After the opening of Drawn to Life (Cirque du Soleil’s new show coming to Disney Springs) was delayed just before its original opening date due to the global pandemic, the creators had time to think deeper about the show.

Drawn to Life is now set to open in Disney Springs on November 18th, and today we were able to attend a virtual media event with the creators. During the event, they talked in-depth about the show and how it serves as their love letter to animation. We learned that during the delay, the creators made some big, dynamic changes! Let’s get into it.

Drawn to Life is a story about a twelve-year-old girl named Julie who is tasked with finishing an animation project left by her Disney animator father after his death. She must embark on a quest of animation filled with imagination, dreaming, and Disney childhood memories.

During the delay of the show, the creators were able to revisit the story with fresh eyes, through a lens of loss and life. They ended up adding two new acts to the show, and they’re both quite the additions!

The Old Mill

This new act is inspired by the 1937 animated Disney short film, The Old Mill, and they have developed a double wheel structure that resembles a windmill and provides a base for gravity-defying acrobatic moves. In the story, Julie has imagined a storm that is threatening the windmill, which is the home of some owls who must work together to stay safe.

The performers must keep up with the wheel structure that rises and falls, with some them them even going airborne!

Garden of Lines

Garden of Lines is generally based on Pinocchio. In this section, five performers play the role of the Blue Fairy as they glide across the floor on unicycles. The performers have carefully choreographed and synchronized their moves, all of which are performed on unicycles. One cyclist even jump ropes while on her unicycle!

This act is all about the lines that are the beginning of an artist’s creation, and the section is inspired by the whimsical fairytales of our childhoods.

La Nouba

During the event today, we also learned a fun detail about the show’s set. For those of you who loved La Nouba, which ran for 19 years in Disney Springs, the creators hinted that there is ONE La Nouba prop hidden in the show.

It will probably take a careful eye to spot it though, so be sure to look carefully when you watch the show!

Cirque du Soleil Store

Want to grab merchandise to celebrate this new show? Then you’re in luck! The Cirque du Soleil Store reopened today in Disney Springs before the opening of Drawn to Life, and you can already start stocking up on merchandise!

But, there’s more to see here than just merchandise. Look carefully — do you spot the special item in the room? You can see a larger-than-life desk lamp hanging from the ceiling (we can’t help but be reminded of Luxo, Jr.).

There was quite a bit of new Drawn to Life merchandise available. Most of them feature inspiring phrases related to imagination and animation.

This gray long sleeve hooded top says “animation is imagination.”

There are also lots of items with sparkly rainbow details, like with this sequined backpack, and this colorful t-shirt has the phrase “always dream in color.”

You can also get a rainbow pouch that reminds you to dream in color.

Another awesome item is this “animation is imagination” bag! It looks like it’s straight out of a 2D animation!

You can also grab a rainbow water bottle that says “always dream in color” to help you stay hydrated as you work on making your dreams come true!

This kids’ dress says “enter the forest of your imagination” and has splashes of rainbow colors.

And this adorable t-shirt says “let your imagination soar” and features characters holding balloons.

You can “draw your own destiny” with this red, white, and blue bow hat…

…or you can pick up this blue hat that says “life is what you draw of it.”

You can also check out this gray sweatshirt with the same phrase!

That’s a LOT of new merchandise to get before the show has even opened! Stop by Disney Springs to check it out and stock up on Drawn to Life items.

Want to learn more about the show? Check out the video below!

 

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As we mentioned above, Drawn to Life opens in Disney Springs on November 18th and tickets are on sale now, though some performances have already sold out. We’ll keep an eye out for more updates about this show and we’ll share them with you. Keep reading DFB for more Disney World news!

VIDEO: Go behind the scenes of Drawn to Life!

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Do you have tickets to see Drawn to Life? Tell us in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Disney World to attend their virtual media discussion of Cirque du Soleil’s Drawn to Life. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ

The post 2 BIG Changes Made to the NEW Cirque du Soleil Show Coming to Disney World! first appeared on the disney food blog.