by James Coulter
Get ready to be dazzled by a spectacular festival pageant of nighttime magic and imagination. For the first time in nearly ten years, a new nighttime parade is set to arrive at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom on the evening of July 20: “Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away”
With the parade set to premiere next month, anticipation remains high for what wonders await with millions of sparkling lights and electro-syntho-magnetic musical sounds. Until then, here are a few fun facts of what we know about the parade thus far:
#1: First Nighttime Parade in a Decade
“Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away” will be the first time the Magic Kingdom has hosted a nighttime parade within the past decade.
The last parade to perform at the park was the Main Street Electrical Parade, which ended its run in 2016. Since then, the park’s only other nighttime entertainment has been its nightly fireworks shows.
#2: Inspired by Past Nighttime Parades
“Disney Starlight” will continue the legacy of the Magic Kingdom’s previous nighttime parades, which include the Main Street Electrical Parade (which initially ran from 1977 to 1991, 1999 to 2001, and 2010 to 2016) and SpectroMagic (which ran from 1992 to 1998).
In fact, as reported by Disney Parks Blogs, many of the cast members who worked on both the Electrical Parade and SpectroMagic have provided their talent in adding their creative touch to this new parade.
#3: Disney Characters Old and New
The parade will star several dozen Disney characters from Disney movies, from classic films like Snow White, Peter Pan, and Cinderella, to modern favorites like Moana, Frozen, Encanto, and Wish.
The big finale will be a float inspired by the train unit from the Main Street Electrical Parade. Riding the float will be characters like Mickey Mouse and friends, as well as characters from Snow White, Tangled, and Aladdin.
#4: Innovative Storytelling and Choreography
The parade will utilize state-of-the-art lighting and technology to offer nighttime entertainment unlike any other parade before.
As Disney Parks Blogs reports, the parade will utilize a unique blend of “innovative lighting techniques” and “whimsical custom-fabrics” to make each parade unit and its characters appear as though they were “kissed by starlight.”
The parade units have been described by Imagineers as “storytelling stages on wheels” that utilize “lighting and video elements as a storytelling tool” in order to “create magic and movement that a static image would not provide.”
Also helping bring the parade to life will be the choreography being created by Cindy Wilson, who claimed to draw “inspiration from each of the films” represented in the parade, and which will incorporate a “mix of different dance styles.”
#5: Tribute to Disney Animation
Aside from featuring characters and scenes from Disney animated films, one of the parade floats will be designed after the art style of a notable Disney artist.
The Disney Princess unit will feature classic Disney princesses like Cinderella, Belle, Aurora, and Tiana dancing with their respective princes in an enchanted ballroom-like setting.
As Disney Parks Blog reports, the parade unit’s design “pays homage to Disney Legend and artist Mary Blair’s original concept artwork for Disney Animation’s ‘Cinderella.'”
#6: New Merch and Food Options
To celebrate the debut of the new parade, Magic Kingdom will be selling commemorative Disney Starlight merchandise.
According to the Disney Parks Blog, this merchandise will include a “logo tee shirt, blanket, a Disney pin, a light-up pair of Mickey Ears with a removable bow, and a light-up bubble wand that will dance along with the parade.”
Main Street Confectionary in Magic Kingdom will also be selling a special popcorn mix starting the night of the parade. As the blog explains, this mix will include “Bubble Gum and Blue Raspberry Candy Popcorn, M&M’S® Milk Chocolate Candies, mini-marshmallows, and white chocolatey drizzle.”
Also, to help promote the parade, a new poster will be displayed at the Magic Kingdom train station alongside other posters of other favorite Disney World attractions.
