WDW Daily News

When Disney bought Lucasfilm for $4 billion in 2012, little did it know it would need to reboot Star Wars less than a decade later.

Story lines involving beloved characters George Lucas first introduced in 1977 wrapped up in December’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, forcing Disney to figure out what to do with its sci-fi saga.

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With over 100 retail stores, over 60 places to indulge your taste buds, and unique experiences, Disney Springs® continues to be the ultimate destination for you to shop, dine, and play or as we would like to say—happily whatever you’re after.  2020 is off to an amazing start as Disney Springs® gears up for an incredible line-up of anticipated openings including City Works Eatery & Pour House, Ample Hills Creamery, Cirque du Soleil, and M&M’S. They have added another announcement to the list—boutique jewelry brand, Rustic Cuff, will soon open a pop-up retail store at Disney Springs!

This new accessory destination specializes in beautiful statement cuffs with a focus on inspirational designs and personal connection. The brand will also feature a wide selection of beads, bangles, charm bracelets and colorful stackable accent pieces personalization options like names, monograms, and favorite quotes. “We couldn’t be more excited to be a part of this special resort location that echoes everything that inspires us to dream,” said boutique founder, Jill Donovan.

The store is set to open for a limited time in the coming weeks and will be located across from Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar. 

As every good Disney superfan knows, no dining experience is complete without some solid Mickey kitchenware. Well, Disney just dropped some new utensils and bakeware and they’re just as fun as you’d hope.

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Guests visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Resort or Walt Disney World Resort will encounter plenty of characters from around the galaxy—from members of the First Order and the Resistance, to cosmic creatures and droids, like R2-D2. A resourceful astromech droid, R2-D2 has shown great bravery in rescuing his masters and their friends from many perils. (Joshua Sudock/Disneyland Resort)

From a climactic battle between the Resistance and the First Order, to an authentic Star Wars cantina on the Outer Rim of the galaxy, to exotic creatures, military encampments and daring missions aboard the Millennium Falcon, guests will find plenty of stories to explore as they live their own adventures inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Park in California and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida.

By the Numbers

• Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge spans more than 14 acres, making these the largest single-themed lands in Disney Parks history.
• More than a dozen venues fill the lands, including Resistance and First Order encampments, a spaceport and a bustling market.
• Two attractions entice guests to live their own Star Wars adventures – Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance (opening Jan. 17, 2020, at Disneyland Park).
• When guests enter the hangar bay of a Star Destroyer as part of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, 50 First Order Stormtroopers are waiting to greet them. ^Ϯ
• There are three entrances into the new land at Disneyland Park, and two at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (otherwise, the lands are nearly identical).
• The Millennium Falcon docked in the Black Spire Outpost Spaceport measures more than 100 feet long.
• Among the ancient-looking spires across the lands, the tallest is more than 130 feet high.
• The lands were created with more than 200,000 square feet of rockwork and approximately 260,000 square feet of themed plaster in each location.
• More than 7,000 props were created for each land.
• Nine different retail locations in the lands offer nearly 700 unique items, ideal for those looking to take a memory of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge home with them.
• There are more than 120,000 possible combinations for constructing a lightsaber using all the available pieces in Savi’s Workshop – Handbuilt Lightsabers.*
• There are nearly 280,000 possible combinations for constructing an R-series or BB-series astromech droid using all the available pieces in the Droid Depot.**
• Five locations within Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge offer guests a chance to purchase food and drinks. The lands’ menus feature more than 50 distinct, out-of-this-world items.

Did You Know?

• Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge marks the first time a full-size, 100% complete Millennium Falcon has ever been built.
• The chess-type game played on the table in the Millennium Falcon main hold and lounge is called Dejarik; guests can sit at the table inside Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, and the game is available for purchase in the Toydarian Toymaker marketplace stall.
• At Black Spire Outpost, the droid in charge of music at the local watering hole, Oga’s Cantina,*** is DJ R-3X, the former Starspeeder 3000 pilot from Star Tours.
• For the soundtrack inside Oga’s Cantina,*** Walt Disney Imagineering commissioned musicians and composers from around the world to craft original music for a galactic playlist.
• Kowakian Monkey-Lizards and Porgs are among the “critters” guests will find at the Creature Stall in the marketplace. These are just a few of the many items guests may purchase during their visit.
• Academy Award-winning® composer John Williams created an all-new suite of themes written especially for the lands and their attractions.
• Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance occupies one of the largest show buildings for a single attraction in Disney history.^Ϯ
• Actors from the current Star Wars film trilogy reprise their roles for new scenes and dialogue in Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, including Daisy Ridley (Rey), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron) and Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux).^Ϯ
• Some scenes for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance were produced at the same time as the current Star Wars film trilogy, so Disney was able to leverage the production talent and resources from the feature films. One notable example is a motion-base set used to capture actor Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron flying his X-wing starfighter.^Ϯ

Development Timeline

• The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm Ltd. in 2012.
• Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge has been in development since 2014.
• Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Bob Iger announced Star Wars-themed lands would open at Disneyland Park and Disney’s Hollywood Studios while at the D23 Expo on Aug. 15, 2015.
• Construction in both Disneyland and Disney’s Hollywood Studios began in April 2016.
• Approximately 6,700 construction workers and artisans were employed during the development of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
• To operate the land, 1,600 new jobs were created for Disneyland Resort.
• Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, one of two attractions in the lands, opened Dec. 5, 2019, at Walt Disney World Resort and opens Jan. 17, 2020, at Disneyland Resort.

Twelve festival Food Studios plus additional food and beverage locations will take culinary arts to the next level with scrumptious, imaginative dishes – artistically sculpted and ready for camera closeups. New this year is the Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine featuring a culinary reward – guests who collect a stamp in their festival passports for each menu item purchased along the Wonderful Walk will fill their “palette” and receive a delicious technicolor treat.

The Food Studios are an edible wonderland of dishes and beverages, from the Deconstructed Reuben and Rainboba drink at The Deconstructed Dish Food Studio, to the Wild Mushroom Risotto and Classic Sidecar with a Chocolate Twist at The Masterpiece Kitchen at the Canada pavilion. The Decadent Delights Food Studio features the sweetest takes on culinary art like the Lemon Blood-Orange Tart and the White Chocolate Figment Puzzle on an Artist Palette. Guests will discover new twists on festival favorites, as well as a broad selection of libations from craft brewers and global wineries.

Also new for the 2020 festival, guests can book a Saturday or Sunday Le Cellier Brunch, a leisurely prix fixe bounty in the Canada pavilion.

If you are soaring to or from Epcot® aboard Disney Skyliner starting today, there’s a tasty new treat for their eyes – the sign for Gusteau’s restaurant was just installed above the expanding France pavilion in World Showcase!

Gusteau’s is the famed Parisian establishment that is home to Chef Remy from Disney and Pixar’s “Ratatouille.” It’s also the soon-to-be setting for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, the delicious new attraction opening this summer at Epcot®. This family friendly experience will invite you on a super-sized adventure with Chef Remy, where you’ll race through Gusteau’s kitchen in special trackless ride vehicles.

The new sign is visible from the Disney Skyliner gondolas as they approach or depart the International Gateway station at Epcot®. It’s the latest signal that you are getting closer and closer to taking a ride with “Little Chef” on Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, one of several new experiences coming to Epcot® as part of the park’s historic transformation already underway.

As part of the ongoing transformation of Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort, three new films will debut Jan. 17, 2020, at the Florida theme park, on the same day the 2020 Epcot International Festival of the Arts begins. These new films provide more ways for guests to experience Disney magic and celebrate the world around them during a day at Epcot.

