''Disneyland Forever'' was a nighttime spectacular at

Disneyland Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envision ...

that premiered alongside the ''

Paint the Night ''Paint the Night Parade'' was a nighttime parade at Hong Kong Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and Disneyland. The Hong Kong version premiered on September 11, 2014, as part of the park 9th anniversary expansion. The Disneyland versi ...

'' parade and '' World of Color—Celebrate!'' on May 21, 2015 as part of the park's 60th anniversary celebration. The show was produced by

Walt Disney Creative Entertainment Disney Live Entertainment is the theatrical live entertainment production division of Walt Disney Imagineering, the design and development arm of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, a segment and direct subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. H ...

, under direction of

Steve Davison Steve Davison is Lead Creative Executive of Parades and Spectaculars for Walt Disney Creative Entertainment, and is responsible for the overall creative direction of daytime parades, firework displays, and nighttime spectaculars at Walt Disney Pa ...

. ''Disneyland Forever'' incorporates

fireworks Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large number of devices ...

projection mapping Projection mapping, similar to video mapping and spatial augmented reality, is a video projection, projection technique used to turn objects, often irregularly shaped, into display surfaces for video projection. The objects may be complex industr ...

, fire, lasers, and searchlights to depict scenes from Disney films. The show's original run ended on September 5, 2016 upon conclusion of the Diamond Celebration. The shows exit song, "A Kiss Goodnight", would be later be released on CD with a book bearing the song's name. A second run for ''Disneyland Forever'' began on June 7, 2019, marking the first time the show has been presented since the end of the Diamond Celebration. Many enhanced elements that were developed for '' Mickey's Mix Magic'' were incorporated into the show. On August 2, 2019, it was confirmed on a livestream of the first performance of the Main Street Electrical Parade that the show would have its final 2019 performance on September 2, 2019. Disneyland Forever closed at Disneyland again on September 2, 2019 to prepare for the return of ''

Halloween Screams ''Halloween Screams: A Villainous Surprise in the Skies'' is a Halloween-themed fireworks show that is presented at Disneyland during the seasonal Mickey's Halloween Party event. Based on the similarly-themed, former fireworks show '' HalloWishe ...

'' for public showing for the first time since opening year on September 6, 2019.

Technical details

''Disneyland Forever'' featured fireworks launched both from backstage areas and from selected locations within the park, as well as the largest projection mapping display ''ever'' presented in a Disney park. During the show, video and images are projected on

Sleeping Beauty Castle Sleeping Beauty Castle is a fairy tale castle at the center of Disneyland and formerly at Hong Kong Disneyland. It is based on the late 19th century Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany. It appeared in the Walt Disney Pictures logos from 198 ...

, the buildings along

Main Street USA Main Street, U.S.A. is the first "themed land" inside the main entrance of the many theme parks operated or licensed by The Walt Disney Company around the world. Main Street, U.S.A. is themed to resemble American small towns during the early 20t ...

, the

Matterhorn The (, ; it, Cervino, ; french: Cervin, ; rm, Matterhorn) is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the ...

, the facade of

It's a Small World "It's a Small World" is a water-based boat ride located in the Fantasyland area at various Disney theme parks worldwide, including Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California; Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida; Tokyo D ...

, and along the Rivers of America (on the water screens from '' Fantasmic'' and since 2019, with a

water fountains A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were ori ...

added), using a total of 25 projectors. The projections in each area are different in order to evenly distribute crowds and to encourage people to view the show multiple times from different locations. The show also features fire effects, lasers, searchlights, and other effects, and is approximately fourteen minutes and forty-seven seconds long. The projection mapping technology installed for ''Disneyland Forever'' would remain after the show concluded its initial run; it has since been implemented in '' Remember... Dreams Come True'' (albeit without Main Street projections); '' Disney's Celebrate America;'' ''

'' (and Mickey's Halloween Party in general); '' Believe... In Holiday Magic'' for the holiday season; ''Together Forever'', the Pixar fireworks spectacular; and '' Mickey's Mix Magic'', the Mickey's 90th anniversary fireworks show During first 2022 public showing of ''Disneyland Forever'' on April 22, 2022, fireworks part of the show was forcefully cancelled mid-show due to high-winds. Nevertheless, the show continued without fireworks.

