We’ve got some BIG Tiana’s Bayou Adventure news to share, y’all!
Thanks to an exclusive invite from Disney to tour Walt Disney Imagineering, we just got an in-person look at the new Tiana animatronic (along with some of the OTHER, never-before-seen character animatronics) that will be coming to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure when the new ride opens in Magic Kingdom and Disneyland later this year!
Crews have been hard at work on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in both Disney World and Disneyland. This new attraction will take riders on a journey with Tiana, Louis, and friends as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance. The storyline takes place after the final kiss in The Princess in the Frog and will take us on a musical adventure in New Orleans.
We got the opportunity to see the Tiana animatronic for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in person, and y’all, it looks pretty amazing! We were at an Imagineering Media Event and were fortunate to catch a glimpse of Tiana herself. We weren’t able to take photos at the event, but we did spot some pretty interesting details on the new animatronics.
Disney gave us a sneak peek at this Tiana animatronic back in February and we were impressed then! However, it looks even more spectacular in person.
We got to visit the large shop where Imagineers are working on all of the animatronics for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Inside the workshop, Imagineers position the animatronics the same way that they’ll be displayed on the ride so that they’re able to see them from the perspective of the people who will be riding the attraction. So, for example, one of the Tiana animatronics was up on a high platform because she’ll be placed up high on the ride.
You might’ve noticed we said “ONE of the Tiana animatronics” — that’s because there are lots (which makes sense — she’s the star of the show)! We saw several different Tiana animatronics in the workshop, all from different ride scenes, and each with a slight variation in her outfit. Some have her hat on, some off, some have a jacket, etc. We also noticed that Tiana is wearing a wedding ring in at least one animatronic, which we thought was a lovely touch. So it looks like Tiana will be accompanying us on the entire journey during the ride!
Of course there are also multiple animatronic versions of Louis! He’s going to be on the adventure for the long-haul with us, too, we think!
We also saw an animatronic of Tiana’s mom, Eudora. She had on a mustard-yellow dress and was carrying a parasol, and she had a magnolia flower in her hair.
Charlotte La Bouff (Tiana’s friend) was there, too! The animatronic had a pink velvet dress, three-stranded pearls, and a bejeweled headband with a pink feather. Her smile is ENCHANTING!
You can’t forget about Prince Naveen! The animatronic version we happened to see of him is wearing a tuxedo and yellow vest. He was playing his ukulele in the version we saw.
Ralphie — Naveen’s younger brother — is also displayed in animatronic form! He’s playing the drums.
There were several different versions of Mama Odie’s animatronic in the workshop, including one of her wearing several strands of beads. When we asked Imagineer Charita Carter what the beads represent, we were told that Mama Odie had been given the beads by her community because she’s a well-respected and wise woman. The more beads you have, the more respected and honored you are!
Mama Odie’s animatronic is joined by JuJu, her snake! JuJu is trying to steal some beignets, and in the ride, Mama Odie tells him “I see you, JuJu!” as he tries to grab a treat. (When we were there, JuJu in his red bow tie was right behind the beignets!)
All of these animatronics are hand-animated, meaning there’s an animator making sure that every facial expression, movement, etc. are as specific and authentic as you’d see in the movie. The weirdest part? The animatronics were SO REAL that they weren’t even creepy to see close-up!
We think these animatronics are going to look amazing in Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, which is opening this summer in Disney World and later this year in Disneyland.
We have been eagerly reporting on construction progress in Disney World, as walls have been coming down and new details are emerging! We also recently received a look at some of the characters that will be making a debut in the ride. Now we are just waiting for official opening dates, fingers crossed they come soon!
Stay tuned to DFB for more updates on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure!
Check out 3 BIG changes that happened at Tiana’s Bayou Adventure last week!
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What do you think of the animatronic? Let us know 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 The Walt Disney Company to attend their Imagineering media event. 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
Jaimie says
This just made my day!!! I have been wondering if Charlotte would be a part of the ride. My daughter’s name is Charlotte and looks exactly like Charlotte La Bouff. I haven’t seen here in anything in a while and was thinking that she may have been cut. Thank you!!!!
H. S. says
They look amazing! So glad Disney is moving away from the projection faces on the animatronics.
TY says
Whoa! No pictures of Naveen? Only a description? Yikes!