Disney unveils 'World of Color' at California Adventure park


ANAHEIM ---- With 1,200 moving water fountains, some shooting 200 feet in the air, jets of fire, lasers, fog, cloud effects and one of the largest water projection screens in the world, Disney’s new "World of Color" water-and-light show is serious entertainment.

The 25-minute show, which opened to the public on Friday, is the first piece of a major expansion project at Disney’s California Adventure, the 9-year-old sister park to Disneyland. Still to come are a "Little Mermaid" ride in 2011, and a 12-acre "Cars"-themed zone in 2012, but to give park-goers a taste of what's in store, Disney officials decided to start big with "World of Color."

"We have huge plans to make Disney's California Adventure bigger, better and more exciting, so we wanted to start with something unique," said Bob Iger, Disney Co. president and CEO, in an interview before a media sneak peek on Thursday night. "We wanted to give people something they've never seen anywhere else in the world."

The nighttime-only show, which takes place in the man-made bay in the park's Paradise Pier amusement park area, took five years to plan and 15 months to build. Early last year, the pond was drained (the water was purified and temporarily stored in an underground reservoir) and a football-field sized platform was built to hold the vast array of fountains, lights, fire cannons, submersible video screens and projectors.

Set to a pre-recorded orchestral score of nearly 30 songs and musical themes from Disney animated films, the show features a mix of water show effects ---- swaying, shooting and pulsing sprays of water illuminated with dazzling light displays ---- and film sequences, projected on a 19,000-square-foot wall of water up to 380 feet wide and 50 feet high. The sheer force of all this water shooting in the air creates its own weather, pushing the evening air in a steady breeze toward spectators (though very little moisture).

Virtually every Disney (and Disney-Pixar) animated film from the past 20 years makes a brief appearance, along with Capt. Jack Sparrow and an homage to "Fantasia." Some of the scenes are spectacular ---- particularly a "Pocahontas" segment with a moving forest that looks three-dimensional, and a "Little Mermaid" section, where the lighting and water perfectly complement the undersea-themed film. And the fire effects and rousing music from "Pirates of the Caribbean" are a thrill.

"World of Color" is not all wonderful, though. A spooky section near the end concludes with the trampling death of Mufasa from "The Lion King" and the plaintive cries from his lonely son, Simba, that's a big downer, and the brief epilogue afterward isn't nearly uplifting enough to lighten the mood.

Also, the show feels long. That may be because it's standing-room-only for spectators (and 25 minutes is a long haul when you've been on your feet in the park all day). Without the up-close interactivity of a parade or the percussive impact (in your ears and chest) of a fireworks show, "World of Color" is fine entertainment, but would be more welcomed from a sitting position.


