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Remember when you wished upon a star? It still makes no
difference who you are! This is a place where magic happens,
and you can relive it at its very best. Wishes, a brand new
fireworks spectacular created in 2005 for the 50th Anniversary of Walt Disney’s
original Disneyland in California, takes you there. |
Inspired by the “Wishes” fireworks show in Walt Disney
World’s Magic Kingdom, this spectacular show of fireworks, light,
sound and special effects returns for a second season, to bring all the classic Disney characters
together and let you see what happens when the most magical wishes
come true… | | Join
Jiminy Cricket, The Blue Fairy and beloved Disney characters
through this fantastic story told amongst the stars. Will
Pinocchio become a real boy? Will Cinderella go to the ball?
Will Snow White find her Prince Charming? Any wish is
possible. All it takes is a little courage to set it free.
The classic Disney characters paint the night sky with fantastic
colours and breathtaking formations of fireworks as they wish
together for their wildest dreams. | Quick,
make a wish, but don�t close your eyes � you�ll miss the best
part. Sleeping Beauty Castle is aglow with ever-changing
colour in time with cherished Disney songs that take you to a
place where the most fantastic, magical things can happen, and
they all start with a
wish… | | |
 | | Ladies
and gentlemen, boys and girls, Disneyland Park proudly presents…
Wishes! The lights around Central Plaza and the pink glow of
the castle fade away and the music begins. A gradual
build-up of magical sound is joined by fantastic blue light
illuminating the edges of the castle from behind. As the
music reaches its peak and trumpets ring out to the notes of
“Wishes”, dazzling lasers streak across the castle, outlining
the beautiful features and details for a breathtaking opening to
this nighttime spectacular. |
Brilliant bursts of stars sparkle all over the castle before
joining together to present the Blue Fairy herself! “When
stars are born, they possess a gift or two. One of them is
this – to make a wish come true!” And with that, the
first wish of the night is cast high up into the night sky as the
castle becomes a never-ending galaxy of stars and more wishes are
launched high into the sky. “When You Wish Upon A Star”
heralds the arrival of Jiminy Cricket, as he floats down through
the wishes to take his place at the base of the castle. |
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Together with the Blue Fairy, Jiminy reminds us that the most
fantastic, magical things can happen, and it all starts with a
wish! First to make a wish is Cinderella, who dreams of
being able to go to the ball as swirling bursts of fireworks shoot
up into the sky. The castle is covered in hearts and
romantic red flickers of fireworks fill the sky, as Snow White
wishes that someday her Prince will come. |
Deep under the sea, Ariel is wishing she could be part of Prince
Eric’s world, whilst Peter Pan wishes to never have to grow up and
heads off for another adventure in Neverland, with dramatic green
fireworks sweeping across the sky. | The
classic Disney characters aren’t out of wishes yet!
Pinocchio covers the castle with his troublesome nose and the sky
with whirling bursts of colour, before we join Aladdin on his magic
carpet as he wishes for Genie’s freedom. Suddenly, the magic
lamp appears on the castle and the Blue Fairy proclaims “Genie!
Genie! You’re free!” as a blast of sparkling blue
fireworks shoots out from the lamp! In his usual outrageous
style, Genie then takes over the show, covering the sky in blue
bursts – and the castle with his smiling face! Aladdin and
Jasmine soar through the clouds above Agrabah before Genie shrinks
the castle with a spectacular laser effect! |
 | | His
time in the limelight over, Genie fades away as the legendary
music from the Sorcerer’s Apprentice segment of Walt Disney’s
Fantasia begins with the castle becoming a giant Sorcerer’s hat!
Soon, strange shapes cover the castle. They move up and
down, shrinking as they multiply. They’re the enchanted
brooms from Fantasia, and once they’ve completely filled the
castle with their eerie presence, a bolt of thunder darts across
the castle and dramatic red fireworks shoot out from either side.
