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Techtite's Shows & Parks Reviews! |
----------------- Feel free to contribute. As always, review submissions are accepted! ------------------
------------- Sidebar :: ------------- The "Immaterial Gripes". This was a wonderful convention package for the price you paid, and irrefutably worthy of a "Deep Impact"; Techtite's highest rating. However, there were minor gripes that are worth addressing, even if not worth dropping the rating per se. Here are a sample of them: 1---There's no denying that this year's Disneyana Convention was in California to promote their new theme park, California Adventure. However, maybe if this was the case, they should have given conventioneers (or "conventionears") more time to enjoy the park. In truth, the convention was so busy this year, I wasn't able to visit the new theme park until near the end of the week, even though my hotel was right next to it! 2---While the final night banquet's stage show was indeed spectacular, it was a shame that the event allowed for no recording devices of any kind. Even those of us without web sites to post such photos, would've liked some sort of memory of Lesley Ann Warren and other celebrities being just a few yards from us. Perhaps they could've given us a "playbill" of sorts, as a souvenir? 3---It's true that most conventions have only one area of Disney World open for Theme Night; Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, or the like. However, Disneyland is a smaller park overall; at least two areas should've been open to us. This isn't much to ask, either, when one year all of Animal Kingdom was open to us to explore, and another year, all of MGM Studios was open (yes, all of it!) I'm also reminded of a Disneyland doctor's convention with my Dad when I was five (in the early 1970's), where ALL of Disneyland was reserved for us. Why couldn't Disneyana give us the same thing? |
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Disneyana Convention: 2001(Convention Theme: A DisneyLAND Reunion!)
Yes, I'm actually somewhere in this photo (near the lower-right!) A Review by Techtite
Let's be honest; conventioneers, both young and old, were a bit apprehensive to hear that a convention often held at Disney World would now be held all the way in Disneyland. Mind you; that's where all the theme park magic began for Disney, but by now...isn't Disneyana a bit large? Could Disneyland handle a convention of over 1,800 people...? While this year's Disneyana Convention felt a bit "crowded" at times, it was still one of the best conventions ever, even if, to add a bit of sadness to the mix, it would be offered just two days prior to that infamous date embedded in America's hearts: September 11th 2001. Not that this diminishes the convention in itself. It was a great time while it lasted.
As for the promise of "more celebrities"; it worked like a charm. Not to jump the gun (I often review conventions' occurrences in chronological order), though this year's final night banquet was hosted by one of my favorite Disney family alums, Lesley Ann-Warren. She introduced surprise guests, like Robby Benson and Paige O'Hara (the main character voices of the Oscar-nominated Disney hit, Beauty & the Beast), as well as Jo Anne Worley (saluting classic Disney wardrobes), the choreographers for Mary Poppins, and the singer of the unforgettable opening song for The Lion King! Such stars weren't just there for the show, either. I remember the morning after this show, routinely going into my hotel's breakfast cafe, and seeing Lesley Ann-Warren herself on her way out. Cool! However, I'm getting ahead of myself. The convention began with a very nice welcome reception/picnic, which included a "reunion photo" of all 1800 guests (shown above). The photo event was followed by a nice picnic, with a lot of hearty food, live music, and the opportunity to sign an actual wooden support beam, that will be used to build a new barn on the Disney family's original land. This fit the theme of a reunion very nicely, especially with how the picnic was located just outside the Disneyland Hotel itself, not in a stuffy convention hall. It's nice that weather permitted such a nice outdoor reception to start the convention off with.
The
auction was as grand as it was, well...overpriced. Okay, so they wanted an
item to truly encompass the magnitude of a Disney Reunion, so they made
this solid gold Mickey Mouse statue, valued at one million dollars; one of those ideas that sounds good on paper, yet not in its
execution. One million dollars, with all due humility, is way out of the league of the typical convention visitor.
Theme night, as always, was one of the best parts of the convention. The evening did begin with a mild faux pas, though, when the attempt was made to "corral" 1800 people into a single line of traffic. Why? Well, see; apparently, someone didn't want to give people the little map of open restaurants/attractions early in case they'd lose it. So they had this small batch of cast members hand them out...in one "lane" of convention traffic. Mind you; these conventioneers included many elderly people in wheelchairs that could not be easily "coralled" into one lane of traffic, by any means! Never mind; it was just worth mentioning because it was so avoidable a moment. It was just a minor setback though. Let's move on. Anyhoo: Theme Night was held exclusively at the New Orleans Square at Disneyland, which for three hours was limited to convention guests only. As always, this included free food and rides without lines. Gumbo, Cajun steak-ka-bobs, and chicken on a stick was all superb, and all nearby rides --including the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean-- could be easily walked onto with no wait times. There were additional New Orleans themed challenges, where you could win prizes like Mardi-Gras masks or beaded necklaces, all for free. Equally free was an impressive dessert box for each guest, with the Fantasmic logo on its cover. The evening ended with an exclusive showing of the "Fantasmic" water show. Understandably, this was one of the best parts of the convention.
To belittle this year's achievement would be nitpicking...and very unfair. However, I would be a poor reviewer if I did not acknowledge that 1800 conventioneers seem to have a lot more, shall we say, "room," at Disney World. It was nice to see DIsneyland again, since I have not gone there since a young boy, at only 5 years old! The truth is, I could go on and on about the little touches that made this year so grand; a good sign of a great convention. So what if elbow room was a little scarce? This convention wanted Disney fans to feel like part of a family. It succeeded. I can't wait to return to Disneyland again, convention or not.
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Burnout
Near
Miss
Small
Crater
Large
Crater
Deep
Impact
The
theme this year was inspired; "A Disney Family
Reunion." The intent was based on one lament of the Florida-based
convention; it's final night stage show often has only one or two Disney celebrities a
year...possibly because celebrities live on the West Coast. So, wouldn't more stars be willing
to attend a "reunion" held in their honor, right in the original
Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, just a short drive from Hollywood itself? Furthermore, guests could be part of the
reunion fun,
since they are considered "part of the family." What a cute idea!
Count me in.
During
that same day, we were able to catch a glimpse of the limited edition
items to be offered this year, including an impressive gicleé canvas painting,
of Walt Disney stepping out of the Disneyland Castle at nighttime. 
Other impressive
limited edition items included a jeweled "Sorcerer Mickey" atop a
crystal pedestal. Another, less costly statuette had Mickey Mouse going on a
picnic, with Chip&Dale clearly visible in his picnic basket, taking
his food. Another, in the spirit of the reunion convention
theme, was with Donald, Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy in the starting line of a
sack race (many Donald Duck fans particularly liked his
expression in this one). Most popular of all was a doll created by Marie
Osmond, who was at the convention in person, for
autographs and signings of the dolls purchased.
Mind you; a nicer auction item would've been a simpler faux gold statue, a
la those cool statues in Disney Stores, which are often sold for a hefty
price on 
The
final banquet night and show was even more well done. The evening began with the stage show I mentioned earlier, in the Hyperion Theater of the
