In 1992, Disneyland guests met a show that would become one of the most iconic features of the Disney Parks. Centered on an odd piece of real estate, this show took place on the water between New Orleans Square and Tom Sawyer Island, and it was unlike anything anyone had ever seen before.
In the over-20 years since its debut, Fantasmic has gone from a new sensation to an essential Disney experience. To give you a sense of how long it’s been in our lives, Fantasmic debuted at Disneyland closer to the opening of Walt Disney World than to today.
Yet, in all that time, the show still manages to inspire awe in anyone who sees it and to feel as original and breathtaking as it did all that time ago.
How is that possible? Well, the simple answer is of course “Disney magic” – but let’s try to take a look a little bit deeper. Fantasmic is one of the most well-designed shows Disney has ever produced, and there are an awful lot of moving parts that keep it feeling fresh.
Here are five features of Fantasmic that continue to amaze, even in its third decade of life.
The hero
Our hero, Mickey Mouse
Image: cff 10_2 Follow, Flickr (license)
One of the most interesting things about the Disney Parks is just how rare it is to see Mickey Mouse in an attraction – and I’m not talking about hidden Mickeys. Sure, he’s starred in attractions over the years, but now, he’s mostly a character who you only get to meet in person or see in a parade.
There are likely a few reasons for this, but I think the biggest reason of all is that by keeping Mickey somewhat separate from the other characters and attractions, he maintains a special feeling. When you see Mickey, you’re always surprised and your day always brightens.
Making him the hero of Fantasmic, then, adds a level of excitement and importance to the show that it wouldn’t otherwise have. The stakes of the show feel that much higher, since the protagonist also happens to be the most iconic animated character on earth. When he’s in danger, we feel nervous. When he’s triumphant, we feel overjoyed.
For many, Fantasmic is the final experience of their day at Disney. And so, after all the stories they’ve been taken on throughout the day, concluding with an epic tale with Mickey as the star is the perfect thematic climax.
We all already have a connection with Mickey Mouse – to make him the hero of Fantasmic immediately gives us a connection to the show.
The story
In Disneyland, Peter Pan and Captain Hook fight
Image: Ashley Rehnblom, Flickr (license)
But Mickey’s presence in Fantasmic wouldn’t be enough to capture the imagination without a compelling story. Never fear, however, because story just so happens to be the area Disney has always excelled at – and Fantasmic’s is a truly remarkable achievement.
The show tells the story of Mickey Mouse’s dream – one which gets interrupted by the devious Disney villains, who team up to turn that dream into a horrific nightmare.
What does Mickey dream about? The other Disney characters, of course – the same thing many children dream about as they go to sleep. He conjures up images of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice, the Lion King, the Jungle Book, Pocahontas, and Peter Pan. He weaves his way through the Disney canon with a dreamlike sense of free association. Even the villains come with a bit of dream logic, morphing into one another the same way a thought might morph during sleep.
This idea – that the show takes place during Mickey’s dream – is an absolute stroke of genius. It allows the performance to weave in and out of various Disney stories without any unnecessary exposition, and it gives the audience space to lose themselves in the action without worrying about how it all connects. It connects for the same reason any dream connects – because it does. You stop asking questions, and you simply appreciate the spectacle.
Is it a bit simple? Sure. Does the climax feel a bit unearned, with Mickey saying “This is my dream!” and suddenly taking control? Of course. But that doesn’t actually matter, because like any dream, it doesn’t have to make sense. All that matters is that the journey is thrilling, and Fantasmic’s surely is.
The effects
Water and sparks fly
Image: Ashley Rehnblom, Flickr (license)
Of course, Fantasmic isn’t just a piece of theater, it also features some remarkable and memorable effects. The most famous, probably, are the water screens that debut fairly early on in the show and recur throughout the performance.
As magical as Disney’s other projection techniques are – from projection mapping the castles to Pepper’s ghost – the water screens remain one of the most delightful. The fact that they’re able to create a physical screen – seemingly out of thin air – and then make it disappear never loses its magic. The texture of the water interacts with the projected light in such a way as to add new dimension to the scenes as well. Ultimately, they make the whole thing feel like something separate from a movie, but also not quite live action.
Beyond the projections, Fantasmic employs dozens of other incredible effects, from blacklights to cap guns to fireworks, and everything in between. The sparklers are particularly memorable, with Mickey shooting sparks from his fingers early in the show and lighting them from his sword at the climax.
All of these effects combine to make a show that dazzles as much as it moves, and that combination is what has kept Fantasmic feeling so special through the years. It truly has something for everyone.
The music
Given all that, however, you could make an argument that the star of Fantasmic isn’t Mickey Mouse at all – it’s Bruce Healey.
Healey is the man who composed the music for Fantasmic, and he’s also the man who you’re likely thanking in your head right now. The music of Fantasmic is an absolutely essential aspect of its success, and it’s impossible to talk about the show without discussing it’s incredible score.
The way Healey weaves together the classic themes of Disney movies along with his new compositions is masterful, and it is a large part of why the show feels as dreamlike as it does. Add to that his perfect sense of pace and dynamic, and you have a score which is every bit as important to the story as its characters.
The Disneyland version definitely feels a bit more early ’90s than its Orlando counterpart, which has the fun bubble interlude that features a medley of all the classic Disney themes. But on the whole, however, both continue to feel like timeless representations of Disney’s iconic music – particularly when the famous Disney princesses and princes venture out onto the water on their floats set to a gorgeous medley.
But there are two moments where Healey truly shines. The first is the show’s introduction, which plays Mickey Mouse onto the stage with an epic crescendo that shows the audience exactly the level of spectacle they can expect.
The second moment, is the one that will stick with you for a while …
The finale
Hey, we know that mouse!
Image: HarshLight, Flickr (license)
If you were trying to find the perfect encapsulation of the phrase “Disney magic”, you could do worse than the finale of Fantasmic.
Once Mickey vanquishes the villains, the stage goes dark for only a moment before Mickey returns captaining a massive ship (either the Riverboat or Steamboat Willie, depending on your preferred coast), flanked by a whole host of iconic Disney characters. As the music swells behind him, the float of characters circles in front of the audience, waving and bringing them into the story. Seeing them together doesn’t even feel odd – remember, it’s Mickey’s dream – and we can simply enjoy exploring how they interact. It’s spectacle of the highest order, coupled with music the elevates the spectacle.
But even the riverboat isn’t the moment most remember from this show, but rather, when Mickey appears high above the crowd, conducting not just water and fountains this time, but an incredible array of fireworks.
It’s one of the most kinetic sequences in any Disney attraction – Mickey’s vigorous motions really do feel as though they’re sending these rockets into the sky. And, with the soaring music playing underneath, it’s as epic a moment as Disney has ever produced. Here the audience sits, watching Disney’s most famous character and his most triumphant, and it’s nearly impossible not to feel affected by that.
And then, magically, he appears right in front of the audience – as a dip in the music gives him a second to talk. “Some imagination, huh?”
With that, he disappears and the show ends.
Even more than 20 years after its debut, Fantasmic still awes audiences, and it’s this final moment that seals the deal. In the preceding 20 minutes, we see and interact with characters we’ve known our entire lives, from Peter Pan and Pocahontas to Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty. But through it all, we follow Mickey Mouse, who starts the show on the ground with us, but finishes it by lifting our eyes to the sky.
The feeling we have in that moment, watching Mickey Mouse conduct an orchestra of fire – that feeling is timeless. That’s why Fantasmic is still around, and why it’s not going anywhere.