Show summary

Two new songs were written for the show: the theme song "Live the Magic" and the exit song "Kiss Goodnight", the latter of which was written by composer

Richard M. Sherman Richard Morton Sherman (born June 12, 1928) is an American songwriter who specialized in musical films with his brother Robert B. Sherman. According to the official Walt Disney Company website and independent fact checkers, "the Sherman Brot ...

and sung by

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

star

Ashley Brown Ashley Brown (born February 3, 1982) is an American singer and actress who is best known for playing the titular character in the United States national tour and Broadway productions of '' Mary Poppins''. Early life Brown was born February 3, 19 ...

. Other songs co-written by Sherman and his late brother,

Robert B. Sherman Robert Bernard Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) was an American songwriter, best known for his work in musical films with his brother, Richard M. Sherman. The Sherman brothers produced more motion picture song scores than any ...

, including " Step in Time" from ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'' and "

Heffalumps and Woozles ''Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day'' is a 1968 American animated featurette based on the third, fifth, ninth, and tenth chapters of ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' and the second, eighth, and ninth chapters from '' The House at Pooh Corner'' by A. A. Mil ...

" from ''

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ''The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh'' is a 1977 American animated musical anthology comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Buena Vista Distribution. It is the 22nd Disney animated feature film and was first r ...

'' are also featured in the show. The rest of the soundtrack includes music, songs, and audio from

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

and

Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...

films and archival footage of

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

. The show features seven themed sections: *"Opening": A traditional fanfare, complete with 94 high powered searchlights - ultimately forming a diamond over

and Main Street USA (as well as other 17 searchlights across Rivers of America as of June 2019) - opens the show (in the alternate version, a low level pyrotechnics was included). As images of

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

groves are projected around the viewing areas, the opening narration describes how, 60 years ago, the area where Disneyland currently stands was an orange grove. As the projected oranges grow larger, they burst into pixie dust.

’s declaration that "as long as there’s imagination left in the world,

will never be complete" ushers in

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythi ...

and a live action

Tinker Bell Tinker Bell is a fictional character from J. M. Barrie's 1904 play '' Peter Pan'' and its 1911 novelisation ''Peter and Wendy''. She has appeared in a variety of film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 ...

. Peter encourages Tinker Bell to sprinkle her pixie dust on the castle as they show the audience "how magical this place can be", leading into "Live the Magic." *"Clouds": Projections of the rooftops of London accompany the song " Step in Time" from ''

'' ( Dick Van Dyke recorded new chants as the character Bert for this sequence). Projected kites then segue into floating lanterns as " I See the Light" from ''

Tangled ''Tangled'' is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated musical adventure fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Loosely based on the German fairy tale ''Rapunzel'' in the collection of ...

'' is performed. *"Enchanted Places": A projection of

Winnie the Pooh Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear and Pooh, is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. The first collection of stories about the character w ...

floats to the top of the castle and dives into a honeycomb to introduce a sequence featuring the songs " Rumbly in My Tumbly" and "

" from ''

''. *"Jungle": The song "

Circle of Life "Circle of Life" is a song from Disney's 1994 animated film ''The Lion King''. Composed by English musician Elton John, with lyrics by Tim Rice, the song was performed by Carmen Twillie (the deep female lead vocals) and Lebo M. (opening vocals ...

", a fireworks "sunrise", and projected animals recreate the opening scene of ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance ...

''. The scene then transitions to Angkor Wat from ''

The Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' (1894) is a collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, w ...