• “Awesome Planet” in The Land pavilion explores the spectacular beauty, diversity and dynamic story of Earth.In collaboration with the Disney Conservation Fund, the 10-minute film uses in-theater effects (including wind, scents and water) to tell the story of life on this planet and why it’s vitally important to care for it. “Awesome Planet” features narration by Ty Burrell, star of ABC’s “Modern Family,” andan original musical score from Academy Award-winning® composerSteven
• “Canada Far and Wide in Circle-Vision 360” in the Canada pavilion is an update to the previous “O Canada!” film with new scenes, a new musical score by Canadian composer Andrew Lockington and new narration by award-winning actors Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy.
• “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along” in the France pavilion’s Palais du Cinémais directed and produced by Don Hahn, producer of the animated and live-action “Beauty and the Beast” films, and invites guests to participate in a twist on a tale as old as time. It also features narration from Angela Lansbury, who played Mrs. Potts in the original film. The new sing-along will run in rotation with “Impressions de France,” which will receive an upgrade to 4K projection.
  • Along with the sing-along is a new exhibit inside Palais du Cinéma. “Tales as Old as Time: French Storytelling on Stage and Screen” invites guests to explore six distinct gallery cases featuring a collection of costumes, music, artwork and more, all dedicated to the adaptation of French literature in cinema, theater, ballet and opera. The exhibit reinforces how French literature has inspired artists from around the globe, including those who created timeless Disney classics such as “Sleeping Beauty,” “Cinderella” and, of course, “Beauty and the Beast.” Items on display from the Walt Disney Archives include a glass slipper from the live-action “Cinderella” film and Belle’s costume from the live-action “Beauty and the Beast.” Community arts organizations from Florida also contributed pieces to the exhibit.

The Epcot International Festival of the Arts, held Jan. 17 – Feb. 24, 2020, at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, celebrates the very best in visual, culinary and performing arts by bringing in professional artists to share their talent and expertise. Returning to the festival this year is the Disney on Broadway Concert Series, with three daily performances headlined by Broadway stars who reprise favorite songs from past performances in award-winning shows. 

Heidi Blickenstaff and Gavin Lee will be among the first performers to grace the stage of America Gardens Theater for this fan-favorite concert series. Heidi is best known for her starring role as Ursula in Disney on Broadway’s “The Little Mermaid.” Gavin received a Tony Award nomination for his Broadway performance as Bert in Disney’s “Mary Poppins” and most recently played Lumière in the 25^th-anniversary production of “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.”

The duo will perform five nights of shows beginning Jan. 18, including a special performance alongside fellow Broadway legends Alton Fitzgerald White and Kissy Simmons. 

Here’s the full lineup of show-stopping talent for the Disney on Broadway Concert Series: 

• Jan. 17, 20, 21 and 24 – Kissy Simmons and Alton Fitzgerald White (“THE LION KING”) 
• Jan. 18, 19, 22 and 23 – Heidi Blickenstaff (“The Little Mermaid”) and Gavin Lee (“Mary Poppins”)
• Jan. 25 – Special performance featuring Simmons, White, Blickenstaff and Lee 
• Jan. 26, 28, 29; Feb. 1, 2, 5 and 6 – Kara Lindsay (“Newsies”) and Kevin Massey (“Tarzan”)
• Jan. 27, 30, 31, Feb. 3, 4, 7 and 8 – Liana Hunt (“Newsies”) and Adam Jacobs (“Aladdin”)
• Feb. 9 – Special performance featuring Lindsay, Massey, Hunt and Jacobs
• Feb. 10, 12, 13, 18, 19, 22 and 23 – Ashley Brown (“Mary Poppins”) and Josh Strickland (“Tarzan”)
• Feb. 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20 and 21 – Syndee Winters (“The Lion King”) and Michael James Scott (“Aladdin”)
• Feb. 24 – Special performance featuring Brown, Strickland, Winters and Scott.

All shows are performed at America Gardens Theatre and are included with theme park admission. The best way to experience a performance is by reserving a Disney on Broadway Dining Package, which guarantees seating for one show on the day of the dining experience. Packages at participating Epcot restaurants are now booking.

Conventional wisdom in the past has been that the best time to visit Walt Disney World is the “slow” season, which are typically the weeks in between the end of the holiday season (the first week of January) and the start of Spring Break (in early March).

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