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American Adventure
(photos below)
(adapted
from official Disney press releases)
The American Adventure, one of eleven
international pavilions located in Epcot’s World Showcase
section, celebrates the spirit of
America
's independence, history and diversity, and reflects the
nation's ever-changing character. The pavilion is home to the
American Adventure show, a dramatic theatrical presentation
that combines the magic of Audio-Animatronics with innovations
in film and special effects housed inside a
108,000-square-foot Georgian-style mansion.
The show is punctuated by the "Golden
Dreams" film that depicts some of
America
's most moving events from World War II to present day. New
sequences include images from the tragic events of Sept. 11,
2001, Lance Armstrong's Tour de France victory and Oprah
Winfrey's compassionate work with African children. In the
29-minute theatrical presentation, one of the most elaborate
ever created using Audio-Animatronics figures, hosts Benjamin
Franklin and Mark Twain take guests on a journey into the
birth of a new nation and the resulting spirit of its
creation.
The show portrays such famous Americans as
Thomas Jefferson, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony,
Alexander Graham Bell, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King
Jr., Tiger Woods and Oprah Winfrey.
Through advances in Audio-Animatronics
technology, Disney Imagineers have infused new levels of
realism and details so that each character helps tell the
story through their own personality.
"In the scene with Will Rogers, we made sure he tipped
his hat and Mark Twain had a subtle rock to his rocking chair
to convey his unique character," according to character
animator Doug Griffith. "This level of rich detail
helps the American Adventure stand out as the premiere
presentation of Audio-Animatronics technology in a theatrical
setting."
Research for the American Adventure show
began almost three years prior to its 1982 premiere. Imagineers
worked carefully with noted historians at inception and with
the current enhancement to ensure the presentation's accuracy,
according to director Rothschild.
For instance, in a scene depicting the Great
Depression, pages of quotes from Will Rogers were gathered by
Walt Disney Imagineers to incorporate into the scene. In order
to duplicate the advertisements of the Depression era,
architectural magazines were scanned. Music logs were searched
to find an appropriate song for the banjo player on the porch
-- "Brother Can You Spare a Dime?" In addition to
obtaining Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1933 inaugural speech,
Imagineers contacted the Library of Congress for a copy of his
unusual presidential seal to duplicate for his podium.
The show is held in a 1,024-seat theater
complete with rich, Corinthian-style details: chandeliers,
archways, columns, elegant fabrics and paneling. The theater
includes the Spirits of America: twelve "marble"
statues lining both sides of the theater, representing such
American qualities as heritage, innovation, knowledge,
pioneering, discovery and freedom.
The
Voices of Liberty, a group of glorious a cappella singers who
have been performing since Epcot opened, perform a short
concert in the acoustically perfect rotunda before we are
escorted to the theater upstairs.
The
American Adventure, the flagship pavilion of Epcot World
Showcase, celebrates the spirit of America's history and
diversity. The pavilion is home to the American Adventure
show, housed inside a 108,000-square-foot Georgian-style
mansion. In the dramatic 29-minute presentation, one of the
most elaborate ever created using Audio-Animatronics
figures, hosts Benjamin Franklin and Mark Twain take guests
on a journey into the birth of a new nation and the
resulting spirit of its creation.
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