Walt Disney World is planning a thriller celebration for Summer time 2024. We’ve been speculating in regards to the probability of a brand new particular occasion at EPCOT for the final a number of months, and now there’s not less than partial affirmation of one thing occurring by way of a casting name for Encanto leisure.
Our suspicions of this started again when Walt Disney World introduced the beginning date of the EPCOT Flower & Backyard Competition (now underway) however not the tip date, which was a purple flag to us that one thing was up. Then got here the tip date of Might 27, which added additional gasoline to the hearth.
The EPCOT Flower & Backyard Competition concluding on Memorial Day is de facto notable, as final 12 months’s occasion ran till July 5, which has turn into the widespread finish date (inside a few days) within the post-reopening period. The 2024 EPCOT Flower & Backyard Competition is over a full month shorter than the occasion throughout any of the final 3 years. This can be a large deal.
I most likely don’t must spell out the why of that, however simply in case, EPCOT festivals are a money cow for Walt Disney World. Meals and (particularly) alcohol have wholesome margins. No large shock on condition that the sales space menus aren’t precisely low cost. Nonetheless, we’ve anecdotally observed within the final couple of years with each Flower & Backyard and Meals & Wine (by far EPCOT’s two longest festivals) that meals cubicles have been much less widespread on the finish of Flower & Backyard and throughout the first month of Meals & Wine, after the preliminary opening rush.
Given all of that, we strongly suspected that Walt Disney World was seeing visitors get “competition fatigue” and there have been diminishing returns from working the identical occasion for a number of months. Principally, that the occasions wore out their welcome at round three months, and there wasn’t worth in extending the festivals past round 90 days.
Though Walt Disney World sees a gradual stream of recent vacationers in the course of these occasions, EPCOT festivals are fueled by locals and repeat guests–and people teams aren’t visiting in enough numbers to justify the longer occasions.
On high of that, progress on CommuniCore Corridor has slowed to a crawl. That new competition venue has been nearing the end line since final fall, however was unable to open alongside the remainder of the World Celebration Gardens and Luminous in December.
CommuniCore Corridor conceivably might have been completed by January for Competition of the Arts or this month for Flower & Backyard Competition, however Walt Disney World made the deliberate choice to carry it again. That was purposeful, and needed to have a purpose behind the delay. (In the meantime, Tiana’s Bayou Journey has been full steam forward–making extra progress in every week than CommuniCore Corridor does in a month.)
Consequently, our prediction is/was that Walt Disney World would introduce a brand-new summer time competition for June by August 2024 by additional scaling again each Meals & Wine and Flower & Backyard to permit for the brand new occasion. We consider the plan is to make the grand debut of each that new summer time competition and CommuniCore Corridor abruptly. That’d really be fairly savvy and splashy on Walt Disney World’s half.
Enter the most recent growth, which is that Disney Auditions posted a brand new Encanto casting name for Walt Disney World on March 5, 2024. For this, Disney Dwell Leisure is accepting native expertise host submissions for a brand new expertise celebrating Disney’s animated movie, Encanto. This new limited-time providing shall be carried out stay on the Walt Disney World.
The casting name signifies that visitors will be a part of Mirabel and mates from the mountains of Colombia in a festive celebration. It’s searching for two high-energy male or feminine hosts with infectious personalities who can sing and inform fascinating tales, have likable personalities and comedic aptitude. (Appears like I’m out.) Bilingual abilities are a plus.
Right here’s the monologue to be carried out for auditions:
¡Hola! Welcome to una celebraciòn, the place the power is excessive, the joy is contagious, and the enjoyable by no means stops! Mi nombre es *insert your identify*, and I’m thrilled to be your host para esta noche.
Tonight, we’re going to take a journey collectively. Un viaje stuffed with mùsica, dance, laughter, and possibly even a number of sorpresas alongside the best way. I’m joined by un grupo increíble of gifted performers able to dazzle you with their performances and depart you speechless.
¿Pero sabes cuál es la mejor parte? You get to hitch in on the enjoyable! Asi que prepàrense to clap your palms, sing alongside, y bailar like nobody is watching- porque esta noche is all about celebrando la alegria of stay leisure! We wish to see smiles in your faces, hear you cantar on the high of your lungs, y sentir su energia as we get this fiesta began!
Submissions shall be accepted by March 18, 2024. Potential in-person callbacks shall be held April 7, 2024 in Orlando. Timing-wise, that is just about good for leisure scheduled to debut someday in June 2024.
Clearly, this might be for any variety of choices at Walt Disney World. Possibly it’s for a brand new Cinderella Fort daytime stage present. Maybe it’s a brand new sing-along changing (or along with!) the Frozen one at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. It’s a longshot, however it’s potential that Walt Disney World needs to get a jumpstart on the Tropical Americas transformation at Animal Kingdom by having a stop-gap Encanto present there.
