Originally Posted By Doobie I think this is a good topic for discussion (just not where it was being discussed). Should the Christmas parade be updated (minorly or majorly) more often? I remember when the Christmas Fantasy parade debuted at Disneyland years ago, I heard lots of complaints from regulars that Very Merry Christmas was gone. Are there some things, like the Christmas Parade that so many people return to WDW every year to see, that shouldn't be updated as much? Or should it be just like every other parade and have a limited run before something new comes? Doobie.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I think that the parade should be updated in stages. Replace one float every year with something new, and it will help keep the whole thing fairly fresh. Although over a decade there will be an entierly new parade, there is no huge change from one year to the next, so the traditions will live on. They need to keep one vision and thematic style for the whole thing, since it looks bad if certain floats stick out stylistically (Santa's new float in DL is like this, and Goofy's candy float in WDW), but change the floats. Although you could have the same general idea for each one (like a toy shop), it could be interpreted different ways, and would help keep it fresh without completely redoing the parade. They should also cycle through the characters in the parade more. In DL they have Max on a float with Goofy, even though he hasn't been in anything since A Goofy Movie almost 10 years ago. They could replace costumes and characters for two floats and their surrounding areas every year, which would really keep the parade fresh and up to date, while keeping the basic bones that make it traditional. And please, ditch that stupid mirror castle float. It looks terrible and always has. I think in 2006 (almost 2007) there is enough technology out there to make something that looks every so slightly more classy than that outdated behemoth I would excuse it if it ever had a reason for being in a parade, but they just stick it in where ever they feel and it really sticks out like a sore thumb stylistically and that it has nothing to do with the holidays. How hard would it be to throw a few wreaths and some more garland on it? Right now, it just looks old and decreped. If they at least added enough garland so that it had the droopy parts on it, it wouldn't look so much like they ran out of money to cover the whole thing.
Originally Posted By Doobie Depends how you define limited, I guess. They have been pretty much the same since the 100 years celebration. But prior to that, I believe, they changed more frequently. But I'd guess the Christmas Parade has remained the same much longer than that. But even the MK parade has had minor changes (from Share a Dream to its current incarnation) and Epcot's minor changes as well (Tapestry of Nations vs Tapestry of Dreams). You coming down anytime soon to see them, Park Hopper? Doobie. Doobie.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 I've been sitting on the sidelines (busy eating turkey ... and pie ... and veggies ... and pizza ... and you get the idea) and avoiding the whole threads because one big gripe I have with WDW is how they purposely allow the product to grow stale. I wouldn't have a problem at all if they removed this or any WDW parade. But I do feel that unlike any of the regular offerings, and I certainly put SpectroTragic in here, that there is some tradition. I was thinking what FerretDude articulated above. No reason why there has to be a totally new Christmas parade or even massive changes in one year. But why not two new floats and one slightly changed one every year? Keep the theme and the music, people like it ... but this way you keep up tradition while you don't endlessly present the same stale product. And it is that. ... OK, I'm gonna go float away.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN This is a noble topic on your part Doobie, as it is a valid discussion for fans who truly want WDW to be the vest it can be. Thank you for starting it. As I have stated before, the MK Xmas parade is the very best offering now performing at the MK. Compared to the usual fare, it is a great parade. My wishes would be for Disney to build on it and change things from year to year, but since I realize the budgets are not there for that, I would be perfectly happy to see little changes here and there from one year to the next. New costuming every few years, new musical arrangements from time to time, a new float here or there (the Goofy float for Halloween showed how technology has made it possible to have whimsycal stuff on wheels!)... that is how I feel the MK Xmas parade can be feshened up without an all-out budget busting redo. I for one would appreciate it since many of us happily pay extra to attend the MVMCPs year after year.
Originally Posted By Doobie I certainly wouldn't complain if they updated it. But honestly, I'd rather see the Castle show updated and the Tomorrowland show updated before the parade. There's something about the Christmas parade that's timeless and it doesn't bother me at all to basically see the same year after year. If keeping the parade the same meant they could spend money on something like Holiday Wishes instead, that was a good decision. Doobie.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 I don't believe it's an either/or proposition. FWIW, just the proceeds from MVMCP's could fund Holiday Wishes ... and once the show is developed it doesn't cost much more than a regular nightly fireworks display any way. I've heard of special fireworks coming for the Princess and Pirate parties soon. How much does it really cost to add a new float or two and add some new twist to existing ones? And, as someone who spends as much or more time at DL now as WDW, I think the Christmas Fantasy parade is getting tired as well.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>I certainly wouldn't complain if they updated it. But honestly, I'd rather see the Castle show updated and the Tomorrowland show updated before the parade.<< The sad part is... the castle show as it has been in the last few years is the *downgraded* version of what it used to be. Anyone who saw the "Sparkling Christmas SPECTACULAR" show from the mid 90s would know how sad the current show really is. As for the Tomorrowland show... we need a brand new show altogether!!
