The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hollywood

[Rideguy70]

Are there updates about any announcements from the Harry Potter event in Orlando?  I thought the light show was going to be officially announced, but I haven't ran into any mentions yet.


On a different note, I did notice there is a new souvenir:  a model of Tom Riddle's diary with the tooth stabbed through it.  It looks really cool, and was only $85.  I feel like they easily could have charged more, the quality looked really good.  If I get a chance, it'll try to get a pic tomorrow and put it up on my twitter (same as my username here).

 

[William]

I assume you're talking about this. Noble Collection makes this prop replica (along with the others found at the park), but they sell it for $65. Universal definitely knocked up the price.

 

[SnideRemarksDept]

As part of the Celebration of Harry Potter, there is also a new Chocolate Frog Collectible Wizard Card! For the next week and a half, chocolare frog boxes with a sticker on the wrapper will contain Gilderoy Lockhart. After that, he will be mixed in with the regular cards to be found at random. I hope this opens them up for many more cards in the future.

 

[Armadillo4]

Well, there was an announcement; but not for the show.


EDIT: The Universal announcement will be tomorrow.

Did we miss an announcement? Or did it get posted in another thread because it's not Harry Potter related?

 

[foodstampsFTW]

No we were expecting the nighttime castle show to be announced but it never happened

 

[ItsAtrap]

Getting back on topic, the IU facebook page just uploaded pictures of some (delightfully themed) construction walls around the TriWizard stage. Is this just regular maintenance or is it hiding something related to the Wizarding World Night-time ExtravaganzaTM?

No. Just replacing the warping stage.


I wouldn't expect an announcement until April or May. You know Universal, they keep things quite for a long, long time.

 

[William]

Is the stage being replaced entirely or just refurbished?

 

[12th Man]

Is the stage being replaced entirely or just refurbished?

Don't know, but the wood lining the stage seems to get beat up a lot (from guests, performers, etc.).

 

[Freak]

Experienced two things today in Hogwarts....


Someone started arguing with a TM about her bag. She demanded that she take her bag on the ride but the TM was insisting that it was required. It was quite amusing. Feel bad for the TM though. 


I also smelled some weed in the queue where the mirror was. Someone was getting high at Hogwarts. I know you're supposed to make magic happen there, but not like that. 

 

[12th Man]

#WhyWeCan'tHaveNiceThings  -_-

 

[CityWalk]

I also smelled some weed in the queue where the mirror was. Someone was getting high at Hogwarts. I know you're supposed to make magic happen there, but not like that. 

People always try stupid things at the park thinking they're getting away from it. What most don't realize is that the park, and especially Potter is riddled with infrared security cameras. There are very few areas in the park where you are not being watched by someone. 

An individual lighting one up in the middle of the queue could happen. I'm sure it's happened before. Whether or not they got in trouble is another story. I doubt they did, but the possibility of getting caught is always there. 

Could it have also been an odor coming from an individual's clothing? Anyone who has been on public transportation knows a single person can stink up an entire train car.

Just food for thought.
-CW

 

[12th Man]

#WhyWeCan'tHaveNiceThings  -_-

 

[William]

The new Chocolate Frogs featuring a Gilderoy Lockhart wizard card are now being sold in Honeydukes! Make sure to grab one before the "2017" stickers are removed.

Also, does anyone know if these speakers behind the Triwizard Spirit Rally stage always looked like this? For some reason I don't recall them having the leaf pattern printed on them.

 

[Adoree]

A month ago the speakers on both sides were plain black, as best I can tell from my instagram videos. 

 

[Armadillo4]

Is the stage being replaced entirely or just refurbished?

Don't know, but the wood lining the stage seems to get beat up a lot (from guests, performers, etc.).

I'm sure a few folks have already noticed, but the refurb of the stage is complete and shows are once again being performed on it--weather permitting. You can tell the stage floor is new. I think it looks like a lighter color wood than the original flooring.


On a different note, I can also say that the updated projections in Forbidden Journey look amazing. The ride was a walk-on yesterday afternoon, so I rode it twice and really enjoyed the projections--with the exception of the first floo powder scene, which is still blurry.

 

[William]

Yeah, I'm guessing the stage was just made to be more durable.

 

[Sydney]

^ especially with guests now being allowed to walk on it.

 

[Rideguy70]

Guests have always been allowed to walk on it...

 

[Sydney]

Guests have always been allowed to walk on it...

I don't think according to protocol they were (on the official stage, they were allowed to walk on/sit on the steps) because from what I've seen they used to always kick people off of the stage the second that they walked on it, but yes, they still walked on it anyway.

 

[Rideguy70]

I'm not sure what the official protocol was, but as a practical matter, I never saw anyone kicked off the stage unless a performance was imminent.  That said, performances are pretty frequent, so people are probably being kicked off often.