The Town Square Theater in Magic Kingdom is so much more than a glorified Meet and Greet location. It is a trip backstage, a peek behind the curtain, a VIP visit to the main mouse’s dressing room, and as such, this elevated experience treats observant visitors to a number of callbacks, gags, inside jokes, and Easter eggs.
Perhaps the reason this scene is such a perfect encapsulation of that moment in history is because it is based on a photograph that was taken for the purpose of conveying the hardship of the Great Depression.
Throughout its 52-year history, Frontierland in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World has seen a number of additions that have drastically altered its original footprint….Amidst these high profile goings-on, it can be easy to miss the small things, but Frontierland is undeniably filled with fantastic Easter eggs and references.
When guests visit Disney’s Hollywood Studios they are treated to a visual history of Los Angeles and its architecture as they pass down both Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards. Combinations of Art Deco, Streamline Moderne, Mission Revival, and Programmatic Architecture line the paths and serve as both shops and dining locations.
When designing the Germany Pavilion for EPCOT in Walt Disney World, Imagineers hoped to recreate the feeling of the German platz or plaza. As such, the facades of the shops and dining locations surrounding the central fountain depicting St. George and the Dragon, allude to architecture found in Frankfurt and Rothenburg, in addition to the obvious reference to the Freiburg Kaufhaus in the façade on the right side of the pavilion.
The Norway Pavilion in World Showcase was intended to be a representation of the real nation of Norway, so when Imagineers were tasked with incorporating an imaginary kingdom, they did so with a faithfulness to the real-world location it would sit amidst.
Soon, the style was present across the country in the form of diners, gas stations, train terminals, and commercial buildings, but perhaps one of the most famous examples of Streamline Moderne was built in 1935 at the corner of Fairfax Avenue and Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles.
When it was decided that Italy would serve as inspiration for one of the World Showcase pavilions in Epcot at Walt Disney World, the architecture of Venice was chosen to be featured at the forefront of the pavilion.
As guests enter the World Showcase Promenade, it would be nearly impossible to miss the impressive “stone” structure with the high-pitched, copper-patinaed roof which towers over the first pavilion on the right side of the lagoon. Known to Epcot as the Hotel du Canada, it sits atop one of the park’s premier restaurants, Le Cellier.
In the mid-19th Century, Napoleon III charged George-Eugene Haussman, Prefect of the Seine, with recreating the center of Paris. What followed was decades of massive
The Torii Gate at Itsukushima Shrine rises from the Seto Inland Sea and appears almost as if it is floating alongside the island of Miyajima. Conveying a quite strength, the structure serves to distinguish between the sacred and the commonplace.
Liberty Square, perhaps more than any other land in Magic Kingdom, is populated by locations which are real, historically inspired, or imagined.