What a week! Theme park fans have much to rejoice as the boy wizard apparates in Hollywood, Food and Wine returns to California Adventure, and all sorts of news comes out of the house of mouse. Read on dear readers, read on . . .

Wizarding World Soft Opens at Universal Studios Hollywood:

MiceChat was there but I was not. Thankfully Fishbulb published a HUGE photo essay from the magical new land just hours after it made a surprise soft opening, or “Technical Rehearsal” as Universal calls them. Our own Dusty Sage took some additional photos of the Wizarding World at sunset and they are glorious. He also shares a 3 minute video from inside Hogsmeade and boy oh boy am I a jealous girl. Hopefully I’ll get lucky and get in on one of the Technical Rehearsal days. Butterbeer awaits!

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Hogsmeade village at sunset – photo by Dusty Sage

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The Three Broomsticks restaurant with the Butterbeer cart in front of it.

 

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Where’s Waldo?

 

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The level of detail in this land is stunning.

 

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The nighttime lighting adds a magical glow.

 

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Fab News is sponsored by my beloved Patrons and by the Fabulous Folks at DVCResaleMarket.com

Goodbye – It’s been Mad!

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Sweet Shawn Slater announced on the Disney Parks Blog that at the end of March, Mad-T-Party will glow away forever (?) from the streets of DCA’s Hollywood Backlot. The popular, fun nightly music and dancing event quickly became a fan favorite when it was first introduced, and roared back again after its Diamond Anniversary re-introduction. But with the advent of the Food&Wine Festival, and the aging of the event, Disney decided that it was time to move on to less psychadelic pastures. We wish the cast the very best in the future and send our most grateful thanks for all of the magic and music they gave us during two spectacular runs! But this might not be the final end – never say never.

New Alice Through the Looking Glass Trailer

Perhaps the DCA Mad T-Party might be resurrected in an all-new version if this new Tim Burton film is a smash hit. It looks breathtaking. Take a gander at the brand new trailer, which debuted yesterday to celebrate the Grammy Awards:

And Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter has a decidedly more goth look for a brief glimpse in it.

“Alice Through the Looking Glass” is an all-new spectacular adventure featuring the unforgettable characters from Lewis Carroll’s beloved stories which stars Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Mia Wasikowska, Rhys Ifans, with Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen. The film opens in U.S. theaters on May 27, 2016.

And Disney has partnered with three time Grammy award winner P!nk to write and record a new song for the upcoming film as well as to cover “White Rabbit”. This film is really looking interesting.

DCA Food&Wine Festival

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Yesterday, Disneyland announced something which caused much rejoicing in Casa Valladolid: the Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival will return this April. If it’s 1/10th as fun and delicious as the Epcot version, @DisneylandToday will have a surefire hit on their hands!

Robespierre tells me that the action for the festival will take place for the most part on the Hollywood Backlot, to make up for the loss of Aladdin and also because it’s a pretty bare area compared to the rest of the park. It’s about to become even more open because of the upcoming closure of the Mad-T-Party.

Look for, instead of international dishes, an array of different cuisines from the many cultures in California as well as the several differing climates. There will be Festival Marketplaces, where guests can “sip and savor different flavors from throughout the state of California”, There will also be: ” The Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival will also include culinary demonstrations, appearances by celebrity chefs and informative seminars.”. Reservations for Premium experiences will open soon (I hope Disney VISA is involved!)

Anabella-Giveaway

And with all that fancy wine to try, you likely won’t want to drive home, or shouldn’t drive home 😉  Which makes the latest Anabella Hotel contest the perfect prize at the perfect time. Enter below for your chance to win a 2 night stay at the beautiful Anabella Hotel in a concierge room. PLUS: free parking, 2 breakfasts, and a $100 Disney gift card. Sign me up!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 Special Guests Announced for Countdown to Zootopia

Do you remember a few columns back, when I talked about Countdown to Zootopia, from February 18-24? I mentioned that there would be special guests, to be announced. Oh, honey, hang on to your hats Ready?

For “Wreck-It Ralph” – February 18: Director Rich Moore

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For “Frozen” – February 19: Directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee

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For “Tangled” – February 20: Voice Talent Mandy Moore and Director Nathan Greno

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For “Big Hero 6” – February 21: Scott Adsit (Baymax), Ryan Potter Hiro), Director Chris  Williams and Producer Roy Conli

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For “Bolt”- February 22: Director Chris Williams

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For “Winnie the Pooh”- February 23: Voice Talent Jim Cummings  Producer Peter Del Vecho

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For “The Princess and the Frog”- February 24: Anika Noni Rose (Tiana), Jim  Cummings (Ray), Michael-Leon Wooley (Louis), Directors John Musker and Ron Clements

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“Zootopia” plays March 4 to April 10, 2016 at The El Capitan

The 7:00pm screenings will be preceded by special presentations, which will include discussions with the filmmakers, and other special surprises. For the 7:00pm shows, everyone in attendance will receive beautiful pieces of artwork that Animation has created specifically for each film. The first 75 people in line will have the opportunity to meet the filmmakers while autographing the artwork, so get there early! There is easy validated parking across the street.

