Plus…News on Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, Epcot Food & Wine 2012, and more!
by Don Myers
Summer is quickly wrapping up, and as the calender changes from August to September, we find the Vacation Kingdom of the World making its yearly Autumn transition. With so much going on, it’s time to jump right into the latest edition of the WDW Radio Newswire…..
We kickoff this edition of the Newswire inside Magic Kingdom, where there are several bits of news to address. Let’s begin with Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, which is set to make its 2012 debut in just two weeks. The annual “Hard Ticket” event will run on select dates beginning on Tuesday September 11th, with the final party taking place this year on Friday November 2nd. The party runs from 7pm until midnight, and many of the usual festivities are on tap once again this year, including Mickey’s “Boo to You” Halloween Parade, the Villains Mix and Mingle Stage Show, and the HaloWishes Fireworks spectacular. And of course, trick or treat stations and themed Character meet and greets are also a part of the festivities for 2012. Click here for a complete listing of the party dates, as well as pricing info.
We continue in the Magic Kingdom, where confirmation has just been given pertaining to a 
new projection show at Cinderella Castle. The new show, entitled Celebrate the Magic, is officially set to make its debut this November. The show will be replacing The Magic, The Memories, and You! projection show, which has been running in one form or another at Cinderella Castle since January 19th, 2011. Celebrate the Magic will be directed by Katy Harris, and it has also been confirmed that the show will feature a new soundtrack completely different from that of The Magic, The Memories, and You. If want to see the old show one more time before it fades into the realm of extinction, you have until Monday September 3rd to do so.
Okay, one more quick newsbit at Magic Kingdom to touch on. For this one, we venture into Fantasyland, where an exterior refurbishment has just begun at Sir Mickey’s. Reminiscent of the exterior refurbs that have been taking place up and down Main Street as well as at other points throughout the park, Sir Mickey’s is now covered in tarps. But despite the cosmetic inconvenience, it’s “business as usual” at the gift shop, as Sir Mickey’s will be remaining open throughout the duration of the construction. No word yet on the length of the refurb, but when the tarps do come down, I’ll be sure to report it.
Time to jump on the Monorail and Park Hop over to Epcot Center, where the 2012 edition of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is nearing its start date. The event will be kicking off this year on Friday September 28th, with festivities set to conclude on Monday November 12th. The 46 day run will give the 2012 edition of Food & Wine the distinction of being the longest-running festival in the event’s seventeen year history! The usual cast of kiosks will be offering up a delicious array of their region’s finest food and drinks, and there’s even going to be two new kiosks in play for 2012. 
First up is Florida Local, which will include white corn arepa with mangalista pork rilette and Florida shrimp ceviche on the menu. And be sure to wash it down with a Florida Orange Grove “Hurricane Class 5” or a tasty brew from the Florida Beer Company.The second 2012 “rookie” kiosk will be located in the all-new TERRA Marketplace, and will feature an assortment of vegan dishes to choose from. Menu highlights include the trick’n chick’n curry, Silk berry smoothie, and chocolate cake served with passion fruit sorbet and coconut foam. In total, 29 kiosks will be on display around World Showcase Promenade. As with years past, the Wonders of Life pavilion will play the role of Festival Welcome Center. Culinary seminars hosted by celebrity chefs and various HGTV personalities, as well as the Eat to the Beat! Concert Series will also be back for 2012. Click here For more info on this year’s event.
For our final bit of news today, we venture out of the parks and into the resorts. The Main Feature Pool at Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort, the Surfboard Bay Pool, has just closed down for refurbishment. There is no official opening date for the pool, but a “late September” re-opening is expected. This should put the refurb time at just about a month. Also, if you’re going to be staying at All-Star Sports during the closure and you happen to be a fan of the aquatics; fear not. There is a second, smaller pool at the resort known as the Grand Slam Pool, which will indeed be open throughout the duration of the construction at Surfboard Bay Pool.
Well, that’s gonna do it for today’s update. But before we call it a wrap, I’d like to introduce an all-new interactive feature to the Newswire. Starting today, each edition will now feature a poll question. The question will have to do with one or more of the newsbits featured on the Newswire. For today’s poll question, we look to the upcoming Events on tap at WDW…
[poll id=”67″]
Don Myers covers news and recent events in Walt Disney World. He has been enamored with the World of Disney since his first trip to WDW in 1986. As they say, the rest is history! Don also has been a contributing writer for Celebrations magazine since 2009.
