Disney Resort Emphasizes Drones After Canceling Fireworks Shows

One Disney theme park is taking its entertainment on tour ASAP.

Disney’s theme parks are renowned worldwide for their nighttime spectaculars – and these shows are only getting more spectacular with each passing year.

Related: “Fireworks Are Going Bye Bye,” Fans Mourn a Disney Park Tradition

While the OG Disney shows, such as Fantasy in the Sky at Disneyland Park, relied solely on pyrotechnics, newer shows incorporate more advanced technology. For example, when Happily Ever After returned to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park in 2023, it introduced new projection mapping technology to enhance guests’ experiences.

Similarly, Wondrous Journeys used special projection effects during its all-too-short run at Disneyland Resort as part of the Disney 100 Years of Wonder celebration (AKA Disney100).

When it comes to modernizing these shows, Disneyland Paris has gone above and beyond. The French resort is famously ambitious with its use of technological advancements such as drones. Its smallest park – Walt Disney Studios Park – boasted a nightly Marvel-themed show, Avengers: Power the Night, until earlier this year.

It also currently runs a drone show prior to its nightly fireworks show, Disney Illuminations. Known as the “Disney Electrical Sky Parade,” this takes its cues from the iconic Main Street Electrical Parade.

The resort is also said to introduce a brand-new show in the near future that will allegedly be its “biggest ever,” as per X (formerly known as Twitter) user DLP_Shows. This will reportedly include drones, modern projection mapping, lasers, LED lighting on castle turrets, pyrotechnics, Main Street, U.S.A. projections, and fire. Not too shabby.

Before that day comes, Tokyo Disney Resort will debut its own nighttime spectacular on September 20, 2024. The show – which is known as “Reach for the Stars” – will take place above and on Cinderella Castle, incorporating projections, pyrotechnics, and lighting, plus the first Marvel Cinematic Universe characters to debut at the Japanese theme park.

Notably, this show doesn’t include any drones, despite the resort experimenting with this technology a lot in recent years. When its newest land, Fantasy Springs, opened at Tokyo DisneySea on June 6, it celebrated the occasion with a one-off drone spectacular. This featured fixtures from Frozen (2013), Tangled (2010), and Peter Pan (1953), all of which have inspired the new land.

But Tokyo Disney Resort isn’t totally done with drones just yet. As per the Oriental Land Company (OLC), which owns and operates Tokyo Disney Resort, a brand-new drone show named “Magic in the Air” will launch this summer – but not at either of its theme parks. Instead, the show will be performed at various festivals around Japan.

In this 15-minute program, approximately 1,500 drones will simultaneously take flight, portraying Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, and scenes inspired by the Walt Disney Animation Studios films Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid, in the night sky like shining stars.

The 15-minute show will use over 1,500 drones and feature scenes inspired by each of the areas at Fantasy Springs: Frozen Kingdom, Rapunzel’s Forest, and Peter Pan’s Never Land. “These fantastical scenes will make guests at the fireworks festivals feel like they’ve stepped into the dreamlike world of Tokyo Disney Resort,” OLC said.

For now, just one date is confirmed for this show: July 20 at the Abe River Fireworks Festival in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka.

This announcement follows Tokyo Disney Resort canceling all performances of its current fireworks show, Sky Full of Colors, for the entire summer. The resort does something similar on an annual basis, allegedly due to unreliable weather conditions.

We’ve spoken a lot about Disney’s increasing use of drone technology over fireworks. Earlier this year, Walt Disney World Resort debuted its first nightly drone show, Disney Dreams That Soar, at Disney Springs, where it was generally well-received by onlookers. Check out the full show below.

Considering how far Disney has come with drone performances in recent years, it’s only safe to assume that this trend will continue. Fans have long feared that Disney may eventually phase out fireworks due to their exorbitant costs and environmental repercussions. Keep a keen eye on the skies – more drones may be on the way.

Do you prefer drone shows or fireworks?