TPA: Tournament of Champions Challenge 3

Design a new land for Disney Hollywood Studios. The theme? Music.

From Tim W
Posted January 15, 2012 at 5:06 PM
Welcome to challenge 3 of TOC. This week our contestants will be designing a land for DHS based off of music. Disney’s Hollywood Studios has always been mostly about movies and entertainment. There have been hints of music entering within the park over the past few years with Rock n Roller Coaster and the American Idol Experience. This week’s challenge will focus on putting in a music themed land to the mostly movie themed park. The land will be located in the area that the present Rock n Roller Coaster is located. You must have a name for your themed land and a cohesive theme. You must contain at least 3 new attractions in the land, and one restaurant. Feel free to change the band that is featured on Rock n Roller Coaster if you feel that Aerosmith does not work well with your theme. You can pretty much take any direction with this land that you wish, including a combination of music genres, a focus on only one genre of music, or you could take a focus on Disney music. When designing your themed land, please be sure to include songs that you have used with the artist mentioned. Also try to come up with an idea for a restaurant which can be quick service or sit down. Good Luck!

Proposals are due Friday night at midnight (website time) as always. So at the end of the day, January 20th.

From James Koehl
Posted January 15, 2012 at 3:02 PM
The importance that music has had to the success of the Walt Disney Studios and the impact it has had on America and the world is celebrated in the newest area of Disney's Hollywood Studios-

"Burbank Avenue and the Disney Music Legends Walk of Fame".

Watch soon for the announcement describing this amazing and entertaining new themed land.

From Jeff Elliott
Posted January 16, 2012 at 7:33 AM
Typically there is no need to announce what your new proposal is going to be unless you are scared to death that one of the other competitors is also going to show an amazing lack of creativity and do some idea that is as obvious as yours with the same premise. The only other reason to announce an idea this early in the week would be as an intimidation strategy.

Up until this point, I have felt like such an announcement was hardly needed for my proposals, but as things progress, things change.

With that in mind, please wait with mounting anticipation for the specifics of a land that is sure to amaze everyone:

Justin Bieber Land

From Tim W
Posted January 16, 2012 at 6:59 PM
Ok so here is the points tally for this week.

Joseph scored 5 points adding to his 1, giving him 6.

James scored 4 plus 1 for being my favorite, added to the 5 gives him 10.

Nick scored 3, added to his 4 gives him 7.

Jeff scored 2, added to his 3 gives him 5.

Dan scored 1, added to his 3 gives him 4.

So the ranking is:

James: 10
Nick: 7
Joseph: 6
Jeff: 5
Dan: 4

From James Koehl
Posted January 17, 2012 at 7:27 PM
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There is no film studio in history that has had a more profound and long-lasting affect on the musical culture of America and the world than the Walt Disney Studios. Many of America's greatest composers, lyricists and performers have contributed music to dozens of Disney films, both animated and live-action, that has become deeply-engrained in the minds of generations of moviegoers young and old. Walt Disney knew and appreciated from the first the impact that music could have on his audiences, helping to tell each story whether it be a classic fairy tale or a nature documentary or a live-action film.

Burbank Avenue is named after Burbank, California, where the Walt Disney Studios is located. Several short streets lead off of it, each named after a distinguished Disney composer. The avenue starts at the end of Sunset Blvd. as it turns and approaches the former Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith.

This thrilling indoor coaster has been rejuvenated and rethemed as "Stitch's Hawaiian Roller Coaster" featuring music by Alan Silvestri ("Lilo and Stitch," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," and "Disney's A Christmas Carol"). The music is a rearrangement of the Lilo and Stitch musical number "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" where the main characters are surfing the big waves off of the island of Kauai. The ride is still an indoor Vekoma coaster and will use the same track configuration, but instead of riding in limos in Hollywood riders will board Hawaiian "Malia" canoes (minus the outrigger) and ride the waves off the coast of Kauai.

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Huge HD screens will surround riders with the sights of the towering waves that Lilo, Stitch, David and Nani enjoy surfing, with the smells of the ocean, the spray of the water and the Pacific winds added to make the experience of riding "The Hawaiian Roller Coaster" complete.

Proceeding down Burbank Avenue, guests see a short side street, Zimmer Street (named for Hans Zimmer, who contributed music for "The Lion King") leading into an area reminiscent of an African village with a large circular meeting hall in the center. This is "Stampede", where riders can experience the thrill and perhaps a bit of fear as they ride stampeding wildebeest, zebra, antelope and cape buffalo in a recreation of the stampede from The Lion King.

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The ride is based on the Racing Derby carousels such as Cedar Downs at Cedar Point, but instead of being open-air the walls and ceilings are HD screens to give the riders the feeling of running in a frantic, mindless dash across the African savannah. The music of the stampede from "The Lion King", the speed of the rampaging wild animals, the all-encompassing vistas of the endless plains of Africa racing by will make this attraction unique in all of the Disney parks.