Things are getting rather sinister… Don’t worry, just
remember – always let your conscience be your guide… | This
is what happens when the power of wishes gets into the wrong
hands! “Slave in the Magic Mirror, come from the farthest
space! Through wind and darkness I summon thee! Let me
see thy face!” A chilling Magic Mirror appears on
the castle, with crackles of thunder bolting across its formidable
face. | “A blast of wind, to find my fate. A
thunderbolt, the cast my spell. Alas, grant me my wish as
well!” There’s no stopping the Evil Queen now!
Crackling, shrieking fireworks tear across the sky in a
pandemonium of fear and distress. | Soon
the other Disney Villains are joining in too – Maleficent and
Jafar shadow over the crowds as they help to continue the wicked
wishes with prickly, razor-sharp fireworks cutting through the sky
and overpowering thorny explosions blocking out every hint of a
conscience! |
 | |
Luckily, Jiminy returns just in time and reminds us to be careful
what we wish for! “It’s the Blue Fairy!” he announces, as
swirling laser-projected stars and bursts of beautiful twinkling
fireworks hail the return of the Blue Fairy. Uniting
everyone in the magic of wishes, she says “Remember, we must
always believe in our wishes, for they are the magic in the world.
Now, let’s all put our hearts together and make a wish come true!”.
And just like magic, a fantastic glow of light erupts from the top
of the castle. Dazzling fans of laser light, filling the sky
with magic and touching the hearts of everyone as the “Wishes”
theme song builds up to a finale of bright white rockets and
breathtaking twinkling bursts of fireworks! As the music
quietens, a single white firework arcs over the castle, to remind
you that all this magic began with just one single wish. | |
“You see? It’s just like I told you. Wishes can come
true, if you believe in them with all your heart”, Jiminy
says, as more wishes are sent soaring up into the sky to a reprise
of the “Wishes” theme. Suddenly, the castle turns
into a rainbow of colour as laser-projected fireworks explode all
over it and countless more bright white wishes are sent up into
the sky. | | The
show reaches its final climax with a breathtaking explosion and
blue and white fireworks filling the sky whilst lasers create
another twinkling universe of stars on the castle. Just as
you thought the wishes had ended, Jiminy says “See what a
little wishing can do?” and a dazzling fan of blinding
white rockets light up the whole of Central Plaza as they shoot up
into the sky behind the castle. | The
show ends as the Blue Fairy wishes everyone a good night and the
laser-projected stars on the castle join together to form a
spectacular version of the
“Wishes” logo. The power of wishes has touched
everyone – trust your heart, just believe. Make a wish and
do as dreamers do, and all your wishes will come true… | | | |  |
Finding a Place to Watch | �
The show is performed in the sky above Sleeping Beauty’s Castle,
with spectacular image and laser projections covering the castle
for almost the entire show. It is therefore recommended to
stand closer to the castle than for past fireworks, to get a
good clear view of the effects. | � It
could be a good idea to plan your Fantillusion viewing spot with
Wishes in mind. Once Fantillusion has finished, most
people stay in the same general area to watch Wishes, so moving
across Central Plaza can be difficult. | | |
Photographing Wishes | � If
you aren’t using a tripod, make sure you set your camera to a
short exposure time, to avoid blurry photos. | | � If
you have a tripod, you could set a longer exposure time, to
capture some truly magical images of the fireworks. A
tripod also allows for better photos of the castle projections. | | |
After the Show | �
Once the show has ended, the crowds slowly move down Main
Street towards the park exit. If you have children
with you, make sure you stay together. It could even be a
good idea to move aside and wait until the crowds have gone
before making your exit in your own time. | �
For a quicker exit from the parks, head down either Liberty
Arcade or Discovery Arcade. | �
Most boutiques on Main Street stay open for some time after the
show providing the perfect time to pick up some extra souvenirs and gifts,
especially with the magical backdrop of a nighttime Main Street
USA. | |  | | | |  |
Wishes Nighttime Spectacular at Disneyland Resort Paris draws
its soundtrack almost entirely from the original version of the
show at Walt Disney World in Florida. This iconic
soundtrack, that has also been used as a basis for the 50th
Anniversary firework display in Disneyland California, was put
together by musical director Steve Skorija at Walt Disney
Creative Entertainment, with the soundtrack itself composed
and arranged by Gregory Smith. | The
show features a new, original theme song – ‘Wishes’ – which
was written by Gregory Smith and takes its inspiration from the
classic children’s rhyme ‘Starlight, Starbight’. The
memorable theme created from this song echoes throughout the
soundtrack, drawing together the music used from eleven Disney
feature films, with the iconic fade-in and opening fanfare of the
music being brought to life further thanks to the incredible
projection, lighting and laser effects of the Parisian show.
