Finding Nemo - The Musical - The First Showing!!!

**MainStreet, USA** · 11-06-2006, 03:41 AM

Just this morning (well, yesterday morning, seeing as it's so well past midnght already) I had the enormous privelege of being in the audience for the first public showing of the new Animal Kingdom attraction, Finding Nemo - The Musical.

While the show doesn't o-fish-ally (officially, get it?

) open until November 19th, Sunday the 5th marked the first "test showing" to the public. I'm told there was a VIP unveiling of the attraction on Friday, but this was the first chance for us common folk to check it out. Just before the show began, Disney's Vice President of Creative Entertainment (I believe that was her proper title) gave a short speech welcoming us and congratulating us on being the first ever audience for this show. She also pointed out that joining us for the show were a number of members of the Disney Creative Team, lining the back of the now fully-enclosed Theater In The Wild - former home of the beloved Tarzan Rocks show.

Now, I don't want to go spoiling this one with a detailed review, as there is entirely too much to say about it, and all of it, I assure you, is good news. But what I will tell you is this: I went into this show a bit skeptical - Skeptical because I wasn't sure that this new Finding Nemo -The Musical was going to be able to live up to its predecessor. It's not that I loved Tarzan Rocks, but I enjoyed it, and do miss its presence at DAK. I loved hearing the rockin' sounds of the Phil Collins tunes come pouring out of that open-air Theater In The Wild as I passed by, tapping my foot to Terk scatting away to Trashin' The Camp. It was loud, it was upbeat, and most of all, it was fun. I mean, Dude... they had monkeys on roller blades - How cool is that?!?

Needless to say, I wasn't entirely sold on the whole turning the theater into an enclosed structure, and making a musical out of Finding Nemo, using puppets no less. Now, nothing against Nemo - the movie is AMAZING, and I would never say a bad word against it in my life - but how on Earth did Disney plan on pulling this one off? Puppets... and a musical? No matter how I imagined it in my head, and believe you me I put plenty of thought into this, I couldn't come up with anything other than a glorified version of what we see over at Disney-MGM Studios in Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

Well ladies and gentlemen, I'm writing to you at this late-night hour, unable to sleep from the excitement, absolutely thrilled to admit to you that Disney's creative genius has once again proved me so wrong that I literally hung my head in shame at ever having doubted them. This show is SO IMMENSELY COOL!!!

I also have to take this moment to apologize to the roller blading monkeys, but Nemo and crew are... I don't even know - here I am, the guy who writes too much and seems to always have something to say, can't even think of the right words to describe how I felt while watching this!

Just try and wrap your imagination around this for a heartbeat:

The puppeteers were the singers, and the singers were also the actors, and the actors were also themselves (and their characters, both at the same time!)... oh, and don't forget the phenomomenal visual and lighting effects, the pyrotechnics, the costumes, the characters, the creatures... and not to mention the aerialists.

And oh my goodness the soundtrack!!! I'm already guaranteeing you I will OWN that CD the first second I find it on the rack!

"Just go with the flowwwwwww-ohhh-ohhhh! Just go with the flow!"

Now I'm betting you just read that and went "Wha??? - Huh?" That's right, you heard me - Nemo is a blast! You know what... just see the show for yourselves. It's the only way you're going to make any sense at all out of my jibberish. The point is this: The show commenced to an ample round of applause and some degree of supportive "break-a-leg" cheer. The show concluded to a standing ovation, an immense, feel-it-in-your-bones kind of cheer, and an overwhelming audience response that seemed to say as a collective group, "Once more... From the top!"

**trickster** · 11-06-2006, 06:15 AM

Don, I had the exact same thoughts as you did - That is until I read your report!!!

**disneydreamer98** · 11-06-2006, 06:17 AM

Thanks for the review Don! It sounds wonderful and I cannot wait to take the boys!

**iwannabeminnie** · 11-06-2006, 07:01 AM

Great review. Once again, have you ever considered writing (for money)?

**SmallWorld** · 11-06-2006, 10:50 AM

New here - but it seems to me that if Don is a college student he's always writing for money! Great review though! Really enjoy reading your stuff.

**MainStreet, USA** · 11-06-2006, 11:45 AM

Hey SmallWorld - Welcome to DWT!

And in a way, you are sort of right. I do write for money as a college student - every semester, at least once a semester, it's more loans loans loans loans loans... I keep writing them for more money!

You can also look at it another way - school is costing me a lot of money to do a lot of writing!

(Oh, and I'm a little goofy right now. I'm kicking myself for going to sleep at 4:30am before having to get up at 6:30 to make my 8:00 class - woo fun!)

**disneymaniac86** · 11-06-2006, 12:26 PM

Wow... it sounds good, and I know that feeling that WDW can make you get and you nailed it right on the head. So I have to believe your review completely. Now I'm excited. I actually hadn't included this show in my plans in our visit because I thought it would be horrible, but it looks like I will be doing some rescheduling!

**BamaJenn** · 11-06-2006, 12:30 PM

Warning!!!! Do not have a baby and then start reading about all the new stuff happening at WDW!

When you're broke and your son is too young to go... it stinks!! LOL!!

**BamaJenn** · 11-06-2006, 12:30 PM

Warning!!!! Do not have a baby and then start reading about all the new stuff happening at WDW!

When you're broke and your son is too young to go... it stinks!! LOL!!

I wanna go so bad. Between this update and the information I've read about the Nemo attraction opening at Epcot... I'm so ready for another trip. You know you're an addict when it's been less than a year and you feel all shakey and uncomfortable whenever you think about what you're missing. LOL!

**magikindom** · 11-06-2006, 06:35 PM

Great review Don I cant wait to check it out myself.

**DisneyFREAK91** · 11-06-2006, 07:22 PM

You are making me so excited to see this!!!

**PinkTink918** · 11-06-2006, 07:42 PM

Great review, Don!!! My friend's dad constructed the theater, so she got to see it a few weeks ago..I guess it was in rehearsals? She loved it and I can't wait to see it!!!

**MainStreet, USA** · 11-06-2006, 07:50 PM

I was just reading some other articles and reviews/discussion about this show over on wdwmagic.com, and it appears as though there are a number of people who claim to know quite a bit of behind the scenes info regarding changes likely to take place before the show is finalized. While I'm certain some changes will in fact take place (this is, after all, still a "dress rehearsal" period), it seems as though none of these "insiders" really can agree as to what they've heard is going to change about it. Some are saying that the show will be lengthened by a few minutes to give performers more time to change puppets/costumes/etc. Others say it will be shortened in order to fit more shows in each day. A few have also mentioned that they are still working on redoing some of the musical tracks.

So what does this means to us? - Who the heck knows? The show could change 50 times between now and the final version. All I do know is that the very first showing, of the very first version, on the very first day of test shows just BLEW ME AWAY! So even though I don't want to see the show shortened or the music changed, I am putting my every faith in the team who put together this first version, because no matter what they decide to put forward as the finished version, we can all be sure that it will be fantastic.