Menken-Schwartz Drive leads to an amazing outdoor attraction, "Pocahontas' Riverbend Adventure", a water flume ride through the Virginia wilderness of the early 1600's. Canoes carry riders down rushing streams, through towering forests, past wildlife such as beavers, raccoons and deer (all a.a.), over raging rapids and past beautiful waterfalls, recreating Pocahontas' canoe trip in the beloved Disney movie of the same name. The adventure starts with the canoes rushing through a forest filled with wildlife while the song "Just Beyond the Riverbend" is heard. After entering a level part of the stream, where the water is smooth and calm, the song "Colors of the Wind" is heard, the forest starts to change, the leaves change from bright green to mature green, then to brilliant reds, yellows and oranges, and finally the leaves are gone and the trees and forest floor is covered with the beautiful white of snow. As the canoes approach the end of this quiet stretch of water, the green of new leaves returns to the trees, the flowers poke through the melting snow, and the forest returns to the warmth of Spring.
The stream widens, the speed of the water increases, and as the song "Just Beyond the Riverbend" returns, the canoes race to the thrilling conclusion of this exciting experience, careening down more rapids, past spectacular waterfalls, and finally arrive at the conclusion of the adventure just beyond the riverbend.

Burbank Avenue ends at Sherman Park, named for Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman, composers for such major Disney productions as "Mary Poppins", "The Jungle Book", "Winnie the Pooh" and "it's a small world". Sherman Park resembles the park in "Mary Poppins" where she takes Jane and Michael to see Bert creating his sidewalk chalk drawings and inevitably into those drawings for the remarkable animated portion of the film. Screevers, sidewalk chalk artists, will be on hand to recreate some of the amazing pictures seen in the film, and to encourage guests to try their own hand at being a sidewalk artist. The park will be filled with shaded park benches and plenty of tables where guests can enjoy a light lunch or snack while listening to the music from the central bandstand.

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Throughout the day a variety of bands from military brass to Dixieland to visiting bands from around the world will take the bandstand stage and perform concerts of Disney music. The music will be from all types and eras of Disney music, from the earliest accompaniment of "Steamboat Willie" to the most current releases, and perhaps a few teasers from future films. Several counter-service food stands will provide sandwiches, salads and beverages to the park visitors.

Overlooking Sherman Square is a large, classical brick building, two stories high, with large white columns supporting a classical pediment over the entrance porch. An elegantly-painted sign on the front of this magnificent 19th Century English structure proclaims it to be The Cherry Tree Lane Theater (located at No. 17 Cherry Tree Lane, of course). This is the venue for the most popular family entertainment in all of Disney Hollywood Studios, "Mary Poppins' Jolly Holiday", a forty-minute production featuring some of the most popular and memorable songs from the beloved Walt Disney film.
Guests enter the theater and are immediately immersed in the beauty of its elegant late 19th Century decor. Ushers dressed as Pearly Kings and Queens direct them to their plush seats, each designed to provide excellent sightlines of the large stage. A few lucky guests are invited to take seats in the elegant boxes flanking the stage on either side, and one lucky family is chosen to take their places in the Royal Box, with plush furniture, free beverages and a meeting with the cast of the performance afterwards.
"Mary Poppins' Jolly Holiday" uses some of the most famous songs written by the Sherman brothers for the 1964 film and incorporates the 2004 Broadway production designs to present a magical experience for the audience. The storyline has Mary Poppins taking Jane and Michael on a trip to the park, something that they find terribly boring until Mary shows them all the magic in the world around them, and how anything can happen if you let it. They stop at Mrs. Correy's Magic Sweet Shoppe on the way to the park, where they buy some letters and create the word "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious". After purchasing some magical Ginger Stars to snack on they continue their walk to the park while they perform "Just a Spoonful of Sugar" while meeting all sorts of amazing people on the streets of London. They stop at the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral, where the bird woman sings, "Feed the Birds" (Walt Disney's favorite song of all time). Upon arrival at the gate to the park, they meet Bert, an old friend of Mary Poppins who is creating sidewalk chalk art while singing, "Chim Chim Cher-ee". He asks Mary Poppins where they've been, and when she tells him that they have been walking to the park and seeing the sights of London Bert tells her that only the chimney sweeps can really see London, and that's from the rooftops. When the children plead with Mary to let them see London from the rooftops, she allows it, but tells them that they must look the part. She opens her bag, takes out a makeup compact, and proceeds to carefully powder the children and herself with soot. The four of them are magically transported to the rooftops of London, with chimneys, roofs and a magnificent view of London beyond. The rest of the chimney sweeps appear and the entire company perform the amazing production number "Step in Time",

during the reprise of which Mary Poppins and the children return home. The children's parents welcome them home with a surprise- new kites! The entire family heads outside to join the rest of the cast in, "Let's Go Fly a Kite" while Mary Poppins, her job done, opens her umbrella and flies off over the audience to take more children on a jolly holiday.

Many food stands are found along Burbank Avenue, offering a wide variety of convenience foods, snacks, fruits and beverages, but the most popular restaurant on Burbank Avenue is, of all things, a school cafeteria. Not just any school cafeteria, but the most famous one in all of the Disney universe, the East High School Cafeteria from the "High School Musical" series. This counter service restaurant is a reproduction of the cafeteria and outdoor dining patio featured in the popular film series, including banners for a Wildcats pep rally and posters announcing auditions for this year's high school musical.

