ENTER A WORLD OF POSSIBILITIES
The collective gasp brought on by a burst of fireworks over a fairytale castle. The chills felt as Simba’s story comes to life on stage. The moments of delight in a personal connection between a child and a beloved Disney character. All these and more are made possible by the world-class team of professionals at Disney Live Entertainment.
Through innovative storytelling and a culture of collaboration, Disney Live Entertainment creates, produces, and delivers remarkable and engaging entertainment experiences. From the intimate to the spectacular, our work can be seen at Disney theme parks, resort hotels, cruise ships and other locations the world over. This diverse team – representing a wide variety of disciplines and talents from technical directors, writers and lighting designers to choreographers, cosmetologists, and music producers – brings magical worlds to life through technical expertise, performance excellence, incomparable ingenuity, unparalleled spectacle… and a dash of pixie dust.
OUR LIVE ENTERTAINMENT TEAM
Disney Live Entertainment is a remarkably diverse and widespread organization of entertainment professionals committed to being the most aspirational theatre company in the world. Whether we’re focused on producing unique offerings tailored for a local audience or developing innovative experiences that raise the bar for the entire industry, the live entertainment team works together to bring magic to guests somewhere in the world, every minute of every day. Our group of talented individuals strives to be the best at what we do, and that passion carries over to our time spent with one another, volunteer efforts that enrich our communities, and outreach programs to inspire the next generation.
STORYTELLERS TO THE WORLD
Storytelling is at the center of everything we do at Disney Live Entertainment, and our driving force is finding the best way to tell every story, big or small, from a traditional puppet show to the most ambitious nighttime spectacular imaginable. A young girl has an unforgettable heroic encounter with Black Panther and the Dora Milaje at Disney California Adventure Park. Moana recounts her adventures on stage at Hong Kong Disneyland Park. Thousands stand in awe as the tentacles of a kraken wrap around the castle spires of Disneyland Paris, pulling them into a fiery battle with the Pirates of the Caribbean. We create immersive worlds like these and bring stories to life, always focused on authentically representing the cultures, backgrounds, and traditions of the characters and stories we share.
WE LOVE A PARADE
Parades are a hallmark of Disney Parks, with fantastical floats, memorable music, and scores of performers in elaborate costumes. Each new parade dreamed up by the team at Disney Live Entertainment brings new innovations. In Paris and Orlando, an engineering marvel allows dragons to walk the parade route breathing fire. The “Magic Happens” parade at Disneyland Park includes a magnificent “Coco” float combining live performance, vibrant production design, charming animated figures, and an enormous walking, alebrije puppet. And for the Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade “Dreamlights,” a stunning Blue Fairy leads a procession brimming with state-of-the-art lighting technologies. But even with the latest technology at our fingertips, sometimes the greatest magic comes in the simplicity of a Disney character making a personal connection with a young guest along the parade route.
SPECTACULAR SPECTACULARS
Since the very first fireworks presented at Disneyland Park in the 1950s, nighttime shows have grown more and more spectacular, incorporating 3D projection mapping, dynamic audio design, fountains, lasers, lighting effects, pyrotechnics, and more to dazzle audiences and transport them to new worlds, telling stories in entirely new ways. For "Momentous," Disney Live Entertainment worked with the team at Hong Kong Disneyland to use every tool available to tell a heartwarming tale in breathtaking fashion.
ENCOUNTERS WITH CHARACTER
Waving “Hello!” to Donald Duck in Woodchuck Hall at Tokyo Disneyland Park. Posing heroically with Buzz Lightyear in Andy’s Backyard at Toy Story Land. Getting an autograph from Captain Minnie Mouse aboard the Disney Wonder. Personalized meetings and interactions with favorite characters are a highlight for many of our guests. We also deliver encounters with wholly original characters created by Disney Live Entertainment, such as being recruited by Resistance spy Vi Moradi at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge or sharing some of the traditions of Hawai’i with Auntie and Uncle at Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa. The Disney Live Entertainment team puts as much thought and effort into shaping the settings, costumes, music, and stories that go into these experiences as they do when developing a new parade or nighttime spectacular. Character greetings and encounters can deliver truly unforgettable magical moments.
ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE
Filling everything from performance platforms with fanciful castle backdrops to Broadway-quality proscenium stages, the collective talents of Disney Live Entertainment rival those of the largest theater companies in the world. Seated in the Walt Disney Theatres aboard the ships of Disney Cruise Line, guests are treated to a lineup of original musical productions, telling the stories of “Beauty and the Beast,” “Frozen,” “Aladdin” and more in spectacular fashion. El Teatro Fandango in Treasure Cove at Shanghai Disneyland sends Captain Jack Sparrow (and the audience!) into the “Eye of the Storm” for a stunt show featuring a breathtaking, aerial swordfight held aloft by the swirling force of an indoor tornado, while the team at Disneyland Paris wows guests with stage extravaganzas like “The Lion King: Rhythms of the Pride Lands” and “Mickey and the Magician.”
