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World Of Color
Review by Staff Member Mark

(6/24/10) Today we’ve got our West Coast man’s review of Disney’s new World of Color show. Take it away Mark!

    The wait is over for the all-new World of Color at Disney California Adventure. Is it worth the hype? After experiencing the amazing show last Thursday, I can definitely say it is! While the show lacks a cohesive storyline, it does offer some of the most heartfelt moments of the beloved collection of Disney movies. Where it really succeeds is in bringing Disney California Adventure a one of a kind highly technical nighttime spectacular like no other.
    There are many stars of the show, beginning with almost 1200 programmable fountains that are illuminated with a ring of lights at the base. The colors of the fountains are brilliant - unlike anything I have ever seen. At any distance, the plumes of water are so bright and so beautiful that this might be the first Disney spectacular that doesn’t have a bad seat in the house (unless getting wet is a problem-details about that later).
    The water screens of World of Color are amazingly well done. The images are bright and clear, the use of multiple screens give different size and depth effects that compliment both the projections and the fountains. Guests were in awe during the scenes from Pocahontas and Lion King as the scene stretched the lake panoramically and enveloped the audience into the scene. These were truly some of the most amazing scenes of the show.
    Fire had a smaller role in the show, both thematically and an effective quick dry off from earlier scenes. Although I always love fire in shows (Fantasmic and Illuminations for example), I would have loved to see some colored fire effects like SeaWorld Orlando brought in for Mistify.
    A few people around me were disappointed in not having a story to follow in this show. I took World of Color for being an homage to classic moments from decades of  Disney films. Again, the segments that pulled the viewers in to the scene (such as the Pocahontas and Lion King) were the most effective. The Buzz Lightyear portion was a crowd favorite with ohhs and ahhs following the lasers, fountains and quick light changes of the battle. I personally felt some of the Pixar moments ran too long, or in the case of UP, it seemed like an afterthought. The huge orchestral score of the Hunchback soundtrack offered powerful moments when paired with the fire and fountains (and the AMAZING sound system). I think the only part that didn’t really feel right for me was having Pirates of the Caribbean in the show. World of Color was a celebration of the art and animation of Disney, and even though the scene was big and fiery, it did not fit with the rest of the show.
    World of Color is going to be a total crowd pleaser and a welcome start to the huge transformation to Disney California Adventure. This show is a celebration of Disney that can be added on to and changed to wow audiences for years to come.