'' as

King Louie King Louie is a fictional character introduced in Walt Disney's 1967 animated musical film '' The Jungle Book''. He is an Orangutan who leads other jungle primates and wants to become more human-like by gaining knowledge of fire from Mowgli. L ...

performs " I Wanna Be Like You". A "wild jazz number" punctuated by rainstorm effects and waterfalls follow. *"Sea": Giant inflatable coral structures and projections of underwater scenes accompany

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

and Sebastian from ''

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a ...

'' as they perform "

Under the Sea "Under the Sea" is a song from Disney's 1989 animated film '' The Little Mermaid'', composed by Alan Menken with lyrics by Howard Ashman. It is influenced by the calypso style of the Caribbean which originated in Trinidad and Tobago, as well ...

". The number ends abruptly as projections of the Tank Gang from "Finding Nemo" encourage a Nemo puppet suspended above the castle to swim through the "Ring of Fire". Projections, smoke and lighting effects on the Matterhorn transform it into Mt. Wannahockaloogie. *"Snow": The projected smoke and ash from the volcano transition into snow as artificial foam snow begins to fall in the viewing areas. Queen Elsa of

Arendelle ''Frozen'' is a 2013 American computer-animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 53rd Disney animated feature film, it is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's 1844 fair ...

appears to perform "

Let It Go "Let It Go" is a song from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney's 2013 computer-animated feature film ''Frozen (2013 film), Frozen'', whose music and lyrics were composed by husband-and-wife songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert L ...

" and projections on the Matterhorn transform it into her snow palace. *"Finale": The narrator declares that

will continue to grow and that "the magic, as Walt assured us, will never end." Searchlights, lasers, and projections of

, the buildings on Main Street, and the facade of

moving and dancing accompany " When You Wish upon a Star" from ''

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...

'' and a reprise of "Live the Magic." As the buildings 'disintegrate' and the finale culminates, a projection of Walt hand-in-hand with Mickey Mouse is shown and

is heard exclaiming that "(Disneyland) is yours…forever!" A bright ensemble of fireworks punctuate the finale.

Voices

*Ellen Dubin - Disneyland Forever Narrator *

- Himself (archival recording) *Keith Longo - male vocalist, 'Live the Magic', (Disneyland Forever original recording) *Sheena Loza - female vocalist, 'Live the Magic', (Disneyland Forever original recording) *

Blayne Weaver Blayne Nutron Weaver (born April 9, 1976) is an American actor, and filmmaker. He is best known for voicing Peter Pan in ''Return to Never Land'' (2002). Early life Weaver was born in Bossier City, Louisiana on April 9, 1976. Career Weaver b ...

* Dick Van Dyke - Bert *

Zachary Levi Zachary Levi Pugh ( ; born September 29, 1980) is an American actor. He received critical acclaim for starring as Chuck Bartowski in the series '' Chuck'', and as the title character in '' Shazam!'' and its 2023 sequel, as a part of the DC Ex ...

- Flynn Rider/ Eugene Fitzherbert *

Mandy Moore Amanda Leigh Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her debut single, "Candy (Mandy Moore song), Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Her de ...

Rapunzel "Rapunzel" ( , ) is a German fairy tale recorded by the Brothers Grimm and first published in 1812 as part of '' Children's and Household Tales'' (KHM 12). The Brothers Grimm's story developed from the French literary fairy tale of '' Persinet ...

Sterling Holloway Sterling Price Holloway Jr. (January 4, 1905 – November 22, 1992) was an American actor and voice actor who appeared in over 100 films and 40 television shows. He did voice acting for The Walt Disney Company, playing Mr. Stork in '' Dumbo'', A ...

(archival recording) *

Paul Winchell Paul Winchell (''né'' Wilchinsky; December 21, 1922 – June 24, 2005) was an American actor, comedian, humanitarian, inventor and ventriloquist whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s. From 1950 to 1954, he hosted ''The Paul Winchell S ...

Tigger Tigger is a fictional character, an anthropomorphic stuffed tiger. He was originally introduced in the 1928 story collection '' The House at Pooh Corner'', the sequel to the 1926 book ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' by A. A. Milne. Like other Pooh char ...