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Diners go through a typical school cafeteria line, taking their plastic trays and sliding them down the line while looking into the glass serving counter to see what is on the menu today. Cafeteria Ladies in white, with hair nets, pointy-rimmed glasses and a bit of attitude, stand ready to serve up typical meals available in any school cafeteria. But this is where the similarity ends. The menu is extensive, offering more choices in one day than most schools offer in one year. The foods are all top quality: no instant mashed potatoes here, but real potatoes with a choice of gravies; flavorful meat loaf made with top-quality beef and pork; hand-made pizzas available by the slice or as a whole pizza; hand-cut French fries; three kinds of chili, from mild to 5-alarm; the extensive menu is traditional cafeteria food but the quality is that expected in one of Disney's best restaurants. A fresh salad and fruit bar is available, and the deserts are all freshly made. Of course, no alcohol is served- this is a school, after all!

The music of Disney is so varied that any land featuring it would seem disjointed without a unifying theme, and that is provided by the Disney Musical Legends Walk of Fame. Running down the center of Burbank Avenue, from the entrance off of Sunset Blvd. to Sherman Square, is a set of five parallel lines representing a musical staff. Along the staff, set into the pavement, are large bronze musical notes with the names of the Disney Legends that created much of the music celebrated along Burbank Avenue. Twenty musicians have been honored as Disney Legends for their contribution to the musical heritage of the Walt Disney Studios and thus the musical heritage of the world. Such well known names as Phil Collins and Sir Tim Rice share this honor with lesser known but just as important names as Leigh Harline and Ned Washington (the composers of "When You Wish Upon a Star") and Buddy Baker (the composer of the music frum The Haunted Mansion). As more musicians receive this honor, their names will be added to the Walk of Fame in an appropriate ceremony.

Burbank Avenue and the Disney Music Legends Walk of Fame- a new land at Disney's Hollywood Studios, where exciting attractions, dazzling entertainment and musical memories combine to celebrate the contribution that Disney music had contributed to Disney magic!

From Matt Babiak
Posted January 17, 2012 at 7:33 PM
James, that was pure genius, and not just because it includes a Stitch ride! :+) You picked a great theme to work off of, and you had 3 world class attractions.(Bonus points in my book for not just sticking the Mary Poppins Broadway show in here, but come up with a good, original idea).

I personally think that you should have incorporated The Bear Necessities in Sherman Park, but this site could spend a week nitpicking about what songs and movies you should or shouldn't have included.

From Mike Gallagher
Posted January 18, 2012 at 5:17 AM
Matt said, "but this site could spend a week nitpicking about what songs and movies you should or shouldn't have included."

And it probably will.

From Andy Milito
Posted January 18, 2012 at 2:00 PM
Love it, especially Zimmer Street (that man is a musical genius!)
Very good!

From Joseph Catlett
Posted January 19, 2012 at 9:07 PM
Coming Soon to The Disney Studios at Walt Disney World Resort


ROCK AND ROLL BOULEVARD

Taking its cue from the nearby Rock N Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith, the studios will expand to feature more of the greatest rock and roll music acts and adventures inspired by them. This mini-land just off of Sunset Boulevard will celebrate the potency of Rock music with attractions, shops and restaurants living the rock and roll lifestyle.
The soundtrack of the land will feature the music of dozens of Rock heavyweights like:
Jimi Hendrix
Bill Haley and the Comets
Bruce Springsteen
Ozzy Osbourne
U2
The B52s
The Rolling Stones
Beatles
Van Halen
The Bangles
The Ramones
Bon Jovi

And many more.

The land will be designed with buildings designed as over sized rock instruments. Giant drums sets, guitars, bass and of course…cowbells.

The three new attractions for this land start off with
THE BEATLES PRESENT: ADVENTURES IN PEPPERLAND

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This attractions based off arguably the most influential rock band of all time, THE BEATLES will be a simulator ride where you board a psychedelic painted school bus for a magical mystery tour of Pepperland. This ride is inspired by the Sgt Pepper album and the Yellow Submarine Movie’s animation.
You enter the bus simulator and are taken on a tour of colorful Pepperland, hosted by animated John, Paul, George and Ringo. You see beautiful animated scenes which then become ruined by the Blue Meanies, a race of strange blueberry looking monsters, who spoil the lovely land. In fact at one point the blue meanies take over your bus and send you into the seedy and scary part of the land they live in…the only way to defeat them is with the power of love and music ala Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band.


After restoring Pepperland to its past glory, step across the way into and into the greatest rock festival ever. They say if you remember it…you probably weren’t really there. Now, though, you can relive it and enjoy the Peace, Love and Music of…..

WOODSTOCK: THE EXPERIENCE


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Presented in Real D 3D technology, this Imax show will convert portions of the Woodstcok film documentary, edit it for content and feature some of the greatest acts presented over that 3 day period in the Summer of 1969. Thrill to Hendrix, Sha Na Na, The Who and many other acts that rocked the world and defined a generation and their music.

Guests at this show will have the access to enter and exit the show at any time as the running time will be nearly one hour and will run on a continuous loop. The exit of the will feature a revolving exhibition on the history of the show with artifacts and costumes donated and loaned by the artists who appeared at Woodstock.


But what does it all mean? Where does the greatest music in rock history come from? Hop aboard the Grim Reaper’s boat for a ride down the River Styx as you learn the history of Rock. Your hosts are the loudest band in England:
SPINAL TAP
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SPINAL TAP’S HISTORY OF ROCK…and stuff!