If you can’t make the 7PM show, you won’t miss out entirely: all feature films will be accompanied by recent and celebrated Disney animation short subjects, including the Academy Award winners, “Paperman” and “Feast.”  Each film screens at 10:00am, 1:00pm, 4:00pm, and 7:00pm. “Zootopia” will play March 4 to April 10, 2016 at The El Capitan Theatre and is currently on sale.

“This is a festival sure to excite animation fans of all ages,” said James Wood, operations and stage production for The El Capitan Theatre.  “When these pictures were first released, we were privileged to present most of them in their original engagements, including the world premiere engagement of ‘Frozen.’  These films are now considered classics, and we are proud to be presenting them again, many of which have not been seen on the big screen since their initial releases.  We are thrilled to be bringing the filmmakers to talk about these special films and this will be the first time El Capitan guests can hear them talk about their work.  Our guests will also have a larger picture of the scope of Walt Disney Animation Studios by seeing the short subjects created during that time.”

Here are the prices/packages available as of press time: 

  • Single reserved seat admission — $10 includes small popcorn and drink
  • Single VIP preferred reserved seat — $20 includes VIP popcorn and drink
  • Four show VIP preferred reserved seating (Guest picks four movies and showtimes to attend) — $76 includes VIP popcorn and drink at each film
  • All seven 7:00pm with special presentations VIP preferred packages — $126 includes VIP popcorn and drink at each film.

Smurfs Get Clumsy, Brainy and Hefty

My friend at Sony sent me this; I went in to see the Smurfs 2D Halloween special last year with my arms crossed and came out loving it; it’s nice to see that kind of stuff being done. Makes me happy. So they’re working on another project called Smurfs: The Lost Village. Demi Lovato leads the cast as Smurfette, who goes on a quest to find her true destiny, accompanied by a stalwart group of friends. 

Joining the already announced Lovato, Rainn Wilson as Gargamel and Mandy Patinkin as Papa Smurf will be: triple Emmy nominee Jack McBrayer (30 Rock, Wreck-It Ralph) as the sweet, awkward and honest-to-a-fault Clumsy, who’s forever trying his best and missing the mark; Danny Pudi (Community) as book smart and geek proud Brainy, who’s long on knowledge, but short on inter-Smurf-onal skills (their words, not mine); and Joe Manganiello (True Blood, Magic Mike) as the strong and super-positive Hefty, a loyal dynamo struggling with his hero complex.  

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Smurfberry Crunch was such a guilty pleasure in my youth. Plus, the milk was blue! Before then, there wasn’t blue candy or anything, because they didn’t have a safe blue food coloring til the 1980s! Both ways! Uphill! In the SNOW!

I have so much more to tell you but I’m running out of time. So I’ll see you Thursday! I want to send a special thanks to my new Patreon Patron and to my Patron who doubled up on his Patreonage. You may not think it’s a big deal, but it is. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Fab News is also supported by DVCResaleMarket.com. I did a lot of research into different Disney Vacation Club resale companies. DVCResaleMarket.com is run by experts who have worked inside and outside of Disney. They have years of experience and can give you a clear-headed explanation of the benefits that come with pre-paid vacations from Disney Vacation Club. They know, it seems, everything ever about it. It’s amazing. Check out their website, read the reviews, check their videos, ask around. They’re fantastic.

, Fab News: Butterbeer, Wine, Tea and…Smurfberries, Fab News: Butterbeer, Wine, Tea and…Smurfberries If you want to reach me I’m on Twitter, on Facebook, and also available at [email protected] . If you’d like to support Fab News, I’d appreciate it. You can pledge a dollar or more a month through Patreon or you can make a one-time donation of a dollar or more through Square. Just click on the banners below. Thanks!
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Shelly Valladolid
Shelly Valladolid, aka Fab, has been writing about Disney and theme parks for about two decades. She has written for various fan and pop culture sites, Disney Magazine and OCRegister.com and participated in several books, including Passporter's Disneyland and Southern California and Disney World Dreams. She was co-founder and president of the Orlando, Florida chapter of the NFFC (now Disneyana Fan Club). She taught a class on theme park history at a Southern California University. She is creator and co-owner of Jim Hill Media, one of the creators of MousePlanet and was a consultant on MSNBC, The Motley Fool and others about Disney and various media matters. She was a Heel wrestling manager on TV and a voice artist on the radio in Honolulu, HI, where she grew up. She has a blog and a podcast with her daughter, Mission:Breakout Obsessive Alice Hill. She and her husband, MiceChat columnist Noe Valladolid, live in Southern California with Alice.