(archival recording) *

Louis Prima Louis Leo Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and trumpeter. While rooted in New Orleans jazz, swing music, and jump blues, Prima touched on various genres throughout his career: he forme ...

(archival recording) *

Jodi Benson Jodi Marie Benson (née Marzorati; born October 10, 1961) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for providing the voice of Ariel in Disney's 1989 animated film '' The Little Mermaid'' and throughout other films, including its seq ...

* Philip Lawrence - Sebastian *

Brad Garrett Bradley Henry Gerstenfeld (born April 14, 1960), known professionally as Brad Garrett, is an American actor and stand-up comedian. Possessing a distinctive deep voice, he has appeared in numerous television and film roles in both live-action and ...

- Bloat *

Allison Janney Allison Brooks Janney (born November 19, 1959) is an American actress. In a career spanning three decades, she is known for her performances across multiple genres of screen and stage. Janney has received various accolades, including an Academ ...

- Peach *

Stephen Root Stephen Root (born November 17, 1951) is an American actor. He has starred as Jimmy James on the television sitcom '' NewsRadio'', as Milton Waddams in the film ''Office Space'' (1999), and provided the voices of Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickl ...

- Bubbles * Austin Pendleton - Gurgle * Jerome Ranft - Jacques *

Idina Menzel Idina Kim Menzel ( ; ; born May 30, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Particularly known for her work in musicals on the Broadway stage and having achieved mainstream success across stage, film and music, Menzel has garnered the honori ...

- Elsa

Additional information

* Although ''Kiss Goodnight'' and ''Live the Magic'' are exit musics of this show, in the past, this portion can be altered due to special 4th of July celebrations in 2015 and 2016 respectively, instead they played a finale of '' Disney's Celebrate America'' in a special Independence day tag with fireworks. * Coinciding with the Grand Opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge for the Summer 2019, the show began a return engagement on June 7, 2019, featuring the many technological elements that are developed for other firework shows, such as Pixar Fest's '' Together Forever'' and ''Mickey's Mix Magic''. * Disneyland Forever's second run in 2019 marks the first time that the Rivers of America gets mist screen changes since its refurbishment in 2016 and in the Fantasmic viewing area, lasers, fountains and searchlights, as well as projection in the area and fog effects (previously were in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle during initial run) were utilized in the show, which is leftover from other firework shows. Pyrotechnics that launched in the area was cut as well.

Alternate versions

In cases where inclement weather (eg: winds) will affect the night’s performance, alternate versions are considered. * For its debut season, the finale segment was shown with slightly different projections are seen in their respective viewing areas, while the searchlights and lasers still function. This precedent was first used in 2007 for ''Believe... In Holiday Magic'' snowfall finale and later in '' Remember... Dreams Come True''. * For its 2019 return, additional low-level fireworks were introduced the weekend of July 6, 2019. That night’s showing saw select new fireworks (including those were previously used in original run) mixed with the traditional shells. A version consisting of all low-level pyrotechnics, including the standard assortments for regular performances, premiered the following evening due to high winds. It is expected to be the B-show for those occasions, following a precedent started in the 2018

holiday season The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late Novembe ...

. Neither Tinker Bell nor Nemo make appearances for those reasons and for safety considerations, although Nemo made appearances on August 24, 2019. * On rare occasions, '' Mickey’s Mix Magic'' will take its place. **Also on rare occasions (Christmas 2015–2016), The Santa Hat on the Facade of It's a Small World Holiday would be projected.

References

{{Sherman Brothers Amusement park attractions introduced in 2015 Amusement park attractions that closed in 2016 Amusement park attractions introduced in 2019 Amusement park attractions that closed in 2019 Amusement park attractions introduced in 2022 Amusement park attractions that closed in 2022 Disneyland Walt Disney Parks and Resorts fireworks 2015 establishments in California 2016 disestablishments in California

Technical details

Show summary

Voices

Additional information

Alternate versions

See also

References