Disney sets spring concert series line-up at EPCOT

The legendary Queensryche, one of the finest American metal bands of the 80s, now playing a Disney park. How the mighty have fallen and sold out. How utterly sad.

I always wonder with these sorts of things which bands are a "ship of theseus" of their original line-up, too.

There are now two versions, Robert. The original version minus singer Geoff Tate and Geoff Tate's Queensryche so I suspect it is the original version as they are billed simply as Queensryche. "Operation: Mindcrime" genuinely is one of the greatest albums ever written, recorded and released. They are still releasing albums every three years or so and touring so still very active which is why I am so surprised. All of the other rock and metal bands which do these kind of things have not released new material in decades and are effectively tribute acts of themselves although I did see 3 Doors Down at Busch Gardens in 2022.

I therefore urge everybody to attend May 29th and/or 30th.

Waiting for the year when they bring out Danzig lol

Thanks ProfPlum. Good background.

Hey, you never know who has grandkids now who want a trip to Disney World. Or which bands' members want their own trip to Disney. In the middle of a tour, that can be a nice break, and I am certain that Disney has made that pitch to book artists in the past.

What I always find interesting with these in-park concerts that are included in admission are the acts that are actively touring at venues where they are charging market rate for tickets. For instance, Queensryche is playing the M3 Rock Festival by me (Merriweather Post Pavilion) along with a number of smaller theaters along the east coast in the spring and early summer where tickets average $50 or more. I get the appearance of artists who are on the state fair circuit or are versions of bands where the only "original" member remaining is the backup cowbell player's roadie, because those artists will play for peanuts. However, what must parks pay to attract artists that may not be stadium headliners, but are actively selling out small and medium-sized venues?

It's clear that certain artists have forged a relationship with park bookers, because they come back year after year, but you'd have to think that even at a park like EPCOT, the minimal attendance bump from these artists can't possibly justify an appearance fee of more than $50k.

13 years ago we were at EPCOT Food and Wine Festival and one of the bands that evening was Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. I had never heard of them and thought they were an African drumming ensemble. Out of curiosity I waited for the show and was left speechless at how utterly fantastic they were and that they were actually a contemporary swing band, which isn't my thing. Since seeing them that evening we have coincided three visits to Orlando to specifically see them again at the Food and Wine Festival and I am now an avid fan owning all of their albums so I am a huge supporter of live bands at the theme parks as you never know if one makes that instant connection which enriches your life thereafter.

@Russell Meyer

Yeah, I totally wonder about the package they offer. My best guess is they do provide a fee of close to the number you stated (which is still low for many of the better bands on tour etc), but may be able to offer some sweeteners:
-Disney provides crew (so you're not paying your full staff as you would on a tour date)
-Disney has a good "back-line" of available equipment (so you're not paying to get a truck's worth of gear to the venue), and, the real kicker:
-Disney is also providing some add-on days of Disney vacation for the bands' families.

Again, just a guess, but there is probably a well-established way that Disney makes it worth these groups' time without breaking the bank. On the other hand, spending $$$ on live acts that will draw theme park capacity is certainly a good use of money, and the model must work for them or they wouldn't do it. I imagine that the Candlelight Processional costs them in the vicinity of $50,000 every time it runs, given that you have full orchestra and a celebrity narrator.

I'm also not sure that an attendance bump is necessary for the band's performance to be a financial success. It's more about being a people-eater for the time the show is running, right?

We need Bush at Busch Gardens!!

Kris V, ironically I saw them for the first time in November in Birmingham, England, supporting Volbeat and they were far better than I expected as they are a little "light" for me. I may reform my band from the 90s and rename us C-World.

Robert, the mystery of Queenryche's appearance at EPCOT at the end of May has now been solved. They head to Europe for a 17 concert tour starting on 12/06 so these will be "warm up" shows.