WDW Daily News

You can kick off 2019 with the return of the Epcot® International Festival of the Arts – a 39-day celebration of visual, culinary and performing arts from around the world. Beginning Jan. 18 and running through Feb. 25, the festival offers artful activities for the entire family, from special entertainment and interactive workshops to immersive art experiences and world-class cuisine.

New in 2019, you can now sing along to your favorite Disney Broadway tunes seven days a week during the popular Disney on Broadway Concert Series, with daily showings at 5:30, 6:45 and 8 p.m.

Each week, different pairs of Disney on Broadway stars will take the America Gardens Theatre stage to sing favorite songs from award-winning Disney on Broadway productions. The lineup will rotate regularly, featuring music from shows such as “The Lion King,” “Frozen” and “Beauty and the Beast”:

• Kerry Butler (“Beauty and the Beast”) and Kevin Massey (“Tarzan”)
• Meredith Inglesby (“The Little Mermaid”) and Steve Blanchard (“Beauty and the Beast”)
• Arielle Jacobs and Adam Jacobs (“Aladdin”)
• Heidi Blickenstaff (“Freaky Friday”) and Gavin Lee (“Mary Poppins”)
• Ashley Brown (“Mary Poppins”) and Josh Strickland (“Tarzan”)
• Kissy Simmons and Alton Fitzgerald White (“The Lion King”)

The concert series is included with park admission; reserved seating is available by booking a Disney on Broadway Concert Series Dining Package, which allows you to enjoy a breakfast, lunch or dinner reservation at a participating Epcot restaurant and later experience priority seating at a show. Dining package reservations open Nov. 8, 2018 via Disneyworld.com or by calling 407-939-3463.

Speaking of food … Epcot International Festival of the Arts will feature 13 Food Studios, plus other creative (and savory!) offerings around Epcot with an expanded menu of tastes and sips. Drop by The Artist’s Table for beef wellington with mushroom bordelaise, fennel cream and roasted baby vegetables, or enjoy smoked salmon and cream gâteau with egg yolk cream, paddlefish caviar and micro-herbs at The Painter’s Palate. Pop Eats! will serve up almond frangipane cake with raspberry and chocolate, while red wine-braised short rib with parsnip purée, broccolini, baby tomatoes and aged balsamic will be available at Cuisine Classique.

You will also find activities to the inspire artists of all ages. Here are a few fun highlights:

• Everyone’s invited to grab a paintbrush and help create a wall mural along World Showcase Plaza.
• At the Artful Photo Opportunities, Guests can step inside masterworks of art and take photos with friends.
• The Paint with a Disney Artist program invites Guests to learn under the tutelage of a professional (offered select Fridays and Sundays, including continental breakfast, for an additional fee).
• Performing artists are scheduled throughout the festival, demonstrating gravity-defying feats of strength, acrobatics and many other skills.
• International musical and variety acts will share their talents with guests, including the return of Bodh’aktan to the Canada stage and Delta Q, a new group performing in Germany.
• Guests can join in the fun of Figment’s Brush with the Masters Scavenger Hunt by purchasing a map at select merchandise locations.
• A variety of workshops led by professionals will teach different artistic techniques, such as floral design, ink and paint, mixed-media art and more (offered Friday-Monday for an additional fee). As a memento of what they learn, guests will take their creations home with them. Details on workshop registration
  will be released soon.
• Complimentary 30-minute seminars will give Guests helpful instruction for producing their own artwork at home.

Now, more than ever is the time to start planning your visit to the 2019 Epcot International Festival of the Arts.