Making Memories: Epcot Surprises in the Daytime

on July 6, 2021

Each week through the Walt Disney World 50th anniversary, we will be taking a look back at various parades, entertainment, and nighttime spectaculars throughout the history of the resort. Walt Disney World has seen so many different things come and go throughout its 50 year history. So, let’s take a look back at what people remember dearly or forgot quickly.

This week we move over to a park that we haven’t looked at yet, Epcot. This park has evolved greatly over time and is in the midst of another massive transformation. Today, we are going to look back at daytime entertainment that Disney has put on at Epcot over the years.

First up, we are looking at a unique show called Skyleidoscope. The show first debuted in September 1985 and was roughly a 15 minute show. This one of a kind show took place on World Showcase Lagoon and was also described as an aerial spectacle. Things like seaplanes, jet skiers, speedboats, sailboats, and more were used in this show. That’s not all either, dancers, musicians, singers and actors were also all used in the show.

The show was created by Gary Paben with the storyline that “It was Gary Paben who came up with the show’s premise: Dreamfinder was being prevented from filling the sky with rainbows because of an evil force, dragons on the lagoon that shot fire out of their nostrils. The forces of good on both sea and air would rally to the Dreamfinder’s cause and defeat the dragons” according to Disney Historian Jim Korkis.

At first the show was set to just run on weekends but was later expanded. This one of a kind show ran until 1987 after a tragic accident during a test flight killed a pilot. The airstrip used for the show was located on land where Disney’s Art of Animation now sits.

Up next, we are taking a look at Splashtacular, a stage show in Epcot’s Future World. This stage show was short-lived and only ran from November 1993 to June 1994. The show was loosely based on Tokyo Disneyland’s “It’s Magical!” Instead of fantasy themes, science fiction themes were used to better fit Future World. The idea was Mickey Mouse and friends invite everyone to the Fountain of Nations to celebrate the colors of the rainbow and take a journey into space, but things go wrong when an alien sorceress messes things up.

The last show we are going to discuss today is “Surprise in the Skies.” This aerial show ran during the Walt Disney World 20th anniversary in 1991 and was another aerial show over World Showcase Lagoon. The show ran from September 1991 through September 1992. Surprise in the Skies featured kites, pyrotechnics, small aircraft and giant inflatable characters in World Showcase. There were eight parma-lanes that were piloted by Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Tigger, Pooh, and Chip and Dale. The show finale was a celebration of different nations around World Showcase.

Rainbow colors filled the daytime sky Saturday through Wednesday as this show ran. Multicolored flags were pulled by six colorful delta-wing kits. The show also included a salute to the red, white, and blue.