Avengers preparing to make debut at Disneyland

By David Villafranca

Anaheim, California, Mar 11 (efe-epa).- From Spider Man to Thor, including Captain Marvel and Dr. Strange, Disney is preparing to welcome the Marvel superheroes to the “Avengers Campus,” the new and spectacular theme zone in Disneyland that will open on July 18.

The famous California entertainment park invited a small group of media, including EFE, to be briefed on the work and the plans for the Avengers Campus, to be an immersive experience for park-goers that will transform members of the public into superheroes in their own right in the Marvel stories and allow them to participate in a series of adventures.

“When we set out to create these extraordinary Super Hero experiences across the globe, we designed a new Spider-Man attraction for Disney California Adventure park in an immersive land with amazing character experiences,” said Scot Drake, the portfolio creative executive for Walt Disney Imagineering.

“We also crafted an original story that ties all the experiences together in ways that are authentic to these characters. We worked side-by-side with teams that brought the Avengers films and comics to life to create a place that champions the next generation of heroes,” he added.

Drake went on to say that the challenge was to use all Disney’s creative and technological tools to bring the superheroes to the park, something he called a dream come true. The superhero stories are very different from the other stories Disney tells at its other parks, he noted.

There are few, if any, more successful brands in Hollywood than Marvel, and Disney has spared no effort to get the superheroes to literally fly as high as possible at Disneyland, feats that the public can witness.

The Avengers Campus includes the interactive “Web Slingers: Spider-Man Adventure” where “You actually get to sling webs just like Spider-Man,” Walt Disney Imagineering Executive Creative Director Brent Strong said.

“We can render a virtual web coming right out of the palm of your hand, right out of your virtual web shooters, and into a virtual world. It’s a lot less painful than being bitten by a radioactive spider, but you actually get to have all of those amazing powers,” he added.

“Web Slingers” will also present the Spider-Bots, tiny robots that are among the key elements in Disney’s “merchandising” campaign at the Avengers Campus.

But attendees will also be able to enter the mystical sanctuary of Dr. Strange and meet up with Iron Man in a new set of armor, the Mark 80, as well as encounter Ant-Man and The Wasp, Black Widow, Black Panther, Thor, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain America and Captain Marvel.

“It’s about living out your superhero fantasies,” said Strong. “Not just bring it to life – where you get to see your favorite heroes or you get to meet your favorite heroes – but you actually get to become a hero.”

There will also be gastronomic experiences, like Pym’s Test Kitchen, and The Shawarma Palace, where the public can chow down on delicious food eaten by the Marvel stars in a post-credits scene from the 2012 film “The Avengers.”

And, without giving anything more away, let it be known that there are also many hidden surprises to interest both adults and children at the new theme zone.

EFE