Walt Disney World Review: Mickey's PhilharMagic

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: A fun trip through classic Disney songs

Cons: They don't have it in Disneyland

The Bottom Line:

Fun 3-D journey

Into many classic songs

Be sure you catch it

3-D Musical Magic Starring Your Disney Friends

Before I made my first pilgrimage to Walt Disney World, I had several friends tell me I had to experience Mickey's PhilharMagic.  So I made it one of my first stops on my first day in the Magic Kingdom.  I went back four more times over the course of the week and would have gone even more had I been there longer.

This show is the newest of the 3-D attractions in Disney World and the only one in the Magic Kingdom.  It is located in Fantasyland.  As you enter the waiting area, you are given your "opera glasses" (the 3-D glasses) but reminded not to put them on until you are in your seat.  Shows are about 15 minutes long, so depending on your timing you might have a short or a long wait.  None of the rides had super long lines when I was there, so I never had to wait longer than one cycle.

The premise of the show is that Mickey is going to conduct an orchestra made up of magical instruments.  He's not quite ready for the show to begin and leaves Donald alone for a second or two.  Donald decides to put on the Sorcerer's Hat and conduct the orchestra himself, but things quickly get out of hand.  When the hat is blown off Donald's head, he begins chasing it through famous Disney songs such as "Be Our Guest," "Part of Your World," "You Can Fly," "Just Can't Wait to be King," Whole New World," and the magic brooms from "Sorcerer's Apprentice."

This is the most recent 3-D attraction and completely done with computer animation.  Yes, even these classic scenes are reanimated, although fans will notice that most of the changes are small and the characters look the same as always.  The animation is stunning.  It looks amazingly real at the same time it looks like a cartoon.

The 3-D effects are wonderfully rendered as well.  Even when things aren't flying out at us (and there is plenty of that), the world looks amazingly deep.  They even use the walls at one point to make the picture even bigger.

As with all the 3-D shows in the park, they don't just show you a movie.  In this one, they lightly spray some water at you during the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" scene (it's really more of a fine mist than anything else) and blow wind on you a couple of times.

For me, this show was tons of fun.  I love all the songs in the show, so I had a smile on my face as I (quietly) sang along.  Donald's interacting with the classic characters was always funny.  And the ending provided one more great laugh.

If I could get one attraction from Walt Disney World moved to Disneyland, it would be Mickey's PhilharMagic.  This is a fun show that kids will absolutely love and any fan of Disney music must see.