Climb aboard Charon’s boat and set sail as your hosts Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer), Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest) and David St.Hubbins (Michael Mckean) the members of the fictional Heavy Metal group Spinal Tap take on a guided, water born tour of the history of rock.
You’ll pass by humorous scenes of cavemen beating each over the heads with rocks and sticks, the original “rock band”.
You’ll head into the dark ages with the building of Stonehenge, the druids chanting away to the Spinal tap song “Stonehenge”.
You’ll sail by a medieval scene with the first girl rock group fronted by Lady Guinivere in a spangled dress singing a little Janis Joplin.
You’ll then head into the future into outer space where the power of rock propels us into the future and beyond.

The ride is filled with Audio Animatronics and is very tongue in cheek while telling its story, in the style that World of Motion used back in the old days at Epcot.

Ready for a bite to eat after rock and rolling all night and partying every day?


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Then sit down at this mini land’s main eatery

HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF
This restaurant is a celebration of the Rock experience featuring tons of rock memorabilia adorning the walls like gold records and autographed guitars but what makes this different from just another Hard Rock Café is that the restaurant features a large stage that presents full size videos of rock concerts shown life size making it feel like you are there. As the concert footages plays a KISS concert, for example, pyro effects would also shoot off at appropriate times giving you the feeling that you are really there.

The food offered here would be standard American BBQ with great ribs, burgers and pulled pork. Drinks and salads would also be offered along with a full ice cream bar in the style of Cold Stone where you choose the ice cream and customize it with your favorite toppings.

Rock out at The Disney Studios at Walt Disney World!

From Jeff Elliott
Posted January 20, 2012 at 8:17 AM
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Big Beat * Cyber Land

Big Beat is a style of music that came upon the underground music scene in the mid 1990’s. Popularized by the groups Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, The Propellerheads, Fat Boy Slim, Daft Punk, Deadmau5, and used in some Gorillaz songs. Movies about cyberpunk generally used this style of music since there are elements of electronic music in it, but one movie trilogy is credited with popularizing the music form, The Matrix, and since this is a movie based theme park, it should be a really good fit. The most popular of big beat songs, however, does not use a heavy electronic sound, but a brass section while still being instrumental: the song Battle Without Honor or Humanity by Tomoyasu Haotei. Now, before you say that you have never heard of this song, trust me, you have, it was featured in the move Kill Bill, and used in several movies and commercials since then and is generally thought to be one of the best pieces of bumper music on the planet. Take a listen:

This cut of music will be heavily featured on the retheme of the Rock n Roller Coaster, which will be renamed:

Into the Matrix
The outside of the building will be rethemed to the Nebuchadnezzar, the hovercraft that Morpheus and Neo run around the real world in. The inside of the building will be themed to the inside of the hovercraft with the time sequence of about halfway through the first Matrix movie. You walk past a display of Matrix characters all strapped into the chairs that allow them to jack into the Matrix. Tank and Dozer are the only people moving around, and they give you the safety briefing. They explain that this new vehicle is probably the best way to get acclimatized to the Matrix.

On the roller coaster, the billboards will be removed and replaced by digital projections that show the Matrix streams of characters rolling down the screens. The ride ends in a subway system and you hear Dozer telling you that you have successfully crossed over into the Matrix, from there you exit back into the park, presumably now in the Matrix.

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Around the corner from Into the Matrix, you get your first look at Big Beat Cyber Land. The whole area will be themed around cyberpunk. Cyberpunk is a version of the future that is a bit dirtier and messier than regular versions of a technologically advanced future. Cyberpunk generally speaks of times where technology has greatly improved the lives of the rich, but the poor people have certain technological innovations that they cannot live without, although they are not that happy with their world. Most things should be painted in shades of grey and monochrome green with wires and cables sticking out of them…sort of high tech, but unfinished. Through the speakers, Big Beat and Techno music is playing.

The next attraction you come across as you enter this land is another Matrix based ride:

Matrix: Cyber Training

The outside structure is of the cyber punk theme, with the Matrix display characters running down the building. The inside of the attraction will feature two very good Big Beat songs from the first Matrix movie as well as many other songs from the Matrix trilogy. The queue will feature the song Clubbed to Death by Rob Dougan.

The setup to this ride is that they are testing out a new way for home grown humans (i.e. people who do not have a jack for the Matrix on the back of their heads) to access the Matrix via a new NeuroPod system that they have recently completed. The NeuroPod is a four seat across ride vehicle that has a glass/Plexiglas dome that closes over the riders once they are locked into their seats. The dome contains high definition LCD’s that are virtually invisible when they are off making the dome clear and able to interact with real sets, but when they are on, they can project any high speed video that you may want in such a way that the riders feel like they are in the scene. This ride will be a personal experience, much like Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, so the seats are configured to where you cannot see the other people in your pod. The ride mechanism is hidden from the riders, and consists of a three cable mounting on top of and below the pod. These cables are then sent to the ride track in the ceiling and the floor, with the vehicle actually mounted to a spool of cable attached to the electric track, allowing the tracks of the ride to remain hidden far above and far below where the riders can see. As a result of this particular cabling system, the vehicles will have motion detectors on them that will attempt to keep the projected images flat and still while the pod gets bounced around. The ride will be a mix of high def LCD’s on the glass dome as well as real sets, video screens, and effects that are further off.

