Disney announces new attractions created to drive park attendance
Orange Country Register
An expansion of California Adventure and theatre shows are among the new additions.
The Disneyland Resort confronted a slumping economy head-on Monday by announcing major investments and new attractions created to drive attendance into the two Anaheim theme parks.
A Broadway-caliber theatrical production, the expansion of California Adventure with a child-oriented new land, the addition of a kids' stage show based on Disney Channel characters, and the unveiling of a long-awaited Winnie the Pooh attraction in Disneyland are expected to boost attendance, which is down 6 percent at Disney parks worldwide.
"We're not going to turn around the economy, but we can continue to be ready and build our asset base to be more inviting as a place for families to visit," said Jay Rasulo, Disney's new chairman of theme parks and resorts.
The Disneyland Resort enters a whole new world in December by introducing high-caliber theater to a theme-park audience. "Aladdin, Live on Stage" opens Dec. 9 in Disney's California Adventure, with a star-studded production crew that includes Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken.
"This is part of our fundamental strategy to always continue to grow up and change (the parks)," said Rasulo, who took over this month for the departing Paul Pressler. "We are on the right path to develop new lands and attractions to allow guests to enjoy our product with their families.
"It is our job to do that in an exciting, relevant way, and one we're doing quite well."