by Beth Keating
News/Commentary
DisneyBizJournal.com
September 23, 2021
Many years ago, our family celebrated the start of the holiday season with a trip to Disney World, with a night at “Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.” It was a festive evening, filled with falling “snoap” at the Magic Kingdom, hugs and visits with beloved characters in holiday costumes (imagine that??), and all the Christmas cookies you could eat. Wooden soldiers paraded down Main Street alongside dancing gingerbread men, and Santa himself made his appearance. It was a gloriously exciting evening, especially for the preschooler we had in tow.
And while that might have been an enchanting way for our family to ring in the start of the holidays, there was an even more meaningful event still to come. Several days later, we attended our first “Candlelight Processional,” a moving nod to the sacredness of the reason for the holiday, and a fitting way to give meaning to the season.
Our first celebrity narrator was actor Edward James Olmos of Miami Vice and Battlestar Galactica fame, but in years since, we’ve also been back to hear actor Gary Sinise, among others, bring their own renditions of the nativity story to life. It was a treasured way to kick-off the holidays for our family.
Last year, the Covid-19 pandemic silenced the annual tradition at Disney World, but this week, Disney Parks Blog announced that the decades long event will be returning to EPCOT as part of the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays. The 2021 Festival will run November 26 – December 30.
The “Candlelight Processional” has been around for more than 60 years, beginning first at Disneyland in California in 1958, making its way to the East Coast and Disney World in 1971. The Processional started at the Magic Kingdom, but moved over to the America Gardens Theatre at EPCOT in 1994.
The “Candlelight Processional” is a production of epic proportions, with a massed choir comprised of cast members (and, some years, visiting choirs), a live 50-piece orchestra, and a celebrity narrator offering a retelling of the traditional Christmas story, accompanied by the spectacular music. Unfortunately, because of COVID precautions, this year’s production will not feature visiting choirs. Disney will release the list of celebrity narrators as soon as the schedule is confirmed.
While the Processional is free to park guests, seating is first come, first seated for each of the performances. Special dining packages will be available, however, with reserved seating for the show. Packages with both lunch and dinner options will include an appetizer, entrée and dessert, or one full buffet (depending on the restaurant), along with a non-alcoholic beverage.
More information about the Candlelight Processional is available on the Disney World website.
__________
Beth Keating is a regular contributor to DisneyBizJournal.
Please support the efforts of DisneyBizJournal.com to bring news, analysis and commentary on Disney to readers such as yourself. Make a contribution right here via PayPal. Thanks!
No comments:
Post a Comment