AN ENTERTAINING ATMOSPHERE
Throughout the Disney parks and resorts, Disney Live Entertainment teams deploy a variety of acts to enhance the atmosphere, provide a musical interlude, or help bring the story of an area to vivid life. A pianist tickling the ivories adds to the mood of Victorian splendor as guests arrive in the lobby of the Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel. At Disney California Adventure Park, the traditional Mexican folk music of Mariachi Divas brings the culture of California to life, inspiring everyone to clap along and join in. And in the Gardens of Imagination at Shanghai Disneyland, guests are invited to enjoy “Tai Chi with Character,” an interactive performance featuring authentic Chinese costumes and music… along with special appearances by Donald Duck and Chip ‘n’ Dale. Attention to detail and a focus on excellence elevates each of these experiences, making them highlights of a day in the park.
PUPPET MASTERS
Various forms of puppetry artfully bring characters to life in Disney Live Entertainment productions at every Disney theme park and cruise ship around the world. On the Disney Magic, audiences are delighted to see Maximus the horse as part of the cast of “Tangled: The Musical.” Jack Skellington surprises everyone when he takes the stage at Magic Kingdom Park during the annual Halloween fireworks spectacular, and during the holiday season at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the Merry Menagerie brings winter creatures to the streets for charming encounters.
TIME TO PLAY THE MUSIC & LIGHT THE LIGHTS
Since 2019, Disney Live Entertainment has had the privilege of working with Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo and the entire zany cast of The Muppets Studio, which is developing new opportunities for these classic characters to entertain generations of fans. Whether it’s the Disney+ original series “The Muppets Mayhem,” Miss Piggy’s guest spot on “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” or the Emmy Award-winning Halloween special “Muppets Haunted Mansion,” The Muppets Studio produces a wide range of projects, from activations at Disney Parks and across social media to original programming for Disney+ and appearances on a wide variety of television programs.
TECHNOLOGY ONSTAGE AND BACKSTAGE
We are constantly pushing the envelope with advanced technologies, always in service of a story or creative vision. Often that technology is on full display, such as with the spectacular interplay of water and light in “World of Color” at Disneyland Resort or the seamless combination of live performance, video projection and an Audio-Animatronics figure in “King Triton’s Concert” at Tokyo DisneySea. Other times, technology plays a role behind the scenes, providing our technical designers tools like virtual reality or biometric measurements of performers to assist costume designers, all enabling us to imagine future productions more effectively. “ILLUMINATE! A Nighttime Celebration,” the 5th anniversary spectacular for Shanghai Disneyland, was created using a Virtual Programming Environment, allowing each design discipline to see their work within the context of the full show, long before anything was done for real in the park itself.
CUSTOM COSTUMING
Costume designers, costumers, seamstresses, cosmetologists, and more come together to create the incredible looks, from head to toe, that make the performers in Disney Live Entertainment shows shine so brightly. From the 1920s New York style of the cast of “Big Band Beat” at Tokyo Disney Resort to the stylishly uniformed space cadets introducing Buzz Lightyear in the “Flights of Fantasy” parade at Hong Kong Disneyland, our Costuming team combines fanatical research, boundless imagination, and unmatched skill to deliver costumes that elevate every production. From time to time, luminaries from the world of fashion have chosen to collaborate with the talented team at Disney Live Entertainment Costuming, such as when noted Chinese designer Guo Pei joined us in the creation of new Lunar New Year outfits for Mickey and Minnie.
DRESSING THE PART
At Disney parks and resorts, every cast member from merchandise host to bus driver is part of the show. In addition to supporting our entertainment experiences, the Costuming team at Disney Live Entertainment also designs and delivers costumes for operational cast, to support the story being told. At Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, cast members working in the land play a larger role in the story than ever before. Costumers and designers developed a wide variety of looks inspired by the Star Wars saga, incorporating innovative fabrics and a collection of pieces that allow the cast to individualize their costumes, be they First Order, Resistance, or Batuu villager. Even Disney’s famed Audio-Animatronics figures sport bespoke costumes designed, fabricated, and meticulously maintained by members of the Disney Live Entertainment Costuming team.
BEYOND PARKS AND RESORTS
The reach of Disney Live Entertainment also extends well beyond the Disney parks, with teams creating magical experiences for audiences in virtually every corner of the world. Whether it’s the Disney Characters joining the fun for Disney Night on “Dancing with the Stars,” arranging special appearances during Chicago’s annual holiday parade, building a three-story ice sculpture of Cinderella Castle in Times Square, revealing a Disney-branded airplane in São Paulo, hosting Mickey Mouse on a tour of Southeast Asia, or staging the grand dedication of a new Disney Cruise Line ship, Disney Live Entertainment teams are involved, coordinating logistics with local partners and seeing every detail through to a flawless execution.
A TRADITION OF INNOVATION
Disney Live Entertainment has built a legacy of excellence through a dedication to storytelling supported, often invisibly, by innovative technological advancements. Guests enjoy fireworks perfectly synchronized to music, delight at the sight of a parade of lights, and feel blown away by an enormous water show with color-changing fountains, projections, and lasers. They’re dazzled by effects such as drones or an indoor wind tunnel incorporated into theatrical productions. These experiences and more have been invented or introduced by the theatrical wizards at Disney Live Entertainment. Over the nearly seven decades since the opening of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, entertainment at Disney’s parks and resorts has expanded from a marching band on Main Street, U.S.A. to a diverse creative portfolio that has continually redefined what’s possible. What will we think of next?!
DISNEY LIVE ENTERTAINMENT
Through innovative storytelling and a culture of collaboration, the Disney Live Entertainment teams create, produce, and deliver the best live entertainment experiences in the world!
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