Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends to Close September 27, 2008

[Figment!]

Pocahontas show at Disney's Animal Kingdom closing

Orlando Sentinel
Scott Powers |Staff Writer
July 10, 2008

After a 10-year run, the live 'Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends' show at Disney's Animal Kingdom will close Sept. 27, Walt Disney World announced Thursday.

No immediate replacement is planned for the amphitheater. The Pocahontas character will remain in the park, though three actors must audition for other shows.

The remainder of the 28-member cast and crew will be reassigned, said spokeswoman Zoraya Suarez.

[GrumpyFan]

Hmmm... can't say I'm too saddened by this. Of course, ashamedly, I must admit I've never seen it. But, then I've never heard anything overly positive about it either. I guess I'll never know. Oh well, here's hoping for something better.

[lockedoutlogic]

thank god.....

keep taking out the trash at AK.....

and let's get some bulldozers over there, huh?

and follow that up with some cranes and union tradesman....PRONTO!!!

[kakn7294]

My family actually likes this little show. It has a great message and the animals are cute. We'll miss it.

[Poolguy]

This really is too bad. Its a cute show. I've been reading on other boards how people don't like it for what ever reason but never had the courtsey to actually see it before they passed judgement. And yes, it is a kids show! And, as the phrase goes, for the kid at heart. But isn't that what Disney is all about? It is in my eyes. It's not a production like Lion King or Nemo, which can scare little kids with some scenes to the point of crying. This is a kids show with a great message. The times I have seen Pocahontas with my young daughters, they were completely caught up in it and we were able to meet Pocahontas after one show and got her picture and autograph. Pretty cool experience for a 5 & 7 year old. And I don't remember any scared crying children. I do remember when a dad just about ran out of the theater when Pocahontas had the snake for the audience to see. It looked like Pocahontas was trying not to laugh as the audience chuckled. Having a musical background personally, I can certainly appreciate the talented singers that are in Pocahontas. Yes, there are lots of good singers at Disney, but not many have the opportunity to be all alone on a stage and sing to an audience. I just hope Disney finds places for these girls to sing and perform. Another interesting fact I learned about the show was the Willow & Sprig are Michael Curry puppets. So for being a little show, it has some pretty high tech puppets. Just have to wonder where those will wind up.
But like everything else, things come and go, and shows are no exception. One day, Lion King and Nemo shows will close as well to make room for something new. And I'm sure there will be those who say it was time for them to close, it was not time for them to go, that the shows were there too long or they had seen it too many times and were tired of it. I guess my real point is that this show, as small as it is, has some great talent, a strong message and that it shouldn't be belittled by those who haven't taken the time to sit and watch it. Thanks for reading.

[tigmickey]

I have never seen it. That being said I was planning on seeing it in August with my DD4 and DS6. I think that they will like it. I hope they don't love it though now that it is closing...

[elmjimmlm]

We have not actually seen this and I am sad because now we don't have a chance to...I guess thinking that we will see it next time doesn't really work...Putting things off at Disney is not the greatest idea because it may not be there when you do return...

[brownie]

We've never seen this; in fact, we've never been in Camp Minnie-Mickey which means we haven't seen Festival of the Lion King either. It sounds like no one's losing their job with the closing, which is good. I hope they replace it with something soon after it closes. I guess we'll have to make getting to Festival of the Lion King a priority on our next trip.

[DizneyFreak2002]

Could this be the beginning of.... dare I say, Beastly Kingdom finally coming??? HAHAHAHAHAHA...

[markyv]

Good Riddance. I am glad to see that Disney is trying to improve this park. It is one of my favorites, but I can also see lots of room for improvement. Now if we could just get rid of Dinoland. That section of the part is comparable to a bad fair with the exception of Dinosaur the ride.

[KayDee]

My husband and I quite enjoyed this show. We are happy that we are going back in Sept with our 1 year old so he can enjoy it also. The thing that we love about Disney is that there is something for everyone. The great thing about this attraction was the message that it was sending to children.

[1DisneyNut]

We have seen it twice a few years ago when the kids were around the 3 to 6 yr old age. Since the last time they really didn't seem interested in it and would vote to skip it. So this is one of the very few attractions at WDW that we skip over. It would be great to have a new show there.

[wonderalice23]

Boyfriend and I just started going to this show last year and actually enjoy it - I really like the "little" tree, although I don't remember his name. Like PI, glad to be able to see it once more before the closing!

[Rodders]

I must remember to go see this in September

[WDWCP Spring99]

They'll probably just replace it with another Nemo related show...sigh...

[Tarzan266]

I was just at AK and I regret not seeing this show. If I had known it was being discontinued, I would have definitely made a point to see it, especially since I never got a chance to see it before. I did however see Finding Nemo The Musical show and I thought it was great. I also saw the new "talking" Timon in Festival of The Lion King and I thought he was great as well. As much as I loved Nemo, I don't think anything could top Festival of The Lion King for me.

[Gator]

Good Riddance. I am glad to see that Disney is trying to improve this park. It is one of my favorites, but I can also see lots of room for improvement. Now if we could just get rid of Dinoland. That section of the part is comparable to a bad fair with the exception of Dinosaur the ride.

Oh, here we go... We're only a few posts from talking about ripping out "the dreaded hat" or gloating over getting the arm & wand removed. Removing things from WDW is always sad.

My thoughts are this: it seems like Disney is taking a lot of kid themed attractions out (with this and some character dining). I hope they're not moving all the kid appeal to DTD and then move Pleasure Island to the parks, just to attract more adults.

[lockedoutlogic]

Oh, here we go... We're only a few posts from talking about ripping out "the dreaded hat" or gloating over getting the arm & wand removed. Removing things from WDW is always sad.

My thoughts are this: it seems like Disney is taking a lot of kid themed attractions out (with this and some character dining). I hope they're not moving all the kid appeal to DTD and then move Pleasure Island to the parks, just to attract more adults.

i sense you have a "personal" interest in some of the "attractions" that have erupted like pimples at WDW over the last 10 years.....

the hat....for example.....which is really nothing but a really obnoxious pin stand......

bad idea.....always was......always will be....

the wand was great.....until it stayed 5 years too long.....


let's face it.....imagineering's work of late has been by and large a miss.....i don't know exactly why it has been.....but it has.....

hopefully they manage to regain their mojo a little.....

Iger has said it....and he's right: the parks need some new blood.....that is painfully obvious....at least in my opinion

[luvmyboys4ever]

We are going to do shows, shopping and parades this trip. We will be going with my in-laws in November...their treat! Since they are paying, we are going to do the slow paced things and this show was going to be one of those. To be honest, AK is our least favorite park, so I hope they replace it with something fun.

[Mackflava99]

My kids actually liked this also- Pocahantas doesnt get much play- its good to see the diversity here - other "princesses " get more publicity