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Universal Hollywood Celebrated the Arrival of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with Red Carpet Gala

April 6, 2016

Universal Studios Hollywood celebrated the arrival of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter yesterday, complete with red carpet gala and opening ceremony that would make Dumbledore proud. The night began with a who’s who of arrivals on the longest red carpet ever seen at a Universal Attraction opening, followed by a live orchestral concert conducted by none other than the brilliant composer John Williams (Harry Potter Film Series)

The incomparably gracious and kind Angelica Maria.

From Left to Right: Steve Burke, CEO, NBCUniversal, Steven Spielberg, Tom Williams, Chairman and CEO, Universal Parks and Resorts, Kevin Tsujihara, Chairman and CEO, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

Chick Russell, Universal Creative Producer and Thierry Coup, Sr. Vice President, Universal Creative, Universal Parks and Resorts.

Phelps-twins — The Phelps Twins – George and Fred Weasley

More than five years in the making, “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” is being masterfully recreated with impeccable detail as a real-world interpretation at Universal Studios Hollywood. The land will be faithful to the visual landscape of the fiction and films, including Hogwarts castle which will serve as its iconic focal point.

When this exciting immersive land opens in Hollywood for the first time, visitors from around the globe will have the opportunity to experience “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter,” where magical spells and magical creatures meet dark villains and daring heroes and where guests of all ages can explore their inner-wizard.

Press and dignitaries took their places on the risers and in designated areas in front of the performance stand and orchestra. The Hogwarts Choir greeted the crowd with a rousing rendition of Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Larry Kurzweil, President of Universal Studios Hollywood, took the stage and was given a special wand.

Tom Williams, Chairman and CEO of Universal Parks and Resorts, next addressed the crowd.

They were then joined by Kevin Tsujihara, Chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Entertainment.

Ron Meyer, Vice Chairman of NBC Universal, joined the stage

Last but not least, Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garcertti gave a rousing speech.

The group then invited John Williams to take his place at the conductors stand. Mr. Williams was the composer of the Harry Potter score and is the 2nd most Oscar Nominated person (at 50 nominations) just behind Walt Disney.

The music began and fused the most beautiful fireworks accompanied by jaw-droppokng extravaganza

Castle projects little up the background and added a jaw-dropping whimsy to the celebration.

We’ve never seen a better projection mapping display. The clarity and power of the projects was simply stunning.

The show’s spectacle was beyond anything we had ever seen. While we understand that Universal Hollywood can’t get away with nightly fireworks due to neighbors and restrictions, we do hope they’ll find a way to make this AMAZING projection extravaganza part of the evening experience in the new land. Dustysage streamed the event live from his iPhone (and with limited bandwidth) and shared photos and video of the red carpet and event on the MiceChat Facebook Page HERE. You can see below. Scroll ahead to about 25 minutes in to see the good stuff (click for more info and comments):

Let’s try again (our previous connection dropped): @UniStudios #WizardingWorldHollywood grand opening http://Facebook.com/MiceBook

Posted by MiceChat.com | The Happiest Place in Cyberspace… on Tuesday, April 5, 2016

I would get into greater detail on things, but I have another early call time at Universal this morning. I’ll be back with a full review of the new land later this week!