Originally Posted By Doobie Like it or not, agree with it or not, everything comes down to priorities. I wish they'd update everything every year, but in the order of priorities for MVMCP the parade is pretty close to the bottom of the list for me. Doobie.
Originally Posted By tcsnwhite "As I have stated before, the MK Xmas parade is the very best offering now performing at the MK. Compared to the usual fare, it is a great parade. My wishes would be for Disney to build on it and change things from year to year, but since I realize the budgets are not there for that, I would be perfectly happy to see little changes here and there from one year to the next. New costuming every few years, new musical arrangements from time to time, a new float here or there (the Goofy float for Halloween showed how technology has made it possible to have whimsycal stuff on wheels!)... that is how I feel the MK Xmas parade can be feshened up without an all-out budget busting redo. I for one would appreciate it since many of us happily pay extra to attend the MVMCPs year after year." I am right there with you on this one TDLFAN. I do respect that the christmas parade is a tradition, but I don't think that should be used as an excuse for allowing things to become stale and tired. I truly believe that 'classic' should not be an excuse for stale. What I would like to see is an update that could span over several years. Each year, a few new elements get updated, and each year we see a few new things. Then, after say 3 or 4 years, the parade would come together and then actually feel like an all new parade. It doesn't have to be an all out big budget thing all at once. The elements that need to be targeted are the floats first and foremost. MK needs to invest in some all-new floats that are up to new disney standards in float design (you can see the examples in Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams, Block party, Mythica, and so on). Built-in float lighting would also be a big consideration because it seems they run this at night most of the time. Then costumes, here and there. New ones for the Disney royalty, and the parade dancer costumes could use some refreshening in some places. Lastly, the music needs a complete overhaul. I would like to see some sort of original 'theme' for the parade, much like "A Christmas Fantasy" Parade over at Disneyland has. But, keep that classic 'disney' sound, particularly in the vocals. Some better lighting along the parade route would be nice, but I can see that as pushing it maybe, just a bit. It would also be nice to see some new characters that could be taken in and out every year, to change it up a bit. Also, it should be considered that the float order and placement of characters could change and rotate every few years. So, overall, it is more so the artistic direction that could use a makeover. It needs one artistic vision to really lead it and pull it together. And again, not some big over-budget thing all at once. Instead, it is making a few changes every year or so until it actually feels, and looks, like a new parade. Obviously we know they are not going to pay for an all out new parade every year, but it should be considered that for these limited run special event parades that a major update is needed at least every ten years. Within that time frame, minor changes could be made to keep it fresh. If anything, I would say that newly designed floats should be the priority. They are the visual center of any parade, and MK has been using those 'special event'group of floats for decades. It is time for a batch of new ones, regardless of how long and how often they want to use them. The castle float is just overexposed and over-used. It also doesn't have the best sightlines for seeing the characters/performers up on the float.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN Well.. I finally saw the parade tonight during my visit to MVMCP. The parade remains as predictible as always since I have seen it so many times in the past 2 decades... However, having avoided seeing the video of it posted by Doobie, I was indeed surprised by a few very minor changes to it. I was happy to see how well the Goofy candy float from the Halloween Parade translated into the Xmas parade. Some floats seemed to have recieved some LED lights that made them spark a bit brighter and nicer. And I liked Clarabelle Cow taking over the Kitchen Float in the ToyLand section. And that's about it. Everthing else remained the same.
Originally Posted By JeffG We saw the parade during MVMCP on Monday and did feel that it needed some work. I'm not sure that there are major content upgrades that need to be done, but I think they definitely need to do some work on the overall presentation. Watching the parade from the hub area, our biggest complaint was that it was simply way too dark to really see the floats very well. We have become used to the very effective lighting system that Disneyland installed along their parade route within the last few years and I think WDW badly needs to do something similar. While the lighting at the Magic Kingdom is fine for a self-lighted parade like Spectromagic (which we watched last night), it is very difficult to see a nighttime performance of a more traditional parade like the Christmas one. It is hard to immediately think of specifics, but I did also have an overall impression that the floats could use some general technical upgrades. As someone else already noted in this thread, the more recent parades generally do show quite a bit in the way of technical improvements, with a lot more animation and more impressive lighting. I do think that there should be quite a bit that they could do with this parade to freshen it up without making major changes to the primary content. Just like the recent upgrades to Pirates of the Caribbean at both resorts and some of the other classic attractions at Disneyland, I don't think tradition should preclude keeping things fresh in the parks. Walt made it very clear that he intended for Disneyland to be constantly growing and changing and I really think that is the most important tradition that should be honored at all of the parks that carry his name. -Jeff
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 ^^Walt? Hah! Do you seriously think that ANY of the top park execs at WDW give more than lip service to any of the man's priciples of park upkeep, maintainace and guest service?