During the ride, this song by the Propellerheads from the original Matrix movie plays:

The story line starts off quickly and right into the jump program, where you are supposed to try to jump between buildings, and then agent training, before rushing you into the real Matrix to help extract a couple of friendlies. This is when the action really starts to pick up. You jump into a car and start doing a high speed race down the highway, before hitting a traffic jam and calling for a helicopter. The helicopter races in and you jump to the helicopter from the car and go on a wild dangling ride toward the people who are trapped by the agents. Quickly they come into view, you jump off the rope and drop to the ground with a fist punch creating a shock wave around you and knocking everyone down. You quickly grab the friendlies and grab back onto the helicopter. As it starts to soar away, you can hear voices in the cockpit indicating that there is some kind of struggle going on in the cockpit of the helicopter and the whole thing start flying very erratically, nearly running into buildings. At the nearest building, you bail off with the friendlies, and then start doing roof jumps down until you are back on the street.

Proceeding to a subway, you narrowly missing getting run over by a train and manage to grab a hardwired line to get everyone back to the real world, seconds before you are overrun by the agents that have been giving chase.

Wreck It Ralph: Gamemaster
This attraction is an interesting combination of laser tag, maze game, and group cooperation. Each new group is led into the starter room and armed with 1980’s style rubberized laser guns, based on the upcoming Disney animated movie about an old video game villain that wants to become a good guy.

This attraction will feature the following song by Deadmau5:

The voiceovers in the song will be redone by Wreck It Ralph and give you an indication of what you should be doing on each board. Once the music starts, the goal that you are trying to achieve is done collectively as a group, it could be a simple as finding three cherries or something along those lines. While this is going on, animatronic bad guys will pop-up from behind glass and start scatter shooting the room. If too many people are hit before the goal is reached, the game is over and an exit opens up. If the goal is reached, a new door is opened and the entire group gets to move on to the next level. There will be 10 levels before saving the princess, each with a different style and maze, but overall it is themed to a castle. Since there is no shooting of other contestants, the people in the game only need a single gun that also acts as a sensor to know when a bad guy hits you. All levels are timed in order to keep the line moving. There will be several first level rooms that filter out to singles of the further on challenge rooms. The challenges will be randomized and different every time you play. The challenge areas will all be built on platforms that can move slightly to make the floor shake, and fog and strobes will be available to up the difficulty level, but can be turned off for people who cannot handle strobes effects.

It is very difficult to have a futuristic new land without somehow doing something with the Tron franchise, so here we go:

Tron: Light Highway
At its core, this is a futuristic version of the Tomorrowland Speedway ride with tron bikes that you can speed up or slow down on a three level raceway. Using the Hunny Hunt technology, fast vehicles will be routed to faster moving tracks and slower vehicles will be routed to slower moving tracks. The system will also keep the vehicles from crashing into each other and avoiding or creating traffic jams. This will be high speed, to the tune of 55-65 MPH, with a projection dome that the bikes drive down the middle of, projecting images ripped out of the Tron movies.

From Jeff Elliott
Posted January 20, 2012 at 9:27 AM
Right next to the Tron ride, there will be:
Flynn’s Arcade
This arcade will have a wonderful selection of mostly old games, but it will include many new ones as well. Since we like free things at amusement parks, this arcade is going to run on a card system, but everyone who allows their entrance pass to be scanned at the arcade gets a free $10 card. All games are a quarter like it used to be, but once you run through the $10 on your card, you can also put quarters into the machines.

Animusic Show
Near the Tron ride will be a walkthrough/sit down show featuring Animusic vignettes fully built. While the most difficult one has already been built by Intel, others will require extensive free roaming animatronics and will be quite spectacular, fitting in with both the music lean of this land as well as the futurism feel. The two below will be included, but others ones will also be built in life sized scale.

Gorillaz Road Rally Ride Challenge – This is an interesting new take on a ride, taking a concept directly from the Gorillaz music video for 19-2000.

The ride will take place on a somewhat abandoned highway bridge. Played straight through, the ride has 15 different setpieces/stages that give the ride a length of just over 20 minutes, but with this ride, there is no guarantee that you are going to make it to the end. If you fail to avoid the items in the way on the bridge, you will crash, ending your game. If you do not counter the attacks you are set upon, you will crash, ending your game. Making it to the end will be difficult and require quick reflexes and many ride throughs to make it to the end. In each vehicle, there will be four people that have to work in unison to repel the attacks, including a driver that needs to avoid roadway obstacles as well as keep the car on the road. There will be 10 different starting tunnels allowing a new vehicle to be dispatched every 6 seconds. After the first 3 stages, even numbered tracks will combine with odd number tracks reducing the amount of required tracks since few people will make it to later stages. The ride will continue to reduce the amount of tunnels, until there is only one final completion track. At the end of each stage will be a crash/bailout track that redirects to the unload area if you fail a stage. The ride is domed with a digital projection playing, showing you what the obstacle/danger is, allowing your team to take evasive action.

