. I don't remember if I ever saw Captain EO at Epcot. I'm not a huge Michael fan either, but anything replacing HISTA is ok by me. In fact, I don't think I've even seen HISTA at Disneyland!

[nursemelis374]

I am excited for this, I have always loved me some MJ and loved this when I was little!

 

I frequently listen to "We are Here to Change the World" on my iPod when I need to feel pumped up!

 

I was recently very surprised to hear a 3, 5 and 7 year old debate their favorite Michael Jackson song which leads me to think this may be popular with kids, but I remember it being kind of scary. I wonder if kids will be freaked out?

[kayoss]

I was recently very surprised to hear a 3, 5 and 7 year old debate their favorite Michael Jackson song which leads me to think this may be popular with kids, but I remember it being kind of scary. I wonder if kids will be freaked out?

 

I remember kids being terrified of Angelica Houston's 3D claws. But nowaday's? I doubt kids would be too affected by anything. The snake in HISTA is much more terrifying. Actually HISTA in general would be freakier to a kid then anything in EO. Kids also engage in EO quicker because of the Jim Henson characters.

 

I am so incredibly excited it's coming back. Just watching the original 70MM presentation would be enough, but I've heard they're going all-out with the fibre optic star effects, a couple new ones, even bringing the purple 3D Glasses back!

 

I'm glad (for once) I just renewed that Premium AP.

[BelizeIt]

This is Great News!

 

I posted a Captain EO thread over the summer, and one of the articles talked about how HISTA attendance has plummeted in recent years. Apparently the venue only hosts a tiny fraction of its daily capacity.

 

I'm sure this move will boost attendance for however long they run it for, and perhaps they could bring it back every year during their HalloweenTime festivities.

 

I saw Captain EO during its original run, and I'll be looking forward to this rerelease.

[jray21]

I just remembered how loud EO was. Does anyone else? I mean it was absolutely earsplitting. It had to be the loudest thing I've ever heard in an amusement park. Like as loud as obnoxious teenagers at Robb's gym loud. I'll have to remember the earplugs.

[Scream162]

I posted a Captain EO thread over the summer, and one of the articles talked about how HISTA attendance has plummeted in recent years. Apparently the venue only hosts a tiny fraction of its daily capacity.

 

I'm sure this move will boost attendance for however long they run it for.

With the DLR having over 800,000 APs, I fully expect the show to be loaded to capacity many times over the course of its run.

[Zack44]

This is amazing news! Disney is finally coming to their senses after all these years, and even though I probably won't see it because I live so far away from both Disney parks, but I've been a Jackson fan since I was little so this a victory on more than one levels.

 

Edit: I wonder if they'll upgrade it to DisneyDigital 3D .

[the ghost]

Seriously I am so happy for this. I always want to like HISTA but its just not very good. Every time I see it it pisses me off because it is a semi cool concept that has been dead for a long time. I have enjoyed every other 3d show Disney has had to offer. Also, I saw MILF for the first time this summer and was actually somewht impressed with it. I liked how both times we saw the show it was completely different, pretty entertaining.

[la2lvtom]

Don't really care about Captain EO (bored me then, will still bore me now), but anything that gets the horror known as HISTA out of a park is a GOOD thing! Hopefully the removal of this travesty will continue chain wide.

 

Now if they could only find a replacement for Stitch...

 

dt

 

They do have a replacement for Stitch, its called Alien Encounter. That was in my top 3 attractions out of all 4 Florida Disney parks and a must do every time I went now its that god awful Stitch garbage I so wish AE would come back someday. I am excited for Captain EO coming back myself I only hope they don't make it too modern with new effects in the theater just for nostalgia it would be nice to see it as it was in the 80's.

[SharkTums]

^That actually brings up a good point. Don't they actually have two of the Alien Encounter/Terrible Stitch theaters?

 

It would be soooooo awesome and amazing if they converted one back to Alien Encounter, even if only for Halloween Season or something!

 

I realize this would be pretty much impossible due to preshows, grouping, etc. But I can dream right?!?!

 

SKIPPY IS MY MAN!!!!!

[The Disneylander]

As much as I like Alien Encounter and believe in its superiority over the god-awful Stitch, it doesn't belong at a Magic Kingdom park, IMO. At some of the second gates it would do fine, but it just didn't mesh with the theme of Tomorrowland they had going for the Magic Kingdom. It was an awesome show, but they chose an unfortunate place to open it.

[ebl]

On a slightly different note, it's time to "Innovent" something for the Carousel Theatre and give what's there now the boot. Total waste of a good venue.

 

I saw Captain Eo only one time and didn't think that much of it then. But once its run is over, it's time for a new show in the Magic Eye Theatre. At no time have I even had the desire to see HISTA, so while I can't rag on that show, I can express desire for something new that might inspire me to go back in there.

