Shows and Parades from the Past

Chris Bales

Light Magic (Separate Registration for VF Radio is required to request this audio clip)

Disneyland Park
1996 - Festival of Fools

Located in the rear of Frontierland, this festival arena was home to the Festival of Fools, a stage show featuring characters from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. You can hear a clip of this show on VF Radio!

Disneyland Park
1995 - The Spirit of Pocahontas

With the release of Disney's film Pocahontas, a stage show featuring characters and music from the film graced the stage of the Fantasyland Theatre. (an almost identical show also opened in Walt Disney World). Instead of trying to retell the story in 30 minutes, the show begins with an Indian ritual, in which the "spirit" of Pocahontas is brought back and we as an audience experience a portion of her story. Pocahontas enters the story in a cloud of smoke and mist, and we are magically brought back in time. A large tree, that serves as a puppet version of Grandmother Willow, rises 28 feet above the stage, advises Pocahontas to follow her heart and listen to the spirits that move all around her. The arrival of the English Settlers, particularly John Smith, stirs curiosity in Pocahontas, while also sparking fear and hate in the natives. John Smith is captured, and just before he is executed, Pocahontas cries out "No! I love him! This is the path I've chosen. Look around you. This is where hatred has brought you". Along with stylized costumes and props, a raging fire pit in the center of the stage appears and disappears at different points in the show, and at the end of the story, the audience is gently blanketed by paper leaves. Musical numbers including "Savages", "Colors of the Wind" and "The Virginia Company" made this beautiful Fantasyland show a fond memory. You can hear a clip of this show on VF Radio!

The Spirit of Pocahontas (Complete - Warning: Large file!)

=Video Courtesy of Filmfreak11

Disneyland Park
1994 - The Lion King Celebration

Disneyland's The Lion King Celebration is regarded as a favorite in recent years. The parade played from the Summer of 1994 to the Summer of 1997. There is a definite tribute to this past parade in the current Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams

Disneyland Park
1993 - Aladdin's Royal Caravan Parade

This parade debuted on April 2nd of 1993. It was replaced the next year by The Lion King Celebration. The entire parade is now available below! You can also hear a clip of this parade on VF Radio!

Aladdin's Royal Caravan Parade (Video, Complete)

=Video Courtesy of Levelmaker99

Disneyland Park
1992 Fantasmic!

The Rivers of America come alive in this truly magnificent show. The show utilizes the Rivers of America, Tom Sawyer's Island, The Columbia Sailing Ship and The Mark Twain. Innovative 50-foot tall mist screens are used for the projection of animated segments from such films as Dumbo, Pinocchio and Fantasia. A fire breathing dragon sets the Rivers of America ablaze, and only the power of Mickey's Imagination can stop it! You may ask, why are we featuring this here, since it's still playing at Disneyland? Fantasmic is an important piece of Disneyland entertainment history, and it deserves to be recognized as such! You can also hear selections from Fantasmic on VF Radio!

*Fantasmic! Complete (Video, Complete)
**Fantasmic! Complete (Alternate Ending)

*= Video courtesy of RU42 Productions
**= Video courtesy of Brett "DaddyB" Garrett

Fantasmic! (Finale) (Separate Registration for VF Radio is required to request this audio clip)

Disneyland Park
1992 - Disney's Beauty and the Beast Stage Show

After a lengthy run of Dick Tracy* in the Videopolis Theater, the next major musical stage show featuring the characters and music from the Disney classic "Beauty and the Beast" graced the stage of the theater from 1992 to 1995. A beautiful score, along with comedic elements made this a very enjoyable show. The next production to replace Beauty and the Beast would be Disney's Pocahontas, at which time the Theater was renamed The Fantasyland Theater.

Disney's Beauty and the Beast stage show (There are 4 files to download for this show)

=Video Courtesy of Filmfreak11

Disneyland Park
1991 - Mickey's Nutcracker

Mickey, Minnie and all their friends celebrate the classic tale with a Disney twist. This show was only available for the holiday season of 1991.

