Fantasmic! To Return to Disneyland in Spring 2024 Without Dragon

Disneyland Resort has announced that Fantasmic! will be returning to light up the Rivers of America at night in the spring of 2024. When it returns, the Maleficent dragon will not be a part of the show. This comes after the previous iteration of the Maleficent dragon went up in smoke earlier this year in April.

A Disneyland spokesperson said, “Our goal is to always deliver the best possible show for our guests. With that in mind, we are planning the return of “Fantasmic!” with exciting new magic in spring 2024. As teams continue work on the show, we have launched nightly entertainment on the Rivers of America this summer and we are working on even more exciting entertainment offerings for our guests later this year.”

Currently Queenie and the Jambalaya Jazz Band are performing nightly along the Rivers of America. The group is performing jazz music and also some songs from The Princess and the Frog. Daps Magic was at the first night that they performed. Here is the first set:

This is not the first time that Fantasmic! has been shown without a dragon. This has happened before in 2009 when Maleficent would appear with a projection representation of dragon appearing after she shot her evil magic at Mickey Mouse in the form of pyrotechnics.

Fantasmic! first came to life thanks to Mickey’s imagination in 1992. It immediately became a fan favorite and for decades guests have filled the banks of the Rivers of America to watch Mickey’s imagination come to life against the forces of evil. After initially appearing at Disneyland, different versions of the nighttime spectacular appeared at Walt Disney World and Tokyo DisneySea.

Here is a look at Fantasmic! with the Maleficent dragon as seen before the incident:

What do you think about the return of Fantasmic! in the spring of 2024? What are you most looking forward to with its return? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!