Welcome to Extinct Attractions. This week, I took a look back at the first nighttime show from Disney’s California Adventure.
Holidays begin at the Disneyland Resort on November 15, which actually feels like a pretty reasonable time to me, at least compared to how early Halloween begins. I’m more of a Christmas person than a Halloween person, so I always get excited to see what’s in store every year. This year is particularly exciting because Tiana’s Bayou Adventure officially opens that day and while not holiday themed, it’s an exciting addition nonetheless.
But today’s story takes us back to the opening year of Disney’s California Adventure when the Disney Entertainment brass wanted to spice up the late night activities with a nighttime show at the brand-new park.
There was the small issue that a nighttime show in the park meant that Paradise Pier would need to close earlier every night in order to keep the sightlines of the show in place. To help counteract that and make the show a bit more fun for guests, kids had the opportunity to make their own holiday cards that would be scanned and included in the show later that night. Honestly, I wouldn’t have guessed that there was technology for that in the early 2000s, so I was very impressed that Disney could do that. Plus it was a really nice touch to help guests be truly a part of the show. So with that, Disney’s LumniAria opened on November 9, 2001 as the first nighttime show in Disney’s California Adventure.
I loved how the layout of the show was set up with giant Christmas presents in the middle of Paradise Bay to help disguise the pyrotechnics and screens that would emerge. It was also just fun to see the blast from the past of the old Paradise Pier in all of its cheesy glory. I love what we have today, but there is a nugget of nostalgia for those days in the back of my mind that will never go away.
As the show started, the holiday theme was evident right from the start with a take on “White Christmas” as some pyro sparklers went crazy to the point that it was a little difficult to see because it got too smoky out there. The Christmas-theme continued on with basically no connection to Disney throughout, instead hitting Christmas instrumental after Christmas instrumental. To be honest, that checks out for earlier California Adventure, though, as there was a seemingly concerted effort to not be that related to Disney in those early days.
Via Disney Geek
About halfway through the show, some screens emerged from some of the presents and began to project the cards. I can only imagine how cool it must have been as a little kid to see something that you worked on as part of a Disney show. I mean, what a rush.
From there, the screens stayed up and started showing some images of children around the world celebrating the holiday, which felt a lot like the Epcot classic IllumniNations: Reflections of Earth. But instead of a globe at the end, a Christmas tree appeared out of seemingly nowhere for the big pyrotechnic finale to really tie everything together in a nice bow.
Via Disney Geek
Disney’s LuminAria was a simple show, but served its purpose as a test show for the future of California Adventure well. It was only intended to be a part of the show for the holiday season, closing on January 6, 2002 but then its fans were in for a heckuva wait as California Adventure went nighttime show-less until 2010’s World of Color. Now, there are countless versions of World of Color to celebrate all kinds of seasons, but it’s important to remember LuminAria, the one that started it all.
Via Thunder Dungeon
As always, don’t forget to check out my interactive maps of the Disney Parks throughout the years where you can watch or learn more about all the attractions from every Disney park around the world.
Thanks for reading and have a magical day!