Mickey's Nutcracker (There are 6 files to download for this show)

=Video Courtesy of Filmfreak11

Disneyland Park
1991 - Plane Crazy

A fun salute to Mickey's FIRST cartoon, this musical graced the Videopolis Theater in 1991 directly following Mickey's Nutcracker and Dick Tracy and the Diamond Double-Cross. This show only played temporarily and was replaced the next year by Disney's Beauty and the Beast.

Plane Crazy (There are 4 files to download for this show)

=Video Courtesy of Filmfreak11

Disneyland Park
1990 - Party Gras Parade

This parade helped to celebrate Disneyland's 35th Anniversary Celebration in 1990. Six large inflatable Disney characters were the centerpiece of the parade. Similar balloons were featured in the Flights of Fantasy Parade in 1983.

You can see segments of this parade on the Disneyland Sing-A-Long video. It's rumored the upcoming 50th Anniversary Celebration may feature some elements similar to this parade.

Disneyland Park
1990 - Dick Tracy and the Diamond Double-Cross

Based on the Disney film starring Madonna and Warren Beaty, and one of the first major productions with the newly redone Videopolis Theater (after the closing of Videopolis) , the outdoor dance and music venue). This production featured an interesting style of set pieces. The set was composed of 2 dimensional panels that would travel across the stage, and often the characters would interact with them, hide behind them, etc. (If you've seen the Broadway show 'Tommy' you get the idea). Featured were many musical numbers from Dick Tracy, along with some new tunes.. The show was very fast paced and exciting, with interesting lighting and special effects. The show did not remain very long at Disneyland, but paved the way for future productions (Pocahontas, Animazement, etc). The show was also featured at Disney's MGM Studios in Florida.

Dick Tracy and the Diamond Double-Cross (There are 4 files to download for this show)

=Video Courtesy of Filmfreak11

Disneyland Park
1988 - Blast to the Past Parade

Began in May, the Blast to the Past parade features favorite Disney characters themed to icons and recognizable images of the past.

Disneyland Park
1985 - Videopolis

In 1985, there was a tremendous change coming to Tomorrowland. Captain EO, a new 3d Adventure starring Michael Jackson, would take the place of the Tomorrowland Stage at the base of Space Mountain. That same summer, a new entertainment venue was needed, and Videopolis was quickly built on a piece of land near the Fantasyland depot.. During the day, stage shows typically seen at the Tomorrowland "Space Stage" would be performed here. At night, the venue became a hi-tech dance club with huge TV monitors, lighting and music. The Fantasyland Railroad Depot was even temporarily renamed Videopolis Station.

Other Seasonal Entertainment:

Disneyland Park
1987 - A Very Merry Christmas Parade

This parade debuted in Disneyland in 1987 and would play until 1994

Disneyland Park
1995 - A Christmas Fantasy Parade

This parade is a yearly event at Christmastime in the park. The parade features Disney characters, dancers, and Santa Claus. You can hear a clip of this parade on VF Radio!

A Christmas Fantasy (Video, 2005 Christmas season)

=Video Courtesy of RU42 Productions
*=Video Courtesy of RU42 Productions

Disneyland Park
1972 - Disneyland's Main Street Electrical Parade

A wonderful mix of light, colors and sounds, this parade returned to the Disneyland Resort on July 4th, 2001 at Disney's California Adventure.

**Main Street Electrical Parade (Farewell Performance) (Video)
Disney's Electrical Parade (Video)

*The Main Street Electrical Parade (Separate Registration for VF Radio is required to request this audio clip)

Disneyland Park
The Disneyland Hotel - Fantasy Waters Show

This charming show played nightly at the Disneyland Hotel throughout the 80's, 90's and 00's, finally closing late 2004 (rumored to eventually become part of an all-new miniature golf course at the Disneyland Hotel)

Fantasy Waters Show (Edited by RU42, footage courtesy of VF Member Piglet et al)

Visions Fantastic Radio!: VF Radio (Taking Requests) (4/40 @ 96 kbs)

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A CHRONOLOGY OF DISNEYLAND RESORT SHOWS AND PARADES

Note: This page is by no means comprehensive or complete. As more information becomes available, we will be constantly making updates to this page. If you have information you'd like to share, please use the CONTACT US link at the bottom of the screen. Thank You!

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Parade of the Stars (Highlights Video)
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