Lucasfilm screened the first two episodes of the upcoming Star Wars series Ahsoka tonight at fan events in New York City, Orlando, Los Angeles, Anaheim, and San Francisco. The force was strong with us tonight, with team members at four of these events. What follows is a recap of each event around the country.
Walt Disney World
Held inside the Walt Disney Presents theater in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Orlando fans who got into this fan event through D23, the Official Disney Fan Club, were given complimentary admission to the park and a $25 Disney Gift Card. Before going to the theater, they were brought to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge to the Droid Depot where each Guest got to build their own droid.
Upon arriving at the theater, Guests were also gifted with toyline versions of Ahsoka Tano’s dual lightsaber.
Inside the theater, more goodies awaited lucky attendees. Complimentary soda and popcorn weren’t the only snacks served. Guests had their choice of a glass of blue or green milk from the Milk Stand on Batuu.
Since everyone now had lightsabers, after the screening, the group was taken back to Batuu for an iconic group photo in front of the Millennium Falcon. Each Guest received a download link to access the photo. It sounds almost as good as Life Day!
Disneyland
At Disneyland, Laughing Place Co-Founder Rebekah Mosely was an invited media guest. Her experience started over in the other Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge where she and her son Gideon got to build a complimentary droid at the Droid Depot.
Then it was off to the Tomorrowland Theater for the main event, where the majority of seats were reserved for D23 Guests. The check-in gift at Disneyland was a plush Ahsoka Tano headband.
A box of popcorn and your choice of bottled beverage were offered on the way in.
And there was a nice step-and-repeat for Guests to take photos to commemorate the night.
A photo studio allowed Guests to digitally become Ahsoka, with a photo emailed after.
Inside the theater, Guests were entertained by a DJ who also offered up Star Wars trivia before the screening.
As Guests exited the theater after the screening, they were given a pair of Ahsoka Tano playline lightsabers.
Shortly after the event, Disney Parks announced that Ahsoka Tano will be roaming around Batuu beginning August 23rd. As a special treat, media attendees were invited to be among the first to meet her.
El Capitan Theatre (Hollywood)
The biggest theater hosting a fan event was undoubtedly Disney’s El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood.
This red carpet affair even had a celebrity guest, Chopper!
The concession stand was themed for complimentary bottled beverages and popcorn.
Part of the fun of seeing movies at the El Cap is that you often get to see props and costumes from the film. The same was also true for this TV series, with Sabine Wren’s Speeder Bike on display
Costumes for Ahsoka Tano and Baylan Skoll were on display, along with Ahsoka’s prop hilts.
The Professor Huyang droid was even animated!
Inspired by Sabine Wren’s hair colors, Guests could step up and try on a Splat hair color. Splat was one of the way fans could win tickets to this event.
A QR code also promoted the Ahsoka Snapchat filter.
Inside the theater, a DJ kept the crowd entertained while they waited for the screening to begin.
Many fans came in Star Wars cosplay, including the fan-favorite Admiral Thrawn, who makes his live-action debut in Ahsoka.
Moments before the screening began, anyone in a costume was invited on stage for a group photo.
Lucasfilm/ILM (San Francisco)
Sure, all of the other locations had a lot of goodies, but the only way to experience Ahsoka where it was created was in San Francisco. Lucky attendees were welcomed into the headquarters of Lucasfilm and Industrial Light & Magic, where the series was planned and conceptualized, and also where much of the post-production visual effects work took place.
A red carpet gave fans a moment to stand out while immortalizing their attendance at this event.
There was also a step-and-repeat backdrop.
Inside the theater, Guests were entertained by a DJ who also went through a game of trivia. Guests also received a raffle ticket, with 80 lucky attendees walking away with an Ahsoka Tano lightsaber.
Many of the attendees of this event are members of the Golden Gate Garrison of the 501st Legion. They were all called up to the front for a group photo.
Moments before the theater went dark, fans ignited the lightsabers they brought from home.
Ahsoka arrives on Disney+ on Wednesday, August 23rd with a double-episode premiere, followed by individual episodes on Wednesdays.