 

Eric

[la2lvtom]

^That actually brings up a good point. Don't they actually have two of the Alien Encounter/Terrible Stitch theaters?

 

It would be soooooo awesome and amazing if they converted one back to Alien Encounter, even if only for Halloween Season or something!

 

I realize this would be pretty much impossible due to preshows, grouping, etc. But I can dream right?!?!

 

SKIPPY IS MY MAN!!!!!

 

If I'm not mistaken aren't the 2 preshow rooms identical in god awful Stitch (which is how I will now refer to it from now on) and Alien Encounter so only the 2 show theaters need to be changed out so they could close it for a few weeks before halloween to do the transformation probably the same time they close the haunted mansion for Nightm... oh thats right they don't do that in Florida, man Disney could have a Halloween gold mine on their hands that could equal Universals offering...well maybe not, if they would only listen to us

[robbalvey]

As much as I like Alien Encounter and believe in its superiority over the god-awful Stitch, it doesn't belong at a Magic Kingdom park, IMO. At some of the second gates it would do fine, but it just didn't mesh with the theme of Tomorrowland they had going for the Magic Kingdom. It was an awesome show, but they chose an unfortunate place to open it.

Um, weren't you like 11 years old when Alien Encounter closed?

 

But I guess you're the expert on everything, aren't you?

 

<- Proper use of rolling eyes.

 

--Robb

[CorkscrewFoley]

Of course he is, his name is the Disneylander... (Sorry, couldn't refuse...)

[jamesdillaman]

I do have to say, Alien Encounter scared the bejezzus out of me when I was younger... I would love to experience it again, now that I can differentiate reality from fantasy...

 

-James Dillaman

[mcjaco]

As much as I like Alien Encounter and believe in its superiority over the god-awful Stitch, it doesn't belong at a Magic Kingdom park, IMO. At some of the second gates it would do fine, but it just didn't mesh with the theme of Tomorrowland they had going for the Magic Kingdom. It was an awesome show, but they chose an unfortunate place to open it.

 

How did it not fit in with Tomorrowland? It fit in perfectly. Future technology that brings an alien back. Yeah, that's not anywhere close to being a perfect fit for Tomorrowland.

 

 

Certainly better than Buzz Lightyear or MILF.

[haiderodes]

Even though the show terrified me the first time I saw it when I was a lil kid, I grew the love it.

 

I can't wait to see what they do with the pre-show. It would be cool to see them bring back some version of True Colors. The biggest items I would like to see are the fiber optic starfield and of course to hear "Another Part of Me" BLASTING as you leave the theatre. Memories.

 

Technology in that theatre has improved since the mid 80s so just think about all the cool suprises they could have in store for us (especially with the moving floor). On the other hand, I think the biggest form of flattery would be to recreate the EO experience as close to exact as possible.

 

As for Alien Encounter, it has a single two-stage preshow (foyer and main preshow) and two actual theatres. So it would be difficult to do a side by side overlay.

[robbalvey]

Screamscape is saying that Epcot is reported to still get Captain EO:

http://www.screamscape.com/html/wdw_-_epcot.htm

 

--Robb

[jedimaster1227]

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/

 

Two weeks ago on the blog we announced that Captain EO will be returning to the Disneyland Resort in February 2010.

 

Today we have an update. “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,” the show currently in Tomorrowland, will close January 4 so work can begin in the theater to prepare for the Captain’s return.

Check back on the Disney Parks Blog for additional updates.

[socalMAN123]

I think I'm heading out to DL on Sunday, which happens to be the 3rd. Looks like I'll have to go watch that horrible show one last time. Good ridance!

---Brent

[wdw_lifer]

I had the pleasure of being one of the first leads at the Magic Eye Theater at Epcot for Captain EO. I will definitely be on a plane to Orange County this spring. I hope they re-create ALL of the original effects used in the theater, even if better technology is now available. Some theater effects I remember in additional to the fiber optic star field: fog effect coming out of the bottom of the screen when the ship crash-lands; lasers coming out of Michael Jackson's hands as he directly faces the camera to "zap" the third bunch of guards and turn them into dancers; and both lasers and a kind of spinning "disco ball" directly behind image of the Supreme Leader on the screen as she is being "zapped" and is transformed.

I also remember that we had access to an E-stop in the theater to shut down the laser effects in case a Guest stood up while the lasers were in use.

My FAVORITE memory was a Cast Member working with me named Lamonte. He always wanted to work the exit positions, where we would collect glasses from exiting Guests. He would re-create a number of MJ's moves from the show as Guests walked by. He always made the Guests - and his leads - laugh and smile when he did that.