Mouse Extra

The Orlando Sentinel is reporting this morning that Epcot’s iconic attraction Spaceship Earth will be reopening for previews in mid-December, only a couple of weeks away.  There was speculation earlier this fall that work on this project was moving slowly and that previews would not happen until well in 2008.  But now we find this apparently huge project will soon be completed and guests will be allowed back into the big golf ball.

We also now have confirmation that Judi Dench, the actress who plays M in the most recent James Bond films, will in fact be the new narrator.  But the report is predictably short on details, as Imagineering tends to speak in generalities when it comes to such things…

The ride was closed earlier this year as the entire system also has been updated with new show scenes, lighting, costumes, set decorations, interactive features for riders and a new narrator, Academy Award-winning actress Judi Dench.

There is also a new score coming, that Imagineering has apparently put a lot of effort in to…

“To have that score transition smoothly as vehicles travel from one time period to the next is extremely difficult,” said Walt Disney Imagineering show producer Bob Zalk. “The first time we rode through the attraction accompanied by that music, we were amazed.”

Reworking older attractions seems to be the popular project at Walt Disney World these days.  Sweeping changes to older rides, such as Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion, have been mostly met with critical praise.  This project, however, appears to be the most expansive of these projects.  It seems they have put an amazing amount of time and resources into revolutionizing Spaceship Earth.  Being one of my favorite attractions on property, I am both excited and nervous about the outcome.

The Disney Reporter has some information on one of Epcot’s oldest rumors maybe coming to life after all.  The proposed Mt. Fuji themed roller coaster, which never made it to the World Showcase back in the 1980’s, is apparently picking up steam once again.  According to the report a new e-ticket attraction, which will not be the same concept and may not even be themed to Mt. Fuji at all, is being planned for the Japan Pavilion for around 2011-12.

Right now there is a MAJOR attraction being worked up for Japan and Joe Rohde has done design/conceptual work on it.

It has not ‘officially’ received the green-light but is considered a shoe-in to do so as Mitsukoshi has offered to put up money, as they have the past few years for the great redos of their department store and dining facilities at EPCOT.

Now, I have not been able to confirm this rumor so far, but I have been hearing rumblings of some World Showcase pavilions looking to raise their profile by adding an attraction.  Canada’s “Brother Bear” raft ride being the most recent and prevalent.  Japan has always been mentioned in that rumor as well, probably because the original Mt. Fuji project was so poorly hidden from the public.  It seems that whenever people start talking about injecting money into the World Showcase, the rumor mill reverts to the oldies but goodies.

So let’s ask the inevitable question?  Do you like this idea?  Does the idea of having an e-ticket attraction in the World Showcase sit well with you?  Personally, I like the World Showcase just the way it is.  I’ll live with an e-ticket, especially if it is a good one, but Disney needs to go above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that the mood around the Promenade is not ruined by the screams of thrill seekers.  In my opinion, anything like this needs to be indoors or Imagineering needs to somehow create a sound shield so that the wonderful peacefulness of the World Showcase does not suddenly sound like a Six Flags park.

Disney Gossip, a wonderful blog that simply does not post regularly enough to keep us addicts satisfied, reported on Monday that Dame Judi Dench will be narrator for the new version of Spaceship Earth.  If true, she will replace Jeremy Irons.

There were two conflicting rumors that I had heard some time ago, which kept me from reporting either of them.  The first was that Patrick Stewart was being strongly considered and was the front runner in many people’s view.  That rumor made the rounds of Disney websites.  But I also heard that Disney was seriously looking into using a woman’s voice to do something different but that they had not found the right person for the job.  It appears from this report they may have found her.

I think this is an interesting choice and one that seems to go right along with the other interesting things they are doing inside Spaceship Earth.  Many, many things will not be the same as they once were.  Changing the narration drastically just fits right in with this idea that the new attraction will be a completely new experience.  Let me just say that every time I hear something new about what may be coming to the big golf ball I get more excited to see this.  The bar is raising on expectations here…

During my last trip to Walt Disney World, I was hoping to find a good t-shirt dedicated to Epcot’s 25th Anniversary.  I had heard that some merchandise was available, and was certainly aware of many trading pins that have been released for the event, but I was not sure of exactly what was on the racks.  Truth be told, it was not too much.

It’s not like the 25th is plastered all over the park.  I think that many of us who saw the celebration on the internet thought they made a bigger deal of this than they actually did.  Only a few days later there are only the smallest reminders that anything ever happened for the anniversary at all.  Pretty much all you will find is the old-school flower logo behind Spaceship Earth…

And it is accompanied by a fairly nondescript sign…

As far as merchandise is concerned, beyond the pins there really is nothing.  They have released a few retro looking t-shirts that are somewhat interesting in a silly early 80’s sort of way.  But regardless of that, they don’t mention the anniversary at all…

So, am I missing something?  Why would they release a barrage of pins as the only merchandise offered for this event?  Was their more offered during the actual day that I am not aware of?  

This month’s Magic of the Month article posted on Disney World’s official website has some great information on what we can expect from the new version of Spaceship Earth.  Imagineer Bob Zalk gives us the first truly concrete look into this major refurbishment and even tells us a bit about the new story we can expect to experience.

“We’re telling a different story this time,” he explained. “Our new story is essentially about how all the innovations of one generation influence and inspire another. There’s definitely a relationship between the caveman in the early scenes, who is writing on walls, to our era in which we write on computers. It’s a series of building blocks that add upon each other as we travel up through Spaceship Earth.”

Once you reach the top of the 165-foot diameter Spaceship Earth geodesic dome, the new, interactive touch screens on your “time machine” vehicle will invite you to create your own visions of the future and see yourself in that future.

We should also expect to find an entirely new narration, score and ride vehicles.  This is much bigger than many people initially thought, as some even wondered if the narration would change much no less a completely new story.  When all is said and done, Spaceship Earth should be more like a new attraction that may give you some déjà vu then just a refurbishment.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the work on this has been delayed significantly.  This is a big job that probably grew as work progressed.  However long it takes is fine with me.  I am excited about riding the big golf ball once again.

Let’s do a couple of more construction updates for today, so you can get an idea of the work going on at two of Disney World’s major projects.  There seems to be an awful lot of work going on at the Mouse, and that is always exciting to see.

First, let’s start over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.  For those who don’t already know, soon a full service sit-down restaurant and bar will open called the Yak and Yeti, named after a famous resort in Kathmandu, Nepal.  The photograph below, taken late last week, shows that much of the building is finished.  It appears only the face of the building is getting some final touches.

The photo below shows that this restaurant will at least have some beautiful woodwork to show off.  At first I thought there were doors, but since none of them were mounted in view I can not say for sure.  They could be just some detail work, either exterior or interior.

Now, let’s head over to Epcot’s Future World where construction continues on the icon Spaceship Earth.  The shot below does not show much, as most of the work is happening inside the sphere.  What it does show, however, is that so far little to nothing has been done on the exterior.  This does seem a bit surprising as a refurbishment of this magnitude usually includes some exterior reminder of what’s new inside.