On this day, in 1971, the first Candlelight Processional made its way down Mainstreet USA in the Magic Kingdom of the Walt Disney World Resort. Modeled after the event at Disneyland that debuted in 1958, the Candlelight Processional has grown by leaps and bounds since that Florida night 47 years ago. It started at the Magic Kingdom (obviously, because that was the only park at the Florida Project then) as an actual processional. Performers carried candles from Town Square, down Mainstreet USA to amass in front of the castle. The show was performed once each of two nights and that was it. That’s still how it goes down at Disneyland, generally just one weekend a year. Walt Disney World, of course, has to do things bigger and better than that.
The Candlelight Processional got a big boost in 1994 when it was moved from the Magic Kingdom to Epcot. Instead of having guests stand along the route with very limited seating near the stage (the seats available at Disneyland are by invitation only), guests now get to sit in relative comfort in the America Gardens Theater at the American Adventure Pavilion. And instead of just one show a night for a single weekend, the processional is performed three times a night throughout the holiday season (which somehow doesn’t make it much easier to get in). The Christmas story is still narrated by various celebrity guests (Neil Patrick Harris, Jodi Benson and Whoopi Goldberg are perennial favorites), still has hundreds of singers made up of cast members and local choirs, and still has a full orchestra underscoring the whole thing. And, yes, it is still a powerfully moving experience that everyone should see as many times as they can in however many years they have on this earth. I’m not kidding; it really is that good. You might still be able to catch a show this season if you leave right now...
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