Welcome to Fantasmic

With Fantasmic set to return to Disneyland at the end of May, Walt Disney World guests are still wondering when the show will return to Disney Hollywood Studios.  Disney has already announced that the show will be returning in 2022 with a new sequence but, in addition to the new Moana and Aladdin sequence teased at D23, not much is known about what changes are in store.  Which led us to this....

Which version of Fantasmic do you like more?  Disneyland or Walt Disney World's?  If you are not familiar, Disneyland's version of Fantasmic (called Fantasmic 2.0) is slightly different from the version at Hollywood Studios in Florida.  Here is a cheat sheet of the two shows: 

Let's explore some of the biggest differences between  the shows....

Music

The Disneyland version features updated orchestration.  The Disney World version, while similar, sounds dated.  We'll link videos to the shows below and you'll be able to hear for yourself how much cleaner and fresh the Disneyland Fantasmic theme sounds compared to Walt Disney World 

Location

Fantasmic debuted at Disneyland Park and remains there today.  It takes place on Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America.   Over on the east coast, Fantasmic is performed at Disney Hollywood Studios.  While the bottlenecks in and around New Orleans Square and Frontierland can be cumbersome, the show just feels more authentic at Disneyland compared to the amphitheater at Hollywood Studios.  

Show Scenes

The show scenes in Fantasmic are very similar.  They both feature a nearly identical opening sequence and a nearly identical closing sequence.  Both feature an homage to The Lion King and a medley of Disney Princess songs and appearances.  Where they most differ are the villain sequences (Disneyland's feels more streamlined) and the Pirates of the Caribbean/Pocahontas sequence.  

While Disney has not made any official announcement, our guess is the new show sequence featuring Moana and Aladdin will replace the Pocahontas sequence.  It is highly unlikely that Disney will invest in a second ship to double as the Black Pearl (the way the Colombia does in Disneyland) - so no Pirates of the Caribbean live-action scene for Orlando.   

  

. . . So which version do you like better?  If we had to pick one, we'd go with the OG at Disneyland.  If you haven't seen both shows, check out these videos: 

Disneyland

 

 

 Walt Disney World