Voyage of the Little Mermaid and nearby shops closing for refurbishment next week

Captain BarbossaJul 25, 2016

This show needs to have something done. The majority of it is watching poor quality video. The past few times I've done it, Ariel has either sounded like something was dying or she could not project her voice.

Chef KronkJul 25, 2016

Ariel and Eric are meeting guests outside VotLM during its refurbishment (Photo Not Mine)

OFP-857Jul 25, 2016

I'd hate for it to go, Since Ariel is my favorite Disney princess. But it definitely needs a lot of TLC. The video quality is downright awful.

WondersOfLifeJul 25, 2016

I used to absolutely love this show... But after seeing it last week years later, I was very underwhelmed... It felt so tired and old... Well. That was only when the show relied on the screen. Otherwise, the show was very very good during, say, Under the Sea and Ursula's scene. The puppets have always been impressive... But the screen segments..... They're terribly bad now.. And makes the show feel very cheesy. Scratch the screens, and a narrator (think like the style of the narrator in the beauty and the beast show) to help walk through the story, and it'd be better.

SteamboatJoeJul 19, 2016

My wife would disagree but this is a show I personally would probably put out to pasture, especially now that it has its own ride in MK. I think the only thing that is probably saving is the fact that entire corner of the park, north of Toystory and west of Sunset Boulevard, is going to eventually be replaced or at least seriously revamped so there is probably no sense in investing a lot of cash into any big changes at the moment.

disneygeek90Jul 19, 2016

At the very least an updated projection with HD or Blu Ray quality for the screens would be amazing imo. Such a classic deserves to be seen in all it's glory, not the blurry projections it currently has.

The Empress LillyJul 19, 2016

The greatest show in the World. ^_^ Just get the effects (all of them) in tiptop condition and then let Mermaid remain forever. Mermaid and the Studios belong together, they both date from that same miraculous year of 1989, they have a very similar feel to them, products of their era.

TheGuyThatMakesSwordsJul 19, 2016

Perhaps the show at "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" is a bit "old" - my wife & I still love it (hey WE are a bit Old) :). All personal opinion - if it's going down for 3 days? The seats & carpets are getting cleaned. And it is not targeted for death just now.... :). Thank you, WDW :).

DaveeeeedJul 19, 2016

At least they still have the lasers mimicking being under water.

peterpanic74Jul 19, 2016

That was indeed a very cool effect

danyoung56Jul 19, 2016

There used to be an effect that was just incredible, but sadly has been busticated for years. At the beginning of the show, these green lasers from all four corners of the theater would fan out and look like waves over your head. Then the four lasers would physically move up several feet, creating the illusion that the audience was submerging under the water. Very cool, and greatly missed.

MrPromeyJul 19, 2016

Wondered for a while now how this hasn't gotten the Theater in the Wild treatment with enclosure and a more broadway-esque show yet. Well, we all know why, I guess but this one seems long overdue.

MrPromeyJul 19, 2016

If it was last year, there's a good chance I missed it. I'm not a frequent flyer on this one. If so, BRAVO! That old grainy film that just kept getting worse and worse was embarrassing - really glad to hear someone there agreed! In general, I like the style of the laser effect but feel that it needs to be used in context. The way they did it for a portion of test track looks good. doing something in Tomorrowland that uses it would look good. Spaceship Earth exterior? A classic. It feels out of place to me here, though. I definitely feel that projection mapping in general is a bit overdone at Disney but this feels like one of the cases where it could be utilized well - a totally controlled environment and limited viewing angles and only as something that lightly augments the show. I think projection mapped animated fish would look more subtle and natural than the laser fish, only because I don't think it would stand out as obvious technology so much in a show that is fantasy/fairy tale but that's just my opinion. The rain screen working reliably sounds like maintenance work which should be the minimum of what they do on a referb. I know these days, that kind of assumption out of TDO can lead to disappointment, though. :/

danyoung56Jul 19, 2016

This!