For 15 years, D23: The Official Disney Fan Club has been creating events, big and small, for their members. Yet, I have to say “D23 Down in New Orleans – Celebrating 15 Years of The Princess and the Frog” (which took place on March 23rd) had to be one of the best they have done to date!
To me, it seemed only fitting to celebrate the 15th anniversary of The Princess and the Frog in New Orleans, but I am not going to say that I wasn’t skeptical about how this could be a full day event. Boy was I proven wrong!
The morning started off with a screening of the film that brought us all together. After a brief introduction from Justin with D23, he went on to introduce the special guest we all knew would be there – Keith David, the voice of one of the best Disney villains Dr. Facilier. After a few fun stories from Keith, a surprise guest arrived in the form of Jim Cummings, voice man extraordinaire but in this case the voice of Ray the firefly in the film.
One of the unique aspects of this event was the different ticket options. D23 Members could either choose either just the screening in the morning or the “Big Easy” ticket that included the screening along with the D23 “Dreams Do Come True” Grand Finale at the New Orleans Jazz Museum later in the evening. Of course, traveling all the way to New Orleans for this event, we had to take advantage of the full day of events. I am so happy that I did this because one of my favorite parts of the day was the space in between the screening and the Grand Finale.
On the back side of our event credentials was a QR code that gave the itinerary of the day but also provided a special list of locations around New Orleans (curated by The Walt Disney Archives) that inspired and informed the rich environments and storytelling of New Orleans in The Princess and the Frog as well as the 2023 Haunted Mansion film.
Decatur Street fence at Jackson Square (St. Louis Cathedral in background): Where Dr. Facilier reads fortunes on the street in the film.
Charles Streetcar Line: The green streetcars that Tiana & Eudora ride in the film.
Buckner Mansion – 1410 Jackson St., Garden District: The real mansion from the Haunted Mansion is the Buckner Mansion in the Garden District of New Orleans, with interior sets built in Atlanta. Exterior scenes were shot at this location.
For a film that has the rich heritage of music from the Crescent City, of course there is only one place the Grand Finale event could take place: the New Orleans Jazz Museum.
The Grand Finale event was a perfect end to a great day. With so much amazing food, character meet and greets, and three different presentations, it definitely was a full night!
A true highlight of the night was Becky Cline, director of the Walt Disney Archives, sharing The Walt Disney Company’s storied history with the dazzling city of New Orleans. From New Orleans Square in Disneyland, amazing attractions like Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean and the films they inspired, right up to the upcoming Tiana’s Bayou Adventure coming to Disneyland and Walt Disney World this year, this was one of the best presentations I have ever seen. And with no video or recording allowed, it just backs up the reason to try to make it out to these events.
The other presentation of the night was about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure by Peyton from D23. The presentation was a good piece about the upcoming attraction aimed for those who haven’t been following the progress that closely, but Peyton did open the presentation by saying there wouldn’t be any big surprises doing it…HE LIED TO US!
To close out the presentation Peyton invited Jim Cummings up, who proceeded to make the entire room cry as he sang “Ma Belle Evangeline” and shared some fun stories before closing out with a rousing rendition of “Gonna Take You There.”
The MUST SEE event of the night was The Crescent City All-Stars live jazz and another “WOW” moment was Keith David joining in at the end to give a show stopping rendition of “Friends on the Other Side.” Luckily, for both of these special moments we were giving permission to record — so turn up your volume and enjoy!
As I said at the beginning, this was one of those events that when asked will always be at the top of the list for best events.
For details on upcoming events or just to become a member head over to D23: The Official Disney Fan Club and join today!