Mystic Manor (attraction)
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Mystic Manor () is a dark ride attraction in the
Mystic Point Mystic Point () is a section of Hong Kong Disneyland that officially opened to the public on 17 May 2013. Prior to that it had a soft opening for a selected audience. It is set in a dense, uncharted rain forest surrounded by mysterious forces and ...
area of
Hong Kong Disneyland Hong Kong Disneyland () (local nickname ''HKDL''; also known as HK Disneyland) is a theme park located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island. It is located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and it is owned and managed by Hong Ko ...
. Unlike Disneyland's Haunted Mansion attraction and its counterparts in other Disney parks, Mystic Manor has a lighthearted, fantasy-based theme with no references to departed spirits or the afterlife, due to differences in traditional Chinese culture. The attraction does feature several references to the Haunted Mansion, such as a Medusa changing portrait, a conservatory, and the busts that turn to follow visitors as they move. References to other Disney attractions include several figures similar to those from
The Enchanted Tiki Room Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room is an attraction located in Disneyland at the Disneyland Resort and in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, and previously in Tokyo Disneyland at Tokyo Disney Resort. First opened on June 23, 1963 at the Disneyl ...
in the Tribal Arts room.


History

The Manor's exterior design is inspired by the now-demolished Bradbury Mansion that stood at 147 North Hill Street in Los Angeles' Bunker Hill, designed by
Samuel Newsom Samuel Newsom (1852 – 1908) was a Canadian-born American architect. Together with his brother Joseph Cather Newsom founded the architecture firm Newsom and Newsom (or the Newsom Brothers), practicing in Northern and Southern California. Their mo ...
and Joseph Cather Newsom of the firm Newsom and Newsom, who also designed the still-standing
Carson Mansion The Carson Mansion is a large Victorian house located in Old Town, Eureka, California. Regarded as one of the premier examples of Queen Anne style architecture in the United States, the house is "considered the most grand Victorian home in Amer ...
in Eureka, California. The attraction utilises a trackless ride system similar to that used in Pooh's Hunny Hunt. It features a musical score by
Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...
. Continuing the Society of Explorers and Adventurers theme of Tokyo DisneySea, Mystic Manor tells the story of Lord Henry Mystic and his monkey Albert. Having recently acquired an enchanted music box, Albert opens the box and brings everything inside the house to life. ''Mystic Manor'' began
previews Preview may refer to: Theatre, film, television * Preview (subscription service), an early subscription television service in the United States * Preview (theatre), a public performance of a theatrical show before the official opening * Preview s ...
in April 2013, and was officially opened to the public on May 17, 2013.


Experience


Queue and pre-show

The queue starts at the gate of the manor—a large
Victorian mansion Victorian architecture is a series of Revivalism (architecture), architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. ''Victorian'' refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the st ...
in an elaborate Queen Anne architectural style combined with traditional Russian architecture. Guests enter from the side of private residence and continue into the building. Inside, guests see a portrait of Lord Henry Mystic and Albert, Henry's adorable pet monkey. Other pictures in the queue show how Henry met Albert, rescuing him from a large spider; the ribbon-cutting of Mystic Point in 1896; and an 1899 group portrait of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (including Harrison Hightower and Shiriki Utundu of Tokyo DisneySea's Tower of Terror and a separate portrait of
Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...
who composed a Musical Score for the ride). Guests enter a pre-show area where they watch a slide show narrated by Henry Mystic. He gives a short speech about the exhibition rooms and his latest collections, emphasizing an enchanted music box which may possess magical properties. When Henry Mystic mentions the music box, Albert appears and expresses interest in it. After the presentation, guests enter the loading area and board the Mystic Magneto—Electric carriage Henry Mystic invented to take guests on a tour of the museum.


