Making Memories: Magic Kingdom Lights Up the Night Sky

on June 15, 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 take a break from looking back at parades and move onto something people may love even more. Fireworks or nighttime spectaculars have captivated audiences at Disney parks for decades. However, they weren’t always there and they have come a long way over time. So, with that, let’s dive into our memories!

Magic Kingdom as we know opened October 1st, 1971, but the park did not start with a nightly fireworks show like we know now. Magic Kingdom and the rest of the resort were officially dedicated in a big three day event beginning on October 23rd, 1971. The night of the 24th, as part of the ceremony, a special fireworks display took place that Disney called Sky Spectacular. This show was the finale to an event filled day and played to “America the Beautiful” on speakers at the Polynesian Village Resort beach.

After that special opening ceremony show Disney moved to what would be their longest running fireworks show. Fantasy in the Sky first debuted at Disneyland park in 1958. The show then was duplicated for Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris. Fantasy in the Sky would run at Magic Kingdom from 1971 until 2003. Fantasy in the Sky wouldn’t die though and is brought back for a special New Year’s Eve version every year (outside the pandemic of course). Fantasy in the Sky included iconic Disney songs such as “When You Wish upon a Star” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”

Up next is a show that captivated so many. Debuting in October of 2003, Wishes, took the Disney fandom by storm and to this day is missed by many. This all new Magic Kingdom spectacular was narrated by none ofter then Jiminy Cricket. This show worked in conjunction with another special nighttime offering, SpectroMagic, which we will dive into deeper on a future Making Memories.

Wishes ran from 2003 until 2017 and was a 12 minutes show featuring over 600 pieces of pyrotechnics. Wishes featured Jiminy Cricket, the Blue Fairy, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Cinderella, Ariel, Aladdin, and more. The big moment everyone awaited was Tinker Bell appearing and flying from the castle during the show. An iconic moment that would continue and did occur prior to this show as well. Wishes included portions of 12 different Disney animated feature songs.

Steve Davison, iconic Disney show creator and director was the man behind Wishes. He also helped develop things like World of Color at Disney California Adventure. Fireworks designer Eric Tucker did the pyrotechnics for Wishes. Tucker also worked on the beloved Illuminations: Reflections of Earth at Epcot. Composer Gregory Smith who worked on Illuminations 25, Splashtacular, and Mickey Mania created the original theme for Wishes based on the children’s nursery rhyme, “Starlight, Star Bright.”

Wishes would run until May 11th, 2017. Thousands came out to say goodbye to this beloved show. The following day, May 12th, 2017, the next installment in Magic Kingdom fireworks history would debut, Happily Ever After.

Happily Ever After debuted May 12th and was an instant hit. Fans to this day do miss Wishes, but overall fans find this to be a worthy replacement. This new show was longer in duration topping out at roughly 18 minutes. It uses more lights, lasers, pyrotechnics and other special effects than any other previous show in Magic Kingdom history.

The music for Happily Ever After includes a song by the same name sung by Angie Keilhauer and Disney fan favorite, Jordan Fisher. The score for the show was recorded by a 75-piece orchestra in London. The ending os the soundtrack also features a 90-voice gospel choir. Happily Ever After features several show scenes throughout the story including wishing, adventure, friendship, love, adversity, and peace. Dozens of Disney and Pixar characters are seen throughout the show projected onto Cinderella Castle. And unlike previous Magic Kingdom shows, Tinkerbell does not fly from the castle until the very end of the show in an entirely captivating way.

Magic Kingdom has only had three major fireworks shows throughout its now 50 year history. Who knows when we will see the fourth but it is sure to amaze fans as all three of these shows have over time. Now, there have been several holiday themed shows from New Years, Fourth of July, Christmas, and Halloween. We will have those covered in upcoming holiday themed Making Memories pieces. Be sure to tell us below which of these three shows is your favorite or least favorite.