It’s been a busy first five months of the year, with lots of new products and shows opening. In fact this could just turn out to be our biggest year yet. As we head into the summer we wish everyone a busy time at work and some relaxing time with loved ones. And if you’re in the neighborhood of Hershey Park, be sure to check out their latest show, Rock the Jukebox, in the Music Box Theatre. It uses an HD Binloop. Enjoy!
When I look at the access statistics from our website it’s not surprising some pages get a lot more hits than others.
Where is this mystery attraction?
However, I notice that only the featured installation pages get the high traffic; there are tons more that most people never see, and among them are some of my favorite installations.
Wizarding World of Harry Potter
As with most of the mainstream press, UPHAA has confused what is simply going to be a “land” at Universal’s Islands of Adventure with a complete theme park. While I have no doubt that Harry Potter would have been a great theme for a complete park, that’s not what the public is going to be getting when The Wizarding World of Harry Potter opens this spring. Let’s hope the general public doesn’t have overblown expectations, because I think it’s going to be a great addition to IOA. But it’s not a complete theme park.
I thought Dan Brown’s DaVinci Code was okay, and I enjoyed Angels and Demons (I haven’t seen either of the movies because I prefer the depth of a novel). So I was looking forward to his latest book, The Lost Symbol.
What a disappointment. In trying to think how to describe the book’s problems, I found it hard to come up with anything I liked about it. What I did come up with was a list:
How to Write Like Dan Brown
Whether you’re building a ride, a show, or some other attraction it will only be truly effective in a themed environment if it moves us not just physically, but also emotionally.
When people think of theme parks, the first thing they think of are attractions. Everyone has his or her favorites. When I was a kid it was a toss up whether my favorite was Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean or The Haunted Mansion. With delicious anticipation I’d stand in the queue line soaking up the set design and theming, getting completely immersed in the environment; I would soon eagerly board the ride and try to capture every detail as we rushed through and then, as soon as the ride was over, run around to the front of the building, get back in line and do it again. In retrospect, I now know the thing that made these my favorite attractions was the story they told. I’ve come to realize that story is the key ingredient in any great themed attraction. If we don’t leave our guests with the memory of an emotional journey, we haven’t really succeeded in taking them on the ride they paid for.