In other Star Wars Weekends news, due to a scheduling conflict, Warwick Davis (Wicket the Ewok) had to reschedule his appearance this weekend. He will now be at the last weekend, June 22-24, instead of Bonnie Piesse (Beru Lars), who appeared this weekend in Mr. Davis´ place.
The roof of the ABC Theater in Disney-MGM Studios will be getting some maintenance and enhancements, according to documents filed at the Orange County Comptroller´s office. It may not mean anything, or it could mean that they are finally getting ready to put something new in that space.
Also at the Studios, Disney appears to be ready to install the ride mechanism, projectors and screens in the new Toy Story Mania attraction, based on permit filings. With the inside of the attraction being installed, it appears as though the Summer, 2008 opening should be right on schedule.
Because of the construction of Toy Story Mania and the events of Star Wars Weekends, a number of Mickey Avenue attractions have been or will be relocated. Sorcerer Mickey´s meet & greet in Soundstage One has closed, to make room for Jabba´s Hut, the merchandise location for Star Wars Weekends. After the merchandise location is closed, it is expected to remain closed and Mickey´s meet & greet will be moved to the Sorcerer´s Hat. Also, starting June 25, 2007, the Kim Possible meet & greet will move to the Streets of America. The Friends of JoJo´s Circus and Little Einsteins meet & greets will move to the Animation Courtyard near Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage! The stretch of Mickey Avenue between the Journey into Narnia and the Backlot Tour entrance will be closed to Guest traffic. All these changes are expected to remain through the end of 2007.
BroadwayWorld.com has a great video with behind the scenes footage of Finding Nemo: the Musical at Disney´s Animal Kingdom. It includes show highlights and interviews, including Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Tony Award-winner Bobby Lopez, co-creators of the production.
5 Guests and a Cast Member were injured this past Tuesday on Kali River Rapids at Disney´s Animal Kingdom. It appears that one of the ride´s sensors detected something that caused the flume to stop and prompting an evacuation of the ride at 10:20 a.m. A platform designed to help transfer guests from the ride to the exit stairs malfunctioned during the evacuation of a raft on the steep incline, causing very minor injuries to the 5 Guests. The attraction reopened a few hours later after the faulty platform was disabled. An alternative method of evacuation was put into place, should the need arise again.
Get me a Cake! STAT!! Well, not quite, but a new “Cake Hotline” is now taking orders for special celebratory cakes that can be served at most Table Service dining locations with 48 hours notice. The hotline number is 407-827-2253. Guests with smaller needs (or less than 48 hours) may request a non-personalized 6-inch cake upon arrival at a restaurant´s check-in podium (no advance notice required). This cake costs $12.50 plus tax.
Previously reported as rumor, now it is news as I have confirmation from the Hacker Craft Company that the replacement boat for Breathless HAS in fact arrived in Walt Disney World as of Saturday, June 2. As I reported a few months ago, it is a 1991 Hacker-Craft made by the Hacker Boat Co. of Silver Bay, NY. The boat has many updates, as you will see it looks much younger that the original Breathless. It is expected to be christened Breathless II.
If you have any news to report, email Lou at Lou@wdwradio.com or leave a voicemail at the WDW Radio Show voicemail box: 206-202-4WDW (4939).
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