Universal's Diagon Alley Leads the 21st Annual Thea Awards
ORLANDO — The Themed Entertainment Association today announced the winners of its 21st annual Thea Awards, honoring outstanding achievements in the themed entertainment industry. Universal Creative's The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley led the winners, with three awards, including the Paragon Award and the award for the year's best attraction.
Christine Kerr, outgoing President of the TEA, right, with incoming President Steve Birket
The winners include:
- Paragon Award: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Florida, for Diagon Alley, Hogwarts Express and Diagon Alley's retail and dining.
- Thea Classic Award: It's a Small World at Disneyland
- Buzz Price Award for Lifetime Achievement: Ron Miziker
- Theme Park: Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in Zhuhai, China
- Attraction: Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts
- Themed Restaurant: Bistro Chez Remy at Walt Disney Studios Paris
- Technical Excellence: Interactive Wands at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
- Event Spectacular: Wings of Times at Sentosa Island in Singapore, The Legend of the White Snake in Zhenjiangm China
- Extraordinary Cultural Achievement: National September 11 Memorial Museum in New York
- Museum Exhibit: Wonder Rooms at Gemeentemuseum in The Hague, Netherlands
- New Park Land (Limited Budget): Grassland "The Land of the Little Tractor," at Kongeparken in Norway
- Attraction (Limited Budget): Wilderness Explorers, Disney's Animal Kingdom
- Attraction Rehab (Limited Budget): The Time Machine, Parc du Futuroscope in Poitiers, France
- Live Show (Limited Budget): The Grand Hall Experience at St. Louis Union Station
- Museum Exhibition (Limited Budget): Nature Lab at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles
The Thea Awards Gala will be held on March 21, 2015 at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim.
Replies (7)
Well deserved.
Well said, N B.
Love a Futuroscope shout-out. If that park was closer to a major city, we'd be talking about it *all the time*.
MAGIC BANDS did not win the technical award??? LOL
Great job by Universal. I love standing just inside the entrance to Diagon ALley and watch peoples mouths drop when they first walk in. God forbid the Dragon breaths fire right as their walking in for the first time, I thought one family was going to faint they were so overcome with emotion.
DA deserves to win awards, of course.
Although the interactive wands are a great idea, I wouldn't have given the technical award for that because I saw too many people struggle to do the tricks with them.
I would have given the technical award to the terrific new AAs in the 7DMT ride. They are beautifully realized, and state of the art.
Another award for Small World. That'll keep the haters at bay.
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Diagon Alley set the standard for how far a theme park can go to immerse you in another world. When Potter fans walk in for the first time and break out into tears, you know you did something right.