Ride experience

The first room, the Acquisitions and Cataloguing Room, is where Lord Mystic's collections are temporarily stored and await placement on shelves. The music box Lord Mystic mentioned is now in front of guests. Lord Mystic appears from a door in the middle of the room, looking for Albert. He greets the guests and acknowledges the music box before leaving to continue his search. Albert suddenly pops out and unlocks the box. The escaping magic dust floats in the air and brings life to all the artifacts. In the Music Room, many exotic musical instruments are displayed. A harpsichord is placed in the center of the room. The magic dust gives life to instruments and music begins to play. The music follows the carriage and plays in the background for the remainder of the journey. Albert watches in fascination from atop a large
pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks ...
, curious to visit the rest of the manor. In the room for Mediterranean Antiquities, paintings, ceramics, and Audio-Animatronic statues start to move under the influence of the magic. The carriages first pass a painting portraying four people outside with a volcano visible in the background. As the magic affects the painting, the volcano erupts, submerging the people in lava, who then clink their glasses. The lava falls off of the scene to restart the animation for the next viewer. An
amphora An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...
with Hercules actually fighting the Nemean lion spins and rocks when the carriage passes, and Hercules jumps above the lion and fights; the painting on the amphora is animated. The carriages then pass a large painting of a beautiful Medusa who morphs into a frightening Gorgon, and her eyes flash before turning back to the beautiful woman. A brief snake rattle is heard to foreshadow her transformation into a monster a second before she does. This painting is a reference to the other Haunted Mansion attractions, which contain portraits of a beautiful Medusa changing to and from a hideous Gorgon. In the Mansions, however, the Gorgon Medusa is made of stone. In Mystic Manor, she is not. In the Solarium Room, Albert curiously points his finger near the mouth of a Venus flytrap. A larger one faces the riders and roars loudly, lightning crashes, and the room becomes pitch black. Soon afterward, the carriage enters the Slavic-Nordic Chamber, containing the 17th century painting ''Russia Spring''. A blizzard manifests and freezes over the painting. The freezing wind actually leaves the painting and spreads ice throughout the entire room, finally gathering on a large mirror that shatters the guests' reflection. The Arms & Armour room is full of weapons and armor that have come alive. First seen is a samurai armor wielding a katana that tries to hack Albert's head off, but he dodges each slash with success, then a cannon opens fire on the guests which knocks the carriage back and sends it spinning away. The carriage passes through a hallway containing three suits of armor, their helmets floating next to their bodies and singing along with the music. The carriage then moves in front of a large medieval
catapult A catapult is a ballistic device used to launch a projectile a great distance without the aid of gunpowder or other propellants – particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. A catapult uses the sudden release of stored p ...
, which loads and takes aim at the guests, knocking them into the next room. On the other side of the room, a Mongolian suit of armor can be seen holding a few helmets aloft and laughing evilly. In a swift move, guests enter the Egyptian Antiquities room, where a sarcophagus glows an unearthly green as swarms of scarabs emerge from it, to which the sarcophagus' face turns scared before being covered. The scarabs cover all the lights and guests are stuck riding through the darkness. The guests reached the end of the darkness and reach the Tribal Arts rooms, where a large tiki figure dominates the room, spewing lava from its mouth. Two tiki poles stand on either side, as well as multiple other tiki statues. The room is full of chanting and tribal drums, all in tune with the music. Three tiki statues rotate and aim arrows and blow dart guns, which reveals Albert pinned to the opposite wall, stuck but unharmed by their ammunition. Then the carriages goes into the Chinese Salon where a giant
jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of ...
Sun Wukong The Monkey King, also known as Sun Wukong ( zh, t=孫悟空, s=孙悟空, first=t) in Mandarin Chinese, is a legendary mythical figure best known as one of the main characters in the 16th-century Chinese novel ''Journey to the West'' ( zh, ...
statue is brought to life and uses its staff to create a tornado, making the room spin and causing all the paintings in the salon to break apart and fall down. The vehicles continuously circle the room during this scene. Albert appears on a wall and the statue tries to hit him with a lightning bolt. This only succeeds in blowing away a portion of the wall, which crumbles, showing the dust sky. Albert is then blown away from the manor and manages to hold onto a large harp as the enchanted music box suddenly appears. Albert jumps onto the box as the carriages move back to the Acquisitions and Cataloguing Room. The music climaxes as the magic flies back into the music box. Albert slams the lid shut and breathes a sigh of relief as the lights come back on, revealing a perfectly normal room. Lord Mystic then appears behind Albert, happy to have finally found him. He asks if Albert touched the music box, which Albert immediately denies. Wondering as to whether the legends regarding it are true, Lord Mystic thanks the guests for touring his home and bids them farewell as the vehicles move back into the station.


Ride system

The attraction's 37 Mystic Magneto electric carriages are automated guided vehicles that can travel freely throughout the mansion, receiving directional instruction via
radio-frequency identification Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder, a radio receiver and transmitter. When triggered by an electromag ...
technology in the floor and Wi-Fi. Thirty five of them are normal vehicles holding up to 6 guests. The 36th and 37th are specially modified to carry a wheelchair and an accompanying person. The carriages travel in groups of four, each group following a unique path influenced by its most recent loading position. Because the carriages are not restricted to a single path, the handicapped carriages can be easily rotated in and out of a group. Riders experience 40
ultra-high-definition Ultra-high-definition television (also known as Ultra HD television, Ultra HD, UHDTV, UHD and Super Hi-Vision) today includes 4K UHD and 8K UHD, which are two digital video formats with an aspect ratio of 16:9. These were first proposed by ...
images created by 36 projectors. The attraction is one of Hong Kong Disneyland's most complex. Each Mystic Magneto electric carriage operates at a speed of 4 km per hour. For safety reasons, if a guest stands while a carriage is in motion, it stops immediately.


Voice cast

* Stephen Stanton as Lord Henry Mystic *
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
as Albert / Roaring Plant *
Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...
as Singing Helmets (English)


Awards

In November 2013, Mystic Manor received the "Award for Outstanding Achievement – Attraction" from Themed Entertainment Association (THEA) .


See also

* Hong Kong Disneyland attraction and entertainment history *
2013 in amusement parks This is a list of events and openings related to amusement parks that occurred in 2013. These various lists are not exhaustive. Amusement parks Opening * India Adlabs Imagica – April 18 * United States Aquatica San Diego – Spring, to replace ...
* The Haunted Mansion * Phantom Manor * The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror * Pooh's Hunny Hunt * Ratatouille: L'Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy * ''Star Wars'': Rise of the Resistance *
Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway is a trackless dark ride in Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, and forthcoming in Disneyland in Anaheim, California. The attraction—the first Mickey Mouse-themed ...
* Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast


References


External links


Mystic Manor full ride
{{Disney rides Dark rides Haunted attractions (simulated) Haunted Mansion Manor houses Hong Kong Disneyland Mystic Point Walt Disney Parks and Resorts attractions Audio-Animatronic attractions Amusement rides introduced in 2013 2013 establishments in Hong Kong Works by Danny Elfman