Disneyland Resort guests enjoy a variety of live performances, and many youngsters get their first taste of live theater in Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure Park. Even with all the spectacular rides and attractions in the parks, a Disneyland Resort guest could spend a full day and night simply enjoying the shows, large and small.
Throughout Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, guests encounter parades, dance parties, street performances, musical groups and live shows virtually at every turn. A full list of entertainment is available each day at the park entrances and may include the following:
At Disneyland
- “Mickey and the Magical Map” – The show, presented on the Fantasyland Theatre stage, features Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters in a dazzling adventure filled with music, fun and special effects.
- “Mickey’s Soundsational Parade” – Presented daily, it features beloved Disney characters performing to a variety of rhythms and musical styles.
- “Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple”– In this interactive show, reimagined in 2015 as part of Star Wars Season of the Force, younglings train in the ways of the Jedi and help defend against Darth Vader and the Seventh Sister Inquisitor, from the Disney XD series Star Wars Rebels, at Tomorrowland Terrace.
- Fantasy Faire, near Sleeping Beauty Castle, features live shows that are presented in the Royal Theatre. Renaissance men Messieurs Smythe and Jones, with the assistance of some fellow villagers and a little help from the audience, bring the tales of “Beauty and the Beast” and “Tangled” to life with music, whimsy, humor and heart.
- “Paint the Night” parade – This luminescent parade creates a river of color flowing down Main Street, U.S.A., with an array of Disney characters and more than 1.5 million brilliant LED lights that flash and glow as Mickey Mouse uses his vivid imagination to “Paint the Night.”
- Nighttime fireworks spectaculars, including “Disneyland Forever,” which debuted in 2015 during the Diamond Celebration, light up the sky above Disneyland Park.
At Disney California Adventure
- “World of Color – Celebrate! The Wonderful World of Walt Disney” – The innovative and immersive nighttime spectacular presented on Paradise Bay combines water, color, fire, music and animation to share the story of Walt Disney and his dream of the Happiest Place on Earth.
- In 2016, the story of “Frozen” will come to life in an all-new musical stage production at the Hyperion Theater at Disney California Adventure.
- “Pixar Play Parade” – The lively playtime parade performs regularly with favorite Disney•Pixar pals.
- “Disney Junior – Live on Stage!” – Mickey Mouse is joined by favorite Disney Junior show characters, including Doc McStuffins and Sofia the First.
- “For the First Time in Forever” – A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration – Guests may sing along with popular “Frozen” songs at the Crown Jewel Theatre of Arendelle.
Parade routes and theatrical venues aren’t the only places where Disneyland Resort guests encounter live entertainment. There are magical encounters with live Disney and Disney•Pixar characters, and the parks are filled with many other energetic and talented performers.
At Disneyland, the Disneyland Band, the Dapper Dans quartet and the Refreshment Corner Piano Player are all on view on Main Street, U.S.A. In New Orleans Square, the toe-tapping shows star the rowdy piratical Bootstrappers, the Jambalaya Jazz Band and the mellow Royal Street Bachelors.
At the entrance to the Golden Horseshoe in Frontierland, guests may encounter the goofy Laughing Stock Company. The gifted musicians of the All American College Band appear on Main Street, U.S.A. during the summer.
At Disney California Adventure, Buena Vista Street comes alive with the Red Car Trolley News Boys and the outgoing, improvisational Citizens of Buena Vista Street. The swinging jazz combo Five & Dime travels through the park on a makeshift jalopy, Green Army Men from “Toy Story” patrol the park with “Operation: Playtime!”
At Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, the wilderness recreation area in Grizzly Peak, guests may encounter The Happy Camper or view the daily Wilderness Explorer Ceremony in the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail amphitheatre.
The new Cars Land in Disney California Adventure offers in-person greetings by Lightning McQueen, tow truck Mater, fire engine Red (who waters the flowers and cleans up the streets) and “DJ’s Dance ‘n’ Drive,” a spontaneous street party designed to get everyone dancing with the vehicular music maker DJ.
The live entertainment experience at Disneyland Resort extends beyond the borders of the parks, with character meals and occasional musical entertainment at the Disneyland Resort hotels, and multiple live musical performances along the walkways of the Downtown Disney dining, shopping and entertainment district. Downtown Disney also offers live entertainment at the House of Blues and Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen.
