#reflectionsofearth

Each time a Disney nighttime spectacular ends, an era ends. And so tonight ends the era of Illuminations at Epcot, an era that surpassed all others and ran for an extraordinary amount of time. For a night short of 20 years, this festival of fireworks, fountains, lights, lasers, and music entertained millions of guests and sent their tired heads back to their home or resort hotels amazed. Many fear that this solidifies the end of Epcot as we know it and closes the door on the “golden age” of the park, if you will. If you reading this are one of those people, I beg you to keep on reading as all will be okay. 

I think it is fair for us all to say that the most amazing part of Illuminations was the message it tries to convey. For many, the difficulty of understanding this was one of the shows flaws, but that is beside the point. The story itself can be easily summarized in its opening monologue, “We are gathered here tonight, around the fire- as people of all lands have gathered for thousands and thousands of years before us- to share the light and to share a story.” For thousands of years we have gathered as one to tell stories around the light of fire, no matter what the story is or was, the idea stayed the same. The beauty found in story telling transcends cultures and is the basis for all entertainment. 

Reflections of Earth showed the story of our Earth- from Big Bang to Present Day- and it shows how to matter how much the Earth itself has grown, we have been connected the entire time by light. The sun shines bright on the entire planet everyday and at night we find our own light to come together and further the common human bond. When the pavilions light up, it represents unity as people, as an entire species. In our lives today we see so much division and hatred, this show was able to visualize what the world can look like when “We are one” and “Live to keep the promise”. And this my friends is the dream of Epcot. But just because Illuminations is gone does not mean that this dream has been slain by Disney. It instead lives on as a new story, just as our stories change night to night when gathered around the fire. 

Our temporary successor, “Epcot Forever”, will aim to show the world that the past successes in Epcot lore have inspired Disney to continue the original dream of Walt’s. Using updated effects, but mostly the same as Illuminations (minus the huge globe) plus a couple of kites, this show will touch the hearts of all Disney fans and make us all nostalgic, but I am more focused on “HarmoniUS”, the permanent replacement coming next year. 

Of course in time stories started to be conveyed through song, and if I were to have my guess, “HarmoniUS” is going to have the same underlying message as Illuminations. And of course, this will be done using Disney music, but who are we to deny the cultural impact these Disney films have had on the history of story telling, especially with their use of song. It may seem cheap, but it’s not entirely off either. Keeping true to the idea of unity and gathering around the fire, HarmoniUS should celebrate the same history of our race but geared so that the story is more understandable as a whole while utilizing the songs of our childhood. 

Maybe it won’t have the same sentimental effect on those of us who literally have not seen a different show on World Showcase Lagoon. I am one of those people, born in 2000, I have known nothing else. But think about the children of tomorrow, “Tomorrow’s Child”, if you will. A new story using Disney as a connecting tool may just be even more effective than using a spinning globe whose screens is only visible to 20% of the viewing population.  (Sorry, but those screens are very hard to see). HarmoniUS is being created with its own set of problems linked with Disney’s obsession with integrating IP’s into the parks with little care for thematic storytelling, but it is also being created with its own advantages. The advantage of a new age, and a new Epcot. An Epcot that will be no less beautiful and imaginative than it was when Illuminations was created, and an Epcot that will continue to inspire guests of all ages to dream of a united tomorrow. And if that dream is now being told through the words of a classic Disney song, then so be it, I won’t complain. 

“But where do we begin… how do we start answering this great challenge? Well, we’re convinced we must start with the public need. And the need is for starting from scratch on virgin land and building a special kind of new community. So that’s what E.P.C.O.T is… an experimental prototype community that will always be in a state of becoming. It will never cease to be a living blueprint of the future, where people actually live a life they can’t find anywhere else in the world. Everything in E.P.C.O.T will be dedicated to the happiness of the people who will live, work, and play here… and to those who come here from all around the world to visit our living showcase. We don’t presume to know all the answers. In fact, we’re counting on the cooperation of American industry to provide their best thinking during the planning and creation of our Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow….” - Walt Disney