Each theme from the Disney Classics is combined with suitably
coloured fireworks and dramatic projections to bring to life the
memories, wishes and dreams associated with these classic films,
with the wide selection of music ensuring that every guests’
favourite Wishes can come true every night. | | | |
 In the
year of the 50th Anniversary of the original Disneyland in
California, this magical gathering of Disney dreams debuted in
Disneyland Park Paris to show, in spectacular fashion, the promise
and beauty of wishes coming true. This new night-time
pyrotechnic extravaganza was inspired by the original
‘Wishes’ firework spectacular at the Magic Kingdom
of Walt Disney
World Resort in Florida, which was introduced in October 2003 to
replace the park’s old ‘Fantasy In The Sky’ show, and
brought with it an assortment of exciting new pyrotechnic
techniques and effects. The show was designed with around
800 shells being used in each performance and launches taking
place from ten new locations around the Magic Kingdom using brand
new pyrotechnic techniques and advancements. The pyrotechnic
display was designed by Eric Tucker (who also worked on ‘IllumiNations:
Reflections of Earth’ at Epcot), with the overall show created
and directed by Steven Davison (who developed ‘Believe –
There’s Magic In the Stars’ at Disneyland California). | | The
Florida show proved an instant success, with the musical score of
the show in particular becoming a must-have CD for fans when it
was released in April 2004. Sections of the soundtrack were
also heavily implemented into Disneyland California’s 50th
Anniversary fireworks spectacular, “Remember… Dreams Come
True”, and with the same soundtrack as the Florida show now
being introduced in Paris, the emotional and beautiful work of
music director Steve Skorija and composer/arranger Gregory Smith
has most certainly not gone unnoticed. |
Bringing the ‘Wishes’ fireworks spectacular to Paris took
many months of intense preparation by a team of over 30 dedicated
crew. Whilst the show shares the same soundtrack and
background story, the visual experience is almost completely
different to that in Florida. One of the first changes to
the show was believed to have been the removal of the ‘Villains’ section, as this meant
the show followed the story of Paris’
Disney’s Fantillusion
parade too closely. Just before the official
premiere of the show, however, it emerged that the sections that
had infact been cut were the ‘Go The Distance’ and ‘Princesses
Medley’ sections. It is believed these sections were cut due
to the large amount of speech and fewer opportunities given for the use of
projection and laser effects, the key feature of the Paris
‘Wishes’ show. |
Another very noticeable change to the show was the addition of new
speech from the Blue Fairy. She provides narration in French
to translate each of the character’s wishes or talk to Jiminy,
ensuring that as many people as possible can follow this classic
Disney story told amongst the stars. | As the design of Paris’ castle and its surrounding area is so
different to that of Florida’s, the effects and pyrotechnics were
designed with this in mind, to create an experience that will fit
perfectly into the landscape of the Paris park. In addition
to the exciting fireworks display, various other effects have
been put in place to amaze guests, such as lasers and high-power
projectors. These effects, many never before seen in a
standard firework show in Disneyland Resort Paris, turn
‘Wishes’ into much more than a simple nine minute firework display – a
true nighttime spectacular. | To
celebrate the launch of Wishes in
Disneyland Park, Central Plaza
received an impressive new temporary hub decoration showing the Wishes logo
and a half-relief image of Jiminy Cricket. The beautiful
decoration also hides a large amount of technical equipment which
is used during the show, whilst fake bushes and rocks around the
edge of the castle moat hide lighting and projectors for the show. |
Bringing ‘Wishes’ to Disneyland Park allows a new audience to watch the magic as the
wishes of classic Disney characters come true in a burst of colour
and effects. All it takes is a little courage (and a lot
of preparation) to set them free! | | | | |
Wishes
Disney’s