This might simply be a matter of me seeing what I wish to see, however I feel that is for EPCOT. Between my already robust suspicions of a summer time competition coming to the park and the concentrate on tradition within the monologue and casting name, I feel that is going to weave collectively an genuine Colombian celebraciòn with characters from Encanto.
As for what this theoretical EPCOT summer time competition that includes Encanto might be…how about merely a summer time competition?! The 2024 EPCOT Summer time Competition may sound lazy or too simple, however I feel that’s what Disney ought to do. Summer time festivals are widespread in Europe, Asia, and even the US. If you happen to slim the identify, it begins to exclude the international locations of World Showcase that don’t do or have a good time that factor.
In relation to Colombia, the apparent candidate is a carnival. The one downside with that’s carnivals are primarily a winter factor, not summer time occasions. Nonetheless, there’s Bogotá Carnival yearly in early August. Not solely that, however it’s not laborious to ascertain Walt Disney World providing a carnival-like celebration with vibrant road dancing, music, and masquerade parades.
Even when it’s not referred to as carnival, it might evoke the spirit of the occasion–and would “really feel proper” for summer time in Florida. (It may be a take a look at for a everlasting pavilion idea–there have been plans for carnival in World Showcase for years.)
My hope and expectation are that this may not merely be EPCOT’s Encanto Competition. On the contrary, I feel/hope/anticipate/pray that the Encanto road celebration/present/no matter can be one part of a a lot bigger occasion, form of like Viva Navidad at Disney California Journey. Though that road celebration options the Three Caballeros, it’s nonetheless very a lot a cultural occasion (and completely unbelievable). Very comparable thought right here with carnival and Encanto.
It wouldn’t must cease there. If the 2024 EPCOT Summer time Competition is to be, it might embrace a ton of stuff in several international locations. There might be celebrations for Bastille Day in France, Dragon Boat Competition in China, Summer time Solstice in Norway, Independence Day in America, and varied different music and hearth festivals all over the world–plus different occasions I’m most likely forgetting or don’t learn about.
I’m admittedly biased to this concept as a result of it could additionally imply celebrating my favourite occasion, which is Matsuri in Japan. That is an occasion in varied cities, with the spotlight being Gion Matsuri in Kyoto. For a number of years, Tokyo Disneyland did a wonderful occasion referred to as Natsu Matsuri (actually interprets to Summer time Competition) that melded genuine tradition with characters. It might be superior to see one thing like that, however expanded throughout the whole thing of World Showcase.
As famous above, meals & beverage have been large for EPCOT over time, sustaining the park even because it stagnated. Whereas it’s solely potential that the Flower & Backyard Competition shortening is just a repeat of final 12 months with Walt Disney World reducing dates as a consequence of diminishing returns, my cash can be on a brand-new occasion that “solves” each that concern and sustains elevated meals & beverage spending that EPCOT enjoys throughout its different occasions. Disney loves recent income streams!
Anyway, I feel that’s the proper thought and hope it occurs. With CommuniCore Corridor lastly opening this summer time (hopefully?), a brand new occasion can be the proper method to commemorate that addition, too. Given how open ended ‘Summer time Competition’ is, Disney might weave some form of tech expo or one thing futuristic into the entrance half of the park, too. Ample alternatives to do one thing enjoyable that will resonate with vacationers and locals, whereas additionally being within the ‘edutainment’ spirit of EPCOT Heart.
Competition of the Arts is EPCOT’s latest competition and in addition its greatest. So I’m assured that Walt Disney World might create one thing wonderful. Simply please not one other “Unbelievable Summer time” that brings tremendous heroes and/or Pixar characters to EPCOT. That ain’t it, Disney. In contrast, a cultural celebration that includes the characters from Encanto…now that would work. I’m positive it’ll elicit groans from the “no characters in EPCOT!” crowd, however that ship sailed way back. Marrying Disney characters with tradition could be very clearly the compromise answer and path of the park going ahead.
Lastly, and it ought to go with out saying, however this publish is solely speculative and wishful pondering. Properly, other than the Encanto casting name–so we all know not less than some form of celebration is coming to Walt Disney World this summer time. Personally, I actually hope it’s for a brand new competition at EPCOT. That park might undoubtedly use a lift throughout the summer time months and that is the proper answer.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you excited for the opportunity of an EPCOT Summer time Competition, or assume we’re getting carried away with speculating? Assume a carnival celebration that includes characters from Encanto can be an excellent addition to EPCOT, or does it belong in Magic Kingdom or the Tropical Americas at Animal Kingdom? Any questions we may also help you reply? Listening to suggestions about your experiences is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas beneath within the feedback!
