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2010 Best Theme Park Attraction nominee: SeaWorld Orlando's Blue Horizons

By Robert Niles
Published: January 7, 2010 at 9:11 PM
Today, we highlight SeaWorld Orlando's Blue Horizons, the 13th seed in the Best Live Show bracket of the 2010 Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament.

SeaWorld Orlando's Blue Horizons

Blue Horizons debuted in 2005, in the park's Whale and Dolphin Theater. Unlike past dolphin shows, Blue Horizons blends Cirque du Soleil-style acrobatics with a musical narrative to complement these marine mammals. Here a clip of the show's finale, which I recorded when I visited SeaWorld Orlando this summer:

SeaWorld will bring Blue Horizons to SeaWorld San Diego this summer, extending the parks' recent trend toward replacing animal-driven shows with more robust entertainment spectacles that happen to include animals in prominent roles.

Does Blue Horizons' inclusion of acrobats, divers and a fanciful narrative enhance or detract from watching the dolphins and other animals do their tricks? A few readers have criticized the show on that count, but the majority of Theme Park Insider readers who've seen the show stand behind it, rating it highly enough to make this year's tournament field.

Tell us in the comments what you think of Blue Horizons. You'll get your chance to vote on whether Blue Horizons advances when the Best Theme Park Attraction tournament gets under way in March.

Readers' Opinions

From Bruce Lane on January 7, 2010 at 10:50 PM
'Blue Horizons' = 'Blue Delusions.'

'Nuff said.

From Anthony Murphy on January 7, 2010 at 11:06 PM
Much better than what was there I think!
From Rob P on January 8, 2010 at 2:53 AM
Over the years we've seen a number of dolphin shows at SeaWorld both in Orlando and San Diego.
There has to be development to keep audiences coming back and I think Blue Horizons deserves a bit of credit for trying to keep this genre alive.
We recently returned from Tenerife in the Canary Islands where SeaWorld has helped to develop the aquatic shows at Loro Parque. It reminded us so much of how things used to be at SeaWorld 15 years ago and, although really very good, it just seemed to lack that extra dimension.
The truth is that audiences demand more and more from these shows and unless they create something spectacular the feeling will be , for most people, that they've seen it all before.
I give Blue Horizons a big thumbs-up. It's not perfect ( what is ? ) but it's an enjoyable show with lots going on. Even if it is a bit ....well.......blue !!
From Joshua Counsil on January 8, 2010 at 9:59 AM
Better than Believe, but I feel that the exhibits outweigh the shows at SeaWorld. The portion you filmed happens to be the best segment of the Blue Horizons show. Much of the show is dedicated to high-divers and acrobats, which makes it feel like something from a state fair.

A pretty good show - by the site's standards, I'd give it an 8 - Commendable - but not good enough to win the tournament, maybe not even its first showdown.

From Anne Mitchell on January 8, 2010 at 12:11 PM
My sister said it best: too much show, too little dolphins.
From 97.97.33.225 on January 8, 2010 at 12:14 PM
there is a new blue type show coming to texas seaworld this year also.
From 173.162.139.169 on January 8, 2010 at 1:08 PM
I love the show...I think the ranking is a little low actually. I could see it being a 9 or an 8 seed then get knocked out in the second round by one of the big dogs.
From Manny Barron on January 8, 2010 at 3:31 PM
It's a good show. It has more dolphin stunts than Believe has whale stunts. Yes I would rather see the dolphins more but the acrobats are good and better than the cheesy Believe narrative. There's some nice birds in this show as well. Second best show in SWO behind the Sea Lions.

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