Restaurants
Toob Town – This will be a counter service or kiosk restaurant that specializes in meals in a tube. The restaurant will start with items that the astronauts eat, but then it will take it further and start doing original recipes focusing on high quality and extremely tasty foods. This restaurant will have a very solid cyberpunk theme and act as if the only way to get food is in tubes.

Agent Central - Near the Matrix area of Big Beat * Cyber Land, there will be an extremely high quality restaurant much like the one from the first Matrix movie where Cypher is talking with the agents. This restaurant will be a steak house that specializes in high quality cuts of meat. The staff will be dressed up in suit and tie like the agents from the movie.

Chef Robot’s Hamburgers – This will be a counter service restaurant that is completely run by robots. As the name hints, this restaurant will specialize in hamburgers. The preparation area will be completely staffed by automatic systems that can automatically cook a burger to order, garnish it, bun it, wrap it, and serve it without any assistance from humans. Ordering will be done by the guest via touch screen computers. Payment will be done with a credit card or with cash, vending machine style. There will be large glass windows on the restaurant with the robots positioned so that people can watch the robots work. While there are devices that can work extremely effectively on the different stations required to make a hamburger, fries, and drinks, some of these systems will be redesigned to have a more Rube Goldberg design.

This area of the park will also see the return of ElecTRONica after it closes in California Adventure.


Big Beat * Cyber Land. Big Beats, Big Movies, Big Rides.

From Mike Gallagher
Posted January 20, 2012 at 8:21 AM
+1 to Catlett for mentioning my favorite band.

From Tim W
Posted January 20, 2012 at 4:08 PM
Only a few more hours Nick and Dan!

From Dan Babbitt
Posted January 20, 2012 at 7:45 PM
Walt Disney World is proud to introduce to you the new and exciting new “Land” to Disney Hollywood Studios:

Melrose Avenue

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The new Melrose Avenue will stretch from the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and Gower Street (end of Sunset Blvd) and will connect with Animation Courtyard. This will connect the 2 “lands” and will give greater access to the most popular attractions to DHS. This new “land” will have a distinct feature and central theme of music. The architecture and building style will mimic and use the same styles as the rest of the Park to keep the theme and character of the park the same.

From Dan Babbitt
Posted January 20, 2012 at 7:48 PM
Attractions:


Phineas and Ferb Rock N’ Summer Vacation

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Backstory: Phineas and Ferb is an Emmy Nominated animated television show on the Disney Channel and Disney XD. Its about Phineas and Ferb (P&F) and friends who are genius inventors and there sister who tries to bust them and get them in trouble. P&F have a pet platypus named Perry the Platypus who has an undercover spy who tries to stop an "evil" scientist inventor Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz who is trying to take over the tri-state area.

Premise: Dr. Doofenshmirtz is trying to catch P&F and have them as his minions and create invention to help him take over the tri-state area. You are recruited by Major Monogram and Carl the intern to help Perry and watch over the kids and help him if needed.

The ride will be a 3D adventure using vehicles from Spiderman and will move back and forth, side to side and up and down depending on what’s going on. The ride will include and really revolve around the songs from the show which has really made the show truly unique.

The ride will move from scene to scene basically from screen to screen. At each scene we will use fans, water sprays and other techniques that will enhance the ride experience. While moving from scene to scene the vehicles will react to being hit, flying, dancing and another experience depending on the song being used.

To give an impression to the songs and what the show is I have included youtube scenes and the most popular songs in the show. This will give you how the funny the show is and also the movement that the ride will go through during its path.

Queue: You will go through P&F house and will be interactive with some of the inventions that the kids have invented. You will then go through a secret door that Perry usually goes through in the show.

Pre-show: Major Monogram recruits and then gives you the assignment to watch the kids.
Ride: The ride will go through the kids adventures. They will make a couple inventions which you will get to experience, Perry will fight with Dr. Doofenshmirtz and P&F gets caught and does what Doof wants them to do. Candace wants to get them busted by there mother and get them in trouble. Inadvertently she helps you and Perry get them away from Doof and saves the day.

Songs: The songs being used scene by scene will be:

Scene 1:

Scene 2:

Scene 3:

Scene 4:

Scene 5:

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Debriefing: After you help Perry get the boys out from Doofenshmirtz control and of course they is a mind-erasesonator that erases everyone’s memory and they don’t remember anything and its just a regular summer day!
The ride will also use the songs from the Christmas show and be able to change to the different seasons to keep it fresh and exciting!

From Dan Babbitt
Posted January 20, 2012 at 7:52 PM
Gearing Up!
Disney is preparing for their next musical and decided to invite guests to their rehearsals. This musical will include many songs and characters from all across the Disney genres and Movies.

The rehearsals will be interactive with th director and dance choreographer asking you questions whether the song and dance went well after each piece. Each seat will include a voting device o quest to vote and the ast can get feedback about the show. But there's a twist!

As the warm-up act is about to end detectives run up n stage and annouce to the crowd that there has been a crime! BOMBOMBOOOOOM!!!!
Yup this will be a mystery who done it, mixed up in a musical!
The actors, singers, and dancers will perform there various roles and throughout each piece will give subtle clues and tells. The audience will find out that there are cliques, friendships, and "relationships" among these performers which will help guest with making there picks.

