Originally Posted By christiemarsh88 I heard rumours a while back that Voyage of the Little Mermaid would be closing at MGM so as not to compete with/be compared to the Broadway show. But I haven't heard anything definate, and I haven't heard anything recently. Anybody know? I really hope this isn't true. After all, Beauty and the Beast kept running at MGM, and nobody could argue that it was a problem.
Originally Posted By lilgoofymom Oh I really hope it does not close. That is my one must see when I go to the Studios.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 please, no more closed buildings unless they are building the Boulevard of broken Dreams
Originally Posted By christiemarsh88 I love this show, and I would hate to see it closed. It's not like it's in direct competition with the Broadway show--this is a simple, 15 minute Cliff's Notes version. And it's not like they're going to really cancel each other out. Orlando and New York are not just a hop skip and a jump away from each other.
Originally Posted By twirlnhurl I wouldn't care at all if the park had more attractions. They need to add more attractions before they take anything out, and with space at a premium there, would need a replacement for the building within a year.
Originally Posted By christiemarsh88 That's definately another true point. I do think this show has its own merits, but if nothing else it's at least a good (and probably fairly cheap) use of space. I really hope it doesn't disappear!
Originally Posted By hightp I seem to remember a pre-show segment that used to be done, when you were in the waiting room. A light was shone on the trident, then someone would speak that we're going on a trip under the sea, or something to that effect. There may have been an actual cast member giving the speech, but I don't remember. Does anyone know when this disappeared? (Or maybe it's still done, and I didn't realize it.)
Originally Posted By twirlnhurl ^The preshow is definitely not done, and hasn't been done for at least a year (but I would imagine longer, that's how long I've been going regularly). I am pretty sure that the preshow had an CM doing the talking, but I could be confusing that with Poseidon's Fury, it has been so long.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 I am trying to remember how long it's been gone - I have gone regularly for 17 years, and my guess is that pre show is gone close to 10 years ? I am trying to remember if my youngest ( now 12 ) ever saw it -- it has been a long time. It was a nice touch
Originally Posted By danyoung Yes, it was a nice touch. It was a pre-recorded spiel, and really set the mood nicely. But it's much more important to the lawyer-eers to make sure to tell parents that they should watch their children in multiple languages. Sad.
Originally Posted By christiemarsh88 It doesn't sound like anyone's heard that this show's going away. Good. Now we can go back to discussing how great it is. I wonder if they'll use a similar Ursula puppet in the Broadway show.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORWEN: Do any of you ducklings out there remember when this particular show was a bit longer and better--before it got changed several years ago. It used to open up with an animatronic figure of Sebastian near the entrance doors. He would talk to lazer outline of King Triton about Ariel, which helped to set up the scenes a lot better. Now they just sort of jump into the 'Under the Sea' number without much of an explanation. Us Cauldron girls liked the previous show much better. ORDDU: I think all these changes took place around the same time they also changed the BEAUTY & THE BEAST stage show. However, the changes for B&TB were for the better. In THAT show's case, the story was presented in a more orderly fashion, instead of merely jumping right into the middle of it with he Be Our Guest number. ORWEN: Now it's Voyage of the Little Mermaid that throws the audience into the middle of the story without setting things up in a better order. Oh, well..
Originally Posted By Indigo tVotLM continues to pack them in, in part because it's air conditioned and in part because the character resonates so well with nearly all generations. The version they show now, cut down from the original length to increase capacity, would not seem to compete with the Broadway musical. But it will pale in comparison. So rather that see tVotLM removed, I'd love to see it upgraded to reflect the new production.
Originally Posted By twirlnhurl ^If it were upgraded, the capacity issue would have to be taken into account. It is a popular show, and as far as I know, there is no room in the immediate area to expand the theater or increase capacity.
Originally Posted By Indigo As has been proposed elsewhere, perhaps if a version of Tokyo DisneySea's Little Mermaid Lagoon could be added to the Magic Kingdom (perhaps where the sub's used to be) with a larger capcity stage show there. That would allow Walt Disney Studios-Orlando to re-purpose the animation courtyard to something that reflects the current state of Disney animation. There is a lot of wasted space there and since there is no longer a working studio there, it could be redone (perhaps more like the animation building in California Adventure?)
