Experiencing a magic called Disney

 

Growing up, I have always been fascinated with magic. I would watch in amazement with sometimes my mouth wide open when a man in tuxedo pulls out stuff from his hat, a lovely woman being sawed into halves or those playing cards that would fly from one end of the stage to another.

Of course, as I got old I soon found out that those kind of magic were just tricks that even I can perform based on the books, online videos and TV shows about their secrets being revealed.  Watching magic shows now is not really to be entertained but more on to decipher how the tricks were done so I kinda missed the good old days of me just sitting and getting enchanted with the performance.

But there is one magic that continues to surprise me even though I am already in my 30’s.  From the classic kid flick Bambi, the very first feature I saw in a movie house as a kindergarten, to the great adventures of Mickey Mouse and friends that I watch with my son everyday, I am still spellbound with this magic called Disney!

How magical is Disney? Well, I can remember some memorable moments that I’m sure others can also relate to: For days I have been singing the catchy tune "Under the Sea" after you saw the animated film Little Mermaid; the motif of my son Charles' first birthday party was Aladdin with me wearing the costume of Jafar, the celebrator as the movie’s lead character and my wife as Princess Jasmine; and I have engaged with debates with people who don’t agree that Toy Story 3 is the most touching and moving animated movie of the last decade.

Well, I think it’s also worth mentioning that my son just loves anything Mickey Mouse!  He even wore a Mickey getup during his Disney-themed (again) second birthday celebration.

My 2-year old son Charles simply adores Mickey Mouse

That’s why one afternoon while we were watching TV at home, we were delighted to see an advertisement about DISNEY LIVE!, a new brand of live family entertainment from the producers of Disney on Ice that will come to Philippines for the first time. I can just imagine now how my son will react as soon as he sees Mickey dancing live on stage. His face might be just like that of his dad when in awe--- watching attentively with mouth wide open. Priceless!

Mickey Mouse and his band of friends, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy will be performing in a music mash-up of mega proportions as Disney Live! comes to Manila and Cebu City with its newest stage show Mickey’s Music Festival.  Concert goers will hear greatest hits from the blockbuster movies, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, and Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story remixed to rock, pop, reggae, hip-hop, jazz and country, among other jams.  Produced by Feld Entertainment, Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival brings the biggest concert experience to hit live family entertainment. This show is presented in the Philippines by Vivre Fort Entertainment Inc., Guess Kids and Fox International Channels.

“One song can touch millions of people around the world and Disney has been at the beat of this concept for years by making music a main ingredient of storytelling,” said Producer and CEO of Feld Entertainment Kenneth Feld.  “In Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival we are celebrating with the Disney characters to a soundtrack of the latest sounds and chart-topping hits. We want our guests to walk away with lasting memories and singing these unforgettable melodies long after they leave the show.”

Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival, featuring an all star line-up of more than 25 Disney characters,   begins with audiences watching a state-of-the-art video projection of the frenzy backstage which spills onto the stage as Mickey welcomes guests to his concert tour.  Soon thereafter, they will be transported to a new world of hip hop beats, dizzying acrobatics, flying carpets and magical transformations with Aladdin, Jasmine and Genie.  Underwater is where the crowd will meet up with Ariel, Sebastian and their nautical pals to groove to the reggae rhythm. And, family and friends will stomp to the beat as Woody, Buzz and Jessie teach them how to boogie rodeo-style.  Anyone can be a member of the band as giant-sized balloons fall from the ceiling in one scene and then in the next, Disney characters are dancing in the aisles.  

"We’ve created an environment where audience members will be able to connect with the Disney stars,” said Alana Feld, Producer and Executive Vice President of Feld Entertainment. “Within each concert moment are elements of personal interaction and they will be harmonizing, dancing, laughing and having an outrageously good time with the characters right there in their city.”
 
Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival was built with a global audience in mind and a goal of being as universal as its featured music.  The father-daughter production team, Kenneth Feld and Alana Feld, has hand selected award-winning creative talents whose credits span from working with Madonna to winning a Latin Grammy®  Award to designing hundreds of costumes for Disney theme park shows:

•    Director/Choreographer Fred Tallaksen is the award-winning choreographer of Madonna’s “Sorry” video and the finale of her Confessions World Tour.  In 2008, he earned a Latin Grammy® in the Best Video category for Juanes’s “Me Enamora.” Tallaksen was also skating choreographer for “Austin Powers III-Goldmember”

•    Writer Jeremy Desmon’s credits include The Girl in the Frame, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie & Other Storybooks and Curious George Live! He received the 2007 Kleban Award for excellence in Musical Theatre Bookwriting, and is also a recipient of the Dramatists Guild's Jonathan Larson Fellowship

•    Scenic Designer Rick Papineau is the vice president of Scenic Elements at Feld Entertainment and is credited for leading the creation of life-like versions of the characters from Disney/Pixar’s Cars that move on ice for Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Fantasy

•    Costume Designer Cynthia Nordstrom designed costumes for more than 15 original dance shows in Downtown Disney from 1996 until 1999 and is credited for designing costumes for Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Fantasy

•    Lighting Designer Sam Doty is eager to work on his second Disney Live! show after Disney Live! Mickey’s Rockin’ Road Show put him in the spotlight

•    Music Director Stan Beard has arranged and written the musical score for numerous domestic and international Disney On Ice productions; has worked in the recording studio with such luminaries as Barbra Streisand and Frank Sinatra

Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival is set to be staged this year at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel from September 23-25 and at the Smart Araneta Coliseum from October 5-9. For Manila shows, tickets are exclusively available at Ticketnet (911-5555) located in SM Department stores and at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. For Cebu shows, tickets can be purchased at SM Tickets (032-231-3876) located in SM Cinemas, Waterfront Cebu City Hotel (032-232-6888) and at Ayala Center Cebu. For more details, visit www.disneylive.com.ph or call Vivre Fort Entertainment at (02) 470 6956.

Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival is also brought to you by Smart Araneta Coliseum, Waterfront Cebu City Hotel, Citibank, ABS-CBN, ABS-CBN Regional Group, Araneta Center, Gateway Cineplex 10, Alimall Cineplex 4, SM Cinemas, SM City Cebu, Discovery Suites, Renowed Sound and Various Production, MYX, Manila Bulletin, Businessworld, Sunstar, Cebu Daily News, Crossover 105.1, Power FM Cebu, Love Radio 97.9, Y101 Cebu, Alcordo Advertising, Greenworld LED Solutions and Manila Concert Scene. This event is for the benefit of Senyas Kamay Pilipinas.

This is definitely one great show that my family will not miss. After all, we will forever never get tired of being captivated with magic, the Disney magic that is.