You might see the performers accidentally say something they shouldn’t, drop stuff, show something they shouldn’t, make mistakes and see how the performers react to it whether it be disdain, hatred, sympathy or anything that can give something away and give the answer!

The performers will wear practice or stuff you might see at rehearsals for a real show. The characters are real and so will be there to practice for there next show!

Songs:
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
Chim Chim Cher-ee
Prince Ali
A Whole New World
Down in New Orleans
Friends on the Other Side
Almost There
A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo
Beauty and The Beast

Characters:
Mary Poppins and Bert
Aladdin, Jasmine, Genie and Abu
Tiana, Prince Navin, and Dr. Facilier
Cinderella, Fairy Godmother, and Prince Charming
Belle and the Beast, Gaston
Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald
The songs and characters don’t appear in this order but in this new "production" Gaston and Dr. Facilier will be the bad guys and antagonists.
The last couple songs will be a "dress" rehearsal with full costumes by the performers and the characters, even though they are already in "costume" will appear in there own special costumes also!

Each show will be able to change due to new "mysteries" and who did what and how did it happen situations.

AT the end of each show the detectives will come back for a final time and bring out the 4 performers who think did the crime. They will ask the audience to vote for the person who they thought did it and then they will reveal who did it!


Rock of Ages

With the success of G-Force Records and KRNR Rock Station have decided to open up a new complex called “The Forum”. Here musicians and scientist alike inventing and coming up with better equipment and new ways to bring music to listeners. They have decided to open tours to the facility and the complex.

This unique attraction starts off in the “The Forum“ complex where the musicians and scientists are showing you the advances and upcoming technology. Kind-of boring but interesting stuff. Then the ride takes a radical turn!

Then the ride goes dark and the “tour” gets high jacked by an old roadie who has his own “unique” and “breakthrough” technology. He has modified the vehicles and setup his own “tour” through the complex.

His “tour” revolves around light and the use of your own imagination to make songs and music come alive. In each scene in the roadie’s tour is in complete darkness with the music literally coming alive right in front of you using lasers, lights and other sensory technology that will blow your mind.

This ride uses the vehicles from Dinosaur which will literally shake, rattle and “roll” and groove to the music! The lasers and other technology will create pictures and other scenery from what the song is playing to make the music come alive!

Each song used in the scene will picked by you! Each guest on the ride vehicles will vote and pick which song they want for each scene. Each scene will be different genres so everyone will get to hear your favorite style!

At the end of the ride and as you exit will be a museum and displays from famous musicians and famous venues and such. This will be just like the end of the Studio Backlot Tour.

So come and have a Rip Ridding Good Time!


Store

The Roadie’s Collection

Here you will get what you normally get at Theme Park Stores but in here just like Pirate League, and Bibbidi-Bobbidi Boutique here you can become a Rock Star and get make-up, costumes and accessories and walk around DHS as a Star that you always thought you were!

Restaurant

Have you ever wondered where at Disney you can get a really good and healthy hot dog? Well DHS is brining in a Hollywood landmark and legend back to…umm…Hollywood!

Pinks…DHS and Walt Disney World are teaming up with Pinks to bring the popular hot dog restaurant to DHS. Here you can get literally anything on your hot dog whether it be vegetarian or a hot dog full of meat! So sit down and relax at this Hollywood landmark where stars come to be seen and have a good meal also!

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So come and enjoy this new fun filled Land that will extend your stay and visit to Disney Hollywood Studios and the new:

Melrose Avenue

From Nick Markham
Posted January 20, 2012 at 8:53 PM

Enter a world like none other, where all fantastical dreams can come true, where they transform into a beautiful, colorful, musical place that could only be… Fantasia.

That long pathway that takes guests to Fantasmic has been transformed and expanded upon into an immersive, multi-sensory experience. Right from the entrance to this land, guests realize the magic of the place as they pass through Fantasia Gardens on their way to this new world. Here are stunning gardens with a touch of Disney magic, lighting up at nighttime with an impressive display synchronized to music.

Once you departed Fantasia Gardens, a breathtaking land opens up before your very eyes. To your right you will find Fantasticality, a large gift shop featuring all things Disney.

Up ahead and to your left, experience the star attraction of the area, Fantasia: The Ride. This exciting attraction takes the typical boat rides Disney had perfected with It’s A Small World and Pirates of the Caribbean into the 21st Century, including state-of-the-art technology along your magical journey through the beautiful and musical world of Fantasia. Your trip begins the moment you enter the queue, as you wind down the dark corridors of the sorcerer’s lair. While dark, if one looks carefully through different openings in the walls, they may find glimpses of a colorful, musical world. Boarding their boat, the ride begins at Fantasia’s most famous moment, where Mickey enchants several mops. When things start to get out of hand along that memorable tune, riders pass under a mist wall and into the world of Fantasia, passing through several scenes of the beloved films, including the spectacular music that was the key to their success. Upon exiting, riders can buy onride photos and other merchandise at a small gift shop at the end of the exit.

Directly across from Fantasia: The Ride is Mickey’s Silly Symphony Swings, a fun, wild swings ride with music conducted by a Mickey animatronic situated atop this fun attraction for the whole family.

Just past Mickey’s Silly Symphony Swings is The Sorcerer’s Café, a highly themed family dining experience featuring a variety of classic American food items as well as top notch soups and several healthy choices.

Finish off your magical experience in Fantasia with a bang in a newly envisioned Fantasmic! Including heavy refurbishment to the seating, new animatronics, a new ship, and a few new scenes along with HD projectors and enhanced water fountains will provide for a way to top off your night unlike anything else.

Fantasia: the place where dreams can come true and transform into a beautiful, magical, musical, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Only at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

From Tim W
Posted January 21, 2012 at 9:49 AM
Heres this week in review:

James- You made some really excellent choices in this week's challenge despite your limited knowledge of music. I thought the retheme of Rock n Roller Coaster to Hawaiin Roller Coaster ride was excellent and fit the land perfectly. I seriously loved this concept! As for the stampede, I think you stumbled a bit by putting this there. And I did shutter a bit at the HSM restaurant, although it was clever. However, you redeemed yourself with the Pocahontas attraction. The music is some of the best of Disney in this movie. Sherman Park sounded wonderful as well, and I enjoyed that you inclued Mary Poppins within the theater, as it definitely needs a place within DHS.

Joseph- I think you really stayed true to the original concept with your land. I applaud you for making a true rock themed land. I think the Beatles attraction sounded marvelous and would be a welcome addition to this land. The Woodstock attraction was a perfect idea to go in this land. And the Spinal Tap's History of Rock could easily rival the Great Movie Ride. Hungry Like the Wolf was an excellent idea for a restaurant featuring the perfect cuisine. This is exactly what DHS is in desperate need of, as Rock music is a performance of its own. My favorite this week.

From Tim W
Posted January 21, 2012 at 10:38 AM
Dan- I can't say I loved the addition of Phineas and Ferb ride. Ive seen the show maybe once and wasn't insanely impressed. Besides that, I think the addition of your Crime show from seasons past fits well in this land. The Rock of Ages ride is another that sounds similar to a Music Great Movie Ride. I think you really designed your land to attract kids to music, which is a fantastic idea.

Nick- I think that this might be the most Disney of all the ideas. Having a land based on Fantasia has been a dream of mine. By integrating Fantasmic!, I think you had a good basis for the land. I would have like to have some info on what happened to RnR though. The fantasia ride fits perfectly, and I would really love to see this. Reusing the Silly Symphony swings would be a great cost saving method. I am a bit worried that TOT might get a bit lost in the Fantasia land that surrounds it.

Jeff- I have to admit I was a bit confused by the placement of a cyber themed land at the end of Sunset Boulevard. Your ideas do seem very radical. Just looking at the land itself, you had some really interesting ideas. The running theme of the matrix was brilliantly executed in this land. Perhaps the best idea was to integrate Wreck it Ralph, Disney's upcoming animated feature. What a great way to give the movie exposure in a really interesting laser tag/ live board game concept! Finally, Tron was another excellent addition to this land to finally capitalize on this movie. Do I think this is the best direction to go for a music land...no. But for being awesome and fantastically done, you definitely should get some applause from me. I continue to think of where the best place could possibly be to put this land.

From Tim W
Posted January 21, 2012 at 10:42 AM
To be honest, I thought more people would have gone with a combination of genres themed land. It surprised me a bit to see that everyone had a different angle in this week's challenge. I had to make Joseph my fvaorite this week because I feel that he really took the rock concept and blew it up! I think this was perhaps the best proposal for the land.

Special mention to James to having the awesome retheme of RNR and Sherman Park. Both of these aspects were extremely well done!

I submitted the poll earlier today to Robert. I hope it will be posted by this afternoon.

From Nick Markham
Posted January 21, 2012 at 10:50 AM
Yeah, I decided to try and take a different approach and not integrate Rock n' Roller Coaster. It seems just to easy a challenge, and everyone else did it. Also, on TOT, the only thing that would actually threaten it would be Fantasia the Ride, though that is completely indoors and wouldn't be visible from the guests. Fantasia Gardens and the rest of the land are far enough away from TOT if you've taken that path to Fantasmic! before, its a good distance away from TOT.

From Dan Babbitt
Posted January 21, 2012 at 12:39 PM
Nick I loved the whole thing thing with Fantasmic and building a land around that! But the way I looked at it is that: How do you get 9000 guests out of the amphitheater and How do you line up 9000 people in the theater?

Thats why the theater is far back and has a long queue to get in and out. But other then that I would love them to build something around there!

And umm the Fantasia: The Ride would be placed right into the Fanstamic breakroom so I dont like the placement!;)

Tim I totally forgot about mention that RnR would stay the same.

From James Koehl
Posted January 21, 2012 at 7:12 PM
Dan, I don't know if it's an exclusive contract, but Pink's opened a restaurant in Cedar Point last summer- awesome dogs!! I don't know if they have any type of exclusive contract with CP or Cedar Fair, but I do know they were advertising it as the first Pinks east of the Rockies.
Everyone had great ideas, and what a variety of ideas!

From Mike Gallagher
Posted January 21, 2012 at 8:11 PM
James, like you, I don't know if there's exclusivity in the licensing/contract with Pinks. I DO know that Cedar Point and SF Great Adventure both feature Panda Express and Johnny Rockets, so there's no exclusivity there. Personally, I'd love to see a Pinks show up at GAdv. I've heard good things, and I'